Author: Chandler, Foresight News
A company's recruitment can reveal its actual progress in strategic execution while reflecting the changing trajectory of industry demand, from which the future market activity level and development potential can be predicted.
According to a report released by Tiger Research, after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the Bitcoin spot ETF in January 2024, the number of job openings in the global Web3 market began to increase significantly. With rising expectations for market recovery, recruitment activities became relatively active.
In the first half of 2024, the number of Web3 job openings increased by about 20% year-on-year, reflecting a significant rise in overall industry expectations compared to last year. The increase in job openings mainly comes from cryptocurrency ETF management companies and exchanges.
In the first half of the year, the Web3 job market in Asia was most active in Singapore, India, and Hong Kong. Especially in Singapore, the number of job openings increased by about 23% compared to the second half of 2023.
With the significant growth in recruitment demand in the cryptocurrency industry, the appeal of the Web3 field is gradually extending to the senior executive level of Web2, forming a new trend of cross-border senior talent influx. Senior managers from traditional internet giants are attracted to Web3, throwing themselves into this vibrant field, bringing Web2's mature experience into the innovative development of Web3.
For example, former Goldman Sachs Asset and Wealth Management Global Strategy Head Peter Mintzberg joined Grayscale as CEO, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products Global Product Management Vice President Dan Odell joined ConsenSys as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Bitcoin mining company Hut 8 hired former Citigroup executive Sean Glennan as CFO, cryptocurrency custody institution Copper hired former Goldman Sachs Managing Director Amar Kuchinad to replace Dmitry Tokarev as CEO, and former Sony and BeInCrypto executive Vugar Usi Zade joined Bitget as Chief Operating Officer, among others.
At the same time, within Web3, there is an increasingly frequent movement of management among top institutions, with significant increases in executive 'talent migration', deepening the liquidity and collaboration of management teams in the cryptocurrency industry, further accelerating competition and maturity in the Web3 industry. Binance has become a prominent 'talent magnet', attracting executives from multiple companies and different backgrounds to join its team.
According to statistics from @_FORAB, in addition to OKX executives moving to Binance, former Kraken CFOs, former OV venture capital investment managers, and CMC content creators are also flowing into Binance, further enriching Binance's management team.
Former executives from Binance are also continuously moving to other platforms, such as Bitget, forming a multi-directional cross talent migration network. For example, the current Chief Legal Officer of Bitget, Hon Ng, was the former legal policy lead at Binance, and the Chief Business Officer, Min Lin, was the former global director and development lead at Binance.
This flow of elites and knowledge flows overlay each other, driving the industry to mature faster, endowing the cryptocurrency industry with stronger adaptability and innovation.
What kind of attraction is hidden behind this migration wave? What makes these top talents flock to the cryptocurrency industry? We hope to explore the characteristics of the cryptocurrency industry as an ideal destination for senior management talent, analyze the features of cryptocurrency companies that can attract top talent, and reflect on the industry development trends and factors of corporate attractiveness behind this cross-border talent migration.
Where do good birds choose to perch?
The choices of top talent are like selecting a resting forest. Some chase high salaries, some value freedom, while others hope to align with the vision of changing the world.
As the saying goes, 'good birds choose the right tree to perch on'; these 'good birds' flying into the cryptocurrency field will naturally not land casually.
According to Data.ai data, the top three download volumes of global centralized exchange applications in October were Binance, OKX, and Bitget, with Binance's download volume reaching 4.06 million, while OKX and Bitget were 2.2 million and 1.92 million, respectively. Who is the truly appealing 'golden branch and silver leaf'?
In this competition for talent, what is the employment perspective of these major cryptocurrency companies?
Binance: Hardcore as core values
Hardcore: In the official release (How to Become an Excellent Binance Person?), Binance emphasizes taking 'hardcore' as its core value.
Adaptability: A key characteristic of Binance employees is their ability to adapt to internal job rotations and cope with uncertainty, while delivering the highest quality to meet user expectations.
Pressure resistance: Due to the fast work pace and significant decision-making impact, Binance employees need to work in a high-pressure environment. If you cannot handle pressure, or if sustained pressure negatively affects your work performance, then our work environment is not suitable for you.
OKX: Adhering to fundamental rules
Team first: Proposing to build a global team with a decentralized management philosophy, under a decentralized structure, the collaboration model is simple, with clear work objectives for each department and position.
