Have been lucky to meet with or study hundreds of companies in 2021.
Here's an ongoing list of company attributes that I find interesting...
1. Operations Focus
“Amateurs talk strategy, professionals talk logistics.” A grand vision is great, but the best companies are often focused on challenging but tangible near term goals. If a founder can’t move from vision to on the ground details quickly...bad sign
2. Life’s work
To borrow a concept from @nikiscevak, it is thrilling to find someone doing their “life’s work.” When someone's personal path lines and formative experiences line up with the problem a company is solving, I get excited. "Life's work" is a source of perseverance
3. Synchronized team
Well managed internal communication is a huge advantage.
This is often evident
1) in internal routines, words and phrases with unique meaning
and
2) consistent answers to questions about the company’s plans from a variety of different insiders
4. Jobs as a product
I like when management teams view jobs inside their business as a product to be built, designed, and sold like any other product.
Everyone is struggling to hire great talent, so a differentiated strategy in hiring matters as much as anything.