Yardenne is an entrepreneur, co-founder and CEO of Unboxable. Prior to Unboxable, she was a partner at impact venture capital firm Irrational Innovations specialising in seed investments in sub-Saharan Africa. Yardenne also operated as part of the management team at Vital Capital Fund, a $350M impact investment fund. Prior to joining the impact investing world, she founded and led an Edu-Tech company and worked with the world’s leading companies.
Please tell us a little bit about your business – what is Unboxable all about?
Unboxable is the only one-stop-shop solution on the market that injects data science into the heart of hiring to replace gut instinct decision-making.
We do this by building code-less AI-driven Job Simulators that surface “Talent-fit” at stage zero before a hiring manager has invested any human time in a candidate. Our standout game-changer is Unboxable’s Compatibility Forecasting which reveals candidates’ natural communication styles and enables us to predict how candidates will manifest their skills and work style in context to the role and company. We fuel smarter decisions, providing candidates with a vessel for showing what their unbox-abilities are, and providing employers with a Talent report that uncovers the shape of Talent more than a resume ever could.
We have an unmatched hiring accuracy rate of 93%- a market first- that accelerates hiring by 6X. And we do everything all in one place, from sourcing to sorting and final hiring. No more multiple software for different stages in the funnel, and at a fraction of the cost for what companies are normally paying.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
Unboxable started with a spark between me and my co-founder Stephie Knopel at DoubleYou, a female entrepreneurs community. We’d both had nonlinear careers and employers had always tried to standardize our skills and experience to fit us into boxes. To encapsulate us as one thing or one job title. We both believe that the hiring process is fractured by the use of CVs and inaccurate job descriptions that barely scratch the surface of the truth. Both sides, Talent and employers, need a new way to understand if they will thrive together and be part of a mutual, accurate hiring decision. So the concept of a technology that would “contextualize” talents and abilities in light of the unique requirements of every opportunity was born.
What is contextual Hiring? I’ll explain with an example. Picture a hiring manager, who is a hands-off type of team leader, comparing two candidates for a developer role. The company hiring does short sprints, offers autonomous working, and a loose structure. Both candidates, Michael and Rachel, have the same C++ skills. Michael must work closely with his manager to activate his skills, he likes to work at a slow pace and with a rigid work structure. Rachel prefers to work fast, and independently and believes that all rules are flexible. Looking at both candidates and the company’s specific opportunity, who would be a better match? The answer is Rachel.
That’s contextual hiring: evaluating candidates’ predictors of success in context to the role, direct supervisor, and company, instead of in isolation from these entities. Our Job Simulators analyze a candidate’s data points, including work style, professional abilities, soft & hard skills, experience, and potential, to produce a Talent Forecast which predicts how compatible the candidate is with the company. The data is like looking into the future relationship, six months down the line of working together, but before a hiring decision is even made.
What are your plans for the future, and how do you plan to grow this company?
Today, we are changing the hiring protocol in a deep way. Talents get in touch to share how our Job Simulators offer them a unique experience. Unboxable allows them to show who they are authentically. Currently, nobody else is fighting on behalf of Talent or making hiring a fairer place by encouraging companies to be more transparent about what a candidate can really expect, what the leadership is like, what their future growth opportunities are, etc. Tomorrow and beyond, we will help bring trust back to the process and focus on democratizing hiring so that every Talent has true equity.
We’re facing a hybrid future of Talent and companies becoming more undefined, breathing systems. Talent will become more ‘unboxable’, acquiring skills at a rapid rate and will be applying to roles that aren’t what they are now. The skills required to succeed in future positions will come from other fields – like designers who code and developers with UI abilities. And companies will need to fill unknown positions. A solution is needed if both sides are to fit each other as their shapes change. Unboxable will deliver the new standard for hiring in a reality that people can’t even imagine yet.
Unboxable will always be driven to replace gut instinct hiring decisions that are creating the shocking 46% of the world’s hires that don’t last beyond a few months. We want to help as many hiring managers and HR as possible who’re looking to hire differently.
