How to get a job in start up company

Skills matter but not the marks

Start-up companies are generally created and are in research, development stage and aiming towards growing in the market. You must be careful while choosing a right start-up company, as there are some people who start it without having proper vision, business plan, capital, etc. and finally wind up the business. Otherwise, you may get frustrated when there is no much work to do, no scope to explore your creativity, payments may get delayed, or not paid for several months.

Many start-up companies are initially funded by the founders themselves. In other cases, they are funded by venture capital firms, angel investors, co-funding, crowd-funding, etc. In general, most of the investors are attracted based on the start-ups' risk-reward profile.

There are several benefits if you join Start-up Company. To name a few:

• Job profile,
• Learning opportunities,
• You can experiment and learn from mistakes,
• Scope to prove & excel,
• Opportunity to work on multiple projects/tasks,
• Job satisfaction,
• Recognition & Appreciation,
• Reward & Growth prospects,
• You learn how to start a business too.

The method of recruitment & selection process would be different from that of MNC companies. Here, skill matters not just degrees. In addition to the regular methods they adopt unconventional methods to get skilled people.

For example:

Urban Ladder - Candidates are given an 'Airport Test' to gauge whether they can hold a conversation if they are stranded at an airport for two hours. The interviewer asks people about their hobbies or encourages them to talk about something they are extremely passionate about. The questions are not very structured but are left for the interviewee to decide based on the flow of conversation. The idea is to keep the conversation informal.

Goibibo - The hiring process has been the same since Day 1. If you are being hired for mid-level positions, you have to face at least three interviews. At the senior level, there are at least five levels of interview. Interviewers can be junior to the prospective hire. Each interviewer rates the candidate and writes a small essay. Ratings are then aggregated.

Paytm - Recruit engineering students from remote areas. The coding competitions are held online, eliminating the need for test centres, especially for those who want to work for Paytm from remote areas. Jombay - Often conducts a rapid-fire round centred on the candidate's personal life. Current affairs, relationships, wellness, food and art are part of the conversation, aimed at evaluating the cultural fit. Candidates are asked to create their own psychometric report. They are asked to compare that with one generated by Jombay, and explain the perception gap.

If you are a passionate guy who wants to work with small, innovative, self-driven small teams, who loves the idea of wearing multiple hats, face challenges, and working with a single focus to complete a goal, then get clarity to these following aspects and ensure these are worked upon before you approach any Start-up company:

• Justify what made you to go for a start-up company.
• Understand the culture of a start-up company. Do some research to learn about each company’s history, values, and purpose.
• Join the conversation and share your insights through forums.
• Leverage social media tools for connecting and showcase your skills. Have online presence & build your network - let the prospective employer make a remote assessment.
• Attend start-up events, seminars, workshops happening in your city.
• Meet different people who come for such meetings and introduce your-self. You better ask for their business card/contact details to send an email on how can you help them grow their business.
• Identify and list out the start-ups in your city and join their social networking groups and find the hiring manager.
• Also send your social media links in addition to your profile and covering letter while applying for a job. But make sure, you mention your professional social media links only and not personal. .

In start-ups, you may be paid less salary but the amount of experience you're going to gain from start-up is huge. It'll definitely become a strong foundation and very much beneficial when you're moving to the next stages of your career.

By:kamal pabba