Talked to a founder who only hires people they've met in person
Met a guy at a meetup in Austin who built a 10 person team without a single remote hire. He said video calls miss the 'gut feeling' you get from a real handshake. Now I'm rethinking my plan to hire my first employee online. Anyone else feel like you need to meet someone face to face before you bring them on?
That Austin founder's gut feeling sounds like a fancy way to say they like to hire friends. I've worked with amazing people I've never shaken hands with. A video call shows me how someone thinks on their feet, which matters way more than a handshake. My best contractor lives three states away and we've never met. The work gets done, that's the real test.
Look at the actual work people do. A good video call shows you plenty about how they handle problems. This whole debate feels like making a simple thing way too hard.
Diana's got it right. Making it sound too complicated just to avoid real work. @nguyen.lily hit the nail too about missing good people who don't do small talk. Focus on what matters - getting the job done.
Mason's point about the work getting done is key. The real risk is building a team that can't handle problems unless you're in the same room. You might miss out on people who are great at their job but bad at small talk.