The Kruger journal

Insights from the hiring frontline.

Notes on recruiting, candidate experience, and the human side of building great teams. Written for hiring managers, founders, and the people we place.

A secure modern data center corridor with rows of servers lit by subtle indicator lights
Hiring Insights

Hiring cleared software engineers: clearance levels, timelines, and how to recruit cleared talent

A practical guide to hiring engineers with US security clearances: what the clearance levels mean, how long the process takes, why cleared searches are slower, and how to recruit from a fixed talent pool.

A software engineer working at a sunlit desk with a Latin American city skyline beyond the window
Industry Trends

Nearshore software development: a hiring guide to Latin American engineering talent

Why US companies hire software engineers in Latin America, how to choose between contractor, EOR, and entity models, what it costs, and how to vet talent. A practical nearshore hiring guide.

A founding engineer sketching software architecture on a glass whiteboard in an early-stage startup office
Hiring Insights

What is a founding engineer? Role, equity, salary, and how to hire one

What a founding engineer actually is, how the role differs from a senior engineer or a CTO, how much equity and salary to offer, and how to hire your first one. A guide for early-stage founders.

A hiring team aligning around the scope of an open role at a working session
Recruiting

How to write a job description that great engineers actually read

Most job descriptions filter out the candidates you most want to hire. A practical guide to writing a JD that pulls strong engineers in instead of pushing them away.

A recruiter in a focused conversation with a candidate during the sourcing process
Hiring Insights

Why strong engineers do not apply to your roles, and how to actually reach them

The best engineering candidates almost never come through job boards. A working playbook for sourcing, outreach, and the candidate experience that follows.

5signals it is time to look
Career Growth

Five signals it is time to look for a new engineering role

How to tell the difference between a normal rough patch at work and a real signal that you have outgrown your current role. A practical guide for senior engineers.

Hiring across borders

Industry Trends

Hiring engineers in LATAM in 2026: a practical playbook

After hundreds of placements across LATAM, the patterns that separate teams that scale from teams that quietly fall apart. A working guide for hiring engineers in 2026.