Patrick Weeks: Underwriting Human Capital (#147)

Bio Patrick "Paddy" Weeks is co-author of The New Science of Hiring and VP of Operations at Tribunus Health. His career spans Marine Corps advisor teams in Afghanistan, Big Four consulting at Ernst & Young, and launching Sonder's DC market from Series B to 45 global markets and 2,000 employees. A Grove City College graduate and UVA Darden MBA, Patrick has spent five years synthesizing academic research on hiring into a practical framework for business leaders. The Blank Sheet of Paper Problem [2:58–7:00] Finance, operations, and economics are taught as sciences — but hiring is treated as art. Patrick's MBA sparked the question: where is the science of selection? That gap launched a years-long research obsession and ultimately, the book. From Midwest to Marine Corps [8:08–18:30] A soul-crushing Wall Street internship sent Patrick toward the Marines. Leading 20-man advisor teams through 125 convoys in Afghanistan taught him that pedigree matters far less than performance — a lesson that shaped every hire he'd ever make. Military to Civilian – The Career Jungle Gym [18:31–23:49] The transition from machine gun convoys to an E&Y cubicle was jarring. Patrick shares why he views careers less as ladders and more as jungle gyms — and how the GI Bill, a Darden MBA, and strategic "attribute swapping" helped him find his fit. Scaling Sonder – The Rocket Ship [31:21–40:55] As Sonder's first DC hire, Patrick scaled from 200 to 2,000 employees across 45 markets. He reveals what broke first (processes, always), what he hired for (high agency, low ego), and how a non-traditional banking hire became one of his best decisions. The Firing That Scarred Him [47:13–50:32] Patrick opens his book with his worst professional moment: terminating a new hire just three weeks in. He ignored his gut, deferred to group consensus, and paid the price. It became the catalyst for learning the actual science of selection. Proactive Personality & The Hustle Metric [1:02:45–1:10:16] For brokerage, BD, and PM roles, Conscientiousness is overrated. Proactive Personality — testable in a four-minute questionnaire — is the real predictor of who takes initiative without being told. Patrick explains why it's the moneyball metric real estate firms are missing. Time Kills Deals — In Hiring Too [1:18:47–1:25:44] Every day a process drags, you lose ~10% of your candidate pool. Decision accuracy tops out after 3–5 interviews. The "meet all the partners" gauntlet isn't rigor — it's diffused accountability. Integrity Testing, Simulations & AI Risks [1:10:42–1:18:21] Integrity testing delivers up to 4,000% ROI for on-site and PM roles. Work simulations outperform polished interviews. And training AI on past hiring data? You're just automating old biases — with new legal liability attached. Resources: The New Science of Hiring by Patrick Weeks & Joy Giles | thenewscienceofhiring.com Connect: LinkedIn – Patrick Weeks Notable Quotes: "I learned one of the hardest lessons in leadership: never hire someone you don't believe in, just because everyone else said yes. Because when the hammer drops, you're the one swinging it." "If you don't have a system, you are the system." "Real estate is complex... You're not buying someone's past, you're buying their future when you hire." "After the fourth or fifth interview, you're not even changing your mind on any candidates. You're just going through the motions." "One thing I saw and lived myself is that there's not really a career ladder and I think my conclusion is more like a career jungle gym. There are many different paths you can take, allowing for directional ch... Chapters (00:00:00) - Icons of DCRE Real Estate(00:02:31) - In the Elevator With Patrick Weeks(00:04:22) - Why Talent Selection feels like the highest leverage problem in real estate(00:07:53) - Entrepreneurs: Growing Up in the Midwest(00:11:00) - Military service drives men to the military(00:13:13) - Marine Corps Officer in OCS(00:15:10) - Marine Corps Leadership: Character and Experience(00:20:07) - Post-Servicemember MBA Advice(00:23:50) - How to Improve Your Hiring Process(00:31:01) - In the Elevator With Airbnb's DC Market(00:33:32) - How to Get Out of the Startup Job(00:34:46) - What broke first as you scaled? Systems, people, culture(00:36:31) - What was your lens for hiring at that point(00:38:23) - Hiring Dissident Talent(00:40:57) - Decisions Made: Big Four Consulting to Tech Startups(00:46:58) - The New Science of Hiring(00:50:34) - Analytics and Hiring in Commercial Real Estate(00:51:52) - Should Matching Resume Screenings With Worksimulations Be Cons(00:58:20) - Incentives are critical for jobs(01:02:23) - Have You Got What it Takes to Build a Business?(01:04:58) - Proactivity in the Workplace(01:07:24) - Interviewing 101: Polish vs Authenticity(01:10:17) - Should Commercial Real Estate Firms Treat Integrity Testing as Primary Risk Management(01:18:33) - Time Kills Deals in Real Estate(01:20:25) ...