Are Titles Free?

June 26, 2025

From the Desk of Hillary Mager

Anyone who tells you titles are free has never seen the inner workings of a company—especially a startup. Titles carry weight. They impact candidate quality, compensation, expectations, and internal equity. Get it wrong, and you pay in misalignment, misfires, and missed opportunities.

One of the biggest struggles I see in growing organizations is title miscalibration. Founders often don’t have a reliable compass for leveling leadership roles. I’ve been on both sides of the equation:

Sometimes, companies come to us asking for a C-level executive. After understanding the scope, scale, and stage, we’ll recommend a VP or “Head of” instead. A C-level hire would be premature.
Other times, founders overcorrect from past title inflation. They look for a VP when they really need a C-suite leader—and can’t understand why top-tier candidates aren’t biting.

Titles matter. And mismatched ones have costs: equity distortion, misaligned pay, mis-set expectations, and mismatched candidates. But let’s be fair—getting it right is hard without context.

Here’s what to do:

Benchmark. Look up 5–10 people at similarly staged companies with the title you have in mind. If you’re seeing strong profiles at the right level, your hypothesis might be sound. If everyone is clearly over- or under-leveled, you’re likely off.
Interview the market. Talk to 10–20 candidates with that title. If most fail to match your expectations on seniority or cost, you’re likely misaligned on level.

Titles, like most startup decisions, should be strong opinions held loosely. Test your hypothesis in the market. Adjust as needed. And make sure your search partner is helping you calibrate—not just fill seats.

Hillary Mager

Patrick Kehoe Becomes President of Findigs

Huge congratulations to Patrick Kehoe, who recently started as President at Findigs, Inc.!

Findigs is transforming the rental industry with their all-in-one screening and decisioning platform that creates real trust between property managers and residents. Their mission is simple but powerful: make renting faster, safer, and fairer for everyone involved.

Patrick brings exactly the leadership experience needed to scale a company that's redefining how we think about rental screening and building communities where people actually want to live.

Excited to see what Patrick and the Findigs team accomplish together as they continue changing the rental experience for the better.