Feld Thoughts

SEPTEMBER 2, 2011

This week they set out to create their cap table and hire a CTO. As first time entrepreneurs they did not create an employee options pool; we’ll fix that in a little while. They come up with two options: Hire Praveena as an employee and offer her stock options.

Cap Table 133

Cap Table CTO Hire Technical Cofounder Cofounder 133

The Startup Magazine

DECEMBER 17, 2023

Taking better care of your employees is not just a moral imperative; it’s a strategic necessity in today’s competitive business landscape. Employees are the foundation of any organization, and their engagement and well-being have a direct and profound impact on productivity, morale, and the overall success of the company.

Employee 104

Employee Stock Options Programming Equity 104

Berkonomics

APRIL 4, 2024

The number of employees grows. And then company grows… Once the company hits high growth or larger size, it is logical to follow the standard practice in the creation of two standing committees composed of outside board members (not employees or executives) – the compensation committee and the audit committee.

Covenant 48

Covenant Software Review Stock Options Vesting 48

Startup Professionals Musings

DECEMBER 10, 2022

I was shocked to read an old Gallup study that indicates only 13 percent of employees worldwide are actively engaged at work, and more recent data shows only a small change in the right direction. Good hiring, training, and mentoring are the best motivators. Investors have long agreed that you invest in the team, more than the product.

Stock Options 362

Stock Options Salary Leadership Stock 362

Up and Running

OCTOBER 19, 2021

The American job market has become even more competitive amid the pandemic-fueled “Great Resignation” — the number of employees quitting their jobs peaked in April 2021 and has remained high over the past few months. . As a startup looking to hire your dream team, this news can be exciting. Resourcefulness.

Startup 127

Startup Salary Stock Options Employee 127

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 2, 2018

One of the lessons I have learned over the years as a business executive, and now as a mentor to entrepreneurs, is that if you really want employees who enthusiastically take ownership of their work, you have to start treating them like owners, not renters. Employees can’t be owners if they don’t understand the business targets and realities.

Employee 180

Employee Stock Options Leadership Stock 180

thinkspace.com

SEPTEMBER 7, 2012

How to Divide Equity to Startup Founders, Advisors, and Employees. The part that I’d like to zero in on is when you’ve got a high growth company what are some of the best practices out there to distribute equity to the founders, advisors, and employees? Equity for Employees. Strike price of options: meaningless.

Equity 62

Equity Employee Founder CTO Hire 62

Feld Thoughts

JANUARY 17, 2013

I’ve never really understood why the majority of stock option refresh grants are stacked grants mid-way through the granting process. Assume you hire someone and grant them 10,000 options with monthly vesting of four years with a one year cliff. options / month, or 2,500 / year.) Let me give an example.

Stock Options 134

Stock Options Stock Vesting Retention 134

The Next Web

JUNE 15, 2012

From Silicon Valley to Peoria, Illinois, cash-strapped startups look for inventive way to finance their business – often handing out equity to employees, consultants, vendors, and other service providers. However, if you are thinking about compensating non-employees with equity, make sure to consider the following points: 1.

Equity 116

Equity Stock Options Vesting Stock 116

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 22, 2010

I never hire job hoppers. They make terrible employees. Why do job hoppers make such bad employees at startups? -. You have tough choices to make about whom you hire on your team. Now is the time that you need “all hands on deck.&# That awesome gal you hired in engineering has job options and she knows it.

Hiring 392

Hiring Employee Vesting Silicon Valley 392

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2015

One more key employee or one more investor will probably not turn the situation around. Every startup should have at least a couple of outside advisors who are not major investors or family members, anxious to talk to new investors and key new hires. Calculate employee stock option values and vesting times, as well as salary.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 120

Women Entrepreneurs Can

FEBRUARY 8, 2023

Invest in Your Employees Investing in your employees is just as important as investing in technology or physical assets. Additionally, consider offering incentives such as bonuses or stock options to reward employee performance. Invest in Your Community Consider investing in your local community.

Artificial Inteligence 52

Artificial Inteligence Guerilla Technical Review Stock Options 52

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2016

One more key employee or one more investor will probably not turn the situation around. Every startup should have at least a couple of outside advisors who are not major investors or family members, anxious to talk to new investors and key new hires. Calculate employee stock option values and vesting times, as well as salary.

