Ready to launch your own podcast? Book a strategy call.
Frontlines.io | Where B2B Founders Talk GTM.
Strategic Communications Advisory For Visionary Founders
Conversation
Highlights
Welcome to another episode of Category Visionaries — the show that explores GTM stories from tech’s most innovative B2B founders. In today’s episode, we’re speaking with Barb Hyman, CEO & Founder of Sapia AI, a recruiting technology platform that’s raised over $21 Million in funding.
Here are the most interesting points from our conversation:
- Revolutionizing Hiring: Sapia AI leverages natural language processing (NLP) to create an engaging, efficient, and bias-free hiring process, replacing traditional resumes with AI-driven candidate assessments.
- Impact of AI Adoption: The rise of AI, particularly after November 2022, has significantly accelerated interest in Sapia’s technology, although the company has been pioneering AI-driven hiring since 2018.
- Navigating Category Creation: Sapia AI is a new category called “Smart Interviewer,” but the challenge has been in positioning it within existing HR tech categories. The focus is now on customer storytelling to convey its unique value.
- Empathy in Enterprise Sales: Barb emphasizes the importance of “enterprise empathy” when selling AI into HR, recognizing the significant change management required and celebrating success only when the customer does.
- Candidate Experience as a Marketing Tool: The virality of Sapia AI’s candidate experience has led to organic growth, with candidates often referring the product to key decision-makers within organizations.
- Global Expansion Strategy: Sapia AI has strategically focused on the EMEA market due to its sophisticated approach to AI regulation and the high demand for inclusive, bias-free hiring processes.
Actionable
Takeaways
Embrace Enterprise Empathy:
When selling disruptive technology, especially AI, understand the buyer’s perspective and concerns. Celebrate successes only when your customers do, ensuring you’re aligned with their milestones.
Capitalize on Candidate Experience:
A stellar candidate experience can drive organic growth. Encourage candidates to share their positive experiences, turning them into advocates within their professional networks.
Focus on the Right ICP:
Be disciplined about targeting your ideal customer profile (ICP). Avoid wasting resources on prospects who may not have the leadership or readiness to embrace significant change.
Leverage Dark Social:
Utilize non-traditional marketing channels like dark social, where customer referrals and word-of-mouth drive new business, rather than relying solely on paid or large-scale marketing events.
Anchor on Pain Before Demos:
In sales, ensure you deeply understand the customer's pain points before jumping into product demos. This approach leads to more meaningful conversations and higher conversion rates.
Recommended Founder
Interviews
Ben Sesser
CEO & Founder of BrightHire
Ben Sesser, CEO & Founder of BrightHire: $36 Million Raised to Build the Interview Intelligence Category
Will Sealy
CEO and Co-Founder of Summer
Will Sealy, CEO and Co-Founder of Summer: Over $18 Million Raised to Help Organizations Provide Student Loan Benefits
Andy Berman
CEO and Founder of Vowel
Andy Berman, CEO and Founder of Vowel: $13 Million Raised to Power the Future of Meetings
Matthew Sydney
CEO & Founder of Beanstalk Benefits
Matthew Sydney, CEO & Founder of Beanstalk Benefits: $7.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of On-Demand Employee Benefits
Tom Griffiths
CEO and Co-founder of Hone
Tom Griffiths, CEO of Hone: $50 Million Raised to Build the Future of Corporate Training
Laura McGee
Founder and CEO of Diversio
Laura McGee, CEO of Diversio: $6 Million Raised to Help Organizations Measure and Improve DEI
Sammy Singh
CEO and Co-Founder of WurkNow
Sammy Singh, CEO and Co-Founder of WurkNow: $15 Million Raised to Power the Future of Staffing
Prem Kumar
CEO | Co-founder of Humanly
Prem Kumar, CEO of Humanly.io: $5.5 Million Raised to Build the Conversational Hiring Category
Chandler Malone
Founder of Bootup
Chandler Malone, Founder of Bootup: $2 Million Raised to Solve the Tech Talent Crisis
Daniel Birkholm
Founder & CEO of TalentHub
