The hottest Recruiting Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Technology Topics

My (deeply stressful) big tech interview grind

Jacob’s Tech Tavern • 2842 implied HN points • 03 Feb 26
🕹 Technology Recruiting
  1. High-quality indie content can attract subscribers and partnerships, but running a solo digital business has real costs and runway risks that often require a more stable income source or sponsorships.
  2. The tech job market is healthy for experienced native iOS engineers with many AI startups and established companies hiring, but FAANG roles are limited outside major US cities so you need to be strategic about locations and targets.
  3. Treat job-hunting like a project: optimise your CV, nail recruiter screens, practice coding rounds and take-homes, and use disciplined tracking and iteration to improve interview pass rates while protecting your mental energy.

The Job Market Doesn’t Care If You Don't Believe in AI

The Algorithmic Bridge • 583 implied HN points • 19 Feb 26
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. The job market now expects AI fluency in many roles, so not learning basic AI skills can seriously harm your employability regardless of your personal beliefs.
  2. AI-related job postings and roles have grown dramatically and employers are paying a significant wage premium for candidates who list AI skills on their résumés.
  3. Many listings are aspirational and productivity gains are still debated, but companies aren’t widely training employees, so you should proactively learn AI tools to stay competitive.

How We Hire at Clipboard

Creating Value from Nothing • 291 implied HN points • 05 Feb 26
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. They hire for skill over resume polish by using role-relevant exercises and case studies so candidates can show real work instead of relying on proxies like past titles.
  2. The process is intentionally clear and structured, with written prompts and expectations shared up front so candidates know the effort required and can decide if it’s a fit.
  3. Culture fit means thriving in a high-ownership environment—show clarity, judgment, and follow-through in your case work, and explain your reasoning and assumptions more than chasing a single ‘right’ answer.

Congrats to Indiana

Points And Figures • 559 implied HN points • 20 Jan 26
🎾 Sports Recruiting
  1. Indiana’s national title was a surprise because the team had no five‑star recruits; smart use of the transfer portal and NIL, plus coach Cignetti’s leadership, built a cohesive championship team.
  2. The Big Ten still feels like a few dominant programs and a bunch of smaller rivals—conference additions haven’t erased that hierarchy, and those smaller-school rivalries remain intense.
  3. Illinois fans give begrudging respect for Indiana’s run but are ready to go back to the usual rivalry trash talk and are already looking forward to the next matchup hoping for a big Illini win.

Two Drinks with. . . the College Football Booster Who Paid the Players

Common Sense with Bari Weiss • 227 implied HN points • 16 Jan 26
🎾 Sports Recruiting
  1. Nevin Shapiro secretly paid and lavishly supported Miami football players with money, parties, trips, and other perks, directly breaking NCAA rules.
  2. He views himself as a pioneer whose actions foreshadowed later legal changes that let college players earn money from endorsements and compensation.
  3. He avoided detection for a long time, and now with Miami succeeding and players getting paid, he’s speaking openly about his role.
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Abolish HR

antoniomelonio • 168 implied HN points • 22 Jan 26
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. HR mainly exists to protect management and the company from legal and reputational risk, not to serve applicants or employees.
  2. HR processes are often incompetent and harmful: they rely on keywords, gut feelings, and bureaucratic rituals that misassess skills, ghost candidates, and amplify bias.
  3. Hiring should be led by the people who do the work, with transparent, audited tools that evaluate real skills and give feedback — in short, abolish performative HR and replace it with accountable systems.

Being a New Grad Here is a Service to Yourself

Creating Value from Nothing • 318 implied HN points • 10 Dec 25
🎭️ Culture Recruiting
  1. Do the case and do it well — it’s a near 1:1 preview of the actual job and the best way to know if the daily work truly fits you.
  2. New grads at this type of startup get real responsibility fast, handling customer calls, data, reports, and even leading vendor decisions or automation projects within months.
  3. What excites you matters — if you show genuine interest, management will make room for you to run experiments and own projects, which speeds up learning and impact.

The 2024 Auburn Football Roster Tracker

The Auburn Observer • 550 implied HN points • 08 Jan 24
🎾 Sports Recruiting
  1. The 2024 Auburn Football Roster Tracker is regularly updated to cover all roster movements, including draft declarations, transfers, and recruitments.
  2. The tracker is not an official scholarship count but provides an overview of the state of the units and ongoing changes.
  3. Recruitment information listed is thanks to the work of recruiting writers from various platforms, encouraging readers to subscribe for deeper insights.

Aubserver Mailbag 154: What type of impact will Derrick Nix have on the offense?

The Auburn Observer • 334 implied HN points • 19 Jan 24
🎾 Sports Recruiting
  1. The new Auburn football offensive coordinator, Derrick Nix, brings experience and a strong track record as a recruiter from his time at Ole Miss.
  2. Nix's impact is expected to boost the running game and potentially help improve the team's passing game efficiency in the 2024 season.
  3. Auburn's offensive coaching staff for 2024, now with Nix on board, is showing promise under head coach Hugh Freeze's leadership.

