Si and Neil compare notes on one of the most underestimated challenges in tech leadership: hiring well. From writing the job spec to navigating AI in the interview room, this episode covers the full journey, with plenty of honest opinions, personal stories and hard-won lessons along the way.
- Writing the Job Spec (03:16) - Where hiring goes wrong before it's even started. The laundry list problem, gender-encoded language, and why a backfill doesn't have to be like-for-like.
- Screening CVs and the Network Problem (17:43) - AI-generated applications are flooding inboxes. Is the CV even fit for purpose anymore, and what does leaning on your network really cost you?
- Side Projects and What CVs Can't Show (25:06) - Why both hosts have shifted away from using GitHub profiles and portfolios as a hiring signal, and what that says about privilege in the process.
- The Interview Process (29:21) - Take-home tests, live pairing exercises and the heuristic that ties it together: the interview should look like the work.
- Culture Fit vs. Culture Add (36:23) - Stop hiring a friend group. Why diverse thinking beats a room full of people who all get on brilliantly outside of work.
- Technical Assessment in the Age of AI (43:19) - When anyone can AI their way through a coding test, what are you actually testing for? Si's approach: hand them an LLM and watch how they use it.
- The Arms Race (49:32) - Candidates using AI to game hiring, companies using AI to screen it out. And a word on privilege: not everyone can afford a Claude Pro subscription.
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