From University Labs to Corporate Giants: How Halo Built a Dream Team
Imagine a company that sits at the intersection of cutting-edge university research and Fortune 500 innovation budgets—a bridge between brilliant scientists working in labs around the world and corporate giants like PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, and BASF who need breakthrough solutions. That's exactly what Kevin Leland built with Halo, and the unique positioning has created something remarkable: a network in 130 countries, united by a mission to turn promising research into world-changing solutions.
In a recent conversation with Amit Matani, CEO of Wellfound, Leland revealed how Halo's distinctive business model—connecting university researchers directly with corporate R&D needs—has become their secret weapon for attracting exceptional talent who want to impact both cutting-edge science and billion-dollar businesses.
The Bridge Between Two Worlds: University Labs and Corporate Innovation
Halo's unique positioning as a connector between university research and corporate R&D creates what Leland calls an unparalleled value proposition for talent:
"I think it's one of the companies that you can have the most massive social impact on the world because you're not kind of putting your marbles all in one basket in terms of just supporting one biotech company, which is still great, but we're helping support an entire ecosystem."
This ecosystem spans researchers and startups from over 130 countries on one side and massive corporations on the other.
"We're helping them in massive numbers, connecting with companies, huge companies, Procter & Gamble, Unilever, BASF, Kraft Heinz, who can help turn their early innovations into something that can help the environment, can help the climate, can help treatments for different diseases."
The scale is staggering—Leland operates in what he describes as "a $2 trillion market" that's "10 times larger than advertising." But what makes this particularly attractive to top talent is the multiplicative impact: instead of advancing one research project or helping one company innovate, Halo team members facilitate hundreds of connections that can each spawn breakthrough solutions.
How Halo's Unique Model Attracts Mission-Driven Talent
The bridge between academic research and corporate innovation creates a distinctive talent magnet. Unlike traditional biotech companies focused on single solutions or consulting firms serving one client at a time, Halo team members get to facilitate an entire ecosystem of innovation.
"People who care about the environment and helping other people just tend to be genuinely nicer people who are easier to work with," Leland observes. "And I think that translates into everything else, into their motivation, their skill set." But what makes Halo's mission particularly compelling is its scope—team members aren't just supporting one breakthrough; they're enabling hundreds of connections between university labs and corporate R&D departments.
This unique positioning means Halo attracts candidates who thrive on variety and scale. One day, they might be helping PepsiCo find sustainable materials research, and the next, they will connect BASF with novel technologies for addressing climate challenges. The diversity of projects and global reach create what many traditional companies struggle to offer: constant learning opportunities and genuine world-changing impact.
For job seekers evaluating opportunities, this model offers a compelling alternative to choosing between startup uncertainty and corporate bureaucracy—Halo provides the innovation energy of working with cutting-edge research while maintaining the stability of serving established Fortune 500 clients.
Building a Global Team That Spans University Labs and Corporate Boardrooms
Managing a team that facilitates connections between researchers in 130+ countries and Fortune 500 corporations requires a special approach to culture and communication. Operating fully remote since the pandemic, Halo has developed practices that reflect their unique position bridging academic and corporate worlds.
"We really kind of practice this culture of gratitude," Leland explains. "Every week during the team meetings, we give out props." This isn't just team-building—it's essential when your team needs to understand both the methodical pace of university research and the urgency of corporate innovation timelines.
Each team member recognizes a colleague who went above and beyond that week, creating what Leland describes as a team that's "really always looking out for each other." This collaborative approach mirrors the connections Halo facilitates externally—just as they help researchers and corporations support each other's goals, the internal team operates with mutual support and recognition.
For candidates considering remote opportunities, Halo's approach demonstrates how companies can maintain culture while spanning multiple time zones, research institutions, and corporate headquarters. The key is intentional practices that reinforce the collaborative nature of the work itself.
The Team-Building Philosophy: From University Mindset to Corporate Execution
When it comes to selecting talent for this unique bridge role, Leland focuses on qualities that work in both academic and corporate environments:
"I would say one is just being intrinsically motivated. There's not going to be somebody who's kind of like watching over you as a startup, especially like a remote startup."
But Halo's hiring goes deeper than self-management. Team members need to understand both the collaborative, idea-sharing culture of university research and the results-driven focus of corporate R&D. "We want people to contribute ideas. I'm not gonna come up with all the ideas on my own and they could come from anywhere," Leland notes, citing examples where product team members suggest sales strategies and customer success teams contribute product ideas.
This cross-functional thinking mirrors how Halo operates externally—facilitating unexpected connections between different disciplines, institutions, and industry sectors. The best Halo team members embody this connector mindset, seeing opportunities to link insights from university labs with corporate innovation needs.
