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Team & Hiring Strategy Prompt

Prompt

IDEAL FOR

Founders who need to prioritize their first critical hires and build a high-impact startup team without wasting time or budget on the wrong roles.

Early Traction Stage

Team & Culture

Best For
PROMPT

"I’m building [describe your startup in one sentence] for [target audience] in [industry].

I need a structured hiring roadmap to determine the critical first hires I should make and in what order.

Please provide a breakdown covering:

  1. Top Priority Hires: What are the first 3-5 roles I should prioritize based on my startup’s current stage?

  2. Role-by-Role Justification: Why does each role matter at this stage, and what key outcomes should they drive?

  3. Hiring Sequence & Timeline: In what order should I make these hires, and how soon should I bring each one on?

  4. Founder’s Role vs. Delegation: What should I continue handling myself, and what needs to be delegated first?

  5. Equity vs. Salary Considerations: Should I hire these roles as full-time, contract, or equity-based co-founders to conserve cash?

  6. Key Traits to Look for in Early Hires: Beyond skills, what mindsets, adaptability, and qualities are essential in an early-stage startup team?

  7. Common Hiring Mistakes to Avoid: What are the biggest early hiring pitfalls, and how can I prevent them?

Before providing recommendations, please clarify:

  • Funding Status: Am I bootstrapped, pre-seed, seed-funded, or beyond?

  • Technical vs. Non-Technical Needs: Is my startup more product-heavy (engineering-focused) or growth-heavy (sales/marketing-focused)?

  • Current Gaps: What skillsets or expertise am I personally lacking that I should prioritize hiring for?

Make the response practical, lean, and founder-focused—I need a hiring roadmap that balances speed, efficiency, and budget constraints."

"I’m building [describe your startup in one sentence] for [target audience] in [industry].

I need a structured hiring roadmap to determine the critical first hires I should make and in what order.

Please provide a breakdown covering:

  1. Top Priority Hires: What are the first 3-5 roles I should prioritize based on my startup’s current stage?

  2. Role-by-Role Justification: Why does each role matter at this stage, and what key outcomes should they drive?

  3. Hiring Sequence & Timeline: In what order should I make these hires, and how soon should I bring each one on?

  4. Founder’s Role vs. Delegation: What should I continue handling myself, and what needs to be delegated first?

  5. Equity vs. Salary Considerations: Should I hire these roles as full-time, contract, or equity-based co-founders to conserve cash?

  6. Key Traits to Look for in Early Hires: Beyond skills, what mindsets, adaptability, and qualities are essential in an early-stage startup team?

  7. Common Hiring Mistakes to Avoid: What are the biggest early hiring pitfalls, and how can I prevent them?

Before providing recommendations, please clarify:

  • Funding Status: Am I bootstrapped, pre-seed, seed-funded, or beyond?

  • Technical vs. Non-Technical Needs: Is my startup more product-heavy (engineering-focused) or growth-heavy (sales/marketing-focused)?

  • Current Gaps: What skillsets or expertise am I personally lacking that I should prioritize hiring for?

Make the response practical, lean, and founder-focused—I need a hiring roadmap that balances speed, efficiency, and budget constraints."

BEST USED FOR

Early-stage hiring, building a founding team, talent acquisition strategy, investor discussions on team structure.

USE CASE

Most founders hire too fast, too slow, or in the wrong order—which leads to burnout, inefficiency, and wasted resources.

Your first hires aren’t just employees—they’re co-builders who shape your startup’s foundation.

This prompt ensures you get a strategic hiring roadmap that aligns with your startup’s needs, stage, and funding.

REALITY CHECK

Hire doers, not title-chasers. Your first 3-5 hires should build, sell, or scale. No fluff, no middle management. Hire only what you can’t do yourself. If you don’t have money, trade equity for execution. Your first hires will make or break you—pick adaptable, relentless people who thrive in chaos. Hiring too soon? You’re burning cash. Hiring the wrong people? You’re dead.