How (and why) to get a job at Hiive

Welcome to Vancouver Tech Journal’s series on how to land a job at a Vancouver company, where we look at the people behind them, how they got to where they are today, opportunities available — and key things to know if you’re job hunting!

Meet Sydnie Hyde, manager, people and culture at Hiive, who has extensive experience in working with startups and in the finance sector to scale top-performing teams.

A natural people person, Hyde plays a crucial role in shaping Hiive’s culture and driving initiatives to attract top talent — cultivating a collaborative and innovative workplace that propels the company’s momentum.

Tell us about Hiive.

Hiive is a fintech marketplace startup with a revolutionary trading platform for buyers and sellers of shares in private late-stage venture-capital-backed companies and ‘unicorns.’

The platform allows qualified investors to trade directly with another party —without needing a live broker. By developing solutions that streamline and automate private shares trading, Hiive aims to unlock the full value of the private markets for investors, employees, and the management teams of pre-IPO companies. 

Hiive was founded by CEO Sim Desai, a veteran of the private equity secondary market, along with co-founders Sarah Huggins, COO and general counsel; Prab Rattan, chief revenue officer; and Stuart Eccles, chief product and technology officer.

How many employees? 

65 and growing. 

Where are you headquartered? 

Vancouver, B.C.

Has the company raised money? 

Yes. In Q3 2023, Hiive raised its first institutional round of funding at a USD $77 million post-money valuation. 

What does growth look like over the next couple years?

I think Hiive is one of the most ambitious companies in the city right now, and our growth plans reflect that. 

We’ve completely outgrown our current office and are searching for a new space that will accommodate the continued expansion of our team. 

As our user activity continues to double every six months, we remain strategic in our hiring approach to ensure we can seize the exciting growth opportunities ahead of us. 

How does Hiive differentiate itself?

Our leadership truly sets us apart with their vision, strategy, and ability to navigate a heavily regulated industry. 

Our product offers a unique solution that addresses a real problem, and our pace is second to none. 

Our people bring their A-game every single day, and although the work environment is intense, the energy and excitement are incomparable.

How did you end up at Hiive?

After spending nearly five years at a startup, I experienced firsthand the major impact of my work — continuous learning and innovation but was ready for a new challenge. 

I transitioned into a corporate environment, thinking it could be a nice change, but it left me missing the dynamic world of startups. 

Wearing multiple hats, making meaningful contributions, and feeling a sense of ownership and autonomy over my work within a fast-paced environment was very much lacking in the rigid and siloed corporate world. 

I found myself searching for a startup with energy and opportunity that could fuel my growth and creativity and where every day brings new challenges. 

This ultimately led me to Hiive, which at the time had 22 incredible employees — some of the most motivating, inspiring, brilliant and passionate people. I was so excited to jump aboard this rocket ship.

As manager, people and culture, what do you do day-to-day?

As Hiive’s manager, people and culture, my primary focus is cultivating a workplace where our team feels valued, motivated, and empowered to contribute to our collective success.

I'm dedicated to driving employee satisfaction, retention, recruitment, and onboarding processes. 

My role involves implementing strategies to attract, retain, and develop top talent while ensuring that our company culture aligns with our values and objectives. 

My day-to-day consists of talking to many potential candidates, prioritizing employee engagement and relations, and striving to create initiatives promoting camaraderie and a sense of belonging within the team — ultimately building a culture and community where Hiivers thrive.

How long have you been with Hiive?

13 months.

How can someone join the team?

All of our job openings can be found on our careers page. 

We're actively seeking sharp, talented individuals as we believe in cultivating talent for future opportunities. 

Even if there aren't current job openings that align with your skill set, we encourage you to email [email protected], as we're always open to exploring potential matches.

What does the company value most?

We embody a culture of urgency, intensity, and focus, driving us to prioritize customer satisfaction. 

We are relentlessly curious, constantly seeking to learn and grow and approach our work with genuine excitement and enthusiasm.

We consistently aim to exceed expectations, setting a standard of exceptionalism in all that we do.

Macs or PCs?

Most of us are on Macs.

What tools and apps are used in the workplace?

To name a few: Slack, GSuite, Affinity, Rippling, Pitchbook, Crunchbase, and Figma.

Our engineering team codes in the cutting-edge functional programming language, “Elixir.” 

We think we’re one of the best, maybe even the best, Elixir shops in the country — which creates an amazing environment for engineers to learn from top talent and grow an incredible new skillset.

Does the team predominantly work remotely or in person?

We’re an in-person first company.

Our business team works in-office five days a week, while our product team adopts a hybrid approach, working in-office three days a week. 

As a young team and a fresh startup, we’ve seen firsthand the effects of being in the office: building trust, learning through osmosis, supporting development, building relationships and community, and how a ring of the wins bell echoing through the office creates a chain reaction of high-fives and excitement.

What perks and benefits should people know about?

We host an incredibly active social calendar with activities such as catered lunches, Friday bars, team workouts, annual and holiday parties, retreats, team-building events, and networking opportunities through the Hiive Women's Network.

There are significant prospects for growth into leadership and management roles as we continue to build our all-star team.

Anything else we should know about working at Hiive?

Check out life at Hiive on our Instagram @hiiveislive or connect with me on LinkedIn, as I’d be happy to chat about our openings or what it’s like to work at Hiive.