Recruitment & HR

Louder for the people at the back 🎤 Many organisations today seem to have shifted from being institutions that develop great talent to those that primarily seek ready-made talent. This trend overlooks the immense value of individuals who, despite lacking experience, possess a great attitude, commitment, and a team-oriented mindset. These qualities often outweigh the drawbacks of hiring experienced individuals with a fixed and toxic mindset. The best organisations attract talent with their best years ahead of them, focusing on potential rather than past achievements. Let’s be clear this is more about mindset and willingness to learn and unlearn as apposed to age. To realise the incredible potential return, organisations must commit to creating an environment where continuous development is possible. This requires a multi-faceted approach: 1. Robust Training Programmes: Employers should invest in comprehensive training programmes that equip employees with the necessary skills for their roles. This includes on-the-job training, mentorship programmes, online courses, and workshops. 2. Redefining Hiring Criteria: Organisations should revise their hiring criteria to focus more on candidates’ potential and willingness to learn rather than solely on prior experience or formal qualifications. Behavioural interviews, aptitude tests, and probationary periods can help assess a candidate's ability to learn and adapt. 3. Partnerships with Educational Institutions: Companies can collaborate with educational institutions to design curricula that align with industry needs. Apprenticeship programmes, internships, and cooperative education can bridge the gap between academic learning and practical job skills. 4. Lifelong Learning Culture: Encouraging a culture of lifelong learning within organisations is crucial. Employers should provide ongoing education opportunities and support for professional development. This includes continuous skills assessment and access to resources for upskilling and reskilling. 5. Inclusive Recruitment Practices: Employers should implement inclusive recruitment practices that remove biases and barriers. Blind recruitment, diversity quotas, and targeted outreach programmes can help ensure that diverse candidates are given a fair chance. By implementing these measures, organisations can develop a workforce that is adaptable, innovative, and resilient, ensuring sustainable success and growth.

Most companies think they need AI experts. What they actually need is a data pit crew. Data Scientists, Engineers, Analysts, these roles are exploding, with data science jobs projected to 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰 𝟑𝟔% 𝐛𝐲 𝟐𝟎𝟑𝟏, according to BLS, one of the fastest-growing professions. Meanwhile, according to Gartner 𝟔𝟏% 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 are evolving their data strategies to keep up with AI-driven disruption. Job titles don’t tell the full story. Here’s what these roles actually do: • 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐀𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐥𝐮𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬 They design the structure that makes everything else possible: data lakes, warehouses, and pipelines that ensure information moves efficiently and securely. Without them, data would be a tangled mess. • 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐀𝐥𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐬  They don’t just analyze data; they extract value from it. Using machine learning, statistical modeling, and predictive analytics, they turn raw data into business-changing insights. • 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 They specialize in uncovering trends, correlations, and anomalies. Whether it’s identifying fraud, optimizing operations, or finding revenue opportunities, their job is to make sense of the noise. • 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐫𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐈 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐬  They prepare data for AI, ensuring it’s clean, structured, and optimized for machine learning models. Because feeding bad data into AI is like training a GPS with a 10-year-old map. • 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐎𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬  They predict what’s coming next: market trends, customer behavior, risk factors. Using historical data and predictive models, they help businesses make proactive decisions. • 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧-𝐔𝐩 𝐂𝐫𝐞𝐰  They fix bad data, remove errors, and ensure consistency. Because even the best algorithms are useless if they’re working with garbage. • 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐚 𝐏𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐨𝐩𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 – 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐬 & 𝐒𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲 𝐆𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬  They ask the big questions: Should we use this data? Is it biased? Does it comply with privacy laws? They ensure data-driven decisions are also responsible ones. With Chief Data Officers now overseeing AI strategy at 58% of organizations, the importance of these roles is only growing. So, which one best describes what you do? Or do you have a better title for your role? Drop it in the comments! 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞: https://lnkd.in/eawvf8Rx ******************************************* • Visit www.jeffwinterinsights.com for access to all my content and to stay current on Industry 4.0 and other cool tech trends • Ring the 🔔 for notifications!

