Comments on: Founders versus early employees

By: How to Divide Equity to Startup Founders, Advisors, and Employees | thinkspace

Sat, 20 Aug 2011 10:10:52 +0000

[...] to figure out how much equity you give to your employees. David Crow writes in his article “Founders versus Early Employees“, “Remember the goal is to incent early employees to have an emotional ownership of the [...]

By: » Startup compensation in Canada | StartupNorth

» Startup compensation in Canada | StartupNorth — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:59:14 +0000

[...] talked about founders and early employees and their equity stakes in the past. I like the model that Paul Graham provides a model for [...]

By: » Startup compensation in Canada | StartupNorth

» Startup compensation in Canada | StartupNorth — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 14:59:14 +0000

[...] talked about founders and early employees and their equity stakes in the past.Â I like the model that Paul Graham provides a model for [...]

By: Sandy Ward

Sandy Ward — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 03:09:54 +0000

Turnover in a startup can be deadly! But people should also remember that is inevitable…what a good founder needs to watch is the 'real why they left'…not what they tell you or what they say in an exit interview? (side note: is anyone crazy enough to really say why you are leaving in an exit interview?)

David, the one thing they could have done… 'more equity'! Or maybe even more exact…a better equity structure…Sr Biz folks were getting hired with option packages the same as mine…even though I was the lead eng and responsible for a 10 person eng team. An additional grant that said 'we really value you' would have been a nice move.

Another tip for new founders, when you employee work together 50+ hours a week…salary/options level will leak out between employees. This isn't a bad thing if everything is fair…

By: Sandy Ward

Sandy Ward — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 03:09:54 +0000

Another tip for new founders, when you employee work together 50+ hours a week…salary/options level will leak out between employees. This isn't a bad thing if everything is fair…

By: Sandy Ward

Sandy Ward — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 03:09:00 +0000

Turnover in a startup can be deadly! But people should also remember that is inevitable…what a good founder needs to watch is the ‘real why they left’…not what they tell you or what they say in an exit interview? (side note: is anyone crazy enough to really say why you are leaving in an exit interview?)rnrnDavid, the one thing they could have done… ‘more equity’! Or maybe even more exact…a better equity structure…Sr Biz folks were getting hired with option packages the same as mine…even though I was the lead eng and responsible for a 10 person eng team. An additional grant that said ‘we really value you’ would have been a nice move. rnrnAnother tip for new founders, when you employee work together 50+ hours a week…salary/options level will leak out between employees. This isn’t a bad thing if everything is fair…

By: Sandy Ward

Sandy Ward — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 03:09:00 +0000

By: davidcrow

davidcrow — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:19:04 +0000

Reminiscent of Gabor Cselle at Xobni leaving http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/07/23/a-xobni-ex... who is now working on ReMail http://www.remail.com/

Sandy this is exactly the point. It can be very difficult to grow and sustain an early stage startup if your early employees aren't recognized and rewarded. If they are always leaving for their own startups you'll be spinning your wheels recruiting and not building/shipping/selling the features that customers want.

What could your previous employer done to keep you interested/engaged? More equity? Better performance pay?

By: davidcrow

davidcrow — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 14:19:04 +0000

By: Sandy Ward

Sandy Ward — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 01:51:17 +0000

One hire that can be tough is the first person after the founders. If this is a senior tech person it can be the worst position because you get a TON of responsibility with limited stock reward (around 1%). (Yes, I am speaking from experience) But on the other hand, having the opportunity to lead a tech-team in a startup is a fantastic learning experience.

Based on that comment, if you are in a startup and unhappy with your equity…just remember with all the experience you are gaining…you will get even more stock next time. :)