Recruiting Brainfood - Issue 334

Recruiting Brainfood • 569 implied HN points • 05 Mar 23
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Maintain a multi-channel approach to audience building to mitigate risks of being removed from platforms like LinkedIn
  2. Stay informed about emerging trends like the Creator Economy and prioritize personal branding with effective LinkedIn headlines
  3. Recognize that platforms like TikTok are becoming increasingly influential, especially for Gen Z, impacting employer branding and recruitment strategies

Aubserver Mailbag 153: Change is in the Air

The Auburn Observer • 334 implied HN points • 12 Jan 24
🎾 Sports Recruiting
  1. Change is constant in the world of sports, with teams adapting from game to game to handle opponents.
  2. Auburn's football staff changes include parting ways with a DC after struggles, with some surprising player departures.
  3. Hugh Freeze plans to focus on offensive play-calling, while Auburn basketball continues to succeed through adaptability.

Recruiting Brainfood - Issue 336

Recruiting Brainfood • 491 implied HN points • 19 Mar 23
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. AI innovations are rapidly changing knowledge worker productivity and recruiting processes.
  2. There is a shift towards smaller recruitment departments in software organizations.
  3. US banking sector faces hidden risks due to interest rate hikes and unrealized losses.

How to Interview Like a Pro

Perspectives • 11 implied HN points • 23 Jan 26
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Interviewing is a distinct skill separate from doing the job, so practice how you communicate and structure answers until you can clearly show your fit.
  2. Prepare a small bank of adaptable stories that prove failure, leadership, influence, and impact, and tailor those stories to what each company values.
  3. Focus on what the interviewer actually hears—connect first, show judgment, pause to collect your thoughts when needed, and help them imagine you already owning the problem.

From Sellouts to Shortfalls: Colorado Projects $27 Million Deficit After Deion Sanders 3-9 Season

Huddle Up • 17 implied HN points • 05 Dec 25
🎾 Sports Recruiting
  1. The University of Colorado’s athletic department is facing a record deficit — $27 million projected this fiscal year, or about $41.1 million when institutional support and student fees are included.
  2. Big spending on Deion Sanders (a $54 million extension and roughly $10 million a year) hasn’t translated into success or revenue: the team went 3–9, recruiting fell to 75th, star players left for the NFL, and fan interest and attendance dropped sharply.
  3. While the coach’s salary is being highlighted, the shortfall reflects multiple problems — falling attendance, lost media coverage, and weaker recruiting — not just a single contract.

Surviving SVB 😰😕😅

The SaaS Baton • 78 implied HN points • 15 Mar 23
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Surviving a crisis like the SVB chaos requires staying solution-oriented, generating multiple outcomes, and reaching out for support.
  2. In the early days, focusing too much on Product-Led Growth (PLG) without testing through outbound sales can be risky.
  3. Transparency in recruiting, from defining assessments to sharing feedback, can lead to better alignment with candidates and improvement in the hiring process.

The Early-Stage Recruiting Trap

Tippets by Taps • 12 implied HN points • 24 Jul 25
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Recruiting is crucial for startup success. If you don't make it a priority, you risk wasting your time and money.
  2. Everyone in the company should contribute to recruiting. Your team can help find great candidates through their networks.
  3. Good hires will help your business grow. Having the right people leads to better performance and less stress in the long run.

The Hardest Sale A Founder Will Make

Tippets by Taps • 10 implied HN points • 31 Jul 25
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Hiring great early employees is one of the toughest tasks for founders. It's hard because you're asking someone to leave a stable job for something uncertain.
  2. When recruiting, you need to convince not just the candidate but also their support system. Their families often play a big role in their decision to join your startup.
  3. Every new hire can shape the future of your company, so take recruitment seriously. Spending time and effort on it can lead to a more successful team.

Driving Return on Time with your Hiring

Equal Ventures • 39 implied HN points • 22 Aug 22
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Early hiring in a startup is crucial - make or break moment, where CEOs often juggle too many tasks and become overwhelmed.
  2. CEOs need to focus on their key strengths - delegate low value tasks, invest time in high value activities to drive maximum impact.
  3. Hiring is about \

Equal Ventures Hiring MBA Research Interns

Equal Ventures • 59 implied HN points • 09 Aug 21
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. Equal Ventures is hiring MBA Research Interns to work on specific verticals like Care Economies, Climate / Energy, Insurance, Retail, and Supply Chain / Logistics.
  2. The role focuses on developing investment themes and a research database, providing a ground-level view at a high-growth VC fund.
  3. Ideal candidates for the internship are professional, intellectually curious, self-directed, and friendly, with experience in market research.

Hiring VC MBA Interns with experience in Insurance, Supply Chain / Logistics & Climate / Energy

Equal Ventures • 19 implied HN points • 23 Mar 21
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. The company is hiring MBA interns with experience in Insurance, Supply Chain/Logistics, and Climate/Energy
  2. Interns will research industry themes and investment opportunities remotely for 10 weeks in the summer, with a stipend included
  3. Ideal candidates should have experience in these sectors, be intellectually curious, professional, self-directed, and friendly

Recruter des ingénieurs incroyablement doués

Squirrel Squadron Substack • 0 implied HN points • 24 Feb 26
💼 Business Recruiting
  1. You don’t need deep technical knowledge to find, evaluate, and hire great engineers — non-experts can run the process effectively.
  2. Using clear, repeatable methods like focused interviews and practical tests lets you reliably identify top technical talent even without domain mastery.
  3. Self-doubt leads many leaders to over-rely on external recruiters, but with the right guidance and resources you can build strong in-house hiring capability.