For VC talent partners

The firm you can refer without a caveat.

Every referral you make spends your credibility. For 19 years, talent teams at leading venture firms have pointed their portfolio companies to Cadre — because when the founder comes back, it’s to say thank you.

01 · THE STANDARD

A number your founders can hold us to

84% of the candidates Cadre submits are ones the client wants to interview — published, tracked on every engagement, and we decline searches we can’t hit it on. Your referral comes with a warranty.

02 · THE SPECIALTY

Engineering only, at every stage you invest

Founding engineers at pre-seed through staff specialists and VPs post-IPO. 80% of our current searches are for AI companies — the hiring your portfolio is actually doing.

03 · THE MECHANISM

Candidates who already said yes

Every engineer reviews the company — our full pitch, the role, the comp — and explicitly opts in before an introduction. Your founders never burn time on lukewarm candidates.

“Cadre was clearly our top recruiting partner… If I were to launch a startup, the first call I would make is to Jason.”

Gordon Kass · VP of Engineering, Pear Therapeutics

The referral kit

Adding Cadre to your portfolio resources doc, trusted-supplier list, or talent Slack? Here’s the blurb — copy it as-is so your portfolio hears the same thing we’ll deliver.

Cadre (yourcadre.com) — boutique software engineering recruiting, since 2007. Engineering roles only, from founding engineers to VPE. They publish a standard on every search: 84% of submitted candidates will be ones you want to interview. They’ve never posted a job — every candidate is directly sourced and opts in to meeting you before the intro. Contact: info@yourcadre.com.

How talent teams work with us

The quiet intro

You connect a portfolio founder over email or Slack. We take it from there and keep you as informed — or as out of it — as you like. Most partners just want to hear it went well; we make sure they do.

The resources listing

Cadre sits in your portfolio-resources doc or vendor list. Founders come inbound already primed; the blurb above sets exactly the right expectation. We’ll flag to you when your portfolio engages, so the credit lands where it belongs.

The urgent portfolio search

A portfolio company has a critical engineering gap — a founding engineer walked, a funded roadmap with nobody to build it. Because we work these roles continuously, we can usually show opted-in candidates within days, not weeks.

Market intelligence, on tap

Live engineering comp data from our placements, hiring-market reads by stage, and honest answers about what a role should cost — for you or any founder you send our way. No engagement required.

Ask your portfolio about us.

Better yet — ask the last talent partner who referred us. We’re happy to make that introduction too.

Talk to Cadre