Contributed by NJ Tech Meetup member, Gil Olsen.
You know the drill... at each NJ Tech Meetup, companies get 5 minutes and a brief Q+A to pitch whatever is most valuable to their mission... new users, new talent, an introduction to an investor for their next round, or, if they have their priorities straight, the coveted NJ Tech Audience Choice Award.
The Pitch Co. Intros. are meant to help give some context and set the stage to make the most of the time for you.
Let us know what you like, what you don't, and what makes you curious about upcoming companies in the comments.
First up....
It's tough enough to manage our own schedules. Once you add overlapping activities, additional people, and last minute changes, the number of variables exceeds the computational ability of the grey jello between our ears.
Burbio centralizes and synchs multiple calendars and notifies all users of any changes.
Their pitch video positions them towards moms who organize and coordinate for not only themselves, but also their hyper-involved, personally incompetent kids.
They make the heavy claim : "If you sign up, "it will change the way you live". I tried to experiment, but they are just starting out and only operate in 30 communities in North Jersey/NY.
Check them out... if you would like to join the team, they are hiring for ad sales.
In case you hadn't noticed, we're on the vertical climb in the rise of the freelancer. Liquid Talent is trying to be the go-to spot for people to connect with vetted talent for tech projects, on-demand.
Their cluster of sexy hiring partner logos includes ESPN, Vaynermedia, Trello and WeWork.
They have some shining testimonials that give the impression the team is gaining some traction. "I've never met a team that 'gets it' quite like LiquidTalent. I truly believe they see the future of the technical talent marketplace and have taken it upon themselves to deliver that future creatively and responsibly." Chad Sanders - Dev Bootcamp.
Their team of 7 includes co-founders Alex Abelin and Scott Annan, 4 developers/engineers and a community manager. They also list a dozen investors.
In the homepage footer is a FREE 25 page E-book titled the Future of Work. It outlines their view on the shifts in the workforce towards Freelancing. Even if you are aware of the trends, it is worth a read, and worth keeping on hand to forward to those who might not "get it".
The service is FREE! until next year! Not sure if that is just a couple weeks or several months, but try it while it's hot!
Ok, so we just learned that in 2020 half the workforce will be free-lancing... What about the other half?
Full time employment won't vanish overnight. For bigger, longer term projects and ongoing work, there will still be a need to evaluate and hire top talent.
Hiring pad is based on the premise that with the explosion on the new web, there is an abundance of developers and coders out there... the problem is finding the right developer is like finding a needle in a haystack.
HiringPad's solution is a virtual interview process that allows anyone on your team to coordinate a time to meet, chat face to face with a candidate, and watch them code in real time in a code editor. They stream line evaluations (you create them, they archive them) and allow participants to rate candidates and their abilities.
If you're screening 30 candidates a month, $50 sounds next to free to me.
This sounds great for people who actually know the difference between a needle and a straw of hay... what about non-technical folks looking to make a hire?
Show up tonight and find out.
Gil is betting on....
Liquid Talent.
- Team seems diverse and skilled, their Instagram is active and shows a pretty lively bunch that is not just holed up behind computers.
- UI of the site is clean.
- Value provided upfront with the e-book, which also shows evidence that they truly believe in their purpose and the trend they are riding.
- The social/geographic vetting aspect is a great default filter. I wonder if there is any integration LinkedIn.
- Using the service while it's free seems to be a no-brainer... interested to hear what their revenue model will be. If it's more creative than skimming a % or adding a fee, I'll be even more interested to see how it turns out.
The Hedge: Burbio: Never underestimate the networking super powers of moms. 30 communities is nothing to sneeze at and could be an indication of early traction.
