From 30 to 130 Employees Without VC Money: Here’s How It Was Done with Tristan Mackrory

Episode notes

Growing from 30 employees to over 130 in under two years is remarkable — doing it without any investors is even more uncommon. In this episode of Recruiting Is No Joke , Joel sits down with Tristan Mackrory , VP of People & Talent at Almeida, to explore one of the most impactful scaling stories in tech. Tristan shares how a warning from veteran teachers pushed him into recruiting, how he rose quickly in a global agency, and how early exposure to AI-driven hiring shaped his approach long before ChatGPT. He also talks about nearly ignoring the LinkedIn message that led him to Almeida — one that casually began with “Do you want to make free cash?” — and how he convinced its 21-year-old founder to approve a full company rebrand immediately after joining. The conversation covers his experience scaling a Silicon Valley–backed startup from Europe during hypergrowth, surviving its collapse, and then helping Almeida grow from 30 to 130+ employees with no outside funding. Tristan explains what it really takes to build high talent density, the role of branding in recruiting, and how his team managed 22,000 applications in just three months.