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 120

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 21, 2016

The most effective and productive team members are positive, driven and want to be measured by results rather than hear work hours, perks or stock options. Attracting, evaluation and hiring direct reports is a task that should never be delegated. Motivation and commitment to results. Personal character and chemistry.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Stock Options Salary Hiring 120

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2010

My original post was directed at hiring managers. It said that I didn’t believe it was a good idea to hire job hoppers. My view still stands – for many hiring managers a large factor in looking through resumes of somebody who is 30+ and has never worked somewhere for more than 18 months will be the job hopping element.

Venture Capital 285

Venture Capital Hiring Software Review Stock Options 285

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 11, 2020

I was shocked to read an old Gallup study that indicates only 13 percent of employees worldwide are actively engaged at work, and more recent data shows only a small change in the right direction. Good hiring, training, and mentoring are the best motivators. Investors have long agreed that you invest in the team, more than the product.

Product 322

Product Stock Options Salary Leadership 322

Berkonomics

OCTOBER 21, 2021

Should be overwhelm prospective employees with stock options and perks? Well, here are rules to make money work for you in recruiting AND to better control its use after you’ve hired your candidate(s). But more difficult is the sticky issue of employee incentive compensation. Some obvious qualifiers.

Employee 62

Employee Stock Options Salary Stock 62

View from Seed

AUGUST 6, 2015

Of late, I’ve encountered numerous potential startup candidates and newly hired employees who have no idea what their equity means. It falls on the hiring company to thoroughly explain equity options to their new employees. What’s the strike price ($ value per) of the options I’m being granted?

Equity 120

Equity Employee Cap Table Stock Options 120

Up and Running

JANUARY 4, 2017

Employee taxes. Hiring the right employees. This is why it’s important to find employees with potential. See Also: How to Hire Your First Employee. Approach them as you would an investor—what can this possibly over-qualified potential employee gain from joining your team? Travel expenses.

Small Business 122

Small Business Social Media Stock Options Employee 122

www.thedailymuse.com

SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

We’re Hiring. What Start-ups Should Know About Hiring a Lawyer. Hiring and working with a lawyer is often confusing and daunting, especially if you’ve never done it before. What should new entrepreneurs look for when hiring a lawyer? Hiring employees. We’re Hiring. Get Involved.

Hiring 56

Hiring LLC Intellectual Property Private Equity 56

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 2, 2015

For a well-funded seed company I have controversially recommended hiring a great office manager that doubles as an administrative assistant. This happens because many CEOs are passionate, market-driven people who are constantly trying to launch new products, win contracts, get press, hire staff and woo VCs. HR & Legal.

Operations 150

Operations Metrics Early Stage Non-Compete 150

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 23, 2023

Some rules about stock options and phantom stock: [Email readers, continue here…] The real insight here is that stock options or phantom stock are the tools of early-stage businesses used to attract great talent when there is not enough cash to pay market rates. How about multiple classes of stock?

Equity 62

Equity Stock Options Vesting Early Stage 62

View from Seed

AUGUST 6, 2015

Of late, I’ve encountered numerous potential startup candidates and newly hired employees who have no idea what their equity means. It falls on the hiring company to thoroughly explain equity options to their new employees. What’s the strike price ($ value per) of the options I’m being granted?

Equity 120

Equity Employee Cap Table Stock Options 120

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 17, 2017

It was a stock option incentive related “expense” but I bet you didn’t know that because in an era where we only read the headlines — they must be a train wreck losing billions. If you don’t have a strong balance sheet and can’t hire more people that’s fine — but understand this may lead to slower growth. Two-f **g-billion!

Stock Options 227

Stock Options Startup Dilution Venture Capital 227

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 21, 2010

Forget to get around to setting up that Employee Stock Option Plan and want to be able to give the early guys their options at a low strike price? I know he’s smart but you wouldn’t hire a Javascript developer to do your database design – would you? Shame about that pesky FAS 157 ruling.

