Even if you’ve got a developer’s background behind your shoulders, it doesn’t fully safeguard your startup from failure. The process of building a startup team is way more complicated than it seems at the first glance. In particular, have you heard that only 80% of startups stay afloat after one year? A shocking statistic, isn’t it?
In total, half of the accusations are on the wrong team, the poor product, belated delivery, misunderstanding among parties (client, provider, and investors, if there are any), and lack of passion. Hence, hiring developers for a startup should be a well-planned process, and dedicated team service from a reliable IT vendor can be the right solution.
Patternica knows how to hire a programmer for a startup not by hearsay. Having devoted 5+ years to assembling dedicated teams, we’re ready to shed light on this question. Read on how to build a team for a startup wisely!
Challenges you might face when building a startup team
The better you’re prepared at the initial stage, the more chances the development path will go smoothly and in the right direction. As the central part of your preparation, realize the challenges you might come across.
1. Long and complicated process. Based on Patternica’s experience, building a good MVP usually takes from four to six months. This is an intense schedule that, however, won’t deteriorate the quality of the future solution when the work is done by professionals. If the team working on the project doesn’t feel the market specifics (38% of businesses fail on this ground), it may result in developing a product no one needs.
2. Hardship in hiring the right people. Search for relevant people may not be successful from the first attempt. That’s why choosing a trustworthy IT outsourcing provider is the task of uppermost importance not to start the hiring and development process from scratch once again.
3. Doing everything for the first time. Probably, it’s your first attempt at building a startup team, and this new experience requires time to comprehend all the nuances of this job. Thus, many costly mistakes can occur to you, prolonging the overall time for product creation.
How can you overcome these challenges? Continue reading for tips below!
Where to find developers for a startup: A quick overview
There is a number of ways you can go to find developers for a startup, and we’ll get you acquainted with the major of them. Check out the list!
✔ International freelance networks, such as Upwork, Toptal, or Fiverr;
✔ Famous job sites, including LinkedIn, Indeed Jobs, Glassdoor Jobs, etc.;
✔ Word of mouth — refer to your friends and acquaintances for giving recommendations of the IT providers they’ve tested;
✔ Official company lists — have a look at GoodFirms, Clutch, and Trustpilot.
Though the channels vary, as you see, we highly advise you to rely on professional help to hire a team of developers once and correctly + quickly, + efficiently. And usually, this is about finding the dedicated team in the vendors’ list, per advice, or through personal research.
How to build a team for your business: A step-by-step guide
Hiring a developer for a startup is challenging, not to mention the dedicated team comprising the PM, BA, QA, developers, and designer(s). Thus, we’ll leave a short instruction for you to get it done right.
Understand the division of roles from the start
As a client, you shift the bigger part of the hiring and development challenges to the provider. You won’t hold responsibility for talent acquisition, training, staff retention, team building, administration, employee benefits, IT infrastructure, and bundles of paperwork. On the contrary, your role consists of defining the project scope, introducing requirements, evaluating team results, and checking the fit for your company’s culture.
Take part in interviewing the startup members
To hire a software development team for your project, you should also do your bit in interviewing the key players. As a rule, the first circle of staff selection - both HR and technical - is done on the vendor’s part. So, you’ll join the dialogue when promising candidates are found.
Clarify the communication rules and policies
At this stage, mind the impact of time zone differences (do your time slots cross for easy communication?), calendars overlapping (compare days off and national holidays to estimate the project duration), and language (good command of English for all is a must-have).
Set clear milestones and KPIs
Once you’ve found a reliable development provider, get them familiar with the project’s goals, deadlines, and scope. Also, inform the team members about the preferred communication channels, frequency of updates, and key metrics to assess their progress.
Evaluate intermediate results and give feedback
To ensure the product delivery will happen at an agreed time, you’ll have the PM, standing at the top of the management process over developers and other dedicated team members. But you’ll need to check the overall progress and access the team performance per sprint. Feedback to the development team is no less critical for the project’s success.
The biggest and most expensive recruitment mistakes startups make
Are you the owner of a tech startup, and need the right talent to achieve success? We are here for you!
Imagine a promising tech startup that experienced rapid growth but struggled to maintain momentum; it lacked cultural fit among its early employees. This can result in frequent employee departures, lower output, and a negative workplace culture.
Imagine another company that rushed through the hiring process to fill a critical role. They ended up hiring a candidate who lacked the necessary skills and experience. What is the result? The company got delays in product development and a loss of investor confidence.
Even though these examples are imagined, still there are lots of real examples of how recruiting mistakes can negatively impact a startup's trajectory.
Let’s explore together the most popular recruitment mistakes faced by tech companies and find practical solutions. By understanding these common hiring mistakes and implementing effective strategies, you can build a high-performing team that drives your startup's success.
