Hiring is hard
What I've gotten right - and very wrong
I’m hiring right now.
Not 1.
Not 2.
But for 3 different positions. (if you’re curious about these, here are more details)
It’s been awhile since I’ve opened up more than 1 position to be filled. But the data-geek side of me is loving it because I’m seeing behaviors, trends, and outliers at a scale where I can draw conclusions around 1) what I should do more of moving forward with hiring, 2) what I should absolutely improve upon moving forward with hiring, and 3) a few bonus tips for anyone applying for jobs or proactively seeking new opportunities.
Sponsor: Clay
In finance, "alpha" is an investment’s outperformance over a market benchmark. It's what separates market-beating investors from the rest of the pack.
GTM teams think they're seeking alpha. Refining targeting, updating messaging, tweaking sales pitches, etc. But the reality is most companies aren't actually seeking alpha - they're settling for market "benchmarks" instead.
Too many companies + teams give up their quest of alpha before "The Moment" - they see others doing better than them, their results not at the "market benchmark" yet. But for those who trust their plan, trust in themselves, trust in the impact they know they can make - well, "The Moment" is when things really start to get fun…
First things first, don’t skimp on the job description
“I want to hire a product marketing manager. People [recruiters + candidates] know what’s expected of someone in that role already, so here are a few generalized bullet points to cover the responsibilities for it. Now go get it posted on our careers page.”
If a hiring manager, or you, ever say the above, that’s a huge red flag. The job description is a step many of us want to get through as quickly as possible, but it’s the entire foundation of the role we’re trying to fill.
DO. NOT. TRY. TO. SHORTCUT. THIS. STEP.
As a recruiter, all of the details needed to proactively find the best candidate for the role are nested into this. The skills. The experiences. The traits. Remember that old saying “the output is only as good as the input”? Don’t be surprised if you get 💩 candidates if you have a 💩 job description.
I’m not saying I’ve mastered the art of the perfect job description, but I’ve iterated upon ones I’ve created years ago that I look back upon and cringe at. Here’s a quick “template” I’ve been using lately. I’ll give you an overview on the purpose, how I think about what to populate it with, and an example of what this looks like for the Customer Marketing Manager role I’m hiring for.
1. Opportunity introduction
Purpose: Get prospective candidates genuinely excited about the opportunity. Highlight what makes the company and role unique. Attract high performers by being honest about challenges and growth potential.
[1-2 paragraphs that get a prospective candidate excited about the opportunity. What makes the hiring company exciting? What’s unique about the team or mission? Be clear about the pace, expectations, and the kind of person who thrives here. Let people know it’s okay if they don’t check every box-growth mindset matters most.]
Customer Marketing Manager example:
At Loxo, we’re not simply offering you a job - we’re inviting you to join a team that is paving the future of the recruitment industry. In this role, you will have a mix of responsibilities you've probably held before, as well as responsibilities and projects that many companies shy away from due to fear of the unknown. Loxo isn't the place for everybody, and we recognize that. We move quickly and hold the team to high standards. If you're looking to just get by, for a monotonous role, or for a place where you can blend into the background - this isn't the opportunity for you.
That being said, we also recognize that very few people will meet 100% of the qualifications below. We don't expect to find a unicorn. But what we are looking for is someone with the passion, desire, and tenacity to learn and master the above. We're looking for someone with a growth mindset and high potential. So if reading this excites you, but you're worried about not checking every box, that's ok - we still want to get the chance to meet you.
2. Who you are
Purpose: Describe the qualities, experiences, and mindset that matter most. Focus on values, traits, and potential, not just a checklist of skills.
[A short list/paragraph about the kind of person who thrives in this role. Highlight values, attitudes, and soft skills. Mention must-haves, but emphasize that not checking every box is ok as a growth mindset is more important to have than possessing everything we’re looking for on day 1.]
Customer Marketing Manager example:
Talking to customers, increasing product usage + adoption, and owning a revenue target. Love those things? Great, that's exactly what we're looking for in someone for this role.
We are looking for a highly driven Customer Marketing Manager to help scale our growth efforts. We are at the stage where a significant amount of growth moving forward will come from our existing customers.
The ideal candidate should come from a high-growth B2B/SaaS background who is not afraid to roll up their sleeves and do the work. You're someone who gets excited when a new product or feature is released, and the first thing you think is, “I can’t wait to share this with our customers!”
