There are several key skills and characteristics that the first 10 employees should have when starting a new blockchain or Web3 business, says Zuza Henshaw (Web3 and Blockchain Headhunter at Talanoa).
Speaking at the recent London Blockchain Conference, Henshaw said that the most important trait when hiring is resilience. She noted that this is particularly important in the Web3 sector, which can often be tumultuous and require all hands on deck.
‘Having that alignment from the team and having everybody understanding that it won’t be an easy ride (is important). Having people who are not flaky and who are ready to take on the challenges and face them rather than say this just didn’t work out. That’s something that will make a lot of difference,’ she said.
‘Another essential skill that is required in the sector is creativity,’ said Henshaw. ‘Because all this is a very new industry. And yes, there are already existing interesting solutions, but we haven’t scratched the surface yet. And having people who understand the technology, but also have that ability to translate it into real-world use cases, is something that will actually shape this industry because it’s not yet shaped.’
Startups vs corporate jobs
Henshaw noted that one of the biggest mistakes she sees in new blockchain companies is the differing attitudes between the corporate and startup worlds. She noted that many executives move from the corporate world and expect the journey to be easy, only to find that startups are much more challenging to get off the ground than expected.
‘If you’re coming from the big corporate world where you had a team and you had the support and resources to help you do everything you want, then suddenly you’re in a completely different spot. On the one hand, it’s very rewarding because you can shape something, but on the other hand, it’s very difficult because you lack resources. And if you want to do something, usually it lands on your shoulders,’ she said.
She reiterated that successful CEOs scout for resilience and creativity, but that it can still be difficult to evaluate who does and doesn’t have these skills.
‘I would suggest that crash tests during the interview process are a good idea. So actually making the interview process a little bit ambiguous, a little bit uncomfortable, and seeing how the candidates react to those changing conditions. Whether they get frustrated or whether they are completely comfortable with the fact that there is an unknown. So you can design the process to scout for those skills,’ she said.
Henshaw said that companies are also increasingly relying on AI tools when evaluating candidates. ‘So there is an extension on Google Chrome that analyses the personalities of all LinkedIn members. So let’s say you go to a person’s profile, you can get a very good idea of what their characteristics are and how risk-averse they are.’
Hiring in a growing industry
Another challenge facing businesses in the sector right now is that the blockchain and Web3 industries are still relatively new, making it difficult to hire experienced employees. ‘Let’s say somebody has worked for a blockchain company before they have been involved in the project, but realistically, what was their impact? And, let’s say they have been in 2 or 3 projects and none of them was successful. It doesn’t need to be their fault.’
Henshaw explained that some of these issues can be mitigated through networking and references but that it can still be very difficult to assess actual knowledge. ‘It’s not like you’re graduating from a specific university course and suddenly you’re an expert. Like I said before, it’s one thing to understand the technology but it’s another thing to apply it.’
