Korva is a scroll of the internet’s best ideas.
Candidates renege after accepting
The window after yes
Recruiting teams tend to celebrate the accepted offer and move on to the next search. For senior hires the window before the start date often runs beyond a couple of weeks, which leaves plenty of time for a better offer to arrive. Renegs are rising because the market is hot and people are getting offers they did not expect.
A second recruiting motion
The second motion has two jobs: make sure the person shows up, and begin onboarding so they ramp up fast. The team hosts dinners with other people who have accepted, creating a community around them.
Cursor also sends new hires a laptop before their first day, which feels like a presumptive you-have-joined. The touch points deliver the equipment, and they let new hires start to picture what the job will look like and get excited about it.
Why do second thoughts follow a decision?
Psychologist Leon Festinger developed cognitive dissonance theory in 1957. After a person commits to one option and gives up others, the attractions of the rejected option become salient and cause discomfort. Jack Brehm's 1956 study found that people raised their ratings of a chosen household appliance and lowered ratings of the one they passed over, a way of reducing that discomfort. Early weeks after a commitment are when that tension runs highest.
How do gifts create a sense of obligation?
In 1971, Dennis Regan ran an experiment in which a stranger either did a small favor, handing over a soft drink, or did not. People who received the drink later bought more raffle tickets from the stranger. Robert Cialdini built his account of reciprocity, one of his six principles of influence, partly on this result. A gift sent before a person has started creates a debt of goodwill without any request.
More from Lenny's Podcast: Product | Growth | Career