ESOPs don’t always work, but when they do its magical 5000 Swiggy employees made around 9000 crores in the IPO Some would have made 100 cr plus Many many more would have made 10 cr plus Life changing money for most people and will enable risk taking and another 100 plus startups from this set If you are evaluating offers from startups with significant ESOP component, this is how you should evaluate it For an employee to make meaningful money through ESOPs, 2 things must happen: - Growth in company value - Employee friendly ESOP policies that ensures employees make money when company grows a) Growth in Company Value This is where employees need to think like investors Just like investors are particularly wary of what valuation they are coming in, entry valuations should matter for employees too ESOPs are allotted basis the current valuation The likelihood of a 10x growth in your ESOPs if you are joining a startup valued at 100 million $ is much higher compared to joining a startup already valued at 5 billion $ A 75 lakh ESOP allotment in a 1000 cr valued org with chances of a 10x growth could be a better offer than 2 cr ESOP allotment at a 20000 cr valued org with lower chances of future growth The second thing to judge is the business model and the likelihood of the business to grow( very important for Seed/Series A/B startups) b) ESOP Policies The startup ecosystem is full of stories where employees didn’t make money despite the company growing and having multiple liquidity events. Swiggy, Zomato are examples of great ESOP policy. Many companies have extremely shitty ones Here are the things that should matter most while evaluating policies: 1. Vesting Schedule: The standard is 25% vesting after every year. Any schedule which has higher vesting towards the later years is a red flag Vesting should never be performance linked If performance is bad, it is management’s responsibility to fire 2. Vesting on Leaving/Startups Exit: If you exit, you should retain all options that has vested If a startup gets acquired before all your options vest, there should be accelerated vesting 3. ESOP Communication: There should always be written communication( preferably through ESOP portal) Verbal communication for ESOPs is a huge red flag 4. Strike Price: Strike Price should be as low as possible( Re 1 ideally). This maximizes the value creation for the employee 5. Holding/Exercise Period: Converting options to shares is a major tax liability exercise. With limited exercise period, it becomes impossible for employees to exercise as it means paying up to 40% real taxes on notional capital gains in an asset class that is not liquid Ideally, holding period should be infinite for vested options, even after exit This enables employees to wait for liquidity events without incurring upfront taxation to be paid out of own pocket

You're in a job interview, you get the offer—but the salary? Way lower than expected. The worst move? Accepting on the spot. The second worst? Declining outright. Here's how you can take the 'ick' out of negotiating: 1. Start with Gratitude →“Thank you for the offer.” 2. Share Excitement →“I’m really excited about the role and joining the company.” 3. Address the Salary →“Before I accept, I’d like to discuss the salary. It’s below what I believe reflects the market value for my experience.” 4. Reinforce Your Value →“I’m confident my expertise in A and B, and my contributions to C and D will drive success here.” 5. Reiterate Market Value →“Based on my research and track record, I believe a salary range of X to Y would be more in line with the industry.” Where to do research? Check salary data on sites like Glassdoor, Payscale, and LinkedIn, or ask industry peers and recruiters for real-world insights. Pro tip: Use multiple sources to get a well-rounded view and always adjust for location and years of experience. P.S. Have you ever accepted a salary because you didn't know how to negotiation? I'll go first: Yes, I have...

