How Do I Get A Job With A Startup?

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How Do I Get A Job With A Startup?

A reader sent me an email several weeks ago with this question:

I have always wanted to work for a small start up that was growing form 8 to 20 people, but I never know where to find them. Everyone hears about the big companies and I can search Craigslist and Monster, but what is the best way to find small, fast growing companies? I always hear about them too late.

It's a great question and I'll attempt to give you all some pointers on this question.

First of all Craigslist is a good resource for startup jobs. Most startups don't want to pay listing fees so I would venture to guess that more startup jobs are on Craigslist than any other job board.

But why search Craigslist when you can search Indeed.com? Full disclosure - Indeed is one of our portfolio companies, but its value proposition is undeniable. One search, all jobs. But it doesn't stop there. You can subscribe to Indeed job searches via RSS. When that plum startup job hits Craigslist, you'll be alerted via Indeed. I have no idea why everyone who is looking for a job doesn't use Indeed.

I asked the Indeed team if they could create a custom search term for startup jobs and they did just that this past weekend. So now, if you enter the word startup in the Indeed search (just like this), you'll get only startup jobs. You can still filter by location, job type, etc as well. Hopefully, that will be great help to everyone looking to join a startup.

But waiting for the job to be listed isn't enough. You need to become part of the "startup community" in the area you live in. In NYC, there are a bunch of networking events like the NYC Tech Meetup, NextNY, and a number of other networking opportunities. Go to them. Meet people, build relationships, let people know you are looking for a young company to be part of. It won't take long before you start getting calls and emails.

But a word to the wise, be picky about what startup you join. Do your homework. Ask around about the founders. Ask the company about their funding situation. Make sure you meet more than the boss before you take the job. Find out what it is like to work there before you take the job. Because as my former partner Jerry Colonna likes to say, "all startups are dysfunctional families". But if you get the right one, its the most fun you can have in a work situation. I am sure of that.

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Posted April 10, 2006 in Venture Capital and Technology

Comments

Make sure you believe in the product and the people.

Some specific questions to ask:

a: How much money is in the bank?
b: What's the monthly burn rate?

if 6*b>a then
ask when the next round is closing
end if

c: how many options are you being offered?
d: How many total options are there?
e: If the company is VC funded, ask about liquidation prefs and multiples.
f: ask when the company plans to be cash flow neutral
g: ask how many more rounds will be necessary before the company reaches cash flow neutral

c-g give you an idea about your potential upside and dilution.

Meet the whole team, reporting structures in start-ups are very fluid.

Posted by: Erik Schwartz | Apr 10, 2006 9:35:42 AM

It seems that Indeed is limited to US jobs only -- are there any plans for including global ones?

Posted by: Berislav Lopac | Apr 10, 2006 9:39:33 AM

Personally, I like this new startup at http://www.GoJobby.com that was reviewed on TechCrunch not too long ago. It's quite the opposite of what Monster and Indeed use... As a recruiter, I can find someone with the correct qualifications in under 1 minute flat. I absolutely LOVE the interface.

I would rate job sites as follows:

GoJobby
Indeed
Monster

BTW ... I thought Craistlist charged companies to post listings? Where the heck does their revenue come from if they don't?

Posted by: Robert | Apr 10, 2006 10:15:53 AM

Very cool advice. If anyone is looking for a developing position at a startup, email me please. I think Indeed, is definitely a great place to look for jobs. I'd love to see Indeed have a resume section, so startups like us can look for talented and visionary candidates (If this is there, and I missed it, please let me know). Getting involved in the startup community around you is DEFINITELY a plus. The networking you'll do is great.

-Jason L. Baptiste

Posted by: Jason L. Baptiste | Apr 10, 2006 10:38:57 AM

Great post. I wouldn't have thought about the Craigslist angle. What I liked most, though, was the quote from Jerry Colonna. I find it oddly comforting.

I do wish he were still blogging.

Posted by: Coty | Apr 10, 2006 10:55:03 AM

I think this is a good strategy if you don't have personal connections in start-ups:

1. Use the web sites of VC firms to find companies in your area of skill/interest that have had recent funding. If you don't know which VC firms to look at, choose some more mature companies and look at their corporate information to see which VCs funded them.

2. Call the company and ask to speak with a recruiter. A company that's had at least one round of funding will have a staff or contract recruiter, and this is the person whose interest are most closely aligned with yours. Try to get this person on the phone, be very professional, and figure out as much as you can about the company and what they're looking for in recruits.

3. Tailor your resume to the opportunity as much as possible and send it to the recruiter. A cover letter isn't much help compared to your resume and impression you make with the recruiter. The person who decides whether to bring you in for an interview is going to base the decision on what they think of your resume, plus whatever the recruiter tells them about you.

If you want to get into a company before the first round of funding, you really need to network. The people most likely to recruit you for this kind of opportunity are the people you already worked with at another start-up.

Posted by: Dylan Salisbury | Apr 10, 2006 12:02:47 PM

I think the first question to ask yourself is do you have what it takes to work for a startup? It is a very different culture, one that focuses much more on doing rather than planning or managing. There just isn't any place to hide at a startup. Furthermore, startups tend to pay less, have fewer benefits, cramped offices with older equipment and work longer hours than established companies.

