Just Raised Funding? How to Build the Team Without Losing Months

What changes after a round

• The plan needs people now. Milestones are set against the runway, and every month a seat stays empty pushes them back.
• Attention is the scarce resource. Founders have to sell, report to investors and build at the same time. Running several searches at once takes time that is needed elsewhere.
• Plans change. What the team needs in six months often differs from what the plan said on the day of the round.

Decide which roles set the direction

Some roles set the direction: the technical lead or CTO who owns the architecture, and the people who hold the core knowledge of the product. They report to you and work for your company, whether you hire them yourself or bring them in through a partner such as Tunga. Investors often want to see that core tied to the company; keeping the option to take someone on later covers that.

Capacity around that core is a different question. Developers, QA, data and AI roles that build on that direction are where speed and flexibility count most.

Plan roles against your milestones

For each milestone in the plan, list the roles it needs and when. That shows which roles are needed first, which ones can wait for the core team, and which ones are temporary peaks. It also shows where you depend on a single person.

Build the core, add capacity alongside

Hiring locally and adding capacity through a partner can run in parallel. Local hires take as long as they take; the capacity starts working on the milestones in the meantime. Through Tunga:

• The search is short. You get a shortlist from the existing pool, usually 3 candidates or more, and decide whom to interview and whom to work with.
• The start is soon. How soon depends mostly on how fast you can interview and decide; when you can move fast, someone can be working in your team within one to two weeks.
• The team can follow the plan. Notice is one working day in the first 4 weeks and 4 weeks after that, so the team can grow or shrink when the plan changes.
• The work is yours. The intellectual property in what is built is assigned to your company.
• Taking someone on later is possible, for a one-time fee or after a period of working together, if you want the person on your own payroll.

When it doesn't work

• There is no one yet to set the direction. Fill the technical lead role first, yourself or through Tunga; capacity without direction does not move the plan.
• The round is for one senior hire who takes over the system. That is a search for one person, usually best done through your own network or a specialised recruiter.