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How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

shane.engineer

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Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#51

Post by leeny »

patio11 wrote: post #36

An intermediate step between "send in a resume and cover letter that no one reads" and "send in an unsolicited blow-their-minds project", which may well bounce off the same spam or attention filter which bounces a resume, is "convince one person in the company that they want you to apply there." This is much, much less difficult than engineers think it is. People with hiring authority are on the same Internet you are…

As a former recruiter, I can't second this enough. Applying online is like shouting into a black hole. Pinging a real person with sincere, earnest content and talking to them like they're a person is so much better.

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#52

Post by sinnet11 »

I feel like this approach is easier for smaller startups. But what about bigger places like google, apple, or facebook. My background isn't your traditional CS background but I have over 4 years of experience on a site that does million+ in traffic but I can't even get my resume sniffed at by those companies.

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#54

Post by blairbeckwith »

mathattack wrote: post #46
blairbeckwith wrote: post #12

This is so true. It's really shocking how little effort and originality some/most people go to in getting the job they want. I have a similar story, although nowhere near as much effort. When I was 20 and hating life in school, I really wanted to work at Shopify. At the time, they were maybe 80 people. I've never made a resume and didn't feel like that would get me noticed. Sio I simply sent a cold email to Tobi, our…

Great story! Did they start you for free? Or how long did it take to get paid?

They, like most good companies, ended up not letting me work for free. I was paid well (for someone with, as I said, no experience and no concrete skills) right off the bat.

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#55

Post by dominotw »

leeny wrote: post #51
patio11 wrote: post #36

An intermediate step between "send in a resume and cover letter that no one reads" and "send in an unsolicited blow-their-minds project", which may well bounce off the same spam or attention filter which bounces a resume, is "convince one person in the company that they want you to apply there." This is much, much less difficult than engineers think it is. People with hiring authority are on the same Internet you are…

As a former recruiter, I can't second this enough. Applying online is like shouting into a black hole. Pinging a real person with sincere, earnest content and talking to them like they're a person is so much better.

>Pinging a real person with sincere, earnest content and talking to them like they're a person is so much better.

I was a bigtime Rdio fan. I loved their clean design, discoverability. I pinged a real person with big list of improvements and bugfixes that was I was collecting over many months. I told them I wanted to work for them and sent them my resume.

They got back to me with "We have sent over your suggestions to our engineers, but we can't hire anyone without Python experience" .

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#56

Post by blairbeckwith »

zuck9 wrote: post #30
blairbeckwith wrote: post #12

This is so true. It's really shocking how little effort and originality some/most people go to in getting the job they want. I have a similar story, although nowhere near as much effort. When I was 20 and hating life in school, I really wanted to work at Shopify. At the time, they were maybe 80 people. I've never made a resume and didn't feel like that would get me noticed. Sio I simply sent a cold email to Tobi, our…

What position did you get? Are you at the same till now? EDIT: Your website, http://blairbeckwith.com/ says "You have reached a domain that is pending ICANN verification."

Yeah, had some issue with the domain this AM – fixed now. I started as an intern on the App Store team; that team was four people at the time. Through a series of internal moves, the team eventually dropped down to just me about six months after I joined.

I'm still with the same team today four years later; I lead the Developer Relations team and manage a team of five within a larger team that includes API Support and Merchant App Experience.

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#57

Post by zerr »

iammaxus wrote: post #33
lucio wrote: post #24

You developed in a long weekend a MVP which does more than the startup's soft?

Formlabs cofounder here. Of course, there is a difference between a demo focusing on implementing new features then the software that we are shipping. But yes, it was extremely impressive and it's no surprise that he is leading much of our engineering team (beyond software, as well) today.

Do you think he would've been better off with starting his own business with that MVP? If no, why?

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#58

Post by blairbeckwith »

vinceguidry wrote: post #34
blairbeckwith wrote: post #12

This is so true. It's really shocking how little effort and originality some/most people go to in getting the job they want. I have a similar story, although nowhere near as much effort. When I was 20 and hating life in school, I really wanted to work at Shopify. At the time, they were maybe 80 people. I've never made a resume and didn't feel like that would get me noticed. Sio I simply sent a cold email to Tobi, our…

Naiveté is a useful quality in a candidate for the right company. It signals the potential for loyalty. Once you've had your idealism broken by corporate bullshit, there's no easy way to get it back.

I think this is definitely true. Initially I felt like my loyalty was a result of having no other options, but it's proven untrue. I've had offers from all over the place since I've grown within Shopify, and I have no desire to leave this place. It's been fulfilling, challenging, and it will always be the place that took a chance on me when there were very few logical reasons to do so.

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#59

Post by blairbeckwith »

zerr wrote: post #44
blairbeckwith wrote: post #12

This is so true. It's really shocking how little effort and originality some/most people go to in getting the job they want. I have a similar story, although nowhere near as much effort. When I was 20 and hating life in school, I really wanted to work at Shopify. At the time, they were maybe 80 people. I've never made a resume and didn't feel like that would get me noticed. Sio I simply sent a cold email to Tobi, our…

Do you feel underpaid?

I have been, and continue to be, compensated more than fairly for my position. I don't think not going to school or anything has had any impact on my earning potential so far.

Re: How to get hired at a startup when you don't know anyone

#60

Post by niij »

iammaxus wrote: post #33
lucio wrote: post #24

You developed in a long weekend a MVP which does more than the startup's soft?

Formlabs cofounder here. Of course, there is a difference between a demo focusing on implementing new features then the software that we are shipping. But yes, it was extremely impressive and it's no surprise that he is leading much of our engineering team (beyond software, as well) today.

You're the best boss in this thread.

On a side note, what are higher ups looking for in a young applicant? I'm graduating in the fall with a CS Undergrad and don't have any startup contacts (I live in a smaller town in Missouri) and am trying to get my foot in the door somewhere that is doing interesting work.

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