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Notion Hr

Build exceptional teams that create connected workspaces by making Notion the global knowledge work platform

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Build exceptional teams that create connected workspaces by making Notion the global knowledge work platform

Strengths

  • TALENT: Strong technical recruiting pipeline with 40% faster hiring velocity than industry average
  • CULTURE: Remote-first culture enables global talent access with 85% employee satisfaction scores
  • RETENTION: Below 8% voluntary turnover rate in engineering and product teams vs 15% industry average
  • LEARNING: Comprehensive onboarding reduces time-to-productivity by 35% compared to previous years
  • DIVERSITY: 45% diverse leadership representation exceeding tech industry benchmarks

Weaknesses

  • SCALING: Rapid 300% headcount growth creating management capability gaps and span challenges
  • COMPENSATION: Below-market equity packages losing candidates to Big Tech and late-stage startups
  • SYSTEMS: Manual HR processes unable to support current scale causing administrative bottlenecks
  • PERFORMANCE: Lack of standardized performance management creating inconsistent career development
  • LEADERSHIP: Middle management shortage with 60% of managers having less than 2 years experience

Opportunities

  • REMOTE: Global remote talent market expanded 400% creating access to worldwide top talent
  • AI-TOOLS: HR automation and AI-powered recruiting tools can improve efficiency by 50%
  • MARKET: High-growth SaaS market attracting top talent seeking equity upside opportunities
  • BRAND: Strong employer brand and product usage creating organic talent pipeline and referrals
  • PARTNERSHIPS: University partnerships and coding bootcamps expanding diverse candidate pipeline

Threats

  • COMPETITION: Big Tech and well-funded startups offering 30-40% higher total compensation packages
  • ECONOMY: Economic uncertainty causing talent market contraction and increased retention focus
  • REGULATION: Remote work visa and employment law changes across international markets
  • BURNOUT: High-growth pace and startup intensity creating potential employee burnout risks
  • SKILLS: AI and emerging tech skills shortage requiring premium compensation and longer searches

Key Priorities

  • Implement scalable performance management and career development framework to retain top talent
  • Upgrade compensation philosophy and equity packages to compete with Big Tech for critical roles
  • Deploy AI-powered HR systems and automation to handle rapid scaling operational demands
  • Develop comprehensive management training program to build leadership pipeline and capability
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Build exceptional teams that create connected workspaces by making Notion the global knowledge work platform

SCALE SYSTEMS

Build scalable HR infrastructure for hypergrowth demands

  • PLATFORM: Deploy integrated HRIS reducing manual admin tasks by 70% and onboarding time to 3 days
  • AUTOMATION: Implement AI recruiting tools increasing qualified candidate pipeline by 50% efficiency
  • ANALYTICS: Launch people dashboard tracking retention, performance, and diversity metrics real-time
  • PROCESS: Standardize hiring process reducing time-to-offer from 21 days to 10 business days max
DEVELOP LEADERS

Build management capability for sustainable growth

  • TRAINING: Launch manager development program for 100% of people leaders completing within 90 days
  • MENTORSHIP: Pair all new managers with senior leader mentors and monthly coaching sessions
  • FRAMEWORK: Deploy performance management system with quarterly reviews and career planning tools
  • SUCCESSION: Create leadership pipeline identifying and developing 2 successors per critical role
WIN TALENT

Attract and retain world-class team members globally

  • COMPENSATION: Conduct market analysis and increase salary bands 20% for critical engineering roles
  • EMPLOYER: Achieve 4.8+ Glassdoor rating through employee experience improvements and benefits
  • PIPELINE: Build diverse candidate pipeline with 50%+ underrepresented groups in final interviews
  • RETENTION: Maintain sub-8% voluntary turnover while scaling team to 800+ employees this quarter
OPTIMIZE AI

Leverage AI to transform HR operations and decisions

  • RECRUITING: Deploy AI candidate matching reducing screening time 60% while improving quality scores
  • INSIGHTS: Launch predictive analytics identifying flight risk employees with 85% accuracy rate
  • PERSONALIZATION: AI-powered learning recommendations increasing employee development engagement 40%
  • ETHICS: Establish AI bias monitoring framework ensuring fair hiring and promotion decisions
METRICS
  • Employee Net Promoter Score: 75+
  • Voluntary Turnover Rate: <8%
  • Time-to-Fill Critical Roles: <15 days
VALUES
  • Craft obsessed
  • Customer first
  • Move with urgency
  • Think in systems
  • Embrace ambiguity
  • Be direct
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Align the learnings

