What a technically vetted shortlist actually looks like
BY SHAMIR HUSEIN · 12 SEP 2026 · 6 MIN READ
Most shortlists are a stack of CVs with a covering note. They tell you who applied, not who can do the work — and they push the entire burden of judgement onto the person least able to carry it: the hiring manager, reading twelve documents on a Friday afternoon.
A technically vetted shortlist inverts that. Fewer names, each one accompanied by the evidence that got them there. Below is the shape of what we send, and the screening that produces it.
What we send
Three to five engineers, never more. Each with a short written assessment covering how they approached a real problem from your domain, where they were strong, and — the part most shortlists omit — where they were not.
The assessment itself
- A scoped problem drawn from the role, not a puzzle — something they would actually meet in the first month.
- A recorded walkthrough of their reasoning, so you hear them think rather than reading our summary of it.
- Notes on how they took feedback mid-exercise, which predicts more about a first year than any answer does.
If a shortlist cannot tell you why someone is on it, it is a longlist wearing a better name.
Not a candidate record or client result.
Role-relevant work
Summarise the task, reasoning, and trade-offs.
Evidence and next steps
Record strengths, limitations, and follow-up questions.
Illustrative structure only. Replace with a verified, redacted assessment when available.
None of this is complicated. It is simply slower at the front, which is where the time is worth spending.
Reading is useful. Talking is faster.
If any of this is live for you right now, tell us the role and we will show you the people who can fill it.