Mike

Hiring doesn’t have to suck!

We help early-stage founders build hiring systems that let them hire fast, correctly, and without recruiters.

📩 [email protected]

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Hiring your first 5-20 people?

I help startup founders build lean, scalable hiring systems, without recruiters, agencies, or wasting time

Free offer: I’ll audit your hiring funnel & job ads & send 3 quick wins

Reply “audit” or DM me and I’ll sort the rest!

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Replacing juniors with AI seems like a great idea to some companies right now.

However, while they may save on salary costs today, the future risks are massive:

- No pipeline of senior employees
- No institutional knowledge retained
- High risk of senior burnout

All of this leads to expensive restructuring and hiring costs later.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

All this talk of OpenClaw will make hiring the right people for your business even more essential in the future.

If your future hires are not using AI agents, they will be considerably less productive than your competitors.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Most founders think their job is done once they’ve hired a candidate.

But the onboarding process is just as important to get right.

If you get it wrong, good candidates will leave and all the hard work to hire them will be wasted.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Want to hire fast?

Simplify your process.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Founders, hiring well and hiring poorly take almost the same level of effort.

Whichever you choose becomes a reputation you'll carry throughout your business's growth.

Choose Crueen!

[Mike @mikeybartley]

I'm working on a hiring clarity sprint for a SaaS founder.

They're looking to double the team over the next couple of months.

Why are they using Crueen?

So they can focus on what they do best: running the business, building a better product, and keeping customers happy.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

@russellbrunson This!

The best way to create momentum is by taking action.
It's amazing what one good decision can turn into.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

@thejustinwelsh Very true Justin.

Discovering your content was the catalyst I needed to create my own solopreneur journey!

Big thanks!

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Writing has always been a weakness of mine.

But one thing I've realised while building Crueen Consulting over the last couple of months is that it's an invaluable skill to master if I'm going to get where I want to be with this business.

Over the next 30 days, I'm going to write something each day and hold myself accountable. Watch this space!

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Had some very exciting news in the last 24 hours!

Can’t wait to share it with you all.

[Codie Sanchez @Codie_Sanchez]

Obsessed with being unemployable.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

I help founders avoid their most expensive early mistake: the wrong first or second hire.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

@derek__Watson Same goes for how they make hires Derek!

Data over gut feeling always wins!

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Founders: How do you evaluate potential when experience is limited?

Look for:

• Rate of learning
• Pattern recognition
• Quality of questions
• Self-awareness

Past titles matter less than growth trajectory.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Founders, every early-stage hire you make must have these three traits:

- Ownership
- Learning speed
- Resilience under uncertainty

Skills can be taught.
These can’t.

Don’t make expensive mistakes early.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

If you're a founder still hiring based on "vibes," here's the fix:

Replace:
"Do I like them?"

With:
"Can they deliver this outcome in this environment?"

Structure beats intuition every time.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

This reduces mis-hires and saves costs in the long run!

[Mike @mikeybartley]

I'm often asked what it is we actually do at Crueen Consulting.

Put simply, we stop founders from making expensive early hires without a system in place.

That's it.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

Speaking with some founder friends over the past few weeks, we realised you can quickly spot candidates who fit startups well by listening for three things:

• How they talk about ambiguity
• Whether they default to ownership or permission
• If they explain impact, not just tasks

Startup fit reveals itself in language and how people discuss their work.

[Mike @mikeybartley]

The 5 Most Common Hiring Mistakes Early-Stage Founders Will Make in 2026

- Hiring too late
- Hiring for comfort, not capability
- Relying on “gut feel”
- No clear success criteria

Hiring mistakes aren’t random, they’re systemic. We can show you how to avoid them!