*This article first appeared in the Trust in SODA US Newsletter. Subscribe on LinkedIn for regular insights into US tech recruitment: here. 

In the race to scale, VC-backed tech startups are setting their own traps.

Squashed between uncompromising hiring standards and the pressure to outrun the market, founders regularly discover their real limiter is access to talent.

The result, from our vantage point as capital venture recruiters, is a talent bottleneck. Working day-to-day with VC-backed founders and their hiring teams, we’re seeing just how often high standards become hidden constraints. 

We’re breaking down the story behind it, and why growth-minded founders should rethink their hiring playbooks.

Why is the Bar to Entry so High?

It’s a perfect storm of risk, ambition, and market noise that pushes founders to aim higher.

Talent scarcity meets over-selection

The pool of proven tech talent is smaller than it used to be. Demand still outweighs supply, but instead of adapting, many teams respond by raising the bar. The result is longer searches and empty seats.

  • 60% of companies reported an increase in time-to-hire in 2024 (GoodTime).

Process overload 

Extra interview rounds, heavier assessments, and endless sign-offs, all in the name of quality. Every added step filters out momentum as well as candidates. The best people don’t wait around.

  • 71% of candidates have walked away, or thought about it, because hiring processes dragged on or felt too complicated. (TALiNT Partners).

The Safety Trap

When the stakes are high, caution typically takes over. Founders lean toward candidates who look proven: big-brand logos, long CVs, and familiar playbooks. Across industries, that same risk reflex is driving credential creep, resulting in fewer viable candidates.

  • 63% of employers have raised degree or experience requirements over the past five years, even for roles that haven’t changed. (Harvard Business School).

Where it Hurts the Most

You can feel the strongest tension in the parts of the market where tech and investment move fastest.

AI and FinTech are prime examples, areas where demand for commercial and technical talent has skyrocketed alongside the adoption of novel technologies.

When teams are being built around the same few candidate profiles, whole pockets of capability go untapped.

For founders, that imbalance plays out in real time. Funding lands, ambition is high, and then the search begins for people who don’t exist in the numbers the market needs.

What We’re Seeing Work

Working with founders and scaling teams every day, you start to see the patterns. The ones that manage to grow through the noise tend to treat hiring as part of their strategy. We’ve seen success in:

  • Hiring for trajectory – They back people with the capability to grow into scale, not just survive it.

  • Keeping processes light – Clear, fast decision-making protects momentum and shows intent.

  • Investing in reach early – The strongest teams treat access to talent as infrastructure, not admin.

  • Building trust in the market – Reputation travels. Founders who show up early and often attract the right people before they start hiring.

  • High standards shouldn’t mean slower hiring. Talent partners with specialised networks and technical expertise can turn that selectivity into scalability. 

  • If any of this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. The standards-versus-scalability theme runs through most of our current conversations with founders. 

The Trust in SODA team are always happy to talk talent – message me directly to find out how we’re helping people solve the same problem: ryan.jones@trustinsoda.com.