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Startup hiring can be quite a nightmare as recent industry trends indicate. 

As the demand for tech talent soars in India, recruiters are increasingly finding themselves in the middle of chaos. From browsing through hundreds of resumes and shortlisting candidates to conducting background checks and scheduling interviews — they are often at their wit’s end. 

Several staffing agencies and startups are now adding recruiters and talent acquisition managers to ease the hiring process and shorten the time taken to fill positions. 

Enter Hirect, a chat-based direct hiring platform for high-growth startups. 

It uses a proprietary matchmaking algorithm to connect tech recruiters with jobseekers. Not only does it cut down the time taken for shortlisting candidates, but it also enables instant communication between both parties through chat and video. 

On the jobseeker side, Hirect allows candidates to connect directly with founders, CXOs, and HR leaders. And on the recruitment side, it does AI-led background verifications, recommends high quality candidates, schedules video interviews within 30 minutes, and essentially, eliminates the back and forth on email. 

Hirect has crossed a million downloads on Google Play Store, and is rated 4.6 out of 5. As per its website, more than 30,000 startups in the world are hiring on Hirect. 

Over 3,000 job listings are added to the platform every week. The app has connected over 100,000 active jobseekers with 10,000+ verified recruiters. Hirect also claims there are 50,000+ CXOs who are “waiting to chat” with candidates.

Some of India’s top startups (and unicorns), including BYJU’S, Flipkart, Amazon, Udaan, upGrad, Walmart, Vedantu, NoBroker, Justdial, Lenskart, Ajio.com, and Freecharge, among others, have used Hirect to fill key tech positions. 

Hirect also conducts weekly online recruitment drives with 50+ tech companies.

App breakdown

Users have to log into Hirect with their mobile number. At the very outset, the app asks you if you’re a recruiter or a candidate. 

Unlike food delivery or fleet cab services that have separate apps for customers and riders, Hirect bundles both interfaces in a single app, but shows you only what you want. Users can switch between both interfaces from their profile page.

If you’re a candidate, Hirect lets you select job type (full-time, contract, intern), functional areas (IT, digital marketing, sales and business development, operations, product, design, finance, supply chain and logistics, manufacturing, BPO, real estate and construction, media and advertising), preferred city, and expected salary range.

Candidates can also create profiles (similar to LinkedIn) on Hirect by sharing key details, including bio, education, past work experience, skills, etc. They can save jobs, upload CVs, and chat with recruiters using the in-app messaging feature.

At present, Hirect lists jobs in top 10 cities of India: Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Gurugram, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Noida, and Pune. It also lists blue-collar jobs, including delivery staff, drivers, security guards, electricians, carpenters, plumbers, beauticians, cleaners, and appliance repair technicians. 

The app allows companies to create a job listing in five minutes. But first it verifies recruiters by asking for their company ID card, work email, LinkedIn profile, appointment letter, and other authorised documents.  

After the job is posted, Hirect notifies the recruiter as soon as a candidate is matched. Voice calling and video calling features are integrated within the app so users don’t have to switch platforms. 

While the app is free for candidates, Hirect charges recruiters for posting hot jobs. (Jobs of some definite functional areas to be posted for listed cities are considered as hot jobs.) Recruiters have to pay Rs 199 for each hot job listing on Hirect.

Why Hirect solves a real problem

Recruitment is one of the hottest topics in India’s startup ecosystem today. 

The buzz has reached fever pitch in the last 7-8 months, with thousands of new tech positions opening up every quarter, and candidates becoming effective kingmakers because of the diversity of choices on offer. 

As a result, it is imperative for recruiters to shorten the hiring window. At the same time, they also have to pick quality talent, given the big bucks they’re willing to spend on them. Hirect is attempting to solve both these problems. 

It also serves as an alternative job search platform (besides players like Indeed, Naukri, Monster, LinkedIn, etc.) for candidates. By being focussed on startup and tech jobs, Hirect is also able to sift through the noise in the overall recruitment industry. 

Early-stage startups, which do not have large hiring budgets or sprawling talent acquisition divisions, can benefit from platforms like Hirect because it eliminates the middleman by placing founders and job seekers in the same chat window. 

One testimonial summed it up well, “The in-app chat feature is a phenomenal idea to bring to recruiters. Add to it a few relevant questions and you’re able to identify the right fit in 2-3 minutes.”

Possibly, that’s where Hirect needs to go next. Automate more. 

YS’s flagship startup-tech and leadership conference will return virtually for its 13th edition on October 25-30, 2021. Sign up for updates on TechSparks or to express your interest in partnerships and speaker opportunities here.

For more on TechSparks 2021, click here.

Applications are now open for Tech30 2021, a list of 30 most promising tech startups from India. Apply or nominate an early-stage startup to become a Tech30 2021 startup here.