Southern California 318

Southern California Silicon Valley IP Stock Options 318

crowdSPRING Blog

OCTOBER 10, 2014

“the people you fire are more important to your [company''s] culture than the people you hire.” Stock option questions startup employees should ask | Business Insider – crowdspring.co/1n8lUje. 5 Ways to Hire the Best Talent for Your Startup Team – crowdspring.co/1ptyfds.

Social Media 97

Social Media Small Business Design Media 97

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 20, 2021

And as the company grows, it brings on new people and may decide to issue stock options to attract new staff and funding from investors. For instance, the cap table will help you with various possibilities while running business activities like available options and pre-money valuations faster. Total share ownership.

Cap Table 112

Cap Table Pre-Money Valuation Stock Options Option Pool 112

prosperati.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Hiring Of all the issues we ran into when we first built our team, hiring was the most critical. So when you first start building your team, the most important hire should be your lead architect. The cliches of hiring the best of the best is as true in Malaysia as it is in the US. Culture creation is not easy.

Offshore 40

Offshore Malaysia Developer Stock Options 40

VC Adventure

AUGUST 15, 2018

It was and is imprecise science but – at least in the case of venture backed startups – there wasn’t much harm in an option being priced low. These reports are generally quite lengthy and not always particularly comprehensible to non-finance professionals.

Valuation 48

Valuation Common Stock Cap Table Software Review 48

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

There are startups out there that are valued at a billion dollars, but because of employee salaries, assets, etc. Now we’re no longer spending employee manpower on a service that wasn’t helping accelerate the right type of growth we need. Hire versatile players and lean into your team The SVB collapse reminded us that staffing matters.

Early Stage 108

Early Stage Los Angeles Silicon Valley Cofounder 108

Hunter Walker

MAY 1, 2022

Selective Leaks of Previous Discussions & Policy Debates In The Name of ‘Transparency’ Would Put Twitter Employees At Risk. Remember Musk has his family office manager use a pseudonym to hire a private investigator to dig up invented pedo dirt on someone who challenged him. But hey, it’s 2022, let’s soldier onward….

Email 142

Email Stock Options Naming Stock 142

www.drowningamerican.com

JUNE 22, 2012

Next → How we Hire for Sweat Equity (Part 2)… Posted on April 7, 2011 by Travis Biziorek. The first time we hired partners for Kibin was way back in late 2009. I’ve heard people say it’s impossible to hire good developers right now. I want to hire before I have the ability to pay anyone.

Sweat Equity 40

Sweat Equity Equity Hiring Technical Review 40

Ben's Blog

OCTOBER 6, 2011

The Employee Lifecycle. The best way to approach management quality assurance is through the lens of the employee lifecycle. From hire to retire, how good is your company? Some of the questions that they will help you answer: Recruiting and hiring. Do your managers give consistent, clear feedback to their employees?

Management 64

Management Development Team Review Stock Options Technical Review 64

Reid Hoffman

DECEMBER 10, 2020

To honor the Alliance it had made with those former employees, Airbnb waived the usual vesting cliff so that they could exercise their stock options, and provided generous severance packages. In addition, the company redirected its recruiting team from hiring new employees to helping former employees find new jobs.

Hosting 69

Hosting Hockey Stick IPO Silicon Valley 69

The Next Web

AUGUST 12, 2013

Define how you want to motivate your employees every day to produce high-quality and industry-leading results. They should be able to hire great designers to help build a better product. Make sure you hire an experienced lawyer for setting up the company. Within weeks of starting the company we already launched a product.

Cofounder 119

Cofounder CTO Hire Startup Europe 119

www.joelonsoftware.com

MARCH 24, 2010

When we decide to hire someone, the interviewers who were involved in the "hire" decision will sit down with the candidates resume and salary history and figure out what level they will start at. Our biannual reviews are done internally by management; they are not intended as a way to give employees grades or gold stars.

Software Review 48

Software Review Stock Options Salary Technical Review 48

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 24, 2017

You might draft a contract with subcontractors that shifts responsibility to the sub-contractor in case of a construction-related accident involving one of their employees. If you plan to hire employees, make sure that you have the appropriate documentation. Those documents should be signed by all (or most) of your employees.

LLC 168

LLC Startup Stock Options Cofounder 168