As the number of startups in the D.C. area skyrockets, new businesses are scurrying to recruit the area’s talent. Hatch IT is a startup founded as a recruiting service for other new businesses.

“We wanted to really make our niche focus in that startup space. It’s a whole other market,” says director of recruiting Kevin Judge.

Since Hatch IT is itself a startup, the company knew exactly what it was like to tackle new business problems.

“As recruiting lead for our company, I do wish that [engineers] fell out of the sky, but it takes a lot of networking,” he said.

The is no shortage of talent in the region, Judge says, noting that despite venture capitalist funding dipping nationwide, investment in the D.C. region is up once again, and talent is coming with it.

Once the talent comes here, it seems to stay. “Here, the D.C. area in general, it’s been blowing up over the past five, ten years… for young millennials in particular,” Judge told What’s Working in Washington.

“There’s a lot of focus in this region on bringing in young people. And thus, engineering people are coming as well.”

Being a recruiter relies a lot on networking and establishing connections for other people, and Judge had an interest in it from a young age. “I’ve always been someone that can talk to anybody, and I’ve always been interested in communicating with others, and networking and all of that. I just kind of fell into it,” he said.

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