We Just Raised Funding. Now What?

🚀 We Just Raised Funding, Now What?

A Founder’s Guide to Hiring Fast (Without Losing Your Mind)

You did it! After countless Zoom pitches, enough coffee to stun a rhino, and more deck versions than Pokémon cards, you landed that seed or Series A. Investors are jazz-handing. Your team is fist-bumping. The runway looks pleasantly long.

Now comes the plot twist: building the team that can actually deliver. (Spoiler: this is where many promising startups pancake.)

Why Hiring Is the First Real Test After You Raise

For early-stage companies, hiring is the hinge that swings momentum open—or slams it shut.

Big-co playbooks don’t work here:

• Endless interview rounds? → your dream candidate ghosts.

• Bloated JD templates? → repel the very misfits you need.

• Fifty-slide culture decks? → nice, but you still have zero engineers.

What you need instead:

• Speed without sloppiness

• Precision without paralysis

• Talent that thrives in today’s chaos—not a future org chart

🥇 Step 1 – Decide Who You Need Now (and Who Can Wait)

Most founders sprint to LinkedIn the moment the wire hits. Slow your roll.

Ask: Which roles will genuinely move the needle in the next six months?

✅ Do

• Prioritize the 1–2 hires that unblock revenue, product, or uptime.

• Write a one-sentence success metric for each (“This PM ships X feature by Q3”).

• Think two stages ahead—but hire for this one.

🚫 Don’t

• Stuff your headcount plan with every future role under the sun.

• Hire managers when you don’t yet have anyone to manage.

• Copy another startup’s org chart (especially one that just laid off 20%).

Real-world example:
When Figma raised its Series A, it didn’t stack VPs. It hired two generalist engineers who could do design tooling, infra, and coffee runs. Shipping speed tripled.

Free cheat sheet: Use our 👉 Growth Planner to map high-impact roles by stage.

✍️ Step 2 – Write a Job Description That Actually Works

Your JD is marketing copy, not legalese.

✅ Start with

1. Why this role matters right now (“We need our first Growth PM to 3× free-to-paid conversions”).

2. What success looks like in 90 days (tangible, measurable).

3. Why your startup is weird & wonderful (mission, tech, meme culture).

🚫 Avoid

• Bullet lists longer than a CVS receipt.

• Buzzwords like rockstar, ninja, fast-paced (everyone says that).

• “Competitive salary” with zero range (just tell them).

Real-world example:
Buffer’s open-sourced salary formula turned their job ads into viral LinkedIn fodder—and 3× candidate volume overnight.

📥 Want templates? Download the Startup Recruiting Guide (free).

⚡ Step 3 – Run a Fast, Human Hiring Process

You do not need six rounds and three take-home projects.

What you do need:

1. Align on what “great” looks like (15-minute calibration meeting).

2. Respond to candidates within 24 hours—speed signals respect.

3. Make decisions in ≤ 48 hours of final interview.

Pro tip: At Funded.club, our clients hire in 33 days on average—first candidates in under 7 days—because we shrink the loop.

Speed matters not just to beat the market but to show top talent you’re serious.

🧑‍🚀 Step 4 – Don’t Wear Every Hat Yourself

Founders moonlighting as recruiters often end up with:

• Launch delays

• Missed revenue

• And, occasionally, catastrophic hires (see: former Theranos COO 🙃)

Partner with specialists who

• Understand startup urgency & burn rates

• Pre-screen for startup DNA (bias for action, ambiguity muscle)

• Charge fixed fees, not 25% commission 🔪

Good news: Funded.club does exactly that—transparent project pricing, no nasty surprises.

🏁 Final Thought: Hiring Fast ≠ Hiring Carelessly

Moving fast doesn’t mean winging it. It means:

• Planning intentionally

• Writing with clarity

• Interviewing with purpose

• Deciding quickly

You’ve built something investors believe in; now build the team that turns belief into traction.

🎁 Grab Your Free Growth Planner

Budget your hires, timeline, and costs in one spreadsheet.
👉 Download the Growth Planner — and hit the ground hiring.