It’s only been one week since 30 Zynga Seattle employees were laid off, but one local venture capital firm is already trying to help get the engineers back on their feet.
Madrona Venture Group held an open house today for the former Zynga employees and invited a third of its portfolio companies to talk about why their workplaces might make a good fit.
“These events bring together our companies with talent,” Madrona Director of Talent Robin Andrulevich said. “It’s always a great experience for everyone involved and it’s one of the ways we look to add value for Madrona-backed portfolio companies and the startup ecosystem in the Pacific Northwest.”
Hosting an open house for Zynga employees at Madrona Venture Group's incubation space pic.twitter.com/RCWztOYLg0
— Robin Andrulevich (@robinandrulevic) February 6, 2014
Madrona currently has 174 engineering openings across its companies and puts on events like today’s to help fill them. Shannon Barbour, a recruiter for Seattle-based and Madrona-backed startup Qumulo, said she likes the format of these open houses that provide an efficient way to reach talent. She also added that the Zynga employees are attractive potential additions to her company.
“There are many employees who thrive in creative, fast-paced, entrepreneurial cultures which aligns well with Qumulo,” she said.
Zynga, which laid off a total of 314 workers worldwide this week, is not backed by Madrona. But Andrulevich said that the firm has a “great relationship” with the gaming company.
“The team that they built in Seattle is top notch, and we were honored to host an event for them,” she said. “It was loads of fun.”
