Brainforge Knowledge

2026-02-23_brainforge_recruitment_handoff_1fc98bc8

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Brainforge Recruitment Handoff

Date: February 23, 2026 Source: Granola Meeting ID: 1fc98bc8-47d3-4753-b993-ca7cddca93e0 URL: https://notes.granola.ai/t/1fc98bc8-47d3-4753-b993-ca7cddca93e0

Participants:

  • Uttam Kumaran (Brainforge)
  • Rico Rejoso (Brainforge)
  • Kaela Gallagher (Brainforge)

Summary

Recruitment Handoff Overview

  • Kaela officially joining as recruitment lead
  • Rico transitioning recruitment responsibilities to Kaela
  • Focus on scaling hiring pipeline to support company growth

Current Hiring Pipeline Status

  • 2 candidates in final rounds
    • One scheduled over a month out due to calendar conflicts (Deepika)
    • Need manual scheduling for multi-person final interviews
  • Multiple candidates in first/second rounds
  • Pass/fail system clarified: “pass” means move forward to next round

Recruitment Process Structure

  • Three-stage interview process:
    1. Initial interview (culture/communication fit)
    2. Second round (role-focused skills assessment)
    3. Final round (multiple stakeholders)
  • Loom video submissions as initial screening
    • Effective spam filter and remote work assessment
    • Candidates record responses to role-specific questions
    • Uttam currently sole reviewer of Loom submissions

Sourcing Strategy Priorities

  • Primary challenge: maintaining consistent candidate pipeline
  • Recent job post generated 200+ applicants for data roles
  • No applications received for AI or CSO positions yet
  • Need structured sourcing plan beyond network referrals
  • Marketing coordination for regular job posting cadence

Staffing Needs Analysis

  • Current delivery team spread thin across clients
  • Purple sections on staffing chart = Uttam/Robert doing client work
  • Goal: reduce founder involvement in delivery to zero
  • Three key delivery roles to fill:
    1. Engagement Planner (EP) - project management
    2. Service Lead (SL) - technical leadership
    3. Client Success Owner (CSO) - account management
  • All roles require engineers with client-facing capabilities

Role-Specific Hiring Challenges

  • CSO positions hardest to fill across all service lines
    • Need “unicorn” engineers who can communicate and manage clients
    • Industry calls these rare candidates
  • AI roles increasingly difficult
    • Market oversaturated with inflated resumes
    • Targeting engineers doing AI work as side projects/hobbies
    • Avoiding candidates seeking Facebook/OpenAI-level positions
  • Data engineers more straightforward to source

W2 Transition Timeline

  • LLC to C-corp conversion complete
  • W2 offering available within 1-2 months maximum
  • Healthcare benefits being researched
  • Strategy TBD on upfront W2 offers vs. progression-based
  • Part-time to full-time hiring model has prevented expensive mistakes

Week 1 Priorities for Kaela

  • Develop structured sourcing plan and measurement framework
  • Shadow Rico on current processes
  • Sit in on interviews (camera off initially)
  • Schedule 1:1s with all hiring panel members
  • Take over Loom review process from Uttam
  • Focus on filling candidate pipeline over process optimization

Communication & Meeting Cadence

  • Weekly check-ins scheduled (Mondays/Tuesdays after 6pm Central)
  • Use recruiting Slack channel for all recruitment discussions
  • Async communication preferred due to Uttam’s meeting density
  • Agenda-driven meetings with pre-shared materials when possible

Next Steps

  • Kaela: Create sourcing plan deliverable for week 1
  • Kaela: Begin shadowing Rico and attending interviews
  • Kaela: Schedule 1:1s with hiring panel members
  • Uttam: Provide Loom review handoff training
  • Team: Manual scheduling for Deepika’s final round interview

Graph View