How to get a job at Packfleet

Maybe this is your first job. Maybe it’s time for a career move. Maybe your old job just isn’t right for you anymore. Maybe you’ve just moved to London. There are millions of reasons why you might be looking for a new job - we’ve been there. We thought we’d give you a few pointers about applying for any of our open roles at Packfleet and what to expect in the process.

So why Packfleet?

This applies to any job. Before starting an application, we’d recommend thinking about why Packfleet is the right fit for you. Do your research about us as a company and the industry we’re in. Check us out on LinkedIn and take a look at who your future colleagues would be if you joined the team. Buy something from one of our merchants so you get to experience the product, take a look at our competitors, talk with your friends about it.

By doing all of that, you should get a good picture of whether Packfleet is what you’re looking for in your next role.You’ll also be getting some relevant context that’ll hopefully help you during the hiring process.

Are startups for you?

Startups can be 'love' or 'hate' for a lot of people, so it’s good to do your research here too. There are lots of positives that come with working on a startup (you’ll have a direct impact on growth, ownership and autonomy, personal growth, career development, financial gain if the company does well) but there are also downsides (lack of structure, sink or swim mindsets and the inherent risk of working at a company that’s in construction). It’s important to think about whether a startup is right for you and what you’re looking for.

Applying for the role

Once you’ve done all of that thinking, this next part is the easy bit!

Find the job you want to apply for here and get going with your application. We always encourage people to pay good attention to all of the included questions we ask and to make sure your CV looks good and is up to date.

This is your first chance to make it to an interview (on average 85% of candidates are rejected at this stage) so try and give it your best shot!

Initial call (30m to 1h)

Every open role at Packfleet has a hiring manager that’s assigned to it (this is usually the person that will be your manager if you join). This person will go through all the applications and will invite the most promising candidates to an initial video-call. We use Google Meet for this stage. Make sure it’s on your phone or laptop ahead of the call and find a quiet place to take the call. There’s nothing worse than when you’re in a busy room on a call!

The purpose of this call is going through your experience and also to give you the opportunity to ask some questions about the role. We’re sure you’ll have lots! We’ll tell you more about Packfleet and the hiring process too so you know exactly what to expect and when.

On-site interviews (1h to 4h)

This part will change depending on the role you’ve applied for, but typically there’s some kind of interview on-site at our HQ in Bermondsey. If you’re applying for a driver role you’ll go on a delivery shift with someone in our team and if you’re applying for an office-based role you’ll go through some scenarios and tasks with the hiring manager. Don’t worry, you’ll know what your on-site interview will look like after your initial call with the hiring manager.

Cultural-add coffee (45m)

If you make it to this stage things are looking quite good! The goal here is to have an honest conversation about your ways of working, ambitions and what we like to think of as a 'bigger picture' chat. This is also the time to bring up any final questions or concerns you have before we make you an offer.

We make you an offer!

This is the most exciting part. Depending on the role, we’ll typically offer you a choice of 3 different packages with a different mix of cash and equity (share options) so you can pick whatever better fits your lifestyle and risk appetite: a bigger salary today owning a smaller chunk of Packfleet or a smaller salary with a larger slice of the cake.

It’s a personal choice, but we'll give you plenty of time to think about it. We’ll agree on a start date, put together all the paperwork and send it your way for you to sign digitally.

What are share options?

This is something that most startups do, where employees are rewarded with an actual stake in the company. The idea is that if the company does very well and ends up being worth a large amount of money, you’ll own an actual part of that wealth that you’ve helped to create through your hard work.

We structure our share options with a schedule of 4 year vesting with 1 year cliff. There’s lots of good content about how this works (most startups will use the same system) and we’re always happy to answer questions about it if it’s your first time working with this kind of thing.

We’ll never leave you with radio silence

We're sometimes slower than we’d like to be coming back to candidates but rest assured that if you’ve applied for a role at Packfleet, worse case scenario, we’ll send you an email clearly explaining that we’ve rejected your application. We understand how stressful job applications can be and we respect your time. We're grateful that you wanted to work with us in the first place so we’re not going to leave you hanging!

Your first day at Packfleet 💚

Wooo. You’ve made it! The big day is here. Your manager will have sent you specific information about what to expect during your first few days but be prepared to spend some time setting up your new laptop, having lunch with the team, and trying to remember everybody’s names. And crucially, set aside time to play some table tennis.

Our journey has just begun and we’re looking for people to join us in our mission to redefine delivery. Check out our open positions here.