What 806 Applicants Taught Us About Hiring & Why We’re Scaling Differently

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WORK IN PROGRESS

Wes Botman, Ian Piepenbrock

22 episodes

6 days ago

WORK IN PROGRESS is a raw, unfiltered look at the grind of building and scaling in tech and services. Hosted by founders Ian Piepenbrock and Wes Botman, it’s for those in the trenches—still learning, still failing, still pushing. Each episode dives into the reality of running a business: the wins, the losses, and the lessons earned through hard work and constant experimentation. If you’re scaling, building, or just obsessed with the process, WORK IN PROGRESS delivers insights from founders in it, day in and day out.

Entrepreneurship

Business

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All content for WORK IN PROGRESS is the property of Wes Botman, Ian Piepenbrock and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Entrepreneurship

Business

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What 806 Applicants Taught Us About Hiring & Why We’re Scaling Differently - Episode 18

WORK IN PROGRESS

38 minutes 55 seconds

8 months ago

What 806 Applicants Taught Us About Hiring & Why We’re Scaling Differently - Episode 18

In this episode, we dive into everything from scaling a business without killing the fun to automating workflows and filtering out 806 applicants. Ian breaks down Noco’s rapidly growing sales pipeline and how their flexible subscription model is finally clicking with customers. Wes shares his philosophy on keeping Eli5 lean, solving client problems that spawn new business ideas, and the painful process of hiring top-tier talent.We also discuss the AI-powered creative workflow tool Flora, how to properly validate a business idea, and why Stripe subscriptions don’t work for high-ticket B2B SaaS. Oh, and we kick things off with JD Vance memes and a nostalgic Mad Men rewatch.Timestamps:(0:00) Intro & JD Vance Memes(1:06) Rewatching Mad Men & Coca-Cola Ad(2:41) Noco Pipeline Filling Up(4:10) Noco’s New Subscription Model Clicks(7:05) Scaling Up vs. Keeping it Fun(10:07) Eli5 as an Idea Engine(14:00) Relaunching Paradigm for Product Design as a Service(19:50) How to Validate a Business Idea(25:00) Wes’s Recruitment Grind(28:09) Noco Hiring a Banger Designer(30:07) Automation at Noco(32:30) The Challenges of Automating Billing(35:00) AI-Powered Creative Workflows (Flora)(38:12) Wrapping UpThe WORK IN PROGRESS podcast hosted by Ian Piepenbrock and Wes Botman, two founders who are scaling and refining their businesses every day.Wes Botman is founder and CEO at ⁠⁠Eli5⁠⁠ (https://eli5.io), a software studio making complex ideas simple and accessible.Ian Piepenbrock is CEO at ⁠⁠Noco⁠⁠ (https://noco.agency), an agency dedicated to helping B2B SaaS and tech companies grow through strategic web design and branding.Watch/listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2cOqBRMjjgcXKSDDIboKrt?si=6990da66e09e4ef2Follow us on X for more raw insights, thoughts, and a good dose of founder reality:Wes: ⁠⁠@wesbotman⁠⁠ (https://x.com/wesbotman)Ian: ⁠⁠@lamswolprins (https://x.com/lamswolprins)