Ask for one name, not a job description.

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Mock exampleMint = step matches

Their best person

J.R.Staff Data Engineer

Data analystRegional bank · 2 yrs
Data engineerInsurer · 3 yrs
Moved batch to streamingPayments startup · 2 yrs
Staff data engineerFintech · 1 yr, now

Twins found

A.K.Senior Data Engineer

BankInsurerStreamingStaff

D.R.Staff Data Engineer

BankInsurerStreamingStaff

M.T.Data Engineer

BankInsurerStreamingStaff

S.L.Senior Data Engineer

BankInsurerStreamingStaff

The question

twin/the-question.txt

Ask
Who's the best person you've ever worked with in this role?

Follow-up 1
What were they doing two years before they got that good?

Follow-up 2
What did they do that others in the same seat didn't?

Follow-up 3
What about them would you not need in the next hire?

If they name someone on their own team
That works. I'll use their path as the pattern, and won't approach them or mention this to them.

Then
Can you tell me the jobs they had before, in order? A profile link helps if it's public.

Before you hang up
I'll only use their profile as a pattern. I won't contact them.

When they give you three

pick-one.txt

Check	Pick the one who
Level	is at the role's level today, or one step below
Recency	did this work in the last 5 years
Path	has a clear move right before they got good
Market	worked in a market like yours: same kind of company; region only if the role needs it
Profile	has a public profile with dates and real detail
Skip	anyone the manager only knows by title or reputation
Skip	anyone picked mostly for their school or employer brand

Read the path

twin/the-path.txt

Title when they started this work: [title]
Company types, in order: [first] → [second] → [third] → [now]
Years at each: [x] · [x] · [x] · [x]
The step before they got good: [the move or project]
Skills in the order they picked them up: [first] → [then] → [now]
Search for: the same path, [2 to 4] years more or less experience in this work
Location: [city or metro]
Pattern only.
Ignore name, photo, schools, graduation years, age, gender, nationality and career gaps. Don't use any of them to search or rank.

J.R. · Staff Data EngineerMock example

Title then: Data analyst
Companies: Regional bank → insurer → payments startup → fintech
Years: 2 · 3 · 2 · 1 so far
The step: Moved the startup's nightly batch jobs to streaming
Skills: SQL → Python → Kafka
Search for: Same path, 2 to 4 years more or less experience, Chicago

Find their twins

twin/find-their-twins.txt

Here's the profile of the best person my hiring manager has worked with in this role: [their experience section, pasted, name removed]

Use it as a pattern only. Don't contact this person, add them to any list or include them in results.

1. Pull out their path: the title at each step, the type of company, years at each, the step right before they got good, and their skills in the order they picked them up.
2. Show me the path and wait for me to confirm.
3. Search The Cognitive for people with the same path, [2 to 4] years more or less experience in this work, in [location]. Write the searches from the path, not from their exact title.
4. Rank people by how much of the path they share.
5. For each person, give the steps they match, the line from their profile, word for word, and their profile link.

If a step isn't on someone's profile, write "not on profile". Never guess.
Ignore name, photo, schools, graduation years, age, gender, nationality and career gaps. Don't use any of them to search or rank.

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Data engineer, Chicago Example

Here's the profile, name removed. Find their twins in Chicago.

Path: data analyst at a regional bank (2 yrs) → data engineer at an insurer (3 yrs) → moved batch to streaming at a payments startup → staff data engineer at a fintech. Confirm?

Confirmed.

Searched The Cognitive10 shown

Top 3 by shared path:

AKA.K. · Senior Data Engineer · 3 of 4 steps"Rebuilt the claims pipeline on Kafka after four years at a community bank."

DRD.R. · Staff Data Engineer · 3 of 4 steps"Led the move from nightly batch to streaming for policy data." Bank: not on profile.

MTM.T. · Data Engineer · 2 of 4 steps"Credit union analyst, now on the data platform team at an insurer." Streaming: not on profile.

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