First 10 Hires Discipline

Be extremely patient for the first 10 hires, then accelerate once you hit product-market fit

Brendan Foody
Why experts writing AI evals is creating the fastest-growing companies in history

First 10 Hires Discipline

"Especially for our first 10 people, we were just so patient and disciplined about finding some of the best people in the world." - Brendan Foody

What It Is

A hiring philosophy that distinguishes between two phases: extreme patience and selectivity for the first 10 hires, then deliberate acceleration once product-market fit is established. The initial talent density creates a foundation that compounds—rushing early hires creates problems that scale with the company.

This framework acknowledges the tension between "hire slow" conventional wisdom and the reality that hypergrowth companies eventually need to hire fast to capture market opportunity.

How It Works

Phase 1: First 10 Hires (Pre-PMF)

  • Be extremely patient and disciplined
  • Seek extraordinary people with exceptional backgrounds
  • Accept that finding the right person may take longer than expected
  • Every early hire shapes the culture and standards that follow

"Half of them are... Our second employee, Sid, was previously the head of growth at Scale who joined us when we were a seed stage company."

Phase 2: Scaling (Post-PMF)

  • Once you know it's working, speed becomes priority
  • "Recognize that there's going to be some variance associated with hiring, but moving quickly is the priority"
  • The high bar you set in Phase 1 becomes the hiring standard for Phase 2

"Companies do get to the point where you just need to hire really fast."

The Transition Point: The trigger is not a number—it's market signal:

"Once you know that there's so much more demand than you can handle, that's when you want to step on the gas and optimize for speed."

How to Apply It

Before Product-Market Fit:

  1. Set the highest bar possible for first 10 hires
  2. Take your time - months of searching beats years of fixing bad hires
  3. Look for demonstrated excellence - former founders, proven performers at top companies
  4. Recognize the compounding effect - "Initial talent density shaped so much of what the rest of the org looks like"

After Product-Market Fit:

  1. Shift to speed - opportunity cost of unfilled roles exceeds variance risk
  2. Maintain the bar - but don't let perfect be the enemy of excellent
  3. Trust the foundation - your first 10 set the cultural antibodies

Warning Signs You're in the Wrong Phase:

  • Too slow after PMF: "We likely could have grown even faster if we had moved a little bit more quickly with ramping from 10 to 100 people"
  • Too fast before PMF: Making early compromises that compound negatively

When to Use It

  • Building a founding team
  • Advising early-stage founders on hiring strategy
  • Diagnosing whether hiring velocity is appropriate for stage
  • Evaluating startups' hiring discipline as an investor
  • Planning headcount timing around market opportunity

Source

  • Guest: Brendan Foody
  • Episode: "Why experts writing AI evals is creating the fastest-growing companies in history"
  • Key Discussion: (00:49:37) - High standards and first 10 hires
  • Additional Context: (00:50:39) - The speed/quality tradeoff
  • YouTube: Watch on YouTube

Related Frameworks

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