Integrity as the foundation: The blockchain industry is closely tied to money; only by resisting temptation and insisting on doing the right thing can one achieve ultimate value recognition.
Self-driven: Given that the industry is in its early stages, only those who maintain genuine curiosity and an optimistic attitude towards the industry, and are willing to delve deep into understanding it, can drive themselves further.
Bitget: Dual drive of result orientation and incentive principles
Result-oriented: Bitget emphasizes pragmatism and result orientation, focusing on candidates who can bring substantial results to the company. At the same time, the company advocates for decentralized authority, ensuring that productive employees can receive ample authorization and rewards.
Open communication: Management emphasizes open communication and facing issues directly, encouraging team members to provide direct feedback and solve problems, rather than choosing to avoid or escalate issues, to achieve efficient and direct internal communication, promoting the company's continuous development in a rapidly changing market.
Future potential: Focus on candidates' adaptability and learning ability, innovation and forward-thinking, global vision and collaboration ability, risk management and compliance thinking, and team spirit.
In fact, in addition to factors such as salary, company culture, and career freedom, the platform's momentum and its continuous breakthroughs in technology, products, and markets are rare sources of attraction.
Choosing a strong platform means having the opportunity to participate in more projects in a shorter time, face more challenges, and gain greater career growth potential. And Bitget, with its rapid expansion and impressive market performance, is becoming one of the best habitats in the eyes of 'good birds'.
What has brought about the 'migration wave'
More than just a job
In any industry or technology development process, the S-curve law is ubiquitous. After reaching the limit point of the first curve, the market will show new development directions and open up the second curve of growth. The stage of incubating innovative technologies is a very brief yet opportunity-rich window.
From traditional financial giants to technological pioneers, many senior managers are leaving the familiar 'first curve' to dive into the innovative field of cryptocurrency, which is still in its early stages, known as the 'second curve'.
This wave of migration is not accidental; it is the best proof of trust and expectation in the cryptocurrency industry as a breakthrough path of the second curve.
Reconstruction of financial incentives
Of course, the appeal of the cryptocurrency industry will also manifest in high salary returns, but more so in innovative salary designs and powerful value-added space.
The compensation structure of traditional enterprises is mainly based on fixed salaries and annual bonuses, with limited growth. In contrast, the cryptocurrency industry binds executives' personal interests deeply with the company's long-term development through options, token incentives, and long-term dividends based on platform earnings.
Dragonfly Capital surveyed 49 cryptocurrency companies in 2023, among which most strongly considered adopting tokens, with only 14% of companies stating they would never launch tokens. As funding amounts, stages, and scales increase, companies are more likely to plan and launch tokens.
The attractiveness of corporate culture
The uniqueness of corporate culture is one of the important factors driving the movement of senior management talent. In the cryptocurrency industry, the differences in management styles across different platforms are significant, becoming an important hallmark for attracting talent.
In contrast, Binance tends to favor rapid decision-making and high innovation, while Bitget's management style is deeply influenced by the founder's 'decisive and resolute' approach, forming a result-oriented corporate culture. Coinbase, on the other hand, places greater emphasis on compliance and transparency, attracting managers with different styles.
Market volatility and talent redistribution
The volatility of the cryptocurrency market and the wave of layoffs have further intensified the mobility of senior executives in the industry. During periods of market downturn, many companies choose to lay off staff to cut costs, including the departure of many executives. For example, Binance.US laid off two-thirds of its employees in March due to an SEC lawsuit, Kraken laid off about 15% in October, and ConsenSys announced a 20% layoff due to macroeconomic pressures and increased legal costs. In such a large environment, some high-end talents choose to turn to platforms with greater development potential.
High-quality cryptocurrency companies often exhibit stronger risk resistance and adaptability during market fluctuations, able to maintain stability in crises and seize new opportunities during industry restructuring, which also provides a more ideal working environment and development platform for executives seeking long-term development.
Will you follow this Web 3 ticket?
Overall, cryptocurrency companies are becoming ideal destinations for senior talent, a trend stemming from their rapidly growing market scale and innovative technologies, and also reflecting the unique attractiveness of the cryptocurrency industry in managing openness and incentive mechanisms.
For top talent, joining the cryptocurrency industry is not just about 'boarding the Web3 ship'; it requires a discerning eye. This choice needs to be well thought out. Senior talents must possess profound strategic vision when making career decisions to identify companies with long-term strategies and execution capabilities, ensuring their career development can achieve maximum long-term returns and stability in this emerging field.