The best founders do one thing brilliantly... Hire. Here’s how we think about finding & attracting A-players for our portfolio companies: Most owners hire like they're running a restaurant. They think more cooks = faster service. Instead, they get a kitchen full of people bumping into each other, burning food, and blaming everyone else. That’s why hiring isn’t a numbers game. You don't need more people. You need the RIGHT people. It’s impossible to build a worthwhile business with mediocre talent. Over the years, we've developed a framework to find, attract, and close the top 0.001%. I call it the 4 C's to Top-Level Talent: 1. CURATE Start hiring before you start hiring. Follow smart people in your niche on Twitter. Connect on LinkedIn. Bookmark stuff that makes you say, "Damn, I wish I wrote that." Treat talent like a portfolio. Study first, invest later. The best hires happen when you're NOT desperately hiring. 1. CULTIVATE Engage without being weird. Compliment their stuff. Comment. Ask smart questions. Send them ideas. The best talent moves when THEY'RE ready, not when you need them. Plant seeds early. Water them consistently. 3. CLOSE When it's time to close the sale, go HARD. Fly them in. Meet their spouse. Pay more than you're comfortable with. I wasn't even looking for a company President when I met Marc. I wanted a CRO. But after one conversation, I knew he was our guy. So I changed the org to fit HIM. That's how good hires work. They change you. Don't squeeze top talent into your current structure. Bend your business around exceptional people. 4. CONTINUE Top performers won't always stay forever. That's okay. Even when they leave, keep them close. My old Head of Content now runs a 7-figure business. We still trade notes. They send better talent than any recruiter ever could. As someone who’s hired 100s of people, take it from me: Your best hires won't walk in the door with a resume in hand. They're already working somewhere else, crushing it. It’s your job to go find them. Hiring the right people is one of the most powerful growth levers for any business. If you want to see exactly how we attract and retain top-tier talent across our portfolio, I’ll be breaking it all down in an upcoming workshop (tomorrow). This is just one of several proven scaling strategies we’ll cover— more info here: https://lnkd.in/emd63SuT

The most important skills today and in the next years will be human capabilities: critical and analytic thinking, resilience, leadership and influence, overlaid with technological literacy and AI skills to amplify these human capacities. World Economic Forum's new Future of Jobs Report provides a deep and broad analysis of the drivers of labour market transformation, the outlook for jobs and skills, and workforce strategies across industries and nations. It's a really worthwhile deep dive if you're interested in the topic (link in comments). Here are some of the highlights from the Skills section, which to my mind is at the heart of it. 🧠 Analytical Thinking Leads Core Skills. Skills like analytical thinking (70%), resilience (66%), and creative thinking (64%) top the list of core abilities for 2025. By 2030, the emphasis shifts even more towards AI and big data proficiency (85%), technological literacy (76%), and curiosity-driven lifelong learning (79%). This shift underscores the critical role of technology and adaptability in future workplaces. 📉 Skill Stability Declines but at a Slower Rate. Employers predict that 39% of workers' core skills will change by 2030, slightly lower than 44% in 2023. This reflects a stabilization in the pace of skill disruption due to increased emphasis on upskilling and reskilling programs. Half of the workforce now engages in training as part of long-term learning strategies compared to 41% in 2023, showcasing the growing adaptation to technological changes . 🌍 Economic Disparities in Skill Disruption. Middle-income economies anticipate higher skill disruption compared to high-income ones. This disparity highlights the uneven challenges of transitioning labor forces across global regions, particularly in economies still grappling with structural changes. 🚀 Tech-Savvy Skills in High Demand. The adoption of frontier technologies, including generative AI and machine learning, is increasing the demand for skills like big data analysis, cybersecurity, and technological literacy. These trends indicate that businesses are aligning workforce strategies to integrate these advancements effectively. 📚 Upskilling Is the Norm, Not the Exception. By 2030, 73% of organizations aim to prioritize workforce upskilling as a response to ongoing disruptions. This reflects a shift in corporate investment priorities towards human capital enhancement to maintain competitiveness.