Tell us a little bit about your marketing process, what has been the most successful form of marketing for you?
Honesty is definitely what pays off the most when it comes to marketing. What we call ‘Farm to Table’ marketing which is a screenshot of a client’s positive message they’ve sent. Or a post from a Talent who got hired with our technology in the most rapid, exceptionally way. These are real and honest moments that have proved the most successful for us.
What would you say are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
- The first is good stress management. There’s no saying more accurate than “You can’t pour from an empty cup.“ It’s important to know your own triggers and know how to spot stress. Burnout is real and I believe that entrepreneurs should always be looking to create a healthy routine. Putting distance between you and your work is a necessity to manage stress. Entrepreneurs can struggle to reconcile this, especially when they’re thinking about the tasks that await. For me, good stress management is beneficial for productivity and allows me to continue to love my work.
- Self-motivation would be the second vital skill. Any entrepreneur will tell you that it’s a lonely road, full of extreme highs and extreme lows. I believe that successful entrepreneurship depends on motivating yourself to continue and to keep the faith. Self-motivators have tenacity, they don’t depend on luck to realize their goals, and they’re a power source for others.
- The final top skill for successful entrepreneurship is being a visionary leader. This manifests itself as a deep-rooted belief in their mission, even in the face of adversity and overcoming any challenge that can arise. Visionary leaders are able to encourage others to build something and reach their goals together.
What valuable advice would you give new entrepreneurs starting out?
There’s a famous expression “Le mieux est l’ennemi du bien” which translates to “Perfect is the enemy of the good.” It’s something my Grandfather used to say and I always try to flex that way of thinking. If you’re waiting to release your product until it’s perfect, you’ll be waiting a long time. When it comes to business, speed trumps perfection; success is about getting there first and building a customer base that gives you actionable feedback so you can re-iterate and improve. You only learn what works and what doesn’t by putting what you’re offering out there knowing there’s always room for improvement.
What’s a productivity tip you swear by?
I have a few. Never start a day thinking there’s a list to complete. Instead, start by asking yourself “What needs to be conquered today?” and start with the most challenging first. The next step is crucial – make sure you speak to everybody involved in the task first thing in the morning, as early as possible. Prepare them and always, always give them the “why” they’re doing it.
What is your favorite quote?
I try to blow up as many startup cliches as there are, especially when it comes to success and failure., which is why my favorite quote is:
“The only way is the truth.”
Honesty shouldn’t be a rare gem in the business world. Startup founders may feel like they have to dance with the truth in order to maintain a stoic exterior in the face of the many challenges that arise. The TRUTH is my northern star; I follow it every day. It guides my decisions and helps me build great relationships with my fellow co-founder, my employees, and investors.
What are you learning now? Why is that important?
I am learning about the importance of communication in all its forms: verbal, non-verbal, collective, individual, and subtle. I believe in aligning ourselves in communication with the signals we send, and it’s daily work. It’s a crucial building block in a company because, at the end of the day, we’re human, and employees can sense things: the good and the bad. Leaders must overcome the challenge of understanding the balance between providing confidence and revealing vulnerability smartly, in an authentic way.
What helps you stay driven and motivated to keep going in your business?
This is an easy question for me. I’m driven and motivated when I see that what I’ve built has changed people’s lives on the Talent side. That I’ve allowed someone to be seen by a company despite missing certain “normal” credentials. 45% of candidates who’ve been hired through our Job Simulators wouldn’t have been considered using standardized hiring methods. When you get emails or messages from these people telling you that they are thriving and tapping into their maximum potential, that’s what makes me go on and on and on and never give up.
What is your definition of success?
Feeling a true sense of calm. Knowing internally that I’m being true to myself every step of the way while being able to conquer new goals that seemed impossible. That’s what allows me to sleep well at night.
How can readers get in touch with you?
You can reach me on LinkedIn where you can also follow the Unboxable page to keep up with everything we’re doing for the future of Talent and people in the position of hiring. Otherwise, just write me: yardenne@unboxable.com
