HR KPIs — Portcast

The cost story in one line

All 11 roles, fully loaded

S$655k–871k /yr

Gross — but most of this is backfills already in the budget

Real impact on the budget

S$88k–136k /yr

The genuinely new roles — everything else is a backfill already in the budget

The list looks big at first glance, but seven of the eleven roles are backfills — replacing people already carried in the budget. The only genuine additions are two Data Analysts, a Technical Program Manager, a Videographer, and one intern. That is what actually grows our costs.

Hiring through end of 2026 8 roles

Senior CSM

Backfill · AngieSingapore preferred

Runs discovery and account management with a clear path into expansion. Comes from a pre-sales background with a commercial mindset, and knows the logistics industry.

BudgetS$4,000–8,000 /mo

Data Analyst · ×2

NewSEA + India

Strong in SQL, dashboarding, and data storytelling. For an exceptional candidate we can level one seat up to Senior or Lead DA — someone who can help Kapil lead the analyst pod and carry more individual ownership.

BudgetS$1,500–2,500 /mo each

Data Analyst Interns · ×2

NewSEA + India1 filled, 1 open

Students or fresh graduates with solid SQL fundamentals and a genuine eagerness to learn.

BudgetS$300 /mo each

Data Scientist / Senior MLE

Backfill · AndrewSEA + India

Comes from a small startup DS/ML team and has owned the full path from data science through to ML Ops. Strong in production ML and Python modelling, and comfortable working through ambiguity.

BudgetS$4,000–6,000 /mo

Technical Program Manager

NewSEA + India

Runs cross-functional technical programs and drives roadmap execution across engineering, product, and data.

BudgetS$2,000–3,000 /mo

Backend Engineer

Backfill · KhalidSEA + India

A strong backend engineer in Python and APIs who can build and scale reliable services.

BudgetS$4,000–6,000 /mo

Marketing Videographer

NewSEA + India

Produces and edits video content for LinkedIn and the website.

BudgetS$2,000–3,000 /mo

Sales Manager · US

Backfill · WayneUnited States

Leads sales in the US market, ideally with a logistics or SaaS background.

Budgetup to S$10,000 /mo

Q1 2027 3 roles

Marketing Director

Backfill · DevanshSEA + India

Leads marketing across demand generation, brand, and go-to-market.

BudgetS$10,000 /mo

Head of Tech & AI

Backfill · UrveshSEA + India

Leads engineering and AI/ML, and owns the company's technical strategy.

BudgetS$13,000–15,000 /mo

Data Engineer

Repurpose of existing roleSEA + India

A redefined version of our existing Data Engineer role, pointed at a more innovative and forward-looking scope: strong on pipelines and infrastructure, and proactive about solving problems rather than only executing.

BudgetS$4,000–6,000 /mo

💰 What it actually costs

On paper, all 11 roles at full budget add up to S$655k–871k a year. But that number overstates it.

7 of the 11 are backfills — we're replacing people who left, so their budget already exists. They add no new cost. (The Data Engineer is a repurpose of an existing seat, so it doesn't add cost either.)

Only the genuinely new roles raise our spend: two Data Analysts, a Technical Program Manager, a Videographer, and one intern.

Real increase to our costs S$88k–136k / year

KPI	Q1	Q2	Q3*	Target	Status
Critical-Roles Attrition % Regretted exits ÷ 35 FTE	0%	2.86%	8.57%	1.25 / 2.5 / 3.75 / 5% cap	Over cap
Hiring Fill Rate % Roles filled ÷ 10 planned	40%	60%	60%	60 / 70 / 80 / 85%	Behind
People Cost vs Budget Spend ÷ approved budget	100%	80%	pending	≤100%	On track

Who	Role	Left
Urvesh Devani	VP, Tech	Jun 2026
Devansh Bhikajee	Marketing Director	Aug 2026
Jinan Nisar	Data Analyst	Sep 2026

Aged open req	Days open	SLA
Head of Tech & AI	201 days	Past SLA
Backend Engineer	100 days	Past SLA
Marketing Director	94 days	Past SLA

How we hire · at a glance

Every role starts with a G / HR screen (motivation, culture & startup fit, and role fitness), then moves to the hiring manager and a final round with Nidhi. Take-home assignments and case studies are used where role fit is best proven in practice. Priority roles are hiring now; deprioritized roles are planned for Q1 2027.

