A structured onboarding process with a dedicated mentor is crucial for retention. One company, overwhelmed with work, failed to properly support a new engineer. Lacking a guide and feeling isolated, the engineer quit after just one week, demonstrating that onboarding is not a task to be rushed.

Firms invest heavily in sourcing candidates but fail at onboarding. The crucial first 90 days, when an executive is most vulnerable, are often neglected, treating the hire as a 'done deal' instead of the beginning of a critical integration phase.

Don't aim for a universally liked culture. Instead, present your core beliefs so provocatively during onboarding that new hires must immediately decide if they are fully aligned. This forces a clear "in or out" choice, preventing cultural dilution and future performance issues. The goal is for them to say "I love it" or "I'm not aligned."

Teopo Capital prioritizes rigorous post-hire evaluation. They believe the true assessment of a candidate's fit and capability occurs on the job. The greatest risk is not making the wrong hire, but failing to act swiftly when they underperform, making quick termination crucial for risk management.

Don't dismiss all complaints about minor issues, as even top performers can have them. The real red flag is the "frequent flyer"—the person who consistently complains and rallies others around negativity. This pattern is more corrosive than any single issue.

C-level hiring is exceptionally difficult, with a high failure rate. Data from MongoDB's CEO shows an average of two C-level turnovers per year. HubSpot's co-founder Brian Halligan estimates that at least 50% of newly hired C-level executives are gone within 18 months.

When interviewing, ask candidates: 'In six months, what would be a nightmare situation for you here?' Their answer reveals their work-style preferences and anxieties, highlighting potential mismatches with your company's reality and helping you hire for retention.

Thirty days after a new person starts, ask: "Knowing what I know today, would I hire this person?" If the answer is yes, praise them. If the answer is no, fire them immediately. This forces a decisive action before a bad fit can damage team morale, as everyone else already knows they aren't a fit.

New employees are cognitively overloaded during their initial week, making it the worst time to ask them to make critical, long-term decisions like retirement allocations. Companies should instead create space for employees to revisit these important choices later, once they are more settled and can think clearly.