Merge to main
Merge to main
Podcast Description
Merge to Main is a podcast where we talk with people who've been in the trenches of tech leadership. No fancy buzzwords or corporate speak - just honest conversations about what it's actually like to build and lead engineering teams. Each week, we explore the real challenges of engineering leadership - from hiring and team culture to shipping quality products. Practical, no-nonsense conversations that help you become a better leader today.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast emphasizes engineering leadership themes such as hiring practices, team culture, quality assurance, and the adaptation to new technologies like AI. For instance, episodes might delve into hiring strategies that prioritize soft skills alongside technical abilities, examine cultural shifts within teams, and analyze the balance between quality and development speed.
Merge to Main is a podcast where we talk with people who’ve been in the trenches of tech leadership. No fancy buzzwords or corporate speak – just honest conversations about what it’s actually like to build and lead engineering teams. Each week, we explore the real challenges of engineering leadership – from hiring and team culture to shipping quality products. Practical, no-nonsense conversations that help you become a better leader today.
Iwan Gulenk, founder of a Swiss tech recruitment agency, maps the new reality of tech hiring
What’s inside:
1) Market reset and hiring rigor: After years of growth peaking in 2021, 2024 hammered agencies and slowed decisions. Inbound has exploded (think LinkedIn Easy Apply), time-to-fill is unpredictable, and exact-match hiring dominates. Iwan’s “life partner” analogy underscores the variability and risk focus.
2) Remote/hybrid onboarding realities: Juniors and mid-levels suffer without close guidance. Practical fixes: three short daily check-ins (morning/afternoon/evening) and paying for tooling that prevents no-shows and miscommunication—small frictions compound into failed ramp-ups.
3) Nearshoring’s new normal in Switzerland: SMEs now lose business without a nearshore bench—one 20-person firm did. Still, German/Swiss German needs and client culture shape who actually works. Meanwhile, cloud transformations continue, but cloud bills are biting; one client saw costs triple, creating demand for cost optimization.
4) Senior candidate playbook: Treat your resume as a sales document. The top third should signal location, phone, language, role seniority, tech stack, and outcomes. Don’t omit job titles. Read the ad—his team hid “Swiss cheese” to test attention, and many missed it. Freelancers moving to FTE must credibly explain long-term intent.
Why it matters: Whether you’re hiring or job-hunting, the easy-money era is over. With innovation labs being cut and 2025 budgets still tight, advantage goes to teams that design thoughtful setups (including nearshore) and candidates who present crisply and execute. AI helps as tooling, but the human nuance still closes the deal.
Connect with Iwan:
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iwan-gulenko/
Connect with me:
– LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christianbarra/
Check out our awesome sponsor, zerobang, your AI partner: www.zerobang.dev
Disclaimer
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