Build the Right Team for Your Startup without Breaking the Bank
We help you build a team that is right for your startup using talent strategies that are backed by real research combined with practical startup experiences.
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Happy Founders of Successful Startups
Does this sound like you?
- Hiring that took months of tedious efforts, countless rejections and somehow still hired the wrong person.
- Finally formed a team with great talents only for the team to crash within a span of 3-6 months.
- More people, increased burn rate, higher management complexity – but no results.
I Get Your Startup’s Talent Problems Because I’ve Lived Them
These aren’t just “HR headaches” – they’re serious business roadblocks killing momentum, burning cash, and stopping your startup from reaching its potential.
I combine years of practical experience leading HR in startups working alongside founders like you, together with real insights from behavioral science to drive real business results. This isn’t about some HR theory or best practices; it’s about identifying your unique business challenge, looking at the science of human behavior and organization psychology, and design a solution that is simple and practical to use in your startup.
This means you can stop the frustrating hiring cycle and team drama. Instead, we’ll help you build and manage the right team for you – one that performs efficiently, collaborates effectively, and fuels the serious, sustainable growth your startup needs to win, without wasting precious time or money.
Desmond Koh – Founder of Talentrify
Our Services
01
Find Your Next Star Talent
We use science-backed selection methods and hard lessons from hiring in startups to find, assess, and bring in the right people your startup needs. Build your team with confidence and speed.
02
Build Teams That Deliver Results
We draw on organizational psychology and experience with startup team dynamics, to strategies that helps your teams work together effectively, and drive the results that matters for your growth.
03
Align Talent to Company Growth
We implement simple, practical performance and goal setting systems, informed by real results in startups, to align individual efforts with your business goals that translates into tangible growth.
What You Get By Working With Us
Confidence in Every Hire
Stop the endless cycle of hiring delays, countless rejections, and frustrating bad hires that drain your time and money. Our proven, science-backed methods help you quickly find, accurately assess, and confidently bring in the exact right people your startup needs from day one, setting a strong foundation without the usual headaches.
Team That Truly Performs
Say goodbye to talented individuals struggling in silos or watching promising teams fall apart. We help you build and nurture a truly cohesive team where communication is clear, collaboration is natural, and people are empowered to work together effectively to drive results and navigate the challenges of rapid startup growth.
Higher ROI on Your Talents
Turn your people costs from a liability into a significant asset. By aligning talent efforts with company goals, we ensure your investment in people directly translates into tangible results, increased productivity, and profitable growth for your startup.
Real Results from Real Startups
“Strategic Thinking with Real World Execution”
Desmond combines strategic thinking with real-world execution, and brings empathy, clarity, and sound judgment to every people challenge. I highly recommend Desmond to any startup founder or leadership team looking for a trusted, high-impact HR partner.
Michael Gryseels / Antares Ventures
“Align HR Strategy with Business Goals”
Desmond’s deep expertise in talent acquisition, performance management, and organizational development helped us streamline our hiring processes, implement effective HR policies, and create a strong foundation for scaling our company. His ability to align HR strategy with business goals ensured that we not only hired the right people but also fostered a culture that drove long-term success.
Desmond is a true partner—proactive, results-oriented, and always focused on delivering value. I highly recommend Desmond to any startup looking to build a high-performing team while optimizing costs. His impact on our company was
invaluable.
Nimantha Baranasuriya / Ackcio
“Felt Like Partnering with a Co-Founder”
I’ve had the privilege of working closely with Desmond for over three years (and more to come). His people-first approach has been the foundation of the incredible culture we’ve built together at Ackcio. Desmond is an outstanding leader who balances strategic vision with hands-on execution. He is always ready to take initiative and contribute individually, often going above and beyond to ensure the team’s success.
Desmond thrives under stress, consistently delivering excellence with calmness and focus. Working alongside him has felt like partnering with a co-founder – his dedication, resilience and passion have been pivotal to our growth.
Mobashir Mohammad / Ackcio
“He Understood Our Culture”
Desmond seamlessly helped us navigate hiring, employee engagement, policy development, and many of the day-to-day HR challenges that come with a growing startup. He did not just provide a service; he understood our culture and aligned HR
strategies with our business goals.
Hi ability to offer flexible, high-quality HR support made a real difference for us, and I highly recommend him to any startup looking for a cost-effective yet highly capable HR solution.
Mohammad Sherafatmand / Hydroleap
“Built Robust Systems for Long-Term Success”
Desmond is a transformative HR professional, bringing a wealth of experience that spans recruitment, payroll, compliance, and cross-country regulations. His holistic approach to human resources ensures that organizations not only meet their immediate staffing needs but also build robust systems for long-term success.
