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LinkedIn Is the Tinder of Recruiting — And It's Producing the Same Results
Swipe right on the right credentials, hope for a match, and call it recruiting. LinkedIn has turned talent acquisition into a pattern-matching exercise — and most people playing it aren't finding what they're actually looking for.
The infrastructure problem runs deeper than behaviour. The systems connecting talent and opportunity were built for a labour market that no longer exists, optimised for searchability rather than fit, and generating enormous activity with mediocre outcomes on both sides.
Joshua Sklüt, co-founder of MyStandard and a builder of Web3-based employment technology, thinks the underlying architecture of modern hiring is broken — not just how people use it, but the systems underneath. In this episode of Looks Good on Paper, he talks about what's actually wrong with how talent and opportunity connect today, and what a version of recruiting that doesn't work like a dating app might look like.
What you'll learn:
→ Why LinkedIn's structure produces pattern-matching rather than genuine fit
→ What's broken at the infrastructure level of how talent and opportunity connect
→ What alternative models of recruitment could look like as Web3 and decentralised systems mature
GUEST
Joshua Sklüt — Co-founder & CPO, MyStandard
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-skl%C3%BCt/
YOUR HOST
Anita Chauhan — Fractional CMO, co-host
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/anitachauhan/
STUDIES & EXAMPLES REFERENCED:
- Bertrand-Mullainathan Study (2004): https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/0002828042002561 - American Economic Review research showing identical resumes with white-sounding names resulted in 50% more callbacks for white applicants (Josh referenced this as a "New York Times study" in the episode, but the actual research was published in the American Economic Review)
- Ivy League Hiring Bias - Example of companies that "only hired out of Ivy League schools" blocking 90% of qualified candidates
- Quadriplegic Employee Success Story - Josh's experience at a previous employer hiring a wheelchair-using employee who became an invaluable team member, challenging assumptions about ability and cultural fit
CHAPTER MARKERS:
00:00 Intro
00:36 Introduction
04:24 Biggest Hiring Mistake
06:56 Unknown Hidden Biases
10:08 Most Surprising Hire
15:42 Wildcard: If Resumes Disappeared - Choose One Survivor
19:02 Wrap Up
19:36 Outro
LISTEN & FOLLOW
Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/0dbfz6y0tMq3crViHQD66H
Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1625835562
All episodes → https://looksgoodonpaper.buzzsprout.com
WATCH ON YOUTUBE - https://youtu.be/NZyud0Atuao
POWERED BY WILLO
Hire humans, not resumes → https://www.willo.video/looks-good-on-paper
CONNECT WITH US
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/10170893
If this episode changed how you think about hiring, share it with one person who needs to hear it. And subscribe — we're rewriting the rules of hiring, one episode at a time.
LinkedIn optimises for searchability and network proximity, not fit or capability. The result is a recruiting process that surfaces candidates who know how to present themselves on the platform rather than candidates who can do the job. Pattern-matching on credentials and connections is not the same as evaluating someone's ability to contribute — and the gap between the two is where most bad hires come from.
Show Resources
- Willo: willo.video - The most cost-effective way to screen candidates at scale. Interview candidates anywhere & at any time
- CV Free Toolkit: cvfree.me/join - Break up with the CV and get everything you need to modernize your hiring approach with skills-based assessments
- Anita Chauhan: linkedin.com/in/anitachauhan - Connect with the host
View all episodes
By Anita ChauhanSwipe right on the right credentials, hope for a match, and call it recruiting. LinkedIn has turned talent acquisition into a pattern-matching exercise — and most people playing it aren't finding what they're actually looking for.
The infrastructure problem runs deeper than behaviour. The systems connecting talent and opportunity were built for a labour market that no longer exists, optimised for searchability rather than fit, and generating enormous activity with mediocre outcomes on both sides.
Joshua Sklüt, co-founder of MyStandard and a builder of Web3-based employment technology, thinks the underlying architecture of modern hiring is broken — not just how people use it, but the systems underneath. In this episode of Looks Good on Paper, he talks about what's actually wrong with how talent and opportunity connect today, and what a version of recruiting that doesn't work like a dating app might look like.
What you'll learn:
→ Why LinkedIn's structure produces pattern-matching rather than genuine fit
→ What's broken at the infrastructure level of how talent and opportunity connect
→ What alternative models of recruitment could look like as Web3 and decentralised systems mature
GUEST
Joshua Sklüt — Co-founder & CPO, MyStandard
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/joshua-skl%C3%BCt/
YOUR HOST
Anita Chauhan — Fractional CMO, co-host
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/anitachauhan/
STUDIES & EXAMPLES REFERENCED:
- Bertrand-Mullainathan Study (2004): https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/0002828042002561 - American Economic Review research showing identical resumes with white-sounding names resulted in 50% more callbacks for white applicants (Josh referenced this as a "New York Times study" in the episode, but the actual research was published in the American Economic Review)
- Ivy League Hiring Bias - Example of companies that "only hired out of Ivy League schools" blocking 90% of qualified candidates
- Quadriplegic Employee Success Story - Josh's experience at a previous employer hiring a wheelchair-using employee who became an invaluable team member, challenging assumptions about ability and cultural fit
CHAPTER MARKERS:
00:00 Intro
00:36 Introduction
04:24 Biggest Hiring Mistake
06:56 Unknown Hidden Biases
10:08 Most Surprising Hire
15:42 Wildcard: If Resumes Disappeared - Choose One Survivor
19:02 Wrap Up
19:36 Outro
LISTEN & FOLLOW
Spotify → https://open.spotify.com/show/0dbfz6y0tMq3crViHQD66H
Apple Podcasts → https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1625835562
All episodes → https://looksgoodonpaper.buzzsprout.com
WATCH ON YOUTUBE - https://youtu.be/NZyud0Atuao
POWERED BY WILLO
Hire humans, not resumes → https://www.willo.video/looks-good-on-paper
CONNECT WITH US
LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/10170893
If this episode changed how you think about hiring, share it with one person who needs to hear it. And subscribe — we're rewriting the rules of hiring, one episode at a time.
LinkedIn optimises for searchability and network proximity, not fit or capability. The result is a recruiting process that surfaces candidates who know how to present themselves on the platform rather than candidates who can do the job. Pattern-matching on credentials and connections is not the same as evaluating someone's ability to contribute — and the gap between the two is where most bad hires come from.
Show Resources
- Willo: willo.video - The most cost-effective way to screen candidates at scale. Interview candidates anywhere & at any time
- CV Free Toolkit: cvfree.me/join - Break up with the CV and get everything you need to modernize your hiring approach with skills-based assessments
- Anita Chauhan: linkedin.com/in/anitachauhan - Connect with the host