We always relish the chance to evolve our thinking on Talent best practice and embrace innovation, and so we were front and centre at the Slush stages to listen to contemporary thinking and wisdom from Talent leaders across the Tech and VC market. As Talent consultants these thought provoking discussions enable us to, not only lean into our natural curiosity, but also refine our client solutions and ultimately allow us to consistently deliver actionable and up to date market insights and trends to further support our clients in helping them attract, retain, and develop top-tier talent in an ever-evolving market.

We had the pleasure of listening to the likes of Mikko Mäntylä, co-founder of Realm, and Brooke Nayden, Chief HR Officer at Adyen discuss ‘Top Tips for Building a Super Team’ as well as lectures on ‘Building Talent Density’ from Zoe Jervier Hewitt, VP of European Talent, Sequoia and ‘Hiring and Retaining Talent’ by Bastian Hasslinger, Partner, Index Ventures.

So, here’s a bit of a snapshot as to what leaders in the industry had to say for themselves:

Winning top talent: For scaling businesses that may have less brand recognition, fewer clients, or less financial might, the key to winning top talent lies in crafting a compelling narrative around the business’ unique vision, purpose and value potential. As Brooke Nayden said – ‘It’s a sales pitch’ and the team’s ability to succinctly deliver that and stay on message can be the difference between winning and losing.

Strategic, not reactive, hiring. Avoid a short term outlook: As Zoe Jervier Hewitt put it – ‘meet today, hire tomorrow’. For businesses that have a good idea of growth plans or transformational/ business critical hires needed over the next 6-12 months it’s important to use time to your advantage and start engaging with those top candidates ASAP. Hiring whoever is available at the time vs the absolute best person for the role can be the difference between business success and failure – so best to be strategic vs reactive. This is doubly true of start-ups/ scale-ups that may not have the war chest of bigger businesses and so relationship building and establishing the purpose of the business and value prop of the role will be essential in the current competitive talent landscape.

AI as a catalyst for growth: Talent acquisition and retention can be deeply time intensive activities. Harness the power of AI to streamline Talent and HR operations and reinvest the savings into scaling your business. As Bastian Hasslinger delineated, ‘If AI frees up cash, use it to grow!’

Interviewing is a learned skill: Talent acquisition is a time intensive process so don’t let a sloppy or lazy interview process let you down. Something we took away from Zoe Jervier Hewitt’s talk was the reinforcement that interviewing is a learned skill and experience does improve ability. If a team has a low level of interview experience it’s important to invest time/ training into getting them better at that skill given the importance of the interview process to both sell a candidate on an opportunity whilst also optimising an understanding of if they are right for it through vetting. A wider point on this is to also facilitate your team to interview for potential as much as experience. Brooke Nayden’s focus is always balanced across the two as they look for candidates to set themselves apart by showcasing potential through their questions, and therefore their curiosity, just as much as their answers. Commercial or research based questions vs the more generic culture based inquisitions that some candidates undertake are the better route to a role at Adyen, according to Brooke.

Onboarding for Success: The longer someone feels new in a role the less impact they can make. Integrate hires into the doing and the energy of your business quickly, ensuring their success by setting clear, realistic expectations.

A Founder’s Role in Hiring: An interesting question asked by Mikko Mäntylä – ‘How long should a Founder be involved in hiring?’ And an equally interesting answer given by Brook Nayden. Adyen believes the founder or C-Suite should always be involved in each hire, irrespective of the size of the business. The consistent inclusion of business leaders in hiring is invaluable for preserving culture and fostering relationships. Adyen still keep a panel stage inclusive of Board/ C-suite members as part of the process for every hire, which, she admits, is time consuming, but feels is integral in keeping a high bar, as well as ensuring that every new hire has at least some form of personal relationship with those at the top of the business from day one, which is imperative to their culture.

Succeeding in today’s competitive talent market demands strategic, thoughtful hiring. Crafting a compelling business narrative, leveraging AI for efficiency, and maintaining your purpose and culture north star are key to standing out. Prioritising long-term planning, even through times of chaos, investing in interview skills, and onboarding effectively ensure hires not only fit the role short term but thrive long term. For talent professionals, including us here at Sapio dedicated to the Tech and VC space, the distillation of the above is a reminder that hiring isn’t just filling roles—it’s building the future.