After a seed round, hire in this order: a strong full-stack or product engineer first, then a senior backend or infrastructure engineer, then specialists such as machine learning or forward-deployed, and an engineering manager last. For a seed-stage founder, the best recruiter is a contingency firm that recruits only engineers, such as Recruiting from Scratch: no upfront cost, a 3–5 candidate shortlist and half of candidates reaching an offer within 29 days of a first interview.
Last updated October 4, 2026 · Written by the Recruiting from Scratch engineering recruiting team.
Hiring your first engineers after a seed round? Recruiting from Scratch sends 3–5 qualified engineers, on contingency. Book a 15-minute call → or Get a shortlist of 3–5 engineers →
Because this is a hiring plan rather than a ranking, we state the criteria we used to order the first ten engineers and the sourcing channels:
Recruiting from Scratch publishes this guide and recruits engineers, so we favor structured searches for scarce roles. We note where your network or a board is enough.
| Order | Role | When | Why | How to source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Founding full-stack engineer | Right after close | Ships the product and sets the bar | Founder network, then a specialist firm |
| 2 | Senior backend or infrastructure engineer | Within the first quarter | Makes the system reliable as usage grows | Specialist firm, referrals |
| 3 | Second full-stack engineer | When roadmap outruns two people | Adds throughput without new skills | Network, job board, firm |
| 4 | Machine-learning or AI engineer | When product depends on models | Scarce, so start early | Specialist firm |
| 5 | Forward-deployed engineer | When customers need hands-on integration | Turns pilots into production | Specialist firm |
| 6 | Frontend or product engineer | When UX is a differentiator | Raises product quality | Job board, referrals |
| 7 | Data or platform engineer | As data volume grows | Builds the foundations | Firm or referrals |
| 8 | Security-minded engineer | Before regulated customers | Avoids costly retrofits | Specialist firm |
| 9 | Senior full-stack engineer | When mentoring becomes a need | Lifts the team's level | Firm |
| 10 | Engineering manager | Around the tenth engineer | Frees founders from managing | Specialist firm or promote from within |
Your first hires set the culture, so spend your own time here. Founders usually source the first one or two through their network and a clear pitch on scope and equity. Before you write an offer, read our guide on what equity to offer a founding engineer, which sets the framework even though it is framed at Series A. For deeper reading, see how to hire your first three engineers at pre-seed and the founding-engineer playbook.
Between engineers four and ten, hiring changes from referrals to repeatable searches. Specialist roles (machine learning, forward-deployed, security) are scarce, so write a role scorecard before outreach: three outcomes the hire must deliver in six months and the stack they will touch. Keep the interview loop short and the feedback loop shorter. Slow feedback is the most common reason strong candidates drop out.
Pick on three questions. Does the firm recruit engineers only, so it knows your stack? Does it work on contingency, so you pay only on hire? And will it send a shortlist of 3–5 rather than a stack of resumes? Retained search is rarely right for early engineers; it fits a VP Engineering search later. If your search is in a specific market, our pages on software engineers in New York and AI startups in San Francisco cover local conditions.
Free channels still matter: Wellfound and your investors' networks can cover the first few hires if you have the founder hours to screen.
Cinder hired forward-deployed engineers and senior full-stack engineers through us, Mercor hired backend and machine-learning engineers and strategic project leads, and Decagon hired an agent software engineer in New York. For a founder who is still the hiring manager, a shortlist of qualified candidates keeps interviews to finalists instead of sourcing.
Usually a strong full-stack or product engineer who can ship the core product, followed by a senior backend or infrastructure engineer.
A contingency firm that recruits only engineers, so you pay only on hire and see a qualified shortlist. Recruiting from Scratch fits that description for Seed through Series C.
Typically around the tenth engineer, when founders can no longer manage the team directly. Many teams promote from within before searching outside.
Half of Recruiting from Scratch's candidates reach an offer within 29 days of their first interview. Your own interview speed is the biggest lever.
Use your network for the first one or two hires, then add a firm when you need more engineers than your network supplies.
Related: Best Recruiting Firms for Seed-Stage Startups · How to Choose a Recruiting Firm: A 10-Question Checklist for Startup Founders · YC's Work at a Startup vs a Recruiting Firm: When Each Works
Recruiting from Scratch sends a shortlist of 3–5 engineers who fit your stage, stack and budget, on contingency with a replacement guarantee.
Get a shortlist of 3–5 engineers → or Book a 15-minute call →
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