This person is not someone who likes to do things “by the book” or just focus on strategy.
This person is someone who knows there's a better way to do things, but has been held up by red tape or fear of change from their leadership.
This person is not someone who needs to be told exactly what to do and how to manage their time.
This person is someone who identifies problems and opportunities, comes up with a plan, and takes action to drive results.This role will report directly to the VP of Marketing and will work very closely with the Sales, Customer Success, and Product leaders to make a significant impact for the business.
3. What you’ll do
Purpose: Paint a clear picture of the day-to-day work. Help candidates visualize themselves in the role and understand the impact they’ll have.
[A bulleted list or a few quick paragraphs describing the core responsibilities. Focus on what the person will actually spend their time doing, not just a list of tasks. Make it real - share the problems they’ll solve or the results they’ll drive.]
Customer Marketing Manager example:
Core responsibilities
You will build and scale the customer marketing function at Loxo across the key focus areas of communications, advocacy, reviews, PLG, and campaigns
You will increase pipeline, revenue, and net revenue retention (NRR) from our customer base
You will own customer communications, working closely with our Customer Success team on delivering the right message to the right customers, such as release marketing, expansion campaigns, and adoption programs
You will partner with the Demand Generation Manager on customer-specific campaigns
You will partner with the Product team on our PLG offering to increase usage and adoption
You will develop a consistent pipeline of customer stories, expressed across various mediums (written, video, audio, etc.) in partnership with our Head of Brand & Content
You will partner with Customer Success on customer relationship surveys to better understand our overall customer experience, identify areas of improvement in the Loxo experience, and identify new advocates
You will develop and run programs to drive public reviews of Loxo across sites like G2 and Capterra
You will partner with the Community Marketing Manager, Customer Success, and Sales on our Loxo Parliament program designed to provide memorable networking, learning, and feedback opportunities for Loxo’s market
4. What success looks like
Purpose: Set expectations and inspire candidates by showing what great performance means in this role.
[A few bullet points or sentences describing what success looks like in the first week, 30 days, and 90 days. Be specific about outcomes, not just activities. This helps candidates self-select if they’re right for the role and gets them thinking about how they’d contribute.]
Note: I intentionally stopped doing 365 day outcomes because we operate like a startup and what we deem as super important on day 1 is rarely what’s super important in that role on day 365.
Customer Marketing Manager example:
First 30 Days (Onboarding & Quick Wins)
Customer Marketing Immersion:
Onboard to all relevant customer marketing tools and platforms (HubSpot, Salesforce, Intercom, etc.).
Familiarize yourself with existing customer data, segmentation, and communication workflows.
Stakeholder Alignment:
Meet with key stakeholders in Marketing, Sales, Customer Success, and Product to understand their goals, challenges, and current customer marketing initiatives.
Initial Customer Engagement Audit:
Audit current customer communication and engagement touchpoints to identify immediate areas for improvement.
Identify 1-2 quick-win opportunities to improve customer communication or engagement AND execute it. Let’s get some momentum building early on 💪
First 90 Days (Process & Framework Establishment)
Customer Segmentation & Strategy:
Develop and document a comprehensive customer segmentation strategy based on key criteria (e.g., recruitment segment, size, lifecycle stage, product usage, customer value, etc.).
Define clear objectives and goals for each customer segment.
Communication & Campaign Framework:
Establish a framework for customer communications, from large sends to one-off sends, including templates, guidelines, and best practices.
Plan and execute initial customer marketing campaigns focused on key objectives (e.g., product adoption, expansion, advocacy).
Advocacy & Reviews Program Foundations:
Develop the foundation for customer advocacy and review programs, including processes for identifying advocates, soliciting reviews, and capturing testimonials.
Set initial targets for increasing customer reviews on G2 and Capterra.
5. Company perks
Purpose: Cover your bases on what most candidates expect in terms of benefits like remote/in-office requirements, insurance, PTO, etc.
[A few sentences or bullets on what makes the company a great place to work. Keep it honest - focus on what most candidates actually care about. This should be a short + direct section.]
Customer Marketing Manager example:
A few perks:
100% remote-based workforce
Premium health coverage - medical, dental, and vision
401(k)
Unlimited vacation and PTO
6. How to apply
Purpose: State what a candidate should do next. Encourage action and explicitly state what they need to do to be considered a qualified candidate.