I am confident that Desmond will be an asset to any company seeking to enhance their HR functions. His dedication, expertise, and strategic vision make him a standout professional in the field.
Avishek Kumar / VFlowTech
“Invaluable as Our Priorities Evolved”
Desmond’s meticulous attention to detail and seamless adaptability proved invaluable as our priorities evolved. Des’s deep knowledge and cultural sensitivity were instrumental in our simultaneous international recruitment efforts, securing top talent across diverse markets.
His guidance, coupled with his agile approach, directly contributed to our ability to attract and retain high-caliber employees, fostering a positive and productive work environment. We look forward to continuing our successful partnership with him.
Jean-Francois Gebhart / SafeAir & TracePlus
Key Features That Deliver Results
Beyond the outcomes, here are the specific components of our service and how our unique approach compares to trying to build everything yourself or using generic options:
| Feature | Our Approach | Generic Approach |
| Hiring | ✅Science-Backed Selection: Use proven assessments & structured interviews to confidently predict talent fit & success | ❌Often relies on gut instinct, unstructured interviews, or basic resume screening, leading to bad hires |
| Team Dynamics & Performance | ✅Proactive Team Building: Apply insights from organizational psychology to build strong team cohesion & prevent breakdowns before they happen | ❌Reactive to team problems, lacks frameworks for understanding or building effective group dynamics |
| Performance-Driven Systems | ✅Simple, Integrated Systems: Implement practical frameworks linking individual work directly to key business strategy & results ✅ | ❌Ad-hoc performance chats, goals disconnected from company success, unclear contribution |
| Speed & Practicality | ✅Built for Startup Pace: Strategies honed by real startup challenges, designed for fast execution & tangible results ✅ | ❌Generic methods can be too slow, complex, or theoretical for a fast-moving startup environment |
| Unique Expert Blend | ✅Dual Expertise: Benefit from both deep behavioral science understanding AND hands-on startup leadership experience ✅ | ❌Typically offers HR generalists or recruiters without this combined scientific and scaling insight |
Frequently Asked Questions
Will your ‘science-backed’ approach actually fit our specific culture and needs?
Absolutely. Every startup is unique, and generic HR simply won’t give you the impact you need.
We take the time to understand your specific culture, goals, and challenges, then tailor these into science backed principles and practical systems to fit your unique environment, ensuring the solutions work for you.
Our ‘science-backed’ approach isn’t about rigid theory; it’s about applying proven principles of human behavior, team dynamics, and organizational effectiveness that are universal, but executing through a lens honed by real-world startup experience.
What’s the first step to working with you?
The best way to start is with a 20minutes, no-pressure chat. This allows us to hear about your startup’s specific goals and challenges, and for you to learn exactly how our approach can help. It’s the easiest way to figure out if we’re the right fit to support your growth.
What do you mean exactly by “without breaking the bank?”
1. Bad hires, slow hiring, or a team that isn’t performing can cost a startup significantly in wasted salary, lost momentum, missed opportunities, and founder burnout which are all startup killers. You need someone who can deliver practical, high-impact strategies and processes that quickly translate into the right people and measurable business results.
2. We work on a fractional basis – which means that you get an experienced HR Leader working on your most critical problems without the full time cost. As a comparison, a high quality, full time HR leader will cost at least $150K per annum.
What stage startup is this service best suited for?
Our services are designed for startups that are typically growth-stage or preparing to scale startups. You’re likely moving beyond the initial founding team, starting to feel the real pains of hiring and managing more people, and understand that getting your talent strategy right is key to unlocking your next level of growth.
We can also help slightly earlier or later stage companies facing similar talent roadblocks.
How much time and effort will implementing these strategies require from me and my core team?
We understand your time is incredibly valuable – that’s why efficiency is central to our approach. Our goal is to lift the burden, not add to it. We handle the complexity and legwork of designing processes and frameworks using our expertise. Your time investment is focused on the high-leverage, strategic input only you can provide – sharing your vision, defining roles, and making key decisions. By investing focused time with us, you save time and effort you’d otherwise spend on tedious tasks, frustrating mistakes, or fixing team problems down the line.
Is this a one-time project, or do you offer ongoing support?
We offer both, depending on what your startup needs right now.
Project-based work for a specific scope– like setting up a high-impact hiring process or designing a performance system.
Ongoing engagement as a fractional talent partner – continuously helping you hire, manage, and develop your team as you scale.
Ready to Build a High-Performing Team for Your Startup with Proven HR Strategies?
Stop guessing and start growing. Discover how our science-backed HR solutions can streamline your hiring, optimize your team’s performance, and lay the foundation for sustainable scaling.