Here’s How Matt Built a Billion-Dollar Team - The Pave Story

Hiring Was Broken. So Matt Schulman Rebuilt It.

Before Pave became the go-to platform for compensation management, Matt Schulman faced a problem:

hiring wasn’t working.

- Resumes? Too shallow.
- Interviews? Not enough.
- Recruiting firms? Too slow.

Top candidates weren’t just evaluating the company, they wanted proof it was worth joining.

Schulman realized: founders need a new hiring playbook.

So he rewrote it.

- Contract-to-Hire: The Secret to a 100% Close Rate

Instead of immediate full-time offers, Schulman introduced contract-based hiring. Candidates worked short-term, paid engagements before committing—giving both sides time to assess fit.

The result?
- Every candidate Pave wanted to convert to full-time said yes.

Key Lesson:
- Frame it as a mutual trial, not a risk.

At the start, Pave needed people who could wear multiple hats.

His strategy?

- Hire generalists over specialists.
- Engineers who understood product.
- Ops leaders who could sell.
- Team members who thrived in ambiguity.

Key Lesson:
- Early hires should be adaptive problem-solvers, not rigid specialists.

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Schulman didn’t just pitch job offers—he co-created career roadmaps with candidates.

- A shared Google Doc outlined:
- Their role at Pave
- Expected career growth
- Personalized milestones & impact

By the time an offer came, the candidate already felt part of the team.

Key Lesson:
- The best hires don’t just accept jobs—they buy into a vision.

Pave helps businesses manage compensation, so Schulman built pay transparency into his hiring process.

Every offer included:
- Salary bands & benchmarks
- Stock option breakdowns
- Clear promotion paths

Key Lesson:
- When people understand their worth, they commit faster.

The Takeaway?
Hiring isn’t about filling roles—it’s about designing the right team, at the right time, with the right approach.

Schulman built a $1.6B company by hiring differently.

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