1. Underestimating cultural fit
A strong company culture is important to create a positive work environment, improving your employee satisfaction, and driving innovation. When you’re building a team for a startup, make sure that they align with your company's values and beliefs.
A mismatch in cultural fit can lead to a variety of problems, such as:
✔️ Low morale, because employees who feel like they don't belong or don't share your company's values may become disengaged and unhappy.
✔️ Increased turnover, because team members who are not a good cultural fit are more likely to leave your company.
✔️ Decreased productivity, because a toxic environment can negatively impact working energy and innovation.
✔️ Damaged company reputation, because a negative work culture can spoil your company's reputation and make it difficult to attract top talent.
Our recommendation: to assess candidates for compliance with corporate culture.
Here are some suggestions on how to build a startup team:
✅ Define your company’s culture (values and beliefs)
✅ Use behavioural interviews (for example, "Tell me about a time when you faced a challenge and how you overcame it.")
✅ Conduct cultural fit assessments
✅ Involve your current team
2. Rushing the hiring process
If a company is growing rapidly, it can be tempting to fill open positions ASAP. However, rushing with the hiring process can lead to common mistakes in the hiring process - poor decision-making and the hiring of unqualified candidates.
Decisions based on limited information can cause a lot of damage!
Our recommendation: take steps to slow down the hiring process and improve the selection process.
Here’s how you can do this:
✅ Create a hiring plan with timelines, roles and responsibilities.
✅ Use a structured interview process with the same questions on each stage to be sure the answers are smooth and consistent.
✅ Conduct reference checks and get feedback from previous employers.
✅ Perform background checks to identify any red flags.
✅ Avoid the “availability bias” and take time before final hiring.
3. Overlooking experience & skills
In an effort to save money, you may focus on hiring low-cost and less experienced employees. And we understand your motives! But that might not be such a good idea after all.
Employees with less experience may seem for you as a cost-saving measure, but in fact it is more expensive in the long run. Inexperienced team members may require more training and supervision.
Our recommendation: to find a balance between experience and budget.
Here’s what you can do to avoid common hiring mistakes:
✅ Search for candidates who not only have skills and experience needed for the role, but also have potential for growth.
✅ Propose some training and other opportunities to help your employees develop their skills.
✅ If you need to fill a temporary position or a role that requires specialised skills, consider outsourcing.
✅ Provide competitive salaries and benefits to draw and keep top talent.
4. Poor communication & expectation setting
When there is a lack of communication or a misunderstanding of expectations in your company, it can lead to a variety of issues between team members.
When there is a mismatch between your expectations and potential employee’s, it can cause frustration and dissatisfaction for both sides. This can happen if the job descriptions are unclear, when goals are not communicated effectively, or when there is a lack of feedback.
Our recommendation: develop a clear process of communication and goal setting.
Here’s how to build a team for startup:
✅ Write a clear job description that reflects the role's responsibilities and expectations.
✅ Set understandable goals, that everyone knows the vector of your growth and development.
✅ Provide feedback on a regular basis to make sure everyone is on the same page.
✅ Encourage open dialogues, let your team speak up.
5. Lack of onboarding & support
A well-structured and well-organised onboarding process is important. As it helps new employees to feel welcome, understand their role, and succeed in their new positions.
When startups fail to provide adequate onboarding and support, new employees may feel confused, lost, and undervalued. Additionally, new team members who do not receive adequate training may not be able to perform their jobs effectively.
Our recommendation: create an effective onboarding program.
Your steps to avoid common mistakes in onboarding are:
✅ Develop a plan, take into account all the details that outline the steps involved in the onboarding process.
✅ Assign a mentor to each new employee so they feel welcomed and supported.
✅ Provide training or other additional development opportunities to maintain the first steps of the employee in your company.
✅ Schedule regular check-ins to monitor progress and be aware of any concerns.
Find out Patternica’s experience in startup team building!
We’ve already seen different scenarios of how the process might go after the client comes to us. Meanwhile, in the majority of cases, there are two most popular cases:
1. Hiring programmers for a startup. Once we provided just one high-skilled developer for the CTO, and in duet, they passed the whole development journey until the project realization.
2. Building a team for a startup. The company-client contacted us with the request to upgrade the product. It means they had the solution, but the UI, UX, and performance characteristics were poor. Our job was to redevelop the product from scratch with our dedicated team.
Patternica is a reliable IT service provider that can become your vendor — whether you need to hire a developer, find a dedicated team, or build the MVP. We’re looking forward to meeting the new startup owners and realizing their most demanding requests on the technical side. Bring us a new challenge by expressing your business concern through the quick form!