5 ms·

I see it as Peter saying hire for culture, Mark saying hire for talent.

by brador 12y ago

sergiosgc 12y ago
The answer is, as always, somewhere in the middle. I reconcile both thinking of culture as an hygienic condition, and talent as an order winner. Explaining: if the culture is poor, talent will go unused (it is irrelevant); if culture is good, talent gets used and only then does it make sense to try and hire the best talent.
xasos 12y ago
That's how I took it as well. I remember reading from Max Levchin (?) that a company should hire people exactly like them, culturally, early on. This helps reduce unnecessary conflict when the only thing you're focused on is growth. A prime example is why early startup employees come from the same school as the founders. I think later on, bigger companies focus on talent and culture equally (for the most part).
- kybernetikos 12y ago
  Hiring people culturally similar may sounds sensible in theory, but it may not be sensible in practice. I haven't seen stats on startup hiring, but I read this about investment, which in my opinion stands a good chance of having a similar effect: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/7069.html http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/7069.html "The probability of a successful exit outcome decreases by 18 percent if two venture capitalists who previously worked at the same company partner up in the syndication. The likelihood of success drops by 22 percent if co-investors attended the same undergraduate school. The negative effect of shared affinity is even stronger when it relates to ethnicity: Collaborating with someone from the same ethnic minority group comes at the expense of a 25 percent reduction in performance."
  - prodigal_erik 12y ago
    Maybe investors are more properly skeptical about dumb opportunities proposed by someone with a dissimilar background. Founders and employees have a much greater need to work together day-to-day and trust each others' judgment.
    - kybernetikos 12y ago
      It's certainly plausible. I can tell a plausible story from the other side though - the primary feature of being a start up is learning, and if it's an echo chamber you're going to be learning the wrong things and relying on things other than facts to dictate your business strategy.
jroseattle 12y ago
I agree with this summarization as well. What's implicit in both of these (IMHO), is that the type of friends Peter Thiel looks for will naturally be talented. And likewise for Mark, where someone he respects enough to consider working for is likely someone he would befriend. Big assumptions, but those guys are in the type of position where that's likely a reliable expectation.

I see it as Peter saying hire for culture, Mark saying hire for talent.

by brador 12y ago

I see it as Peter saying hire for culture, Mark saying hire for talent.

The answer is, as always, somewhere in the middle. I reconcile both thinking of culture as an hygienic condition, and talent as an order winner. Explaining: if the culture is poor, talent will go unused (it is irrelevant); if culture is good, talent gets used and only then does it make sense to try and hire the best talent.

xasos 12y ago

That's how I took it as well. I remember reading from Max Levchin (?) that a company should hire people exactly like them, culturally, early on. This helps reduce unnecessary conflict when the only thing you're focused on is growth. A prime example is why early startup employees come from the same school as the founders. I think later on, bigger companies focus on talent and culture equally (for the most part).

kybernetikos 12y ago
Hiring people culturally similar may sounds sensible in theory, but it may not be sensible in practice. I haven't seen stats on startup hiring, but I read this about investment, which in my opinion stands a good chance of having a similar effect: http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/7069.html http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/7069.html "The probability of a successful exit outcome decreases by 18 percent if two venture capitalists who previously worked at the same company partner up in the syndication. The likelihood of success drops by 22 percent if co-investors attended the same undergraduate school. The negative effect of shared affinity is even stronger when it relates to ethnicity: Collaborating with someone from the same ethnic minority group comes at the expense of a 25 percent reduction in performance."
- prodigal_erik 12y ago
  Maybe investors are more properly skeptical about dumb opportunities proposed by someone with a dissimilar background. Founders and employees have a much greater need to work together day-to-day and trust each others' judgment.
  - kybernetikos 12y ago
    It's certainly plausible. I can tell a plausible story from the other side though - the primary feature of being a start up is learning, and if it's an echo chamber you're going to be learning the wrong things and relying on things other than facts to dictate your business strategy.

jroseattle 12y ago

I agree with this summarization as well. What's implicit in both of these (IMHO), is that the type of friends Peter Thiel looks for will naturally be talented. And likewise for Mark, where someone he respects enough to consider working for is likely someone he would befriend. Big assumptions, but those guys are in the type of position where that's likely a reliable expectation.