The Startup Magazine

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

Hire Qualified Drivers Just as hiring skilled and productive employees is vital for a startup, bringing on board qualified drivers with clean driving records and appropriate licenses reduces road risks substantially. Still, the right commercial auto insurance policy provides confidence to focus on core operations, not liability risk.

Technical Review 124

Technical Review Houston Dividend Startup 124

Steve Blank

OCTOBER 24, 2017

Hire a CEO to Go Public. The VCs would hire a CEO with a track record who looked and acted like the type of CEO Wall Street bankers expected to see in large companies. The role of the independent member was typically to tell the founding CEO that the VCs were hiring a new CEO.). People had to actually pay you for your product.

Founder 278

Founder Technical Review CTO Hire IPO 278

VC Adventure

AUGUST 16, 2020

But it will also change the nature of your workforce if you only hire employees that can work for well below market cash comp. Create option “bands” Every company should create a schedule of new hire grants for each level position in their business. It’s also important not to go crazy with the trade-off.

Programming 149

Programming Vesting Equity Software Review 149

SoCal CTO

NOVEMBER 1, 2010

You should avoid spending your time here and instead focus on finding a way to generate revenue or to attract investors so that you can afford to hire someone. What sweat equity is not good for is for people who you don’t know at all. How To Get There

Technical Cofounder 241

Technical Cofounder CTO Hire Equity Sweat Equity 241

Hunter Walker

OCTOBER 22, 2021

When I encounter founders who know how to hire, or founders who are self-aware enough to know it’s an area they want to get better at, it’s a huge plus in our investment decision. It’s very hard to hire something if you don’t know what it looks like. So ahead of hiring, spend time with a few excellent people in their domains.

Hiring 152

Hiring Vesting Salary Naming 152

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 28, 2021

I would propose that early stage startups start thinking about doing something radically different—think about trying to become the absolute best place to work if you have a family as a means of getting an advantage in the hiring market. Plus, you can allow people to vest into the program.

Hiring 192

Hiring Early Stage Marketing Term Sheet 192

ConversionXL

NOVEMBER 6, 2019

Gadea leveraged his connections in Silicon Valley to seed viral distribution of the product, which, in turn, generated the revenue to hire engineers and scale the company. is a SaaS tool that companies can use to assess engineers before they hire them. Vested Technology spent $17k on their MVP. spent $1k on their MVP.

Sweat Equity 78

Sweat Equity Software Review Vesting Cofounder 78

The Next Web

OCTOBER 7, 2013

They were referring to non-founder engineers, most commonly the first hire for technology businesses. It is typical for employees to vest their options over four years with a one year cliff, which means a new hire must stay on the company for at least one year to see any shares. How do you feel about that number?

Engineer 129

Engineer Dilution Option Pool Vesting 129

Berkonomics

APRIL 4, 2024

As soon as any outside money is ingested into the corporation, others have a vested and legal interest in the behavior of officers entrusted with the best use of funds. Start-ups with one founder rarely have or need a board of directors. In fact, such a board would seem out of place in a one-person company.

Covenant 48

Covenant Software Review Stock Options Vesting 48

SoCal CTO

MAY 4, 2010

- A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks , April 19, 2010 5 Tips On VC Alignment: Discuss The Exit Before You Enter - OnStartups , April 29, 2010 Founder Agreements – Vesting, Vesting and more Vesting - High Contrast , April 25, 2010 Web Sites and Books for Novice Programmers - Feld Thoughts , April 25, 2010 Adding a Co-Founder In 140 Characters (..)

CTO Hire 150

CTO Hire Vesting Venture Capital Startup 150

ConversionXL

NOVEMBER 6, 2019

Gadea leveraged his connections in Silicon Valley to seed viral distribution of the product, which, in turn, generated the revenue to hire engineers and scale the company. is a SaaS tool that companies can use to assess engineers before they hire them. Vested Technology spent $17k on their MVP. spent $1k on their MVP.