For recruiters working with companies that span multiple industries or academic-corporate partnerships, this highlights the importance of assessing candidates' ability to translate between different organizational cultures and working styles.
The Exercise That Reveals Everything
Perhaps Leland's most practical hiring insight involves his approach to candidate evaluation:
"The most illuminating thing that we do is we have an exercise that they do. And they present that to the team and we push back and ask questions. And there's no better way to evaluate somebody than to simulate working with them."
This approach offers mutual benefits: "Just seeing how they react to your pushback, I think kind of gives you a sign into whether they're open-minded or not... it gives you a sense of what it's like to work together and what the actual job is going to be like."
While exercises can feel burdensome to candidates, Leland frames them as serving both parties' interests—a perspective that candidates should appreciate rather than resist.
Standing Out in a Crowded Field
For candidates wondering how to differentiate themselves, Leland offers surprisingly practical advice rooted in fundamentals: writing quality and company-specific research.
"There's just a lot of people who just kind of cut and paste their cover letters or their emails that go out to you and they're often not very well written," he observes. As someone with a journalism background, Leland values clear communication across all roles: "Being able to communicate effectively... is important, not just for if you're a writer, but just for any job."
His advice for standing out is deceptively simple: "Make sure it's well written, whatever you're gonna say, and also make sure it's somewhat customized to the company you're reaching out to." Generic applications signal lack of genuine interest, while thoughtful, tailored communications demonstrate the care and attention to detail that startups desperately need.
The AI Revolution in Customer Discovery
Looking toward 2025, Leland sees AI as a "force multiplier" for his team, particularly in an area crucial to startup success: customer discovery. Using tools like Claude and ChatGPT, Halo's head of product design analyzed transcripts from hundreds of customer interviews to extract key insights—a process that "would probably take years or just many, many months" manually.
"He was able to do that a couple of days," Leland notes, illustrating how AI can accelerate the customer-obsessed approach that drives successful startups.
For founders, this demonstrates AI's potential for amplifying existing strengths rather than replacing human judgment. For job seekers, it highlights the growing importance of AI literacy across all roles.
The Contrarian Take on Founder Advice
Leland's most provocative insight addresses a challenge every founder faces: information overload. Quoting Vinod Khosla, he notes:
"The hardest part about being a founder is to figure out whose advice to listen to."
His solution is counterintuitive: trust your gut.
"They are all very smart people, have great insights, but don't ever just take their advice wholesale because they are thinking about your company for a few minutes, maybe an hour a month, probably max. You're living and breathing the company literally like 24/7."
This perspective offers valuable guidance for founders drowning in well-intentioned advice and reminds job seekers that successful companies are often led by founders who can synthesize input while maintaining their unique vision.
Key Takeaways for the Modern Workforce
Kevin Leland's approach to building Halo offers several actionable insights:
For Job Seekers:
- Prioritize companies where mission and business success align—they attract better colleagues and create more sustainable cultures
- Demonstrate intrinsic motivation and cross-functional thinking in interviews
- Take presentation exercises seriously as opportunities to showcase collaboration skills
- Invest time in thoughtful, customized applications that demonstrate genuine interest
- Develop AI literacy as a complement to, not replacement for, core skills
For Recruiters and Founders:
- Use mission alignment as a filter for candidate quality, not just cultural fit
- Design interview processes that simulate actual work scenarios
- Build intentional practices for remote team connection and recognition
- Leverage AI to accelerate customer discovery and insight generation
- Trust founder intuition while remaining open to feedback
For Startup Culture:
- Create environments where ideas can come from anywhere in the organization
- Balance high performance expectations with practices of gratitude and recognition
- Use company benefits and perks that directly reinforce mission and values
- Maintain focus on intrinsic motivation as a core hiring criterion
Halo's success in building a dream team that spans university labs and corporate boardrooms demonstrates that the most innovative companies often emerge at the intersection of different worlds. As Leland puts it, the company offers "this rare opportunity where you can work for a for-profit company with a huge amount of upside, but have the feeling like you're working at a nonprofit."
In a talent market where the best people seek both meaningful impact and business success, Halo's unique positioning as a bridge between academic research and corporate innovation has created the ultimate competitive advantage. They've built a team that doesn't just understand both worlds—they actively connect them, multiplying their impact across hundreds of research projects and Fortune 500 innovation initiatives.
For founders looking to build exceptional teams, Halo's model suggests that the most compelling opportunities often exist at the intersection of different industries, institutions, or ways of working. The key is creating a bridge that serves both sides while offering your team the chance to facilitate connections that change the world.
Kevin Leland is the founder of Halo, an AI-powered platform connecting scientists and startups with companies for R&D collaborations. Halo works with researchers in over 130 countries and major corporations including PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, and BASF.