If you want to work for a startup the best place to look is on VC websites. Most people consider these funds to be the top tier investors, which would be a logical place to start:

Kleiner Perkins
Sequoia
Mayfield
Menlo Ventures
Benchmark
Accel

The next teir gets much bigger and is much more debateable. Ironically, Union Square Ventures doesn't seem to have a job section dedicated to its portfolio companies.

Posted by: Andrew Fife | Apr 10, 2006 2:02:02 PM

Venture Wire is a reasonable place to look too. Not all startups post their jobs anywhere, and this lets you get to companies that recently announced funding.

Erik: I completely agree with all your questions, but for a non-executive hire, most startups would be unlikely to give many answers. I'd focus on references from people who have worked with the startup team before - do they treat people fairly, would you work with them again, etc.

Posted by: John Rodkin | Apr 10, 2006 2:36:50 PM

On a side note, but it would be great if Indeed offered full text on its job alert RSS feeds, rather than abbreviated versions. I agree with you on it being a great tool though. Everyone looking for a job should be using it.

Posted by: M. | Apr 10, 2006 4:15:50 PM

My company, YorZ.com also has many startup job opportunities listed from major cities (particularly San Francisco). You can also join the Web Startups group on YorZ to find startup jobs that are often not posted on job boards.

http://www.yorz.com

Posted by: Kevin Berk | Apr 10, 2006 4:32:23 PM

How about start it yourself. A couple of friends, a good idea, ramen noodles. 8 people isn't that big and if you have a willingness/want/need to work for a start up why not start your own firm?

Posted by: kip | Apr 10, 2006 7:57:21 PM

Indeed is by far the best job search site when combined with an aggregator. I use Newsgator with Indeed and keep an eye on 5-10 keyword search folders at a time.

To learn how to set this up, go to www.squidoo.com/onlinejobsearch

I love it so much I wrote a lens about it!

Posted by: Dana Sednek | Apr 10, 2006 9:51:27 PM

I'm glad to see this question being answered in this sort of venue.

I just joined another one recently. After 4 years of seeing deals from the investor side it is both refreshing and challenging to be on the other side of the table again.

The nail was hit on the head with the comment about having to "believe in the product and the people." You may not know the people that well, but it's worth doing your due diligence before signing on. You may have to rely on your instincts or discussion of shared preferences to vet the crew.

I remember pulling UUNET's Dunn & Bradstreet report before I joined that startup. Unfortunately, like so many other little companies, they didn't have all that much of a record yet. In retrospect, it was pretty funny. Not a perfect example, but you get the idea.

Being sociable and networking is a big part of finding the right company to join. It's a little more challenging on the East Coast as the technologists seem a little more fragmented socially than in the Bay Area. If you have acquaintances who have been through the process, they would be the first people I'd ask.

VC websites are definitely an invaluable resource for this sort of thing as well, as mentioned before.

Some startups are trying to walk a line between not wanting to attract too much attention too early, and looking for the broadest possible set of qualified candidates. I suspect that factors into the "mystery."

While I'm here...I'm looking a VP, Software Engineering and a few developers for Revive Systems (http://www.revivesystems.com), a venture-funded, self-healing software startup on the East Coast. If you write very high-uptime server software and want to be a part of something quite different, I'd like to hear from you.

Posted by: Bob Stratton | Apr 11, 2006 12:27:45 AM

I've always have an interest in startup. But I have this concern. Isn't it true that most startups fail? When the startup fail, it leaves a work history gap in one resume. The gap can be sizeable - from several months to over one year. How can one explain to a potential employer then? They have no supervisor to contact. Any enlightenment for me? Thanks. Please reply here or directly to my email.

Posted by: Tom Meis | Apr 11, 2006 1:46:09 AM

As a start-up founder I think the one idea that is really important is trust. As someone said earlier startups are VERY different than normal jobs. People who function well at a big corporation might not be worth anything at a startup. Moreover you spend 16 hours a day with your co-workers. It is super important that you get along with them and enjoy their company. For that reason, whenever possible I like to find employees through my network with recommendations I can trust. The fewer people I need to take a flier on the better. One bad employee can ruin the whole feel of your company (it happened at my last one and the process from hire to fire sucked). So for those who are thinking about a startup job I suggest networking as much as possible and being proactive in meeting people in the startup community.

Posted by: Zach Coelius | Apr 11, 2006 11:37:19 AM

Ummmm... how many start-ups actually have 8-20 people working for them? Do you want to work at a start-up or simply an Internet-related firm?

Posted by: Gabe Morris | Apr 11, 2006 6:07:35 PM

I am putting together a team of developers for a start-up idea I have. There is a twist though, as I don't have any money to pay salaries, so I am asking people to work for equity and I have been surprised by the overwhelming interest in my project.

So my question is how much equity it makes sense to give to developers? We are probably going to be 5-6 people who will have to work in our spare time for 3-4 months prior to launch and then a little more after that until we start making money.

I appreciate any feedback.

Posted by: Thomas | Apr 24, 2006 3:34:58 PM

You can also try CoNotes (http://www.conotes.com). CoNotes is an online career site for positions in fast-growth startups.

I am the founder of CoNotes and would love to hear people's thoughts.

Posted by: Andrew | May 22, 2008 12:01:24 AM

We have recently launch a new site called StartupAgents to specifically address this need. Come on by and check us out @ www.StartupAgents.com

Posted by: Lee Diamond | Oct 15, 2008 7:21:33 PM

A VC

Musings of a VC in NYC