""It's the right time to hire when things are so busy that you can't even find a slot in your calendar to do an interview with a candidate," YC partner Gustaf Alströmer said in an episode of YC's "Office Hours" podcast released on Tuesday. He said this is when things are at their "breaking point" and the cofounders must work beyond their regular schedules to keep things running. Alströmer, who worked as a product lead at Airbnb from 2012 to 2017, added that hiring can take about three months, and founders should look out for early signs."
""An early indicator of that moment is that there's a specific thing in the company that's breaking or about to break. It's either engineering or it's sales or onboarding," he said. He added, "You have to be honest with yourself. Are these early indicators, or are they just my hopes that they're going to be early indicators?" On the podcast, Alströmer said head count growth should not be confused with startup growth."
Startups should hire only when operations reach a breaking point and founders cannot even find time to interview candidates. Hiring processes often take about three months, so founders must watch for early indicators such as engineering, sales, or onboarding functions that are breaking or about to break. Hiring exists to prevent a functioning company from failing rather than to signal success. Many startups aim for high valuation with very small teams. Across tech, leaders prioritize efficiency and AI adoption over increasing head count. Founders must be honest about whether warning signs are real or wishful thinking.
Read at Business Insider
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