Startups: How to Compete Against the Big Boys for Qualified Job Candidates

== Work nimbly and hire qualified candidates quickly...

I agree with this. I feel annoyed when I send my resume to a larger organization and don't hear back for a week or more. Its nice to see interest quickly.

== Promote your company's size.

Agreed, I've worked in big orgs and even a smaller org (<70 people) still feels big to me. I've also worked in small situations and loved those.

== Prove your company's stability.

Please do, I'm willing to take a big risk. Really I am. However its hard to bite when its a social network for oak furniture lovers. Actually, emphasize the "interesting" problems your company is trying to solve. What are the technical roadblocks you're blowing apart that no one else can touch? The availability of interesting work will help recruit talent. I realize not everything can be a research problem but certainly there are interesting problems in any tech startup?

== Benefits

Here are some good things to look into:

-- for telecommuters, subsidize their cellphone and internet costs,

-- give your employee a computer budget and let them buy whatever they're most comfortable working on

-- for those relocating, consider a moving allowance, access to a real estate agent, or at least the promise of someone to pick them up at the airport and show them around for a week. The third option costs nothing but part time of one of your employees and can make a big difference in their happiness / integration into the team.

-- gym membership maybe?

-- vacation time... most companies are incredibly stingy on this one... consider the opposite approach, 4 weeks should be possible.

One other option--pay your folks a decent enough salary and give them the option of taking unpaid days off as the tempo of the company allows. I'd gladly pay for this flexibility so long as I know I have it.

-- consider giving all your employees a monthly or quarterly book allowance to buy books related to their job

-- consider promising your employees the ability to do their engineering without being bothered with work such as buying print toner or ink jet cartridges. Those considering the jump from faceless corporation X or the government will consider this a big selling point.

== Target beginners.

Beginners are nice but in a startup you want some experienced talent on board too, Steve Yeggae calls them seed engineers. These first engineers define the culture, informal processes, and way of getting things done as you grow into a sustainable business. Make sure you have the right people in this role.

== Use a recruiting service.

I've never used a recruiter and I'm a little nervous about doing so. I like this crop of startup related job sites like snaptalent and startuply. I like the joel on software job board and check craigslist as well. I personally stay away from Dice and Monster because they seem synonymous with faceless corporations.

== Nice work space...

I worked in a loft above a music store in a startup experience back in 2000. I loved that job like nothing else. My coworker (a hippy type) painted the walls with flowers. I remember between living arrangements I stored all my worldly possessions there for a few weeks. I have happy memories of the place.

That said, here would be some nice to haves: office space located in a downtown area (walking distance to restaurants and such) or located in an area near running/biking trails (include a shower in this case)... a private office for developers would be a big plus too, I can live in a cubicle though. It doesn't bother me.

Please avoid offices located in the middle of nowhere on airport road. I'd rather telecommute or work out of a dumpster than deal with those.

== For what its worth...

These are just my 1:30am thoughts on this article. Good luck.

Do any start-ups actually believe that?