MONISH DARDA
Long-term vision helps in hiring very, very well. If you are thinking of the next two years or three years, then you are not really hiring for the job; you are hiring for a job that will be created in the future. That actually makes people more interested in you because they see a bigger picture just like you see that bigger picture right up front in that first conversation. You know, most good people are really excited about that, whether it is a good developer or an engineer or a salesperson or an exec, they are all looking at what will happen to Icertis and me in the next three, four, five, six, ten years and that kind of thinking upfront actually helps quite a bit, massively in fact.
SPARSH GUPTA
I remember talking to the parents of the first few employees to make them understand why their kids should join a startup and not a big company. This was 2011, and what worked for an unknown company in
WHAT HELPED, I BELIEVE, WAS OUR HONESTY IN SHARING WHO WE ARE AND WHAT WE PLAN TO DO. OVER THE YEARS, SOME OF THE MOST SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE WEREN’T THOSE WHO HAD EXTRAORDINARY SKILLS, BUT THOSE WHO GOT ALIGNED WITH OUR VISION AND ACQUIRING SKILLS HAPPENED QUITE ORGANICALLY FOR THEM.
— SPARSH GUPTA
the era when startups weren’t an acceptable career choice for many was our honesty and transparency. We didn’t sell them anything that we weren’t sure about, but we mainly spoke about what we are trying to do. So we had a dream, an unclear path, and a lot of passion for following and figuring it out. I remember not interviewing anyone for their skills but only judging their passion and will to make it happen. I guess our early colleagues also saw the same things and didn’t care much about the company. What helped, I believe, was our honesty in sharing who we are and what we plan to do. Over the years, some of the most successful people weren’t those who had extraordinary skills, but those who got aligned with our vision and acquiring skills happened quite organically for them.
