What to Expect from Bolster
What to expect when you search with Bolster.
You’re here to supercharge your team—so how does it work?
You’re ready to get started.
Great news! You’re joining thousands of other startups and high-growth companies searching for transformational executive talent. Bolster makes it easy for you to search for, connect with, and engage with executives, board members, and mentors.
To start your search, just create your account and book time with one of our Talent Consultants. We’ll show you the ropes when it comes to searching our marketplace.
Kickoff your search.
When you meet with a Talent Consultant, we’ll discuss your talent needs in order to determine what type of search works best for you.
If you’re interested in filling an on-demand role, you’ll have the option to search the marketplace independently and build out a slate of potential candidates after the kickoff call.
If you’re filling a full-time role, looking for a board director, or would like assistance with an on-demand search, we’ll provide a customized quote and walk you through the process of working with the Bolster team. You can see our transparent pricing anytime, which includes all of our search options.
Start reviewing candidates.
Now that we know what type of role you’re looking for, we'll take the time to understand your ideal candidate—from their previous experiences to specific skills and superpowers. Once we’ve defined your needs, we’ll deliver a broad slate of diverse, qualified candidates leveraging our marketplace and external sources.
You’ll get the chance to upvote, downvote, and comment on candidates, and invite your team, board and VCs to share their input as well. Once you’ve narrowed the field, we’ll provide outreach to selected candidates and make introductions to anyone who is interested and available.
If you’re searching on your own, you can search for and add candidates to your slate, and begin reaching out directly to executives through our in-app messaging platform. As a reminder, both you, as the hiring company, and the members of our marketplace are subject to Bolster’s Terms of Service.
Select your candidate and make an offer.
Whether you meet the ideal executive in your first conversation, or you need to talk to multiple candidates to find the right fit, we’re with you until you land on the perfect match.
Once you’ve found your ideal candidate, you’ll extend an offer either directly or through our platform. For on-demand roles, you’ll initiate the offer through the platform and Bolster will handle the billing for your engagement. Don’t forget; making arrangements outside of Bolster violates our Terms of Service.
Our team will provide guidance when it comes to compensation, negotiating terms, and onboarding, and can work with you to explore ongoing support, including performance evaluation, growth assessments, and scaling your executive team.
Wrapping up your search.
Congratulations! You found the perfect executive to add to your team.
We’ll reach out to you periodically to gather feedback on the search overall and the candidate specifically. If you ever need immediate support, you can reach out to your Talent Consultant directly or email us at clients@bolser.com to get connected with a member of our team.
You will continue to have access to the Bolster marketplace to self-search for talent, but our team is always at the ready to assist you with any additional on-demand, full-time or board searches as your company continues to scale. You can initiate a new search with our team through the Bolster platform or by reaching out to clients@bolster.com
What to expect when you join the Bolster marketplace.
We help you find what you want in your next role—so how does it work?
Create your profile on the Bolster marketplace.
Setting up your profile is straightforward and gives you the opportunity to share your experience, specify the types of roles you’re interested in, and highlight the qualities that set you apart. Once you’ve completed your profile, high-growth companies can start finding you in the marketplace.
Make sure your profile is as complete and up-to-date as possible, and check out the Anatomy of a Great Profile for our pro tips to help you stand out. Keep an eye on your inbox so you can quickly respond to any opportunities that come your way!
Respond to opportunities.
When a company reaches out about an opportunity, we recommend responding as quickly as possible if you’re interested in being considered. Our in-app messaging platform makes it easy to respond to and manage your opportunities, and you’ll receive notifications as messages come in. If you’re not interested, that’s okay too. You can easily decline the opportunity through the platform.
You can also explore Bolster’s Opportunity Feed. As companies come to us with on-demand roles, they have the option to open their opportunity to the entire Bolster network so members like you can raise your hand to be considered. When you express interest in an opportunity from the feed, you’ll be added to the search and it’s up to the client to determine if they’d like to message you. Sometimes the window for the role to be open is brief, so we recommend responding quickly if you see a role that interests you.
Prepare for the first interview.
Generally, the first conversation is an opportunity for you to learn more about the company and their work. As with any job interview, we recommend that you spend a few minutes getting familiar with the company and the CEO before your meeting, and come prepared with any questions you may have.
Bolster gives you the flexibility to set your own price for on-demand roles, including fractional and project based engagements, but we do recommend aligning on budget early in your conversation. Once you learn more, you can send the client a proposal with your pricing.
Accept an offer.
Congratulations! We’re excited that you and the client have decided to work together. For full-time and board roles, you’ll negotiate the offer and sign an agreement directly with the client.
For on-demand roles:
- You’ll receive an offer outlining the engagement. From there, you can accept the offer or request changes. As a reminder, you are being hired through Bolster, and both you and the client have agreed to our Terms of Service. You do not need to sign a separate contract or NDA with the client.
- Bolster will arrange to handle the billing for your engagement, so you will not be paid directly by the client. After you accept an offer on Bolster, you’ll get an email invitation to create an account with our payment provider, GigWage. We’ll handle any tax documents you need at the end of the year.
- You can bill bi-weekly or monthly. Please send invoices to memberinvoices@bolster.com. Bolster will get you paid promptly and take care of invoicing the client. The client covers the 20% Bolster markup, so you will receive the full amount on your invoice.
Take advantage of Bolster’s resources.
We encourage you to subscribe to our blog for regular content updates delivered to your inbox about professional growth and scaling, in addition to hiring and talent management best practices, You should also keep an eye out for invitations to other resources like webinars, networking events, and virtual workshops.
If you’re interested in a daily dose of leadership advice, subscribe to The Daily Bolster. Every day, Bolster’s CEO Matt Blumberg discusses professional development, venture capital, startup strategy, and tips and tricks for executive growth with experienced operators and industry laters. Most episodes are 5 minutes or less. You can also sign up to get daily email with the latest episode of the podcast so you never miss an episode.