ambi.blog

Bad hiring decisions, not product or market issues, are the real reason startups fail, with mis-hires draining runway and damaging culture. Most VCs only provide basic talent support like recruiter introductions, but forward-thinking firms are now implementing portfolio-wide talent strategies with salary benchmarks, dedicated partners, and AI-powered platforms. This systematic approach is positioned as essential portfolio protection, since bad hires across multiple companies can cost millions in runway.

In the early days of a startup, every hire matters more than you’d like to admit. When you’re burning through capital, chasing product-market fit, and trying to convince investors you have it all together, the wrong hire isn’t just a bump in the road, it can set you back months, burn cash you can’t replace, and shake team morale.

The venture capital landscape is experiencing a fundamental shift in how portfolio companies approach talent acquisition. While traditional hiring methods create bottlenecks and geographical limitations, forward-thinking VCs are investing in data-driven talent ecosystems that unlock global talent pools and accelerate portfolio growth.

The traditional talent acquisition model is broken. While VC-backed startups with $10M+ funding should theoretically have no trouble attracting top talent, many still struggle to build dream teams that bootstrapped companies seem to assemble effortlessly. The answer isn't more capital or higher salaries but a fundamental shift in how we connect talent with opportunity.

My barometer check for successful products and why I think this is something we need to focus on more now than ever before.

The religion of moving fast and breaking things has stressed us out and left us broken. Is this the only way to successfully build a product, or can we use design to do things differently?

How might we create a hybrid office environment where designers thrive?

3 tips for overcoming complexity and going from 0 to 1.

Why we reorganized Shopify.dev information architecture around developer goals, not information type.

Documenting your design decisions will help you communicate them.