Introducing: Dover Recruiting Partners
Max Kolysh
Founder
October 9, 2024
•
4 min
Early-stage founders face a paradox in hiring:
They want tight control over the process. Makes sense — early hires can make or break a startup.
But they also need:
Expert help on big questions (Think: compensation packages, equity structuring, negotiating with senior candidates)
A way to offload the tedious stuff (Resume review, screening calls, interview scheduling, pipeline management)
The challenge? Finding a solution that gives founders control while providing expertise and delegating the grunt work.
Many startups consider hiring an in-house recruiter as their first solution. While this can be effective for companies with more than 50 employees and consistent hiring needs, it's often not the best fit for earlier-stage startups.
The primary issue is the inconsistent nature of startup hiring. Post-fundraising, a company might need to rapidly expand its team, requiring the equivalent of two full-time recruiters. However, once this hiring sprint concludes, the demand may drop to half a recruiter's time. This fluctuation explains the unfortunate trend of recruiter layoffs we've seen in recent years.
Additionally, startup roles are diverse and specialized. Hiring needs can range from senior engineers to marketing leads to product managers, often in quick succession. Finding a single in-house recruiter proficient at hiring across all these domains is exceptionally challenging.
What about agencies?
Since in-house recruiting is often impractical, many startups turn to agencies. However, this approach comes with its own set of challenges, which we explored in depth in our first ever blog post from 5 years ago, The $30,000 Intro.
The core issue with agencies lies in misaligned incentives. Agencies are incentivized to place candidates at any company, not necessarily finding the best fit for a specific startup's needs. This leads to a situation where startups often find themselves unsatisfied — either they don't make a hire and waste time, or they make a hire and pay a substantial fee, often $30,000 or more per placement.
The contingency model used by most agencies prioritizes speed over quality. This often results in a flood of resumes, many of which may not be well-suited to the role or company culture.
Dover Recruiting Partners is our solution to these persistent hiring challenges. Here's how it works:
1. Fractional, Experienced Recruiters
We connect startups with seasoned recruiters who have 10-15 years of experience working with top startups and tech companies. These recruiters work as an extension of your team.
2. Flexible Scaling
Companies can scale their recruiting efforts up or down based on their current needs, perfect for managing post-fundraising hiring sprints without committing to full-time salaries.
3. Role-Specific Expertise
Our network includes recruiters with diverse backgrounds, allowing us to match the right expert to each specific role you're hiring for.
4. Technology-Enabled Efficiency
Our recruiters utilize Dover's platform to streamline administrative tasks, reducing costs and allowing them to focus on strategic aspects of hiring.
5. Aligned Incentives
Unlike traditional agencies, our recruiters are invested in finding the right fit for your specific needs, not just placing candidates at any company.
6. Transparent Pricing
Most companies spend an average of $80 per hour, with cost-per-hire typically ranging between $2,000-$10,000 — significantly less than traditional agency fees.
A step forward in startup hiring
Dover Recruiting Partners represents a significant step forward in addressing the unique hiring needs of startups. By combining the flexibility startups require with the expertise of seasoned recruiters and the efficiency of modern technology, we aim to provide a more effective and cost-efficient hiring solution.
This approach eliminates the need to choose between the inflexibility of in-house recruiting and the misaligned incentives of agencies. It offers a middle ground that provides expert recruiting help when needed, focused on finding the right candidates for your unique requirements.
We're committed to helping companies of all sizes build exceptional teams. If you're interested in exploring how Dover Recruiting Partners can support your hiring needs, visit dover.com/recruiter to learn more and get matched with a Recruiting Partner.
