Your first five hires will shape everything that comes after.
In this episode of LaunchVic’s BOLD roundtable series, four of Victoria’s most experienced startup people leaders share what they’ve learned from hundreds of hires, a few hard lessons, and the moments that made them rethink how they build teams. Whether you’re making your first hire or bringing in your first exec, this conversation will change how you think about the people side of building a company.
Stories from teams who scale.
What you will learn:
- Hire for attitude, not just skills. Early-stage chaos demands a “we’ll figure it out” mindset. You can’t reliably assess for chaos tolerance until people are in the fire.
- Define success early and measure it. Use the probation period honestly. Have the hard conversation in month one, not month seven.
- Don’t hire sales too soon. Selling a product that isn’t ready burns revenue projections and the team. Align go-to-market with what engineering can deliver.
- Trust but verify. Codify rituals (all-hands, stand-ups, weekly reports) so founders can let go without losing accountability.
- ELT is your first team. Execs must represent the company and speak as one once they leave the room. “Disagree and commit” keeps teams from fragmenting.
The panel tackles the big topics
Hiring at Each Growth Stage
The conversation opens with the question every founder faces: what are you actually looking for in your first five hires? Michael Delaney argues you can’t assess for chaos tolerance until someone’s in the fire. Pavi Iyer says it’s less about skills and more about attitude: “We’ll figure it out.” The panel shares lessons from wrong hires, why measuring adaptability matters, and why you should have hard conversations in month one, not month seven.
Key concepts: Attitude over credentials: the “we’ll figure it out” mindset. Why big-company experience doesn’t guarantee startup success (and vice versa). Using probation honestly: define success early, measure it, and pull the ripcord if needed. The hire that gets founders into trouble: sales before the product is ready.
“Often the right answer is I don’t know the answer, but I will find out the answer as we go along.” — Anthony Meek
Managing High Performance
How do you keep teams productive without micromanaging? Anthony Meek and Pavi Iyer stress the importance of rituals: all-hands, stand-ups, weekly reports. These aren’t bureaucracy. They’re how you build accountability so founders can let go. Michael Delaney talks about why founders need to stop doing everything themselves. The panel introduces “trust but verify”: give people ownership, then verify through regular check-ins.
Key concepts: Codify your ways of working from day one. Trust but verify: empowering both founders and employees. Wellbeing in high-intensity environments. Being upfront about expectations.
“Trust but verify. I trust you with the work, but I’m going to verify that it’s on track.” — Anthony Meek
The Founder to Exec Transition
When is it time to bring in experienced leadership? Sarah Sherriff says look within first: is there someone ready to step up? Anthony Meek introduces the concept of “skills built vs skills bought”: early on you grow generalists, later you buy technical or market skills you don’t have time to build. Michael Delaney argues some hires should be deliberately short-term (12 to 18 months) for a specific growth phase. Pavi Iyer warns about title inflation and founder loyalty to early employees.
Key concepts: Skills built vs skills bought: why you need both. Hiring for the phase you’re in, not a three-year vision. Title inflation: when loyalty becomes a curse. Internal and external talent as complementary, not competing.
“The mindset kind of should be, how can we make this better? Versus how can we just completely change this company.” — Sarah Sherriff
Building Strong Leadership Teams
Once you’ve divided out functions, how do you build a leadership team that works? Anthony Meek and Pavi Iyer share a critical mindset shift: your exec team is your first team. They represent the company, not their function. The panel explains “disagree and commit”: have arguments behind closed doors, but once you leave the room, everyone speaks the same language. Michael Delaney adds that founders who can’t pivot when the data says otherwise will fail.
Key concepts: ELT is your first team: represent the company, not your function. Disagree and commit: arguments stay in the room. Building behavioural expectations into performance reviews. Why founders who can’t pivot will fail.
“You can have all the arguments you want behind closed doors with your leadership team, but once you leave the room the rule is everyone’s on the same page.” — Pavi Iyer
AI and the Future of Work
The panel debates how to think about productivity in the age of AI. Pavi Iyer plays devil’s advocate: are you giving teams time to learn before throwing everyone in the deep end? Michael Delaney takes the opposite view: swing big, because the innovation curve in AI is straight up. Anthony Meek suggests hiring for “AI openness” as much as competency, and taking big swings with reversible risks. The panel closes by naming the human skills that still matter: critical reasoning, creativity, empathy, and emotional intelligence.
Key concepts: The fine line between running lean and being under-resourced. Swing big vs phase it in: two approaches to AI adoption. Hiring for AI openness, not just technical skills. Defensible human skills: creativity, empathy, critical reasoning.
“Swing big. If you’re going to swing, take the biggest swing possible. The innovation curve in AI is not a curve. It’s like straight up.” — Michael Delaney