Tackling Engineering Staffing Challenges and the Loneliness Epidemic: Insights from Brooks Reinhart

Solving Startup Staffing Gaps with BetterEngineers

In the latest episode of the podcast, the host sat down with Brooks Reinhart, co-founder and CEO of SwingBy.care and Vice President of Strategic Accounts and Growth at BetterEngineers. With a rich background in operations, consulting, and scaling product-led organizations, Brooks brought thoughtful insight into two major challenges faced by today’s founders: hiring high-quality engineering talent and addressing the modern loneliness epidemic. His first focus, BetterEngineers, is designed to help startups overcome one of the most pressing and often paralyzing hurdles—finding and affording reliable, senior-level engineering talent without breaking their burn rate.

BetterEngineers operates with a clear mission: to provide high-quality technical talent at speed and scale. They accomplish this by building a curated, vetted community of senior engineers, primarily based in Latin America—countries like Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, and Brazil. These engineers bring not only strong technical skills and an average of eight or more years of experience, but also strong English proficiency and a deep understanding of how to work asynchronously with U.S.-based teams. What sets BetterEngineers apart, Brooks explained, is its ability to help startups scale rapidly while remaining lean. Startups can quickly fill critical gaps on their engineering teams, whether they need full-stack developers, DevOps specialists, or mobile engineers, without committing to long-term hires or navigating expensive U.S.-based talent markets.

Brooks shared that many companies arrive with well-defined product backlogs and technical roadmaps, yet even in these cases, the BetterEngineers team often helps clients rethink their approach. Sometimes it's not just about execution—it’s about re-evaluating the strategy and uncovering smarter, faster ways to solve the problem. This consultative layer adds immense value, particularly for early-stage startups where missteps in engineering execution can cost precious runway and delay time-to-market. The company’s model also lends itself to flexibility, allowing startups to dial engineering support up or down based on their evolving needs.

Brooks also addressed the growing impact of AI in engineering workflows. While AI is reshaping how developers write code, test features, and deploy applications, Brooks stressed that it is only truly powerful when engineers know the fundamentals. Engineers who rely solely on AI without understanding the logic and structure of the code they’re working with will fall behind. Continuous learning and upskilling are now core to survival in the tech industry, not just a nice-to-have. He emphasized that AI can help good engineers become great, but it cannot make inexperienced ones competent overnight. This was a crucial reminder for founders betting big on AI in their technical stack—humans still matter.

SwingBy.care: Combatting Loneliness with Tech-Enabled Connection

In parallel to BetterEngineers, Brooks co-founded SwingBy.care—a mission-driven startup aimed at addressing a very different but equally urgent issue: loneliness. Born from personal experience and societal observation, SwingBy.care is a response to the rising mental and emotional toll of isolation, particularly among older adults and caregivers. Described as “Uber for home companion services,” the platform matches users with trusted individuals who can either help with simple household tasks or offer company through conversation and presence.

Brooks explained that loneliness isn't just a passing emotional state—it’s a chronic issue with serious health consequences. Studies have shown that loneliness can have the same long-term health impact as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. Recognizing this, SwingBy.care was designed to be fast, accessible, and affordable, removing the layers of bureaucracy that often complicate traditional home health services. What began as a solution primarily aimed at seniors quickly found demand from a broader audience—particularly adult children living in different cities, worried about their aging parents’ emotional and physical well-being.

SwingBy.care’s key differentiator lies in its commitment to safety and connection. On the supply side, the platform rigorously screens its companions, many of whom are nurses, EMTs, firefighters, or highly trusted community members. Every companion undergoes comprehensive background checks, giving users peace of mind. On the demand side, families receive real-time updates and reports following each visit, keeping everyone informed and connected. It’s not just about checking a box—it’s about reinforcing human connection when and where it matters most.

From MVP to market, Brooks shared that SwingBy.care adopted a “build fast, iterate faster” approach. Rather than overengineering the product, the team launched early, listened to feedback, and adapted quickly. This allowed the platform to stay in tune with the evolving needs of its users. In fact, several unexpected use cases emerged—from helping new moms recovering from childbirth to providing support for individuals with disabilities. Brooks and his team embraced this learning, continually evolving the service to meet new, real-world needs.

Growth, Partnerships, and the Human Element

Looking ahead, Brooks sees strategic partnerships as the key to unlocking massive growth. SwingBy.care doesn’t need to rebuild existing infrastructure—it needs to plug into the right ecosystems. By collaborating with companies that already serve relevant markets, such as health insurers, senior living communities, and hospitals, SwingBy.care can scale its impact significantly. Brooks mentioned he’s actively pursuing such partnerships and views collaboration as a more efficient growth lever than going it alone.

At the core of both BetterEngineers and SwingBy.care is a shared belief: technology is at its best when it amplifies human potential. Whether it’s helping an overworked CTO get a product to market or providing a lonely senior with a much-needed conversation, both platforms exist to make life easier, more connected, and more meaningful. Brooks emphasized that many of the companions on SwingBy.care aren’t doing it for the money—they’re driven by a sense of purpose. They want to help, to give back, and to make people feel seen. That human motivation, he says, is what makes these platforms truly work.

Conclusion

The conversation with Brooks Reinhart serves as a powerful reminder that the best companies don’t just solve technical problems—they meet human needs. Through BetterEngineers, Brooks is helping startups stay lean, scale fast, and adapt to the future of engineering. Through SwingBy.care, he’s addressing a profound social issue with a solution rooted in compassion and simplicity. Together, these ventures offer a rare blend of operational excellence and emotional intelligence.

For founders, operators, and product leaders, Brooks’s story is a masterclass in execution with empathy. He shows us that we don’t have to choose between building a business and making a difference—we can do both. And as our world continues to change, leaders like Brooks remind us that the best way forward is one that keeps people at the center of innovation.

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: https://player.captivate.fm/episode/db695edb-84ad-436f-a95f-049a60fb284c/