Startup hiring can look informal from the outside, but the fundamentals are the same as any strong application: understand the role, show relevant evidence and make it easy for the employer to see why you can help.
1. Start with the problem, not the brand
Read what the company actually sells and who it serves. Then read the job carefully.
Ask:
- What outcome is this person being hired to create?
- Which skills are genuinely essential?
- What looks like a wish list?
- What stage is the company at?
- Who will this role work with?
A focused application to a company you understand is more useful than sending the same CV to 50 startups.
2. Translate your experience
You do not need previous startup employment to be useful at a startup.
Evidence can come from:
- a job in a larger company
- a side project
- freelancing
- volunteering
- a university project
- a society
- running an event
- building something yourself
The National Careers Service recommends tailoring examples to the skills an employer is asking for and using evidence rather than unsupported claims.
3. Make your CV easy to scan
Put the strongest evidence near the top.
Instead of:
Responsible for onboarding.
Try:
Redesigned onboarding after analysing support and funnel data; reduced the number of steps from X to Y.
Do not invent metrics. If you do not have a number, explain the problem, your action and what changed.
4. Apply where the employer asks you to
On JAS, most V1 roles send you to the employer's own careers site or ATS. Follow that application process.
If they ask for a portfolio, work sample or short answer, treat it as part of the application rather than an optional extra.
5. Prepare examples
The STAR method - Situation, Task, Action, Result - is a useful way to structure evidence for interviews and application questions.
For a startup, prepare examples covering:
- working without complete information
- prioritising
- making a trade-off
- learning quickly
- dealing with a mistake
- working across functions
- speaking to customers or users
- delivering something from idea to outcome
6. Interview the company too
Ask what success looks like, why the role exists, what changed recently, how decisions are made and what the biggest risk to the team's plan is.
A startup interview is not only the company assessing you. You are deciding whether to invest your time and career in the business.