Unlocking Human Potential: Mappa’s Approach to Hiring
This week on TechCrunch’s founder-focused podcast Build Mode, host Isabelle Johannessen welcomed Sarah Lucena, the dynamic CEO and co-founder of Mappa, a groundbreaking behavioral intelligence platform. Mappa utilizes voice AI technology to decode human behavior in under 60 seconds, aiming to revolutionize the hiring process.
Lucena’s journey into creating Mappa stemmed from her own frustrating hiring experiences. She recalls the difficulties she faced while trying to build a marketing team, often feeling that she’d made the wrong choices despite hiring candidates who appeared competent on paper. “I was so frustrated because I was hiring for what I thought were the right skills,” she shared. “It looked great on paper but didn’t really work in real life.”
Through these experiences, Lucena recognized that hiring typically relies on traditional markers of success, such as college degrees and previous work experience. However, she believed there had to be a more effective way to approach recruitment. Thus, Mappa was born. Over the years, Lucena and her team developed a proprietary dataset, grounded in hundreds of interviews, enabling them to analyze candidates’ behaviors through biomarker cues reflected in their speech patterns.
In her interview, Lucena emphasized that simply being impressive on paper is insufficient; candidates also need to be compatible with the company’s culture and the role they are being hired for. “There’s no trait that’s good or bad inherently; it’s more about the environment you put that person in, and what roles align better with people’s tendencies and styles,” she explained.
At the heart of Mappa is an all-Latinx team, which brings a unique perspective to the table. Lucena highlighted their collective experiences with being overlooked due to superficial biases or not fitting traditional molds. “We are all underdogs who have faced being overlooked in some degree,” she stated. “This makes it even more crucial that we are the ones building this technology.”
The development of Mappa is not only about creating innovative technology but also about opening doors for others who have been sidelined. Lucena noted, “Having people like us building this technology and serving our clients allows us to show that there are multiple pathways to construct technology in a meaningful way.”
For early-stage founders navigating the hiring landscape, Lucena advises patience. She stresses the importance of ensuring compatibility from the outset to avoid the cycle of hiring, firing, and rehiring the same positions. “Take your time and ensure the compatibility is there from the beginning,” she suggests.
Expanding the Conversation
The insights from Lucena’s interview highlight the evolving landscape of recruitment. By leveraging artificial intelligence and a more nuanced understanding of candidate behavior, Mappa aims to create a more equitable hiring process that focuses on compatibility, diversity, and inclusion. Businesses looking to innovate and succeed should consider integrating Mappa’s strategies to improve their hiring practices.
As Lucena aptly puts it, the road to better hires can be paved with understanding and adaptability, fostering environments where all candidates’ strengths can shine, regardless of their backgrounds.
Isabelle Johannessen hosts Build Mode, which is produced and edited by Maggie Nye. Audience Development is managed by Morgan Little. A special thanks goes out to the Foundry and Cheddar video teams.