Priority · Hiring now 8 roles

Senior CSM

Backfill · AngiePrioritySG / HK preferred

Interview process

G / HR screen → Interview with Emma → Nidhi (final)

Data Analyst · ×2

NewPriority

Interview process

G / HR screen → Take-home assignment → Technical interview with the Data team → Kapil → Nidhi (final)

Data Scientist / Senior MLE

Backfill · AndrewPriority

Interview process

G / HR screen → Interview with Pitch → Take-home case study → Assignment walkthrough with Pitch → Nidhi (final)

Technical Program Manager

NewPriority

Interview process

G / HR screen → Interview with Simão (60 min) → Interview with Kapil → Nidhi (final)

Marketing Designer

NewPriority

Interview process

Profile screening (G) → Portfolio shortlist by Sree (4/5 or above) → HR interview (G) → Hiring manager interview with Sree (45 min, incl. short live task) → Alignment call with Maxime (30 min) → Nidhi (final, if needed)

Data Analyst Interns · ×2

NewPriority1 filled · 1 open

Interview process

G / HR screen → Take-home assignment → Final interview with Kapil

Backend Engineer

Backfill · KhalidPriority

Interview process

G / HR screen → Take-home assignment → Technical interview with Stephen → Nidhi (final)

Sales Manager · US

Backfill · WaynePriorityUnited States

Interview process

G / HR screen → Interview with Maxime → Assignment → Panel interview with Maxime & Emma → Nidhi (final)

Deprioritized · Q1 2027 3 roles

Marketing Director

Backfill · DevanshDeprioritized · Q1 2027

Interview process

G / HR screen → Interview with Devansh → Case study → Maxime → Nidhi (final)

Head of Tech & AI

Backfill · UrveshDeprioritized · Q1 2027

Deferred near-term, the pressing gap is product & delivery execution rather than a senior tech leader right now. Revisit ~Nov 2026; Sudhanshu (headhunter candidate) kept warm.

Interview process

G / HR screen → Case study → Panel with the tech leads → Nidhi (final)

Data Engineer

Repurpose of existing roleDeprioritized · Q1 2027

Interview process

To be confirmed once the redefined scope is finalized.

🧩 Assessing candidates

Assessing candidate fit

Interest in the product & industry · ability to work in a fluid startup environment

We assess fit at every stage, not just claim it. In my HR screen I probe two things directly: product and industry curiosity (did they research Portcast, can they articulate what draws them to logistics and supply-chain tech, do they ask real questions), and startup fluidity (a behavioural question on working with shifting scope and wearing multiple hats, with concrete examples). Each hiring team's interview and case study then tests fluidity in practice, for example the MLE case asks them to build with incomplete data, and the TPM case explores how they handled a stalled initiative. We screen out anyone who did no homework on us, or who needs everything defined before they can move. And if a candidate simply says the right things, we go deeper: I don't take the headline answer, I ask for a specific real example and drill into the details, the trade-offs, what went wrong, what they'd do differently, because rehearsed answers fall apart under specific follow-ups. This is also why the process is deliberately not just me, it's a whole interview team probing the same person from different angles, with the assignment and case study as revealed behaviour you can't talk your way through. We then triangulate across the loop, me, the hiring manager, the panel, and Nidhi's final, plus reference checks for senior hires, so we look for consistency across every stage, not one great conversation.

Assessing motivation

I ask directly in the screen, why Portcast, why this role, why now, and push past generic answers like comp or remote for genuine pull: the product, the space, ownership, growth. Signals we look for: they researched us, they're excited by this specific problem, and their reason is forward-looking (they want to build and own something) rather than escaping their current job. To sharpen it, I'm adding a short why-Portcast prompt to the application form so we filter for motivation early, and for senior hires we reference-check for retention and mission alignment. Nidhi's final round is also a strong mission gut-check.

Hiring speed, without dropping the bar

Without compromising quality — technical/role fit + culture fit + domain curiosity must all be met

The bar is non-negotiable, every hire has to clear technical and role fit, culture fit, and domain curiosity, so speed comes from removing friction, not lowering standards. Concretely: front-loaded per-role application-form knockouts so weak profiles never reach interviews; tight feedback SLAs (24–48 hours) with the hiring funnel dashboard tracking req aging so we catch stalls; hiring managers blocking recurring interview slots so scheduling isn't the bottleneck; clear go/no-go criteria per stage so we don't dither; and keeping sourced candidates and headhunters warm for the hard roles. The CSM was the lesson: the pressure to hire before Lily's mat leave pushed us to move too fast, the fix is to open reqs earlier, not to compress the assessment.

📊 Org gaps & leadership hires

Current org gaps & leadership hires

Whether the current team can cover it, or an external marketing lead is essential

From my conversations with the marketing team, a senior marketing leader isn't the pressing gap today. Their two live gaps are: (1) Sales × marketing collaboration, now being covered by Maxime leading marketing; and (2) Execution speed, which is exactly why the Designer is the most pressing hire, so they can move quickly and stop bottlenecking on Manish. Both a Head of Tech and a Marketing Director will be needed for our long-term vision, the tech leads and both marketers have said they'll eventually want senior leadership in tech and marketing, but near-term execution is being handled through the TPM, DAs, BE, Sr. MLE, and Designer hires. So an external marketing lead is a longer-term play, not essential right now. We can revisit both leadership roles in late December or January, once the essential ICs are filled and can help with their bandwidth.