Boeing just announced they are cutting 17,000 people from their global workforce. This is a huge lay off—representing more than 10% of the company including many immigrant workers. Layoffs hit everyone hard, but for immigrant workers, the consequences can be devastating: 1/ Most visa holders have just 60 days to find a new job or leave the U.S. 2/ Visa-dependent spouses lose their work rights if the principal worker is laid off. 3/ Layoffs can derail the green card process, forcing workers to restart with a new employer. 4/ L-1 visa holders can’t switch companies—they must find a similar role within the same company or leave. 5/ Despite paying into benefits, visa holders can’t access all social services. If you’re a visa worker facing a layoff, here are a few options: - Ask for nonproductive paid status: Some companies will keep you on nonproductive paid status, extending your 60-day grace period to find a new job. - Change to a B-1 visitor visa: B-1 visa lets you stay for 6 months. While USCIS takes 10+ months to process, you can remain in the U.S. during this time and change back if you find a new job. - Change to an F-1 student visa: Enroll in a degree program while you search for a job. You can stay in the U.S. while your status change is being processed. - Start thinking about long-term status & lock in priority dates: There are options to get long-term status without employer sponsorship. For example, you can apply for an EB-2 NIW (National Interest Waiver). This green card option allows advanced degree holders or those with exceptional skills to apply without a job offer. Fields like dentistry, VR engineering, and education have been approved. Layoffs are tough for everyone, including U.S. citizens. However, for visa workers, layoffs carry even greater consequences—it’s not just about losing a job; it could mean losing their chance at the American dream. Being an immigrant is hard, so let's be kinder to our immigrant friends & neighbors.

“We don’t use agencies or consultants because I had a bad experience with one several years ago”. That’s what a Director of RevOps told me yesterday. It’s like saying you’re never going to a restaurant again because one time you had a bad meal. I used to think the same way when I was young, naive and inexperienced. I took so much pride in thinking I knew everything and could do it all myself. But then in 2013, despite me arguing against it, the company I worked for hired a Strategic Marketing Consultant named Andy and it fundamentally changed my career. Andy taught me all the really important things about Marketing that most people don’t talk about - how to conduct customer interviews, how to create a business case, how to run a beta trial, how to build a differentiated strategy using product, price, distribution, and promotion all together. Then again in 2017, the company I worked for hired a Category Design Consultant named Robin who taught me everything about category design, positioning, narrative design and strategic communications. Then again in 2018, the company I worked for hired a Creative & Branding agency who totally transformed our website, sales decks, and advertising assets and taught me everything I know about the creative process and how much it matters in properly communicating your message to the market. A lot of my skills, experience, and success in entrepreneurship can be directly attributed to these experiences working with external experts that taught me specialized knowledge, processes, and ways of thinking. ___ External experts (agencies, consultants, fractionals, etc.) have distinct advantages that simply can’t be replicated by in-house employees: -They’ve worked with hundreds or thousands of companies to solve the same problem  -They’ve developed processes, automation, and other forms of intellectual property that accelerate projects and initiatives  -They’ve seen some companies succeed and clearly know what "success" looks like and what it takes -They've seen many companies fail and know how to help you avoid common mistakes and missteps. Not leveraging external experts to complement the skills of your in-house team, accelerate key strategic initiatives, avoid common missteps, and help you identify internal blindspots is simply not smart and is based on a false sense of ego and pride. I know because I thought that way for a long time and now realize how naive and misguided my thinking was. Not using external experts just because you had one bad experience with one is like saying you’re never going to a restaurant again because you had one bad meal. Restaurants don’t all suck - you just picked a bad one. Pick a better restaurant next time. Or be naive and prideful trying to cook all the meals by yourself - eat a bunch of poorly cooked meals, have it take 10x longer, and waste a bunch of time and money trying to be a self-taught Michelin Star Chef. #strategy #b2b #marketing #sales