Daniel Birkholm, TalentHub: $6 Million Raised to Transform How Organizations Measure and Improve Their Hiring Experience
Sid Upadhyay
Co-Founder & CEO of WizeHire
Sid Upadhyay, Co-Founder & CEO at WizeHire: Over $30 Million Raised to Help SMBs Hire Great Talent
Sam Naficy
CEO of Prodoscore
Sam Naficy, CEO of Prodoscore: $4 Million Raised to Build the Future of Employee Productivity Measurement
Hanns Aderhold
Founder and CEO of Cobrainer
Hanns Aderhold, Founder and CEO of Cobrainer: $21 Million Raised to Build the Future of Skills Data Platforms
Jennifer Dulski
CEO & Founder of Rising Team
Jennifer Dulski, CEO & Founder of Rising Team: $11 Million Raised to Build the Future of Team Performance
Nancy Xu
CEO & Founder of Moonhub
Nancy Xu, CEO & Founder of Moonhub: $10 Million Raised to Power the Future of AI-Driven Recruiting
Joseph Fung
CEO of Uvaro
Joseph Fung, CEO of Uvaro: $15 Million Raised to Build the Career Success Platform Category
Barbra Gago
CEO and Founder of Pando
Barbra Gago, CEO and Founder of Pando: $7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Career Advancement
Jared Pope
CEO and Co-Founder of Work Shield
Jared Pope, CEO and Co-Founder of Work Shield: $12 Million Raised to Eliminate Workplace Misconduct
Carlos Gonzalez
Founder & CEO of Product School
Carlos Gonzalez de Villaumbrosia, Founder & CEO of Product School: $25 Million Raised to Power the Future of Product Management Education
John Kim
Co-Founder & CEO of Paraform
John Kim, Co-Founder & CEO of Paraform: $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Recruiting with a Marketplace for Specialized Talent
Michael Ioffe
CEO & Co-Founder of Arist
Michael Ioffe, CEO & Co-Founder of Arist: $16 Million Raised to Build the Future of Autonomous L&D
Warren Lebovics
Co-Founder of Pequity
Warren Lebovics, Co-Founder of Pequity: $19 Million Raised to Build the Future of Employee Compensation
Hanna Asmussen
CEO and Co-Founder of Localyze
Hanna Asmussen, CEO and Co-Founder of Localyze: Over $48 Million Raised to Build the Leading Global Mobility Platform for Companies and Employees
Mousa Yassin
CEO and Founder of Pixaera
Mousa Yassin, CEO and Founder of Pixaera: $5.7 Million Raised to Build the Future of VR Safety Training
Nicholas Rudder
Co-Founder & CEO of Sphere
Nicholas Rudder, Co-Founder & CEO of Sphere: $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Corporate Learning
Raghu Gollamudi
CEO and Co-Founder of Included
Raghu Gollamudi, CEO and Co-Founder of Included: $5.4 Million Raised to Build the Future of HR Analytics
Ben Zweig
CEO of Revelio Labs
Ben Zweig, CEO of Revelio Labs: $19 Million Raised to Build the Future of Workforce Intelligence
Kian Katanforoosh
CEO & Founder of Workera
Kian Katanforoosh, CEO of Workera: $21 Million Raised to Build the Skills Intelligence Category
Tuck Hauptfuhrer
CEO & Co-Founder of EarnBetter
Tuck Hauptfuhrer, CEO & Co-Founder of EarnBetter: $4.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of AI-Powered Job Search
Mike Fitzsimmons
CEO and Co-Founder of Crosschq
Mike Fitzsimmons, CEO & Co-Founder of Crosschq: $35 Million Raised to Power the Future of AI-Driven Hiring Intelligence
Karoli Hindriks
Founder of Jobbatical
Karoli Hindriks, Founder of Jobbatical: $23 Million Raised to Build the Future of Global Mobility with AI-Powered Relocation Solutions
Amit Bhatia
CEO & Co-Founder of Data People
Amit Bhatia, Co-Founder and CEO of Data People: $21 Million Raised to Build the Future of Recruiting Intelligence
Ian White
Founder of ChartHop
Ian White, Founder, CEO and CTO of ChartHop: $74 Million Raised to Build the Future of PeopleOps
Chris Johnson
Growth Marketing Lead of Gun.IO
Chris Johnson, Growth Marketing Lead at Gun.IO: Competing in the Future of Freelance Developer Marketplaces
René Janssen
CEO and Founder of Lepaya
René Janssen, CEO & Founder of Lepaya: $85 Million Raised to Build the Future of Employee Training
Marcelo Lebre
President of Remote
Marcelo Lebre, Co-founder & COO of Remote: Nearly $500 Million Raised to Power the Distributed Workforce of the Future
Matt Pierce
CEO of Immediate
Matt Pierce, CEO of Immediate: $15 Million Raised to Eliminate the Costly Price of Financial Stress in the Workforce
Jason Radisson
CEO and Founder of Movo
Jason Radisson, CEO and Founder of Movo: Over $9 Million Raised to Build the Future of HR Automation