Sweat Equity 50

Sweat Equity Software Review Vesting Cofounder 50

Hunter Walker

JULY 2, 2022

Most hiring processes start with an antiquated assumption that companies select people to work for them. Get them on your benefits, start vesting their stock and so on. If you’ve got other strategies to help prevent new hire ghosting, reply here or tweet at me. Involve Their Family/Partners.

Hiring 96

Hiring Vesting Early Stage Stock 96

Scott Edward Walker

SEPTEMBER 28, 2011

(And please don’t tell us to hire a lawyer.) Vesting Restrictions. The first deadly mistake relates to vesting restrictions. Answer Below are four mistakes that could destroy your venture down the road if not handled properly today. IP Ownership.

Vesting 89

Vesting Software Review IP Intellectual Property 89

Up and Running

JUNE 7, 2021

Staunch in his belief in paying workers a respectable wage and in hiring women, people of color, and individuals with disabilities for high-paying jobs when doing so was not an accepted practice, he virtually created the American middle class. The history of social responsibility in business.

Framework 191

Framework United States Employee Vesting 191

Up and Running

DECEMBER 1, 2015

Stock options are issued to employees usually through an Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) and include what is called a “vesting period.” The vesting period, often three or four years, frees up a percentage of the options for the employee to purchase the longer they stay at the company. See Also: How to Hire Your First Employee.

Equity 60

Equity Employee Stock Options Vesting 60

View from Seed

JANUARY 5, 2016

Even experienced startup execs who have hired and built teams sometimes find there are nuances to learn between building a team within a larger company versus hiring the first dozen folks in a startup. What did we like/not like about past companies’ approach to hiring and team development? It’s a moving target.

Founder 120

Founder Cofounder Startup Early Stage 120

The Next Web

JUNE 15, 2012

And giving equity as compensation can help build loyalty among contractors and consultants, as they now have a truly vested interest in your company’s success. It’s wise to create a stock options pool that includes all the employees and contractors you plan on hiring in the next 18 months and how many shares each might get.

Equity 116

Equity Stock Options Vesting Stock 116

SiliconHills

MAY 14, 2015

Vested Finance, an Austin-based financial technology startup, announced it has closed on $5 million in seed financing led by Sandleigh Ventures. The Austin-based company plans to use the money to expand its operations by hiring a development team to create and distribute its mobile app.

Vesting 48

Vesting Finance San Francisco Washington 48

Steve Blank

MAY 19, 2015

While he kept bringing the conversation back to their big valuation I tried to steer the conversation back to how they were going to deal with: training the influx of new hires – in both culture and job specific tasks. retaining their existing hires who were working for intern-like salaries with little equity. the company had.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Salary Early Stage Software Review 120

Duct Tape Marketing

OCTOBER 8, 2023

Benefits of Hiring a Fractional CMO If you’re a business owner, the thought of hiring a full-time Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) may have crossed your mind. Cost-Effectiveness of Hiring A Fractional CMO The cost difference between hiring a full-time and fractional CMO is staggering.

Technical Review 88

Technical Review Retention Networking Leadership 88

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 11, 2021

This problem can be avoided by incorporating immediately after early discussions, and issuing shares to the Founders, with normal vesting and other participation rules. Do the same for every business partner or employee you may hire. Trouble with the IRS over Founders stock value.

Cost 363

Cost Non-Compete Accredited Investor Cofounder 363

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. Meet the Team.

Hiring 56

Hiring LLC Intellectual Property Private Equity 56

YoungUpstarts

JULY 26, 2016

You may have often wondered, why do businesses hire consultants in the first place? It can seem puzzling to the untrained eye, but read on and you’ll see not only why businesses hire consultants, but why they need them. As temporary employees of the company, it is often cheaper to hire consultants than it is permanent employees.

Hiring 100

Hiring Vesting Employee Cost 100

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2016

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. Any outside advisors or board members available for discussion?

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 120

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 22, 2010

I never hire job hoppers. 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. And he has already vested 75% of his stock options at your company. Everyone loves you.

