Rainier Recruiting
This range is provided by Rainier Recruiting. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.
Base pay range $180,000.00/yr - $200,000.00/yr
Additional compensation types Annual Bonus
Direct message the job poster from Rainier Recruiting
This role sits at the intersection of talent scouting, venture creation, and ecosystem building. Instead of hiring for existing jobs, you’ll identify and engage people who should be founders—and help shape the early teams that will build new startups.
You will run the full lifecycle of founder discovery: mapping the ecosystem, sourcing prospects, forming relationships, conducting strategic conversations, and shaping early hypotheses around potential company formation.
Strategic and hands‑on , suited for someone who thrives in fast‑moving environments, enjoys experimenting with unconventional channels, and operates comfortably without step‑by‑step playbooks.
Compensation:
$180,000 - $200,000 base salary (negotiable based on experience) plus bonus and equity.
Location:
In‑office in San Francisco, with flexibility for occasional remote work. Candidates must live in the San Francisco area and be willing to work primarily onsite.
What this company offer you:
Medical
Paid Holidays
Flexible PTO options
401(k) investment retirement account access
The ability to shape the future of many tech company customers
Opportunity to grow into more senior level roles with the company as we grow
Responsibilities
Lead a structured sourcing and engagement motion that identifies high‑potential founders, operators, technologists, and builders.
Design and manage a pipeline of future‑founder talent, including outreach, relationship development, evaluation, and partner alignment.
Conduct deep conversations that assess founder mindset, leadership style, risk tolerance, strategic thinking, and venture potential.
Map and activate talent networks across startup, venture, product, engineering, consulting, and academic ecosystems.
Create and refine narratives, touchpoints, and micro‑experiences that attract entrepreneurial talent (content, dinners, events, roundtables, etc.).
Explore non‑traditional channels such as founder collectives, open source communities, operator networks, and early‑stage programs.
Work closely with leadership to synthesize signals, evaluate founder‑market fit, and accelerate high‑potential opportunities.
Build a perspective on patterns of success and failure in early‑stage talent, and use that insight to refine sourcing strategies.
Maintain a fast, experimental approach to talent discovery—testing new tactics, iterating, and continuously optimizing for velocity and quality.
Who You Are A high‑energy, ecosystem‑oriented operator who loves meeting people, exploring problems, and connecting dots across markets, technology, and talent. You enjoy autonomy, ambiguity, and extreme ownership.
You can think strategically, communicate clearly, and move quickly between research, execution, and relationship building.
Preferred Experience (3–6 years) Experience in one or more of the following areas:
Venture capital (analyst, associate, platform, or fellowship programs)
Strategy consulting or MBA‑track roles with early‑stage exposure
Founder’s Office, Strategy, or Chief of Staff roles in early‑stage tech
Early talent builders at small startups (first or second recruiter)
Startup generalist roles with broad responsibility and fast execution
Highly extroverted, charismatic, and comfortable networking daily
Sharp, fast learner who can synthesize information quickly
Strategic thinker with the ability to discuss markets, theses, and ideas
Creative problem‑solver who enjoys experimentation
Proactive operator who owns outcomes end‑to‑end
Humble, curious, adaptable, and coachable
What You Must Bring
Ability to run sourcing motions independently without operational support
Comfort navigating ambiguous, dynamic environments
High emotional intelligence and conversational depth
Strong writing, communication, and synthesis skills
Ability to influence technical or entrepreneurial talent
Who Will Not Be a Fit
Traditional recruiters from large, process‑driven environments
Candidates who rely on rigid playbooks or structured orgs
People looking to impose their own founder agenda
Ego‑driven “chief of staff” archetypes
Talent that requires heavy direction, templates, or guardrails
Where Strong Talent Often Comes From (Not requirements, just signals.)
VC analyst/associate cohorts and platform programs
Early‑career founder‑support roles at seed‑stage companies
Early‑stage recruiters who operated with high independence
Startup Chief of Staff / Founder’s Office with genuine ecosystem orientation
Recent grads (1–4 years out) from top universities with early‑stage experience
What You’ll Gain
A rare opportunity to influence multiple startups from day zero
Direct access to founders, operators, and investors shaping new ventures
Career pathways into company leadership, venture, or founding roles
Competitive compensation and meaningful equity
Ideal Profile Summary This role is
not
about running a talent acquisition function.
It’s about identifying high‑potential founders before they start companies, building trusted relationships, and helping shape opportunities worth pursuing.
The strongest fits tend to be:
Early‑career venture or strategy talent who wants to be closer to creation, or
Small‑startup generalists who “did everything” and thrive in unstructured work.
If you enjoy thinking about markets, talking to entrepreneurial people, attending events, testing ideas, and building relationships that lead to company formation—this role offers an unusually high leverage platform.