Ville Herva
CEO of BOLT.works
Ville Herva, CEO of BOLT.works: $7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Staffing
Mike Adams
Co-Founder & CEO of Grain
Mike Adams, Co-Founder & CEO of Grain: $22 Million Raised to Power the Future of Meetings
Avi Singer
CEO & Founder of Showd.me
Avi Singer, CEO & Founder of Showd.me: $4.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Compliance Training
Rob Whalen
CEO of PTO Exchange
Rob Whalen, CEO of PTO Exchange: $5M Raised to Empower Companies to Rethink Paid Time Off
Jaclyn Chen
CEO of Benepass
Jaclyn Chen, CEO of Benepass: $14 Million Raised to Build the Future of Employee Benefits Management
Fraser Patterson
CEO and Founder of Skillit
Fraser Patterson, CEO and Founder of Skillit: $13 Million Raised to Tackle the Skilled Labor Crisis in Construction
Anthony Mironov
CEO and Co-Founder of Wingspan
Anthony Mironov, CEO and Co-Founder of Wingspan: $30 Million Raised to Power the Contractor Experience of the Future
Tony Jamous
CEO of Oyster
Tony Jamous, CEO of Oyster: $220+ Million Raised to Build the Global Employment Platform (GEP) Category
Daniel Liebeskind
CEO and Co-Founder of Topia
Daniel Liebeskind, CEO and Co-Founder of Topia: $6 Million Raised to Help Organizations Build Their Own Metaverse
Siadhal Magos
CEO & Co-Founder of Metaview
Siadhal Magos, CEO & Co-Founder of Metaview: $14 Million Raised to Power the Future of AI-Driven Hiring
Albert Owusu-Asare
CEO & Co-Founder of Cadana
Albert Owusu-Asare, CEO & Co-Founder of Cadana: $7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Global Payroll Infrastructure
Kevin Busque
CEO and Founder of Guideline
Kevin Busque, CEO and Founder of Guideline: $339 Million Raised to Help More Small Businesses Offer Retirement Plans
Matt Watson
CEO and Founder of Origin
Matt Watson, CEO and Founder of Origin: Over $70 Million Raised to Make Financial Wellness the Next Big Employee Perk
Wes Winham Winler
Founder/CEO of Woven
Wes Winham Winler, CEO of Woven: $11 Million Raised to Transform How Companies Recruit and Hire Developers
Omer Glass
Co-Founder and CEO of GrowthSpace
Omer Glass, Co-Founder and CEO of GrowthSpace: $44 Million Raised to Build the Future of Employee Development
Achuthanand Ravi
Founder & CEO of Kula
Achuthanand Ravi, CEO of Kula: $14 Million Raised to Build the Future of Recruiting
Josh Merrill
CEO of Confirm
Josh Merrill, CEO of Confirm: Over $11 Million Raised to End the Performance Review Nightmare
Andres Blank
Co-founder & CEO of Fetcher
Andres Blank, CEO of Fetcher: $40 Million+ Raised to Build the Future of Recruiting Automation
Jason Lavender
CEO of Electives
Jason Lavender, CEO of Electives: $10M Raised to Redefine Corporate Training
Virgile Raingeard
CEO of Figures
Virgile Raingeard, CEO of Figures: €8.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Compensation Intelligence
Kelsey Bishop
Founder and CEO of Candor
Kelsey Bishop, Founder and CEO of Candor: $5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Professional Relationship-Building
Agapitos Diakogiannis
Co-founder & CEO of Seafair
Agapitos Diakogiannis, CEO of Seafair: $6.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Maritime Recruitment
Stephen Johnston
CEO and Founder of GoodJob
Stephen Johnston, CEO and Founder of GoodJob: $9 Million Raised to Power the Future of Human Capital Management
Nishika de Rosairo
CEO and Founder of HumanQ
Nishika de Rosairo, CEO and Founder of HumanQ: $3.5 Million Raised to Build the Future of Human Development
Allen Narcisse
Founder & CEO of Gigs
Allen Narcisse, Founder & CEO of Gigs: $5.7 Million Raised to Build the Future of Blue Collar Hiring
Sebastian Schüller
Co-founder of HiPeople
Sebastian Schüller, Co-founder of HiPeople: $7 Million Raised to Develop Data-Driven Augmentation for Hiring Teams
Brett Martin
President and Co-Founder of Kumospace
Brett Martin, President and Co-Founder of Kumospace: $25 Million Raised to Power the Future of Virtual Offices
Nicole Fuselier
VP of Marketing of Bonusly
Revenue-Driven Marketing: Insights from Nicole Fuselier of Bonusly
Peter Briffett
CEO and Co-Founder of Wagestream
Peter Briffett, CEO and Co-Founder of Wagestream: $370 Million Raised to Provide Financial Wellbeing for Every Frontline Employee