The Critical Hire

Your Candidate Pool Is Smaller Than It Looks

Steven Nelson

Published on: 11/01/2026

Why 15,000 profiles turned into 11 interviews: a title is not a market, every requirement costs you people, and the replies tell you where the market really is.

We Don't Have a Plant

Steven Nelson

Published on: 10/01/2026

A cold email told our CEO we had a gap in our operations because we were hiring a Plant Manager. We don't have a plant. What it teaches about doing your homework before outreach.