The Ingredients for The Perfect Hiring Process

Hiring great people is like baking a cake. Make the base role clarity, mix in values alignment, sprinkle in a real-world project, and add a pinch of ~magggggiccc~.

Previously, I wrote about all the pre-work you need to do before starting a hiring process. If you've done that right, this will be the easy/fun part.

Put on your aprons and let’s dig in (yes chef)!

Hiring Philosophies: Guiding Principles to Live By

Before we dive into the steps, here are a few hiring principles we lived by that helped us build a process that candidates actually enjoyed (and that scaled with us):

• Transparency Wins: Be brutally clear about what the role is and isn’t. The more honest we were, the better the fit, because people knew what they were walking into.

• Objectivity is Key: Create consistency. Ask the same questions, use the same scorecards, and have the same people evaluate each candidate whenever possible. If there’s bias (and there always is), at least it’s standardized.

• Core Values or Bust: We evaluated core values throughout, sometimes directly, often implicitly. Growth mindset, for instance, showed up in the questions candidates asked: thoughtful, specific, and curiosity-driven.

• Every Touchpoint Matters: Candidates are always evaluating you, even when they’re not talking. How you schedule interviews, how fast you follow up, how polished your questions are, it all adds up to how seriously they’ll take your offer.

• Speed is a Feature: Move quickly. Especially with great candidates. A slow process can lose you the best ones to companies with faster clocks.

• Hiring Is Iterative: Your process is a prototype, not a final product. Don’t over engineer the process. You’ll tweak the questions, rewrite the test project, maybe even reshuffle who’s in the interview loop. Constantly review what worked, what didn’t, and adjust accordingly.

Now, let’s roll up our sleeves and walk through our tried-and-tested process step by step.

1. First Call Magic (15 Minutes): Hype, Transparency, and Alignment

The first call is your best chance to build rapport, clarify expectations, and get the candidate genuinely excited about the role. Because we'd nailed our upfront prep, about 85% of candidates passed through easily.

I highly recommend this call is taken by the hiring manager for the role because they can hype the candidate up, answer questions about the role, and immediately sense if the candidate is a good fit or not.

Here’s the playbook for hyper-transparent conversations:

• Role Clarity: Spell out exactly if it's a player, player-coach, or pure coach role.

• Candidate’s Happy Place: What's their jam? Favorite projects, dreaded tasks, ideal workday. Does it align with what we’re offering?

• Expectation Alignment: Ensure their dreams and your needs match up for hiring heaven.

This isn't just screening. It's also your opportunity to sell the role and the team. Remember, great candidates usually have other offers.

If I felt the candidate was a good fit on this call, I'd immediately explain the test project and send it right after the call.

2. Designing the Test Project: Keep It Real, Relevant, and Quick

Test projects are tricky, but here are some heuristics to design a good one:

• Representative of the Job: The test should closely mirror actual job responsibilities. Think of it this way. You should design the project such that if the candidate likes or dislikes the project, it will be a sign that they will like or dislike the day-to-day of the role.

• Short and Manageable: Aim for projects that candidates can comfortably complete in a single sitting outside of work hours.

• Level Playing Field: Ensure the project doesn't unfairly favor prior experiences or industry knowledge to best maintain an objective evaluation.

• Engaging and Interactive: Design the test to be enjoyable and provide opportunities to explore the candidate’s thought process live. Evaluate their ability to ask insightful questions, adapt to feedback, and handle real-time adjustments.

Practical examples

Backend Developers

• Scenario: Building a backend system to find leagues and optimize brand sponsorship campaigns

• Project: Build an API that locates leagues based on address and radius, while fulfilling brand requirements for budget and reach

• Live Session:

  • Walk through their implementation and reasoning

  • Pair on building a small feature together in real time

Sales Roles

• Scenario: Running an outbound process to sign a new brand partner

• Project: Choose a vertical, identify a real company and contact, and write a cold outbound email sequence

• Live Session:

  • Explain rationale

  • Role-play a sales call, get feedback, then redo the call with adjustments

CSM / Analyst Roles

• Scenario: Presenting a campaign recap to a client

• Project: Use provided campaign data to build a concise, impactful recap deck

• Live Session:

  • Present the deck as if on a real client call

  • Probe for how they handle questions and storytelling under pressure

Universal Reflection Questions
These go beyond the project to surface mindset and fit:

• What do you think went well?

• What would you have done differently with more time or resources?

• Which parts did you enjoy most? Least?

• What would you change if this were a real-world task?

3. Culture Fit Finale (3 Interviews, 20 Minutes Each): Values Deep Dive

This isn’t the time for another snoozy “tell me about yourself.” It's about core values and culture fit:

• Short, Multiple Interviews: Candidates meet three different team members, each with a 20-minute slot, focusing explicitly on values.

• Go Deeper: Ask direct, meaningful questions tied closely to core values.

• Excite Again: Every interviewer should live the value they are asking about. Don’t talk about your company culture, show your company culture.

4. Decision Time: Scorecards and Core Values

Post-interview, the team should immediately review each candidate while the interview is fresh. Use standardized scorecards while keeping these questions top of mind:

• Role Fit: Can they handle the responsibilities and excel here for the long-term?

• Team Level-up: Will they raise the bar and push our team to be better?

• Core Values: How do they align with and embody our core values?

5. Reference Checks: Additional Context

To respect a candidate’s references, you should really have a decision already before checking references.

Everyone gives glowing reviews. Your job is to extract the real context underneath. I often think about it as learning about a candidate’s strengths, weaknesses, and work style, so we can set them up for success when they start.

Here’s what we asked references:

• Working Relationship: What was the nature and structure of your working relationship?

• Superpower: What was their standout skill or trait?

• Growth Area: Where do you think they could level up?

• Communication Style: How did they share feedback, handle ambiguity, or navigate conflict?

• Work Style: Independent or collaborative? Fast starter or methodical planner?

• Working on a Team: In a team setting, what role did they often play?

• Would You Rehire?: Would you work with them again, and if so, in what capacity?

• Final Catch-All: Is there anything we should know to help them be happy and successful here long-term?

Try to complete this step within 48 to 72 hours of your decision meeting. Speed keeps momentum high and avoids losing great candidates in limbo.

6. The Offer: Make it Personal, Make it Exciting

Never, ever send an offer via email (it’s not your Netflix renewal):

• Personal Calls: Call them, celebrate the moment, get teammates involved to congratulate.

• Deadlines for Clarity: Clear timelines keep energy high and decisions swift.

Post-offer, our team individually texts candidates to keep excitement rolling right into Day 1, and it helps create early momentum.

Quick Note on Background Checks

There are mixed opinions on background checks. My take is that background checks depends on your business.

Are you working with sensitive data or vulnerable groups (like youth)? Make this mandatory. Otherwise, it’s up to you to decide.

Wrapping Up

What did I miss? What’s the best hiring process you’ve been a part of either on the company or the candidate side?