There's something here...
Visitors to CalmHire, a pilot customer for CalmCode, and starting the search for a co-founder
Hey folks,
Before I jump in with updates, I thought I’d share a tweet from an experienced developer that gives a glimpse into how broken technical hiring processes can be at certain companies. And why I’m eager to help improve them with CalmCode (& CalmHire).
Past 3 weeks
🟢 — Validate candidate interest in companies with better technical interviews
CalmHire has gotten more than 1.3K visitors in the past three weeks, mainly through Twitter and Reddit. I haven’t even shared it on ProductHunt, HackerNews, or LinkedIn yet. Is 1.3K a lot? Well, the only point of comparison I have is diverse.fyi which didn’t get this level of traffic until after launching on PH and LinkedIn. This means one or both of the following:
Meaningful value → There is candidate interest in companies with better technical interviews.
Effective channel → It’s easier for me to access developers on Twitter/Reddit than recruiters (who are the main customers for diverse.fyi).
I also continue seeing more examples of developer frustration at existing technical interviews and interview prep (LeetCode). In addition to the tweet above, here are some recent ones from Reddit:
🔴 — Get 10 companies as potential leads for CalmCode pilot
This was a simple goal. Or so I thought. It involved putting together a list of warm leads that I could pitch to be a part of a pilot. But, as I started to make this list, I realized that I didn’t have clarity on the initial target customer and their job-to-be-done. So, I spent more time iterating on the positioning and the pitch by drafting multiple versions of landing pages. Ultimately, I identified 5 companies from my network and spoke directly with 3 of them.
This exercise surfaced that I will need to find new ways to connect with more companies. One way I’m acting on this is by getting more involved in startup communities. In November, I’ll be giving a talk at a founder meetup about technical hiring fundamentals & best practices. Another way I’m beginning to consider is building a team of advisors and strategic investors (including programs like YC) that can help make introductions to companies.
🟢 — Acquire 1 customer for a paid pilot
Of the three companies to which I’ve spoken, one agreed to be part of the pilot! 🎉 The details are being ironed out, but I’m excited to co-create better technical interviews with this early customer/partner.
🟢 — 🆕 Begin the search for a co-founder
I hadn’t mentioned this as a goal in the last update, but it is something I had been thinking about and have decided to make a more concerted effort towards now.
1 thing I could do better
Refine my sales pitch
I learn best by doing and, through this experience, there’s a lot I’m learning about sales. It’s made a bit easier because I’m talking to eng hiring managers and technical recruiters who want to build a better tech community — my people. Still, there’s a science and an art to making a succinct yet effective proposal of delivering value to a potential customer. And I’m excited and determined to iterate and improve.
Next 2 weeks
🥅 — Acquire 2 more customers to be part of the CalmCode pilot
🥅 — Continue the search for a co-founder
Thanks for reading!