Start-ups, Stop Overvaluing Big-Brand Talent: The Hidden Risk in Hiring from Corporate Giants

🚀 The Start-up vs. Corporate Hiring Dilemma

Hiring for a startup or scaleup

 is a completely different ballgame from recruiting for an established corporate giant. Yet, too often, hiring managers default to candidates from big-name brands, assuming that experience at a well-known company automatically translates into success in a fast-moving, high-accountability startup environment.

It’s a classic hiring mistake—and one that can cost startups time, money, and momentum.

Why Corporate Candidates Often Struggle in Scaleups

💡 1. Decision-Making Without a Playbook Corporate professionals are often accustomed to structured environments, predefined workflows, and specialist teams. In a scaleup, there is no playbook—you need people who can figure it out on the fly without waiting for a strategy deck or an approval chain.

💡 2. High Visibility = High Accountability In a corporate setting, individual contributions can be shielded within a larger team. In a startup, there’s nowhere to hide—every decision, every action, and every failure is highly visible. Some thrive in this setting. Others panic.

💡 3. Fast-Paced, High-Pressure Environment Startups require adaptability. The pace of change is relentless, priorities shift overnight, and a single hire can make or break a function. Those who have spent years in slower-moving corporate settings may struggle to keep up and pivot quickly.

💡 4. Hands-On, Do-It-Yourself Mentality Many corporate hires come from structured teams with deep support functions—HR, IT, finance, marketing ops. But in a scaleup? You are the function. There’s no big team behind you. If a candidate isn’t comfortable rolling up their sleeves, they won’t last long.

What to Look for Instead?

🚀 Agility Over Pedigree – Prioritise candidates with high-growth experience, even if their company isn’t a household name.

🚀 Resilience & Adaptability – Look for examples of thriving in uncertainty, pivoting quickly, and making high-impact decisions in lean teams.

🚀 Ownership & Accountability – Ask candidates about a time when they were solely responsible for a major outcome. Avoid those who default to “we” instead of “I” when discussing achievements.

🚀 Problem-Solving & Initiative – Find people who have built something from scratch, not just maintained or optimised an existing structure.

Final Thought: Hire for the Stage You're In

If you’re an early-stage startup or a fast-scaling company, hiring the wrong profile can slow you down—no matter how impressive their CV looks.

Big-brand candidates aren’t always a bad hire, but they are often a risky one. 

The best hires for scaleups are those who embrace ambiguity, thrive under pressure, and own their outcomes—regardless of where they worked before.

If you're hiring and need some assistance in the start-up/scale-up world, reach out to Urban Digital Recruitment for some advice and support!