F200 Corporate Build Studio

THE ROLES

EIR/Founder/Creator Multi-Hire Project

the challenge

No Visionaries, No Velocity: Tackling the Founder Gap in a High-Ambition Build Studio

The Director of a forward-thinking Build Studio was on a mission: to recruit entrepreneurial leaders—Founders and Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIRs)—to help reimagine how we interact with home appliances. He needed experienced CEOs or founders who could ideate from scratch, then roll up their sleeves to build both the technology and the team.

But the reality hit quickly.

His initial outreach revealed a scarcity of candidates with the rare combination of a successful startup track record and the appetite to start from zero again. Those who had “been there, done that” were hesitant to dive back into the early grind.

On top of that, his previous experience with traditional search firms left him frustrated. The slow drip of candidates made it impossible to assess a full cohort of strong contenders at once, stalling momentum and hindering meaningful comparisons. The lack of speed and strategic alignment became a major barrier to building the kind of founder bench his studio—and vision—demanded.

Our Approach

Our team researched the residential IoT market for successful founders and CEOs, also canvassing the greater Proptech and Climate tech talent pools.

Over a 5-week period, we conducted a professional headhunting campaign targeting more than 250 CEOs and founders, resulting in a shortlist of 30 high-potential candidates.

These candidates were presented in cohorts of 6 to 8, allowing the client to evaluate talent in structured waves for more efficient comparison and decision-making.

the result

Our firm filled 12 positions consisting of Entrepreneurs in Residence and Founders for this Build Studio.

One of those EIRs successfully developed a software that allows home owners to throw away those cumbersome appliance manuals and go paperless with regards to their appliances, saving valuable time for the home owner and repair/maintenance workers.

“We are consistently amazed at the quality and the quantity of talent you provide for us. This has made a huge impact on our business.”

— Director, Venture Capital Build Studio, AmFam/Tenney 110