[A direct call-to-action. Tell them where to apply, what to include, and what happens after they hit submit.]
Customer Marketing Manager example:
Ready to apply?
In the attachments section of the application, please include your resume
Lastly, answer the questions at the bottom of this application
Create a candidate scorecard
Alright, the job description section ended up being A LOT more than I thought it’d be, so I’ll keep it concise here.
Once you finally start having conversations with candidates, you’re going to want to hire many of them (assuming you screened their resumes + intake questions well). You’re going to like them when you meet them. They’re going to “say” the right things.
That’s because interviews are essentially candidates trying to sell themselves to you. They’re going to put the best light on themselves as possible. I did the same exact thing when I engaged Matt for my role here. It’s natural for us to want to do this. We just have to be mindful of it on the other side of the table that we’re going to “like” a lot of the candidates.
This is where having a candidate scorecard for each stage of the interview process is so so SO critical. It creates a mostly* unbiased way to determine if a candidate is a good fit for the role.
*note: removing bias from the hiring process is a massive, ongoing debate in the recruitment space. For those of us in the marketing space, it’s a lot like the neverending debate about attribution
So for each stage, I keep it simple. What are the 3-5 MOST important things for a candidate to convey during that specific interview to prove that they’re a good fit for the role? Pick those items out + use a 1-5 star system to grade them.
But here’s the pro tip: before interviewing candidates, outline what a 1-star, 2-star, 3-star, 4-star, and 5-star looks like for each of those items. This gives us an easy way to gauge where a candidate falls into the spectrum afterward. Again, big help here in avoiding bias.
Some final thoughts
These don’t require full on sections for them, but are things I do believe are worth pointing out whether you’re a hiring manager or candidate:
LinkedIn Easy Apply doesn’t do anyone favors. It bombards hiring managers with tons of unqualified applicants. It gives candidates zero ways to differentiate themselves outside of their resume. If you’re a candidate, go to their website and see if you can apply via their careers page instead.
For hiring managers: don’t be afraid to hold a high bar. As mentioned earlier, Easy Apply is doing you no favors. I intentionally do not post jobs on the LinkedIn job board for this reason. I want candidates to go through our careers page because I ask additional questions on the application in order to submit. Harsh truth time: if a candidate isn’t willing to spend the time answering these, that tells me everything I need to know about that candidate.
Leave space for an “anything else you want to share about yourself?” section. Give candidates the room to color outside the lines and share things about themselves that aren’t captured in a typical resume or application questions. This is the stuff that separates the good from the great.
Demonstrate high agency as a candidate. Don’t reply to a LinkedIn post asking the hiring manager how to apply for the role. Go above and beyond to stand out. The hiring market is harder than it’s ever been. Get creative with ways to highlight your experience and why you’re a good fit for the role. Be proactive in demonstrating your excitement about the role. This doesn’t mean sending a connection request to the hiring manager and saying “I just applied for [role] - putting a face to the name for you!”
I’ve had hundreds of candidates apply/express interest in the roles this past week. 95% of them did the standard requirements of applying. 4% of them found ways to stand out by getting creative.
But 1% (honestly, less than 1% because it was only 1 person) cold called AND cold texted me. They found my cell phone number and demonstrated high agency. THIS is the type of person I want on my team.IMO, spelling errors aren’t as big of a deal as they used to be. Why? Because ChatGPT-created resumes, cover letters, and more are turning humans into robots. Humans are pretty attuned to what does and doesn’t sound like a natural communication. AKA, it’s made for a few good laughs reading some of the responses to the questions I ask as part of the application process - I can clearly tell when someone popped the question into ChatGPT and pasted that response in.
But you know what ChatGPT doesn’t do well (or at least for those using it at a base level)? Conveying emotion and making spelling errors. Those two things are dead giveaways that I’m dealing with someone who’s putting in the time and thought to go through this on their own.
I’m not saying we shouldn’t use AI - I do all the time. But in a process like this, I’m not looking for perfect answers, I’m trying to understand how you think and go about solving things.
Book quote of the week
“But let’s ask an honest question: Could you be doing more? You probably could - there’s always more. At minimum, you could be trying harder. You might have gotten started, but your full effort isn’t in it - and that shows.”
- The Obstacle Is The Way, by Ryan Holiday
In case you missed these this week
Most interactive demos suck.
They're too long. Too complicated. Too detailed. Too zoomed in.
See you next Saturday,
Sam