Simon Monaghan

A founder once told me:
“I kept giving them feedback. They kept delivering the same thing.”

They didn’t have a dev problem.
They had a context problem.

The best devs don’t just listen.
They translate.
That’s how you build momentum.

Hiring isn’t just about skill.

It’s about chemistry.

I’ve seen teams slow down after hiring one technically solid dev.
Wrong communication style.
Wrong energy.
Wrong instincts.

Bad culture fit doesn’t always look like drama.
It looks like drag.

Some devs understand scale. Others understand survival.

The first can design beautiful systems.
The second keeps you alive long enough to matter.

At seed stage, you don’t need an architect.
You need someone who knows what not to build.

“I just want to write clean code.”

Sounds harmless.
But if that’s their top priority in a startup, you're in trouble.

You don’t need perfectionists.
You need product thinkers who can ship clean enough.

You can’t coach urgency.

Either a dev feels the weight of the roadmap or they don’t.
The ones who thrive in startups don’t wait for clarity.
They move with it.
They close gaps.
They unblock themselves.

That’s not experience.
It’s mindset.

A founder told me they got 300 applicants for a Flutter role.

None made it past round one.

Not because the bar was too high.

Because most were good at applying, not building.

That’s why I don’t wait for inbound.

I find the ones already shipping.

Fast teams aren’t chaotic.

They’re consistent.
• Clear priorities
• Tight loops
• No dead weight
• No hand-holding
• No overthinking

Speed doesn’t come from pressure.
It comes from direction.

When a dev leads with “clean architecture,” I pause.

If they want the perfect setup before shipping a feature, I ask why.

Quality matters. But context matters more.

Perfect code won’t save you, f no one wants what you built.

Some devs ship fast.
Others ask the harder question first:
Should we even build this?

That second kind protects your roadmap, your team’s time, and your burn rate.
Startups don’t fail from bad code.
They fail from building the wrong thing.

What if your best mobile hire never applies?

Not because they’re unqualified, but because they’re not looking.

They’re already building, contributing, helping teams ship.

The best Flutter devs I’ve placed were already on my radar.

You just have to know where to look.

The best Flutter devs aren’t filling out job apps.

They’re shipping side projects at midnight.
Debugging with strangers in Discord.
Writing code that speaks louder than any resume.

You won’t find them in a stack.
You find them by following the work.

You don’t need a 10x dev.
You need someone who gets what you’re building.
Understands urgency.
Can run with a loose brief.
Makes smart tradeoffs under pressure.
That’s the kind of hire that moves the needle fast.

A founder told me:

“He looked great on paper. But everything was overbuilt.”

He defaulted to BLoC and Firebase before asking a single question.

It wasn’t about tools. It was about thinking.

The best devs don’t rely on patterns. They rely on judgment.

The best startup devs don’t just build, they choose.

What to ship now.
What to leave out.
Where to simplify.
What to ignore.

It’s not just speed.
It’s judgment.

Knowing what moves the product forward and what doesn’t.

Most startup interviews reward polish, not proof.

They screen for safe answers instead of smart tradeoffs.

If you want someone who can build under pressure, skip the quiz.

Give them a product call and watch how they think.

That’s the real signal.

Most devs aren’t underbuilding.
They’re overcomplicating.

Scaling before users.
Over-architecting simple flows.
Solving fake problems with real time.

Simple ships faster.
Simple scales later.
Simple wins.

Shipping fast looks exciting.
But great teams ship on repeat.

They don’t chase inspiration.
They don’t overthink specs.
They win by removing chaos.

You don’t need a faster team.
You need a more predictable one.

Six interview rounds.
Zero hires who could move fast.

The company didn’t learn who could ship.
They learned who could survive process.

Startups need less theatre, more proof of execution.

Want signal? Look at what they question, not just what they build.

The best engineers I know don’t ask “How do I build this?”
They ask “Why build this at all?”

AI writes code.
Product engineers kill bad ideas, ship faster, and care if users actually use it.

The market pays 10x for builders who think like owners.

A founder hired a “senior” dev.
Strong CV. Great interview.

3 weeks in, their lead was rewriting PRs and skipping lunch to keep up.

The code shipped. The team slowed.

The most expensive hire?
A mid-level dev you manage like an intern.

The best Flutter devs I placed this year didn’t send résumés.
They shipped proof.
→ GitHub
→ Live apps
→ Smart product calls
Résumés show history.
Startups need execution.
Still screening PDFs?
You’re missing the ones who move the needle.

The best Flutter devs I placed this year didn’t send résumés.
They shipped proof.
→ GitHub
→ Live apps
→ Smart product calls
Résumés show history.
Startups need execution.
Still screening PDFs?
You’re missing the ones who move the needle.

One Flutter role. 1,200 applicants.
1,080 were AI junk.
The result?
→ Wasted sprints
→ Burned morale
→ Investors asking questions
The best hires didn’t apply, they shipped.
If you’re still hiring from the pile, what’s it really costing you?

Monster died. LinkedIn won’t. But inbound hiring? Already dead.
2% of inbound apps lead to interviews.
Top talent doesn’t apply.
They ship in public.
They get referred.
Still relying on inbound?
You’re behind.
Where did your last great hire come from?

Monster and CareerBuilder just filed for bankruptcy.
Legacy doesn’t matter. Adaptation does.
What killed them?
→ Networks (LinkedIn)
→ Speed (Indeed)
→ Fit (Niche platforms)
The best hire I made last month came from a GitHub thread.
Where did yours come from?

A founder I worked with was burnt out.
3 no-shows. Inbox full of AI-written CVs.
One key feature slipping.

We rebuilt the funnel.
2 focused calls.
1 dev who’d already solved the same problem.

5 days later: offer signed.
Sprint unblocked.
What’s your time worth?

The dev wasn’t faster. Just sharper.
They rebuilt onboarding 3 times.
Each version fixed a wrong assumption.
The last one fixed retention.
Most teams chase speed.
The best chase outcomes.
Can your team slow down when it matters?

No big names. No spec. Still shipped in 10 days.
The founder almost passed.
No resume. Just a GitHub repo with a full onboarding flow - UI, auth, edge cases.
All solo.
They took the risk.
It worked.
Still screening for pedigree? You're missing your best hire.

Most teams wait to hire until it’s urgent.
That’s why they end up sifting through 100+ AI-written CVs.

A founder I work with filled a role 4 months early, because they’d stayed in touch.

One habit:
Quick check-ins. No pitch. No scramble.

They didn’t fire the dev because he was bad.
They fired him because he was local.
$18K/month, 6 weeks, no shipments.
Remote hire at 40% less shipped onboarding in 5 days.
The office created the illusion of progress.
Remote forced clarity.