03 Mar Who Do You Turn To When Hiring Isn’t So Easy?

How did we first meet?

We first met Steven Jiang, Founder & CEO of HireEZ, over a bowl of Vietnamese Pho soup noodles during the summer of 2021. We were initially impressed by his scale and growth. I couldn’t believe I had never come across this company before despite achieving double-digit millions in ARR, being located in Mountain View, CA, and taking over the offices of my previously successful portfolio company, Gigya (acquired by SAP).

Who cares?

From the Great Resignation to the Great Rehire, the pandemic has significantly changed how and where we work. Never before have so many companies embraced remote work. So much so that according to a recent report by 60 Minutes, 1 in 67 jobs were remote pre-pandemic, today it is 1 in 7 jobs. This massive shift has only made it more difficult to find employees for all the jobs that need to be filled. In order to do so, employers today are focused on outbound recruiting. The customers we spoke with all expressed a dire need for technology solutions that make the recruiting process more efficient and streamlined, which includes everything from identifying candidates to onboarding them. At Conductive Ventures, we love it when we hear big problems that can be solved with technology.

Why is their solution unique?

HireEZ solves this pain point using artificial intelligence to find candidates that recruiters are looking for. Their biggest point of differentiation is its large library of potential candidates combined with the platform’s ability to source unique candidates that otherwise wouldn’t have showed up. While the HR Technology market has attracted significant VC dollars, HireEZ has been able to maintain its capital efficiency spending where it makes the most impact while experiencing 2.5 times year-over-year revenue growth in 2021. They serve over 600 enterprise customers and more than 175,000 total users worldwide. Currently, HireEZ actively supports 40% of the top 20 companies listed as the world’s most valuable brands.

What’s the X-factor?

One of the things that stood out to us the most about this team is how much it reminds us of our immigrant parents. At Conductive Ventures, we’re a firm made up of 1st and 2nd generation immigrants. When you look at our entire portfolio, two thirds of our Founders/CEOs are immigrants and/or minorities. It’s easy for us to relate to entrepreneurs who walked a similar path as us or others who have come before us. Steven’s hunger to win and build a great company is enviable. We’re also fortunate to join alongside us two successful technology entrepreneurs: Eric Yuan (Founder & CEO of Zoom) and Duke Chung (Founder and CEO of Travelbank – acquired by US Bank).