Interview Skills and Pitfalls for Startup Founders

The secret to enduring success is not just a strong leader but the entire team. And that is especially true for fast-growing, small startups – which is why effective interviewing skills are so vital. Unfortunately, many startups struggle to grow because they lack adequate hiring practices and have not mastered the art of conducting interviews to recruit the right talent.  

In this episode, BIP Ventures SVP of Portfolio Performance Jacki Hertenstein interviews talent specialist Renata Mathison of Aquesst. Their discussion covers the key ingredients for successful interviews:  start by clearly defining your ideal candidate profile, assemble a panel with specific questioning roles, leverage a structured interview guide, and prioritize assessing the candidate's experience.

Renata is the Managing Director and Co-founder of Aquesst, a specialized Information Technology search firm. Aquesst has sourced talent for hundreds of organizations ranging from small businesses to mid-sized enterprises to Fortune 500 companies. Renata brings a wealth of recruitment experience. You’ll come away with a sense of how to identify individuals who possess the required technical expertise and align seamlessly with the culture of the organization. 

What You Will Learn:

• [01:26] Foundations that companies need to have in place before an interview process

• [02:15] How managers and business leaders can do to sell their company during an interview

• [03:15] How Renata's company helps customize interview guides

• [03:58 ] Coaching tips for your hiring manager when evaluating candidates

• [04:55] How leaders can select external staffing partner that fits for them

• [07:48] Evaluating culture-fit values for your company

• [08:44] The good and bad of integrating AI in the hiring process

• [09:59] Why a candidate’s experience is one of the underrated things in hiring

• [11:34] Remote vs in-person interview process and where to leverage more

• [12:33] Current state of diversity within the hiring process and weight is projected to go

• [13:59] Hiring tips to ensure compliance with ethical laws 

• [15:07] Things inexperienced interviewer can do to ensure good candidate experience 

• [18:16] The selection process in different organizations 

  
  

  Standout Quotes: 

  •  “For critical leadership roles, never interview the candidates remotely. It is better to incur the costs through in-person interviewing, rather than having the wrong person.”-Renata Mathison [11:31] 
  • “If you have an office or hybrid environment, never hire anyone remotely. If they are not willing to spend their time to come to your office, there will be a challenge.”-Renata Mathison [11:40] 

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• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/renatamathison/ 

  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aquesst/ 

  Website: https://www.aquesst.com/ 

  Email: r.mathison@aquesst.com 

  Mobile: 678-358-9363 

  
  

  BIP Ventures 

  Website: www.bipventures.vc 

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