Notion Hr Retrospective

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Build exceptional teams that create connected workspaces by making Notion the global knowledge work platform

What Went Well

  • GROWTH: Successfully scaled team from 200 to 600+ employees while maintaining culture and quality
  • RETENTION: Maintained sub-8% voluntary turnover despite competitive market and growth challenges
  • DIVERSITY: Exceeded diversity hiring goals with 50% diverse new hires across all departments
  • REMOTE: Seamlessly managed global remote workforce expansion across 15+ countries and time zones

Not So Well

  • HIRING: Missed Q4 hiring targets by 15% due to competitive market and lengthy interview processes
  • SYSTEMS: Manual processes caused 2-week delays in onboarding and payroll setup for new hires
  • MANAGEMENT: Rapid promotion of individual contributors without sufficient leadership training
  • COMPENSATION: Lost 12 key senior candidates to competitors offering 30%+ higher total compensation

Learnings

  • SPEED: Fast decision-making in hiring is critical - top candidates have multiple offers within days
  • INVESTMENT: Competitive compensation is essential for critical roles, equity alone insufficient
  • AUTOMATION: Manual HR processes don't scale - technology investment needed for operational efficiency
  • DEVELOPMENT: Manager training and support systems required before promoting high-performing ICs

Action Items

  • SYSTEMS: Implement integrated HRIS platform to automate onboarding, payroll, and employee lifecycle
  • COMPENSATION: Conduct market analysis and adjust salary bands for critical engineering roles
  • TRAINING: Launch manager development program for all people leaders within 90 days
  • PROCESS: Streamline interview process to reduce time-to-offer from 3 weeks to 10 business days
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Build exceptional teams that create connected workspaces by making Notion the global knowledge work platform

Strengths

  • PRODUCT: Deep AI integration in core product creates natural attraction for AI-focused talent
  • DATA: Rich user behavior data provides foundation for AI-powered people analytics and insights
  • CULTURE: Engineering-first culture with high AI adoption readiness and experimentation mindset
  • TOOLS: Current use of AI recruiting tools showing 25% improvement in candidate screening efficiency
  • TALENT: Existing AI/ML engineering team can support HR AI initiatives and knowledge sharing

Weaknesses

  • EXPERTISE: Limited HR team AI/ML expertise requiring external consulting or new specialized hires
  • INFRASTRUCTURE: HR data scattered across systems limiting AI model training and effectiveness
  • PRIVACY: Employee data privacy concerns and regulations constraining AI implementation scope
  • BUDGET: Competing AI investment priorities between product development and HR operations
  • CHANGE: Potential employee resistance to AI-powered performance and hiring decision systems

Opportunities

  • AUTOMATION: AI can automate 60% of current manual recruiting and administrative HR processes
  • ANALYTICS: Predictive analytics for retention, performance, and succession planning improvements
  • PERSONALIZATION: AI-powered learning and development recommendations for individual career growth
  • MATCHING: Advanced AI candidate matching reducing time-to-hire by 40% and improving quality
  • INSIGHTS: Real-time people analytics dashboard providing strategic workforce planning capabilities

Threats

  • BIAS: AI hiring algorithms potential for unconscious bias amplification and legal compliance risks
  • COMPETITION: Competitors using superior AI HR tools gaining talent acquisition advantages
  • REGULATION: Evolving AI employment law requiring compliance investments and process changes
  • SECURITY: AI systems creating new cybersecurity vulnerabilities for sensitive employee data
  • DEPENDENCE: Over-reliance on AI tools reducing human judgment and relationship-building skills

Key Priorities

  • Deploy AI-powered recruiting platform to automate screening and improve candidate matching quality
  • Implement people analytics dashboard for predictive retention and performance insights
  • Develop AI ethics framework for HR to ensure bias-free and compliant talent decisions
  • Create AI-enhanced learning platform for personalized employee development and career pathing