Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 10, 2016

If the company has been around for more than a couple of years, and still has no product or revenue flow, there better be a good explanation. 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.

Sweat Equity 120

Sweat Equity Burn Rate Technical Review Intellectual Property 120

Women Entrepreneurs Can

FEBRUARY 8, 2023

Depending on the type of property you purchase, you may also benefit from tax deductions or additional revenue streams through tenant renting fees. Additionally, consider offering incentives such as bonuses or stock options to reward employee performance. Be sure to read these investment property tips before taking the leap.

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Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 8, 2015

If the company has been around for more than a couple of years, and still has no product or revenue flow, there better be a good explanation. 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.

Technical Review 120

Technical Review Due Diligence Sweat Equity Burn Rate 120

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 9, 2015

Even non-profits need revenue to cover their costs, and continue to provide services. Trying to save money by recruiting family members, or hiring only interns, is a bad risk. Opportunity and revenue projections based on deep market and customer analysis are a smarter risk. Find a strategic partner to accelerate growth.

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Forecast Startup Stock Options Technical Review 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!

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Stock Options Startup Dilution Venture Capital 227

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 Things I Learned Analyzing Buffer’s Revenue Dashboard | Ivan Kreimer – crowdspring.co/1xfTwMG.

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Social Media Small Business Design Media 97

The Startup Magazine

JUNE 1, 2023

We’re hitting record revenue months, weeks, and margins. Don’t be afraid to pivot The collapse of SVB spurred us to do a deep evaluation of how we’re generating revenue and value for customers. So instead of throwing dollars and time at a revamp, we’re doubling down on what we already know is the best value and revenue generator.

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Early Stage Los Angeles Silicon Valley Cofounder 111

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. Your revenues are “just around the corner.&# Your angel investors are nervous because the VCs aren’t moving that fast to fund your next round. And he has already vested 75% of his stock options at your company.

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Hiring Employee Vesting Silicon Valley 392

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). And there are some industries where tools such as stock options are considered mandatory for a company to be competitive.

Employee 62

Employee Stock Options Salary Stock 62

YoungUpstarts

FEBRUARY 11, 2020

Whenever I start a new job or join a board, I spend time understanding what is really important to the company, especially around strategy, revenue and capital allocation. Two of my most senior hires were top women who were the best for the job. I always ask: how does this company make money? So it’s more about a broad network.

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Switzerland Private Equity Stock Options Equity 264

The Next Web

AUGUST 12, 2013

Starting a global tech business with international, well-educated and highly-skilled people, generating millions of revenue per month, is incredibly hard. 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. Prepare to fail, 95% do.

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Cofounder CTO Hire Startup Europe 119

Hearpreneur

DECEMBER 31, 2017

I have spent a great deal of time studying the fundamentals of stocks, option trades, goal-setting, and public speaking. I’ve got to trust the team I’ve hired to do their job, so I can do the things that only I can do and not get caught up in minutiae. All my studying and hard work has resulted in a breakthrough.

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Entrepreneur Stock Options Programming Washington 65

Scalable Startup

AUGUST 9, 2018

They need the money to rent offices, hire staff, and establish their initial presence (website, incorporation, marketing). Option Two: Once your product or service is up and running and gaining traction. Option Three: Or don’t raise funding. If you’re bootstrapping, you don’t need to worry about either of these options.

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Technical Cofounder Silicon Valley Early Stage Cofounder 20

YoungUpstarts

MARCH 11, 2015

But it’s an important consideration, especially for companies that plan to offer alternative compensation such as employee stock options, which will usually require a 409A valuation. Why is it important to hire an experienced valuation firm? A company can have value, even if there is no current income or revenue.

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Valuation Stock Options CPA Merger 100

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 28, 2013

So the tech team departed en masse to find the next great stock option scheme to make their big bucks. Sure, our revenue is growing, but is that enough to raise an internal round? It is because when you share too much of this information with staff you develop an “options culture” the I find unhealthy.

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Startup Dilution San Diego Stock Options 417

Scott Edward Walker

NOVEMBER 2, 2011

If you hire any employees, make sure you don’t misclassify them as an independent contractor or fail to pay them at least the minimum wage (see post here ). Don’t issue stock options unless a proper option plan is in place and a valuation has been done in compliance with Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code (see post here ).

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Accredited Investor Stock Options Delaware Silicon Valley 111

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2018

A detailed financial model that shows your anticipated revenue, costs and profits (Income Statement) as well as your balance sheet and cashflow statements. I hired a sales coach named Kai Krickle who helped me figure out how to close more deals.

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Cap Table Due Diligence Forecast Churn Rate 336

Berkonomics

APRIL 4, 2024

Compensation’s charter is to approve stock option grants for any employee, no matter how small the grant, and all salary and benefits for at least the CEO if not the next level down, to avoid conflict of interest with the CEO.

Covenant 48

Covenant Software Review Stock Options Vesting 48

Eric Friedman

JUNE 11, 2019

Whether a fundraising event, hiring, or sales/partnership opportunity- these can be especially useful to make all parties move faster. Partnership Forcing Functions can be tricky because they typically don’t involve revenue, which drives most business decisions, but there are other reasons to do the deal.

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Term Sheet Stock Options Early Stage Agile 68

Gust

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

This discussion expands on my Quora answer to a specific question: “ Why were the stock options of MySpace employees worthless even though the company was sold to News Corporation for hundreds of millions? ” The complete story includes a startup-within-a-startup, investments and exits by two VC firms, and some genuine corporate drama.

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Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Merger Vesting 98

infochachkie.com

SEPTEMBER 24, 2011

For instance, if a consultant proposes to help you with public relations, pay them a commission equivalent to the greater of a flat fee per story placed or a percentage of revenue generated from the PR coverage. At the early stages of your company’s life, you cannot rely on disinterested, hired guns to define your company’s key tasks.

Equity 40

Equity Silicon Valley Cofounder Technical Review 40

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.

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Venture Capital Hiring Software Review Stock Options 285

Scott Edward Walker

OCTOBER 27, 2015

If you hire any employees, make sure you don’t misclassify them as an independent contractor or fail to pay them at least the minimum wage (see post here ). Don’t issue stock options unless a proper option plan is in place and a valuation has been done in compliance with Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code (see post here ).

Intellectual Property 40

Intellectual Property Accredited Investor Vesting Delaware 40

Berkonomics

AUGUST 27, 2015

They financed their companies, to the extent possible, in a manner minimizing the cost of capital, planning for organic growth in the number of customers served and in associated revenues. Flippers financed by venture capitalists are more likely to hire executives having high level profiles and previous exit experience.

Intellectual Property 48

Intellectual Property Balance Sheet Stock Options Valuation 48

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.

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Cap