Why recruiting ’10x’ employees remains so difficult even as employers start to win back the upper hand in hiring

Lucy Brewster here, filling in for Sheryl. Typically, there are effective employees, there are good ones, and then there are the coveted few who are indispensable. As startups look to cut costs amid the bank failures and economic anxiety, having one or two leaders that stand out can make or break the enterprise.

So, what separates top-tier talent from the pack? The phrase “10x employee” has been used in Silicon Valley for years, often referring to engineers, to describe employees that produce far more results than the “average” employee. Yet experts explained that truly coveted employees aren’t “lone wolf” types who have their heads down working all day; they stand out because of their collaborative team work and contribution to a positive work culture. The most in-demand employees have a combination of highly skilled technical skills and valuable soft skills. “It could be someone’s domain expertise, such as cybersecurity or fintech [that makes them unique],” said Bryan Powell, operating partner of talent at Insight Partners, who advises Insight’s startups on how to build their teams. “These people bring the team along and win together, but not at the cost of others.”

“Even amidst all these layoffs, there still is this cluster of people in different categories within any industry sector that are still in high demand because they have leadership capability, they’re adaptable, and they move the organization forward,” said Tammy Madsen, professor of management at Santa Clara University’s Leavey School of Business

Catching these employees’ attention is an ongoing hustle for executives, even in a labor market that favors those hiring. While the recent Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey showed a slight decline in job openings from 10.6 million to 9.9 million, the competition for the very top employees remains cutthroat, especially for startups trying to poach talent from seasoned tech giants. “Whether you’re recruiting in a hot market or a cold market, top talent has choices,” explained Powell. 

Madsen notes that beyond salary and perks, people are looking to align themselves with a company that sees them as a whole person. “We’re recovering from about three years of uncertainty that came with many employees being concerned about their health and job security,” she explained. “Thinking about that group that has bargaining power in this space as the top tier of a particular software category or finance category, wherever they go, intrinsic rewards become more important than extrinsic rewards,” she said.

Employees who are in high demand likely won’t be responding to generic job opening posts, either. “Building trust with top talent is of paramount importance—you can’t send these individuals generic LinkedIn messages and hope for the best,” explained Powell. “By making a connection and trying to understand what they want, by truly listening and then presenting opportunities that match their career interests—that is how you attract these high-level employees,” Powell added. For example, many software developers want to solve unique technical problems and challenges. So when you’re recruiting, that should be highlighted, Powell explained. “Companies need to reflect inward and ask, ‘Do we have a strong value system inside the company? Is the mission clear? Is the work interesting?'”

Great company culture also means an executive team that is committed to setting and meeting their goals to be an equitable and diverse workplace. “Diversity builds the best teams and culture, so it needs to be put into practice—not just words,” said Powell. (Yesterday, I spoke to an expert about how the importance of building an equitable pay structure.)

For newer startups, you’re competing for software talent with companies with strong brand legacies, and you have to find a way to create a positive impression as a newer player. “You also can’t ignore the importance of a strong employer brand—especially if you don’t have broad brand recognition like a Meta, Amazon, or Salesforce,” Powell said. 

Many of the companies with top-tier employees have the most robust training and career advancement opportunities internally—which is not a coincidence. While some employees have technical skills that are hard to come by, soft skills are equally, if not more, valuable. “Organizations making ongoing learning a priority is important for new hires and critical, both in rescaling and upskilling,” Madsen said.

Lucy Brewster

Twitter: @lucyrbrewster
Email: Lucille.Brewster@fortune.com

Big deal

You've likely heard the notion that the cause of the ongoing pay gap between women and men is that women aren't as assertive as men when negotiating their salaries. Well, according to a new survey from the Pew Research Center, only a minority of people, regardless of gender, actually ask for higher pay. While slightly more men than women asked for a higher salary the last time they were hired (32% of men compared to 28% of women), more women reported getting denied and offered the original pay after asking for a raise (38% of women versus 31% of men). Age arguably played a significant role in whether employees negotiated salaries or not, with 46% of workers aged 18-29 reporting they didn't feel comfortable asking for higher pay. 

Going deeper

Fresh snow, mediation sessions with Jeff Bezos, and "surprise" mountain lions—these are the experiences that make a $40-million utopia. Well, that's if your idea of paradise is "TED meets Burning Man." In her latest magazine feature, Fortune’s Lila MacLellan tells the story of how plans for Summit Powder Mountain, led by founders Elliott Bisnow, Brett Leve, Jeff Rosenthal, and Jeremy Schwartz went from a lofty vision of a VC-backed, futuristic winter wonderland to its reality—a few half constructed houses at high altitude. In 2013, the founders of the popular, exclusive Summit Conference series decided to buy a ski mountain for $40 million with the grandiose intention of building a self-sustaining community of other Silicon Valley regulars and celebrities, changing the world one wellness ritual at a time. Things didn’t go as planned. Read Lila's story here to see how it all went down. 

Leaderboard

Grant E. Fitz has been named CFO of manufacturing giant Myers Industries (NYSE:MYE). He will replace interim CFO Monica Vinay effective May 8. Fitz has over three decades of operational and financial experience, including a tenure as an executive at General Motors. He was previously the CFO of tech company EFI before joining Myers Industries. 

Eric Williams has been named CFO of commercial space technology company Momentus Inc (NASDAQ: MNTS). He will take over from interim CFO Dennis Mahoney. Williams has over fifteen years of financial operations experience at various tech companies. 

Overheard

“We won—but we came out of that broke.” 

—Al Altomari, CEO of Agile Therapeutics told Fortune's Maria Aspan, explaining that he had to spend about $250 million to get birth control drug Twirla approved by the FDA. Read the rest of Maria Aspan's feature about the dysfunctional birth control market here.