Your pool has been formed around unique goals.
The Seed Founder pool is looking for entrepreneurs who are gaining Seed-level funding, the ClimaTech pool is made up of founders, startup execs and early-stage investors in sustainable agriculture and climate solutions. The majority of our pools have these forms of mission statements, unless your pool is your own private pool that involves a group of friends, you will most likely have joined under the same criteria that will lead you in your new member search.
It is important to have a set of standards or criteria to compare potential pool mates against.
This helps ensure your pool is organized with relevant goals. These next few steps are also incredibly important if the person you are interviewing as a potential pool mate might have a personal connection.
Below find a few steps to ensure that you feel good about bringing this person into your pool.
Step 1: Make sure the candidate fits your pool’s already pre-defined mission.
- Some common things we suggest to look for in poolers are:
- A commonality in industry or pool mission
- Proof of active engagement in their start-up/career
- Mutual/similar views into why they are pooling
- It can also be reassuring knowing that as you are vetting new members, our team is with you. All new members have to go through Pando. We actively provide candidates who we think are a good fit to pool with, which we base on the candidate attributes that you and your pool have provided to us.
- Now, some things to ponder: Are you excited about this person’s work? Would you want to work with them? Do you think this is a person that might be able to contribute to the pool’s conversations and questions?
Step 2: Make sure you are personally identifying green flags when it comes to the person’s career growth and what they can bring to the pool.
- A green flag can be responses that show they have a high level of drive, have confidence, or other positive/reassuring responses.
Step 3: Introduce the person in your own words to the pool.
- Around 2-3 other members of your pool will also partake in interviewing the candidate other than the founding members. Assign those people and make sure they interview them before your pool hosts a discussion.
- Now, the candidate gets pitched to the pool. If your pool seems interested in the candidate, then it is probably time to move onto the next step in the process: partaking in a pool survey which Pando will help to send out. The survey helps collect initial opinions, thoughts, and feelings about the interviewee and if you believe they fit right into your pool.
Key Takeaways:
- Make sure the candidate fits your pool's already pre-defined mission.
- Make sure you are personally identifying green flags when it comes to what they can bring to the pool.
- Introduce the person to your pool