#CfD & #PPA - both buzz words used a lot recently. And both clearly favoured by EU Commission to boost #renewable electricity. But how do they interact?! This isn’t analysed and understood well yet. I discussed this with government representatives from across the EU in the 9th Plenary Session of the Concerted Action on the Renewable Energy Directive (CA-RES4, https://www.ca-res.eu/) in Sophia/hybrid last week. In my talk (slide extract below), I pointed out that… 🔷 … a government Contract for Difference (CfD) constitutes state-aid to de-risk and support the penetration of renewable energy. Accordingly, a MWh of renewable electricity eligible for a CfD cannot be sold under a renewable merchant Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), with which customers such as data centres or steel factories would fulfil their sustainability targets. That would be "double-counting" in a state-aid law sense. 🔷 … PPAs and CfDs can co-exist on a market level, though: competitive projects enter into bilateral "green" PPAs with customers, while those projects/techs where costs exceed customers' willingness to pay (but that governments still want to materialise) can bid for a CfD. Which is what has happened in practice in many countries. With market conditions tightening, though, there is widespread concern that merchant PPAs get crowded-out by government support CfDs, reducing market liquidity and increasing support needs. 🔷 … there is increasing thinking into how a single renewable plant (e.g. a wind or solar park) can benefit from the de-risking of a CfD while still providing an offering for customers in the PPA market. One option is to not let the CfD start before X (e.g. 5) years after Commercial Operation Date (COD), incentivising the operator to secure revenues for the first X years on the market, e.g. via a PPA. Another option is to let the operator split its park into one part receiving a CfD and one merchant part selling PPAs. Both come with pros & cons and challenging implementation questions... 🙏 Thank you very much for a vivid discussion, it was super interesting to hear how different EU Member States think about this! And many thanks to Leonardo Barreto and the team of Austrian Energy Agency for the invite & organisation, and my Frontier Economics colleagues Lyuba Ilieva & Stephan Schmitt for their prep support!

🎢 Onboarding UX Playbook (+ Decision Trees). Practical techniques for better onboarding UX, design patterns, kits and Figma templates — on mobile and desktop. 🚫 Users often skip tutorials/walkthroughs entirely. 🚫 Never block the UI with full-page onboarding modals. 🚫 Avoid long multi-step tutorials with 5+ steps. ✅ Ask customers what goals they are trying to achieve. ✅ Allow users to hide walkthroughs and restore them later. ✅ Focus on bringing users to first success moments fast. ✅ Structure your onboarding suggestions in bite-sized chunks. ✅ Explain features when users slow down or make mistakes. ✅ Show features when users lose time with repetitive tasks. ✅ Prevent failure with an early warning system for new users. ✅ Collapsible checklists work well for onboarding. ✅ Personalized onboarding works even better. ✅ Design sets of filters, templates and empty states. ✅ Show starter kits based on user’s profile and interests. ✅ Consider short video guides and email drip campaigns. Good onboarding can’t be generic. It has to be relevant and valuable. Define your user segments first. Design a set of presets to help them get to success moments faster. Think of the questions you need to ask to customize their experience. Think about filters and presets they might need. Onboarding tutorials often appear once and get instantly dismissed, nowhere to be found again. Allow users to find them when they need it. Bring them up when users slow down or make mistakes. And test the discoverability of your features continuously. If a feature is obvious, you might not need to explain it at all. And if it isn’t, perhaps onboarding won’t solve this problem either. Useful resources: How to Choose Onboarding Methods and Components, by NewsKit 👍 Methods: https://lnkd.in/eWn5FPWA Decision Tree: https://lnkd.in/e8TmMDFf Design Patterns: https://lnkd.in/ed7HjzkW Onboarding UX Playbook, by Eleana Gkogka https://lnkd.in/edcDfMFG Complete Onboarding UX Guide (free eBook), by Intercom https://lnkd.in/eAxT6ZM4 User Onboarding Best Practices, by Taras Bakusevych https://lnkd.in/eRwr2tEc Guide to Onboarding, by Phil Byrne https://lnkd.in/esEavgw7 How Spotify Organizes Onboarding in Figma, by Barton Smith, Cliona O'Sullivan https://lnkd.in/ei434tqq Mobile Onboarding Wireframe Flows (Figma template) https://lnkd.in/ekhzWFJz UX Onboarding Patterns, by Eve Weinberg https://lnkd.in/e7_M4kDv #ux #design