Dear hustlers, founders, operators and visionaries,
We are releasing the video of our conversation with Paddy Lambros today, former Talent Partner at Atomico and Co-Founder of Recruiting platform Dex. Paddy scaled Improbable from 50 to 650 people across multiple international offices and later helped Sensat grow from 30 to 100 employees. He is a major voice in the ecosystem on Recruiting topics.
🎧 Tune in now on Spotify, Apple, YouTube and share your thoughts! In the meantime: Follow the Gradient and stay tuned!
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Why you should listen
You should listen to this if you are weighing hiring speed against hiring quality and feel the pressure to “just add people” to solve today’s problems.
As the conversation unfolded, it became clear that most startup pain does not come from lack of headcount but from compromised hiring decisions that compound over time.
What we talk about
00:00 Introduction
02:49 The journey from startup to VC
05:19 Hiring slower versus scaling at all costs
07:01 Deciding early roles from first principles
08:39 Attracting talent without brand or budget
11:40 Clarifying your employer value proposition
14:04 Structuring the hiring funnel like sales
17:56 Using case studies and workshops effectively
20:51 Evaluating hunger and long term potential
24:04 Onboarding for time to first value
26:44 Holding a high bar during probation
29:56 Executing layoffs with clarity and focus
35:56 Founder evolution and role layering over time
Our main take away’s
Rushed hiring decisions compound into structural problems. The way you solve today’s gaps becomes the foundation for tomorrow’s organization, and a misaligned hire will cost more time and energy than waiting weeks for a great one.
The first 20 hires define the company’s trajectory. Quality tends to degrade as organizations scale, so if the initial bar is not exceptionally high, culture, accountability, and performance erode quickly as headcount grows.