Hiring 392

Hiring Employee Vesting Silicon Valley 392

YoungUpstarts

APRIL 19, 2019

While we all solve problems, managers and consultants are professionals — they’re hired and paid to do so. Consultants aren’t immune to bias, but, as outsiders, they don’t have a vested interest in solutions and recommendations. Problem solving is a dominant form of how we think and one of our most complex intellectual activities.

Non-Compete 113

Non-Compete Vesting Boston Agile 113

NZ Entrepreneur

SEPTEMBER 29, 2021

experiments to build a product, find customers, test business models and hire amazing people. It is not uncommon for startup directors to be more deeply involved in the operations of the business when the company is entering a new market, hiring critical team members or raising capital. This equity will vest over 2-3 years.

Technical Review 94

Technical Review Software Review New Zealand Due Diligence 94

Altgate

JUNE 25, 2012

One who attracted much attention is David Choe, the graffiti artist hired to paint the company’s first headquarters. Mark Pincus of social gaming company Zynga recently confronted a similar problem when he tried to reclaim equity that he felt he had over-allocated to some early hires. They fail to include vesting terms (i.e.,

Equity 44

Equity Vesting Cap Table Technical Review 44

OnlyOnce

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022

Don’t hire security guards or bring boxes into the office before breaking the news. Other thoughts that came up were: (a) offering a long post-termination exercise period for vested options, (b) accelerating some vesting, (c) creating a Salary Bridge program, which we did once at Return Path. It absolutely matters.

Salary 62

Salary Vesting Employee B2C 62

Duct Tape Marketing

MAY 19, 2020

Of course, you have a vested interest in selling your business as the best business out there in your field. By showing prospects an existing happy customer, you give them a taste of what their life could be like if they hired you. Testimonials, reviews, and case studies all play a similar role in the lead nurturing process.

Video 101

Video Marketing Technical Review Software Review 101

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2015

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. Any outside advisors or board members available for discussion?

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 120

The Startup Magazine

JULY 19, 2020

Competition can be tough among law firms, so it’s important to hire a developer to build you a website that stands out from the crowd. Consider creating a blog with relevant content; you can either write your own or hire a writer to do them for you. Hire Capable Staff. Set Up a Website. Find an Office for Your Law Firm.

Vesting 149

Vesting Reputation Hiring Community 149

YoungUpstarts

OCTOBER 13, 2015

Lastly, when we hire our first employees, we should always do it with the appropriate documentation, in which there should not lack the specification that everything they create while working for us, on the level of intellectual property, belongs to the company.

Delaware 100

Delaware Technical Review United States Vesting 100

Berkonomics

NOVEMBER 23, 2023

How to give away too much too soon: Most early-stage companies make the mistake of making option grants to new hires at all levels that are too aggressive and distort the capital structure of the company to a degree that damages future professional investment. How about “vesting” shares over time ?

Equity 62

Equity Stock Options Vesting Early Stage 62

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 27, 2013

My internal compass says that “country-club” entrepreneurs struggle to make as big of an impact because it’s really hard to totally change a system that you’re part of and have a vested interest in. It’s hard to be a rebel when upsetting the apple cart affects a bunch of people like you. Take Maker Studios.

Churn Rate 371

Churn Rate Vesting Viral eCommerce 371

The Startup Magazine

OCTOBER 22, 2017

Hire Professional Services. If you’re not ready to hire a bookkeeper or accountant and you have a business partner, share the job of keeping financial records straight. You both have a vested interest in understanding how financially healthy the business is, and sharing bookkeeping tasks will keep everyone up to speed.

Software Review 72

Software Review Startup Vesting Forecast 72

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 7, 2016

My internal compass says that “country-club” entrepreneurs struggle to make as big of an impact because it’s really hard to totally change a system that you’re part of and have a vested interest in. So positive chips are a great signal for me. But chips come in multiple flavors and it’s a fine line between positive and negative.

Churn Rate 150

Churn Rate Vesting Dilution Europe 150