How Founders Hire

Larry Warren
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Entrepreneurship

How Founders Hire is a podcast about startup founders and the first people they hire. Host Larry Warren, a recruiter with 17 years of experience, talks with founders and CEOs about why they started, what the early days actually felt like, and what they learned about hiring, startup culture and building a team. These are honest conversations about the wins, the misses, and the lessons founders wish they'd known sooner.

Episodes

  1. 1d ago

    Aidan Evans (DSE Media): 'You Do Whatever It Takes' | Winning Your First Customers

    Aidan Evans landed DSE Media’s first city contract by walking into the Luling Economic Development Corporation and telling the director she should have a podcast. He didn’t own a camera yet. They started shooting on iPhones. In this episode of How Founders Hire, Larry Warren talks with Aidan about starting DSE Media with his classmate Declan Shearman, finding their first customers, and building a business serving cities and economic development organizations across Texas. Aidan shares how he gets in front of people, from tracking down a prospect at KiteFest to delivering doughnuts and leaving handwritten notes. We also talk about choosing a co-founder you can disagree with, what he learned from P. Terry’s co-founder Patrick Terry, and where he wants to take DSE next. In this conversation: - Winning the first city contract before having much equipment or proof - Building a business with a friend - Turning in-person introductions into client relationships - Why a box of doughnuts can be worth more than another cold email - Putting long-term customer relationships ahead of short-term profit Chapters: 0:00 Teaser: you do whatever it takes 0:14 Introduction 0:28 Who DSE Media is for 1:29 How Aidan and Declan met 8:33 When it started to feel real 9:55 The first city contract 12:45 Phone banking and civic engagement 14:26 Getting in front of prospects 15:11 Interviewing Bobby Jenkins 16:29 Finding Bobby at KiteFest 19:29 Doughnuts and handwritten notes 20:47 A note under Matt Cisneros' door 22:08 Lessons from Patrick Terry 22:32 The no-subject email to Patrick Terry 24:02 What P. Terry's did at Zilker Park 30:09 What's next for DSE Media 32:32 What good and bad cold outreach look like 34:35 Why a box of doughnuts is worth it 36:01 Where to find Aidan Find Aidan and DSE Media: DSE Media: https://www.dse.media Aidan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aidanjoeevans Hosted by Larry Warren. Watch more How Founders Hire episodes: https://theofferpath.com/podcast Apply to be a guest: https://theofferpath.com/podcast/guest #HowFoundersHire #StartupFounder #FirstCustomers

  2. Oct 24

    Vineet Jammalamadaka (Robby): 'Hungry Over Pedigree' | Hiring Your First Employee

    He bought boxes of Dunkin' donuts and stopped at every work van in Boston, asking for five minutes. The first tech who said yes became the name of the company. Vineet Jammalamadaka is the Co-Founder and CEO of Robby, an AI platform built for the people in the field: the plumber, the electrician, the HVAC tech who spends the day fighting software instead of having it help them. Before Robby, Vineet was an engineer at Affinity and a founding engineer at Cloud Health Systems. He grew up in Michigan and wanted to build for people who don't always get the best technology first. In this episode, Vineet talks about months of ride-alongs with HVAC techs, why Robby offers a white-glove onboarding experience it won't compromise on, and how that pace led to the first hire: his randomly assigned summer roommate in New York. He shares why he cares more about someone's "whys" than their "whats," and why hunger and character matter more to him than a big-name school or company. What you'll learn: - How Robby got its name, and what a box of donuts taught them about the industry - What months of ride-alongs changed about who they want on the team - How to know it's time to make your first hire - Why your interview process should look like the actual job - The questions Vineet asks to understand what a candidate really wants - The sign you made a good hire: you can't remember how things ran before them Chapters: 0:00 Teaser: the Dunkin' donut strategy 0:15 Who Robby is for 1:02 From Affinity to home services 2:35 How Robby got its name 3:47 Months of ride-alongs with HVAC techs 5:41 Knowing when to make the first hire 7:24 How the field changed who they hire 8:38 What he'd hand off someday 9:48 Make the interview look like the job 11:20 Hiring a person, not filling a role 12:19 The first hire was his roommate 14:20 The questions he asks every candidate 17:39 Where to find Vineet and Robby Find Vineet and Robby: Robby: https://www.tryrobby.com Vineet on LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/vineetj23 How Founders Hire is a short video podcast where tech founders tell the story of how they built their company: the early days, the first people they hired, and what they'd tell someone a few steps behind them. Hosted by Larry Warren. All episodes: https://theofferpath.com/podcast Are you a founder with a story to tell? Apply to be a guest: https://theofferpath.com/podcast/guest #HowFoundersHire #StartupFounder #FirstHire

  3. Oct 10

    Todd Smith (TAHO Labs): 'I Would Sacrifice Talent for Culture' | Hiring Your First Employees

    How do you hire your first employees at a startup? Todd Smith, co-founder and CEO of TAHO Labs, says he'd sacrifice talent and skills for culture fit, especially with your first hires. Before TAHO, Todd ran technical operations teams at Docker after helping Snapchat and Facebook build their infrastructure before they went public. Now he's building AI infrastructure software that helps companies get far more out of the computers that run AI. In this episode on startup hiring and company culture, we cover: The lonely first six months of starting a company, and who really shows up for youHiring your first employees and handing off work you used to do yourselfWhy "how" someone works matters more than "what" they deliverWhy TAHO publishes its culture deck, and why joining is a family decisionWhy to hire for high aptitude over a specific skill set for your first dozen hiresFind Todd and TAHO Labs at taholabs.com.

  • 3 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

How Founders Hire is a podcast about startup founders and the first people they hire. Host Larry Warren, a recruiter with 17 years of experience, talks with founders and CEOs about why they started, what the early days actually felt like, and what they learned about hiring, startup culture and building a team. These are honest conversations about the wins, the misses, and the lessons founders wish they'd known sooner.

Information

  • Creator
    Larry Warren
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    3
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Larry Warren
  • Show Website
    How Founders Hire