— By Nicole North & Pete Steinle
There are two things we know that are more true now than ever. Talent matters. And the fight to secure top talent has never been more fierce.
Having the right people on your team can make the difference between a company struggling to gain traction and one that’s about to take off like a rocket.
This is especially true for the best technical talent which is in perilously short supply at the moment. This is why we’re so thrilled to introduce Sam Wholley as the newest member of our team, leading Lightspeed Venture Partners’ global tech executive talent efforts.
Talent is an asset
Sam spent the last nine years helping to build and manage Riviera Partners, which is widely recognized as the leading Product Development leadership recruiting firm. When a startup CEO needed to hire an Engineering leader, CTO, or Data Science leader, Sam was the first person they called.
As a former engineer himself, Sam connects with tech talent in a way few others can and his breadth of experience and connections in the technical realm are the perfect complement to the talent team at Lightspeed.
Even the world’s most brilliant founders can’t do it alone. Sam has dedicated his career to helping fill the product, engineering, data, and design rosters of some of the biggest names in tech, including partnering with some of our own Lightspeed portfolio companies including AppZen, Calm, Clever, Daily Harvest, Dremio, and People.ai.
Hire aspirations
It is not enough to simply suggest a recruiting firm and call it a day. Every founder wants their company to be known as a magnet for the absolute best talent, so that the most compelling candidates seek you out.
To win in technology, founders prioritize recruiting all the time, and learn how to excel at it. Companies need to think strategically about designing, building, and retaining world-class organizations. This involves shrewd long-game planning and relentless tactical execution. We feel the same at Lightspeed, and are committed to supporting our portfolio companies in attracting and retaining talent in a repeatable and scalable way. This is Sam’s passion, as it is for us all.
Sam’s hiring is supportive of the strategy we’ve pursued to build the most impactful talent organization for Lightspeed and our founders. We purposefully sought out the most experienced, the most connected, and the most respected technical recruiter with a track record of building hundreds of technical teams. It was also important that we found a partner who shares our commitment to supporting underrepresented leaders in the technology ecosystem, which Sam has been dedicated to since he started his career as an engineer.
We’re honored to have Sam on our team.
Welcome Sam!
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