Seniority level Mid‑Senior level
Employment type Full‑time
Job function Analyst
Industries Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
#J-18808-Ljbffr
Base pay range $180,000.00/yr - $200,000.00/yr
Additional compensation types Annual Bonus
Direct message the job poster from Rainier Recruiting
This role sits at the intersection of talent scouting, venture creation, and ecosystem building. Instead of hiring for existing jobs, you’ll identify and engage people who should be founders—and help shape the early teams that will build new startups.
You will run the full lifecycle of founder discovery: mapping the ecosystem, sourcing prospects, forming relationships, conducting strategic conversations, and shaping early hypotheses around potential company formation.
Strategic and hands‑on , suited for someone who thrives in fast‑moving environments, enjoys experimenting with unconventional channels, and operates comfortably without step‑by‑step playbooks.
Compensation:
$180,000 - $200,000 base salary (negotiable based on experience) plus bonus and equity.
Location:
In‑office in San Francisco, with flexibility for occasional remote work. Candidates must live in the San Francisco area and be willing to work primarily onsite.
What this company offer you:
Medical
Paid Holidays
Flexible PTO options
401(k) investment retirement account access
The ability to shape the future of many tech company customers
Opportunity to grow into more senior level roles with the company as we grow
Responsibilities
Lead a structured sourcing and engagement motion that identifies high‑potential founders, operators, technologists, and builders.
Design and manage a pipeline of future‑founder talent, including outreach, relationship development, evaluation, and partner alignment.
Conduct deep conversations that assess founder mindset, leadership style, risk tolerance, strategic thinking, and venture potential.
Map and activate talent networks across startup, venture, product, engineering, consulting, and academic ecosystems.
Create and refine narratives, touchpoints, and micro‑experiences that attract entrepreneurial talent (content, dinners, events, roundtables, etc.).
Explore non‑traditional channels such as founder collectives, open source communities, operator networks, and early‑stage programs.
Work closely with leadership to synthesize signals, evaluate founder‑market fit, and accelerate high‑potential opportunities.
Build a perspective on patterns of success and failure in early‑stage talent, and use that insight to refine sourcing strategies.
Maintain a fast, experimental approach to talent discovery—testing new tactics, iterating, and continuously optimizing for velocity and quality.
Who You Are A high‑energy, ecosystem‑oriented operator who loves meeting people, exploring problems, and connecting dots across markets, technology, and talent. You enjoy autonomy, ambiguity, and extreme ownership.
You can think strategically, communicate clearly, and move quickly between research, execution, and relationship building.
Preferred Experience (3–6 years) Experience in one or more of the following areas:
Venture capital (analyst, associate, platform, or fellowship programs)
Strategy consulting or MBA‑track roles with early‑stage exposure
Founder’s Office, Strategy, or Chief of Staff roles in early‑stage tech
Early talent builders at small startups (first or second recruiter)
Startup generalist roles with broad responsibility and fast execution
Highly extroverted, charismatic, and comfortable networking daily
Sharp, fast learner who can synthesize information quickly
Strategic thinker with the ability to discuss markets, theses, and ideas
Creative problem‑solver who enjoys experimentation
Proactive operator who owns outcomes end‑to‑end
Humble, curious, adaptable, and coachable
What You Must Bring
Ability to run sourcing motions independently without operational support
Comfort navigating ambiguous, dynamic environments
High emotional intelligence and conversational depth
Strong writing, communication, and synthesis skills
Ability to influence technical or entrepreneurial talent
Who Will Not Be a Fit
Traditional recruiters from large, process‑driven environments
Candidates who rely on rigid playbooks or structured orgs
People looking to impose their own founder agenda
Ego‑driven “chief of staff” archetypes
Talent that requires heavy direction, templates, or guardrails
Where Strong Talent Often Comes From (Not requirements, just signals.)
VC analyst/associate cohorts and platform programs
Early‑career founder‑support roles at seed‑stage companies
Early‑stage recruiters who operated with high independence
Startup Chief of Staff / Founder’s Office with genuine ecosystem orientation
Recent grads (1–4 years out) from top universities with early‑stage experience
What You’ll Gain
A rare opportunity to influence multiple startups from day zero
Direct access to founders, operators, and investors shaping new ventures
Career pathways into company leadership, venture, or founding roles
Competitive compensation and meaningful equity
Ideal Profile Summary This role is
not
about running a talent acquisition function.
It’s about identifying high‑potential founders before they start companies, building trusted relationships, and helping shape opportunities worth pursuing.
The strongest fits tend to be:
Early‑career venture or strategy talent who wants to be closer to creation, or
Small‑startup generalists who “did everything” and thrive in unstructured work.
If you enjoy thinking about markets, talking to entrepreneurial people, attending events, testing ideas, and building relationships that lead to company formation—this role offers an unusually high leverage platform.
Seniority level Mid‑Senior level
Employment type Full‑time
Job function Analyst
Industries Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
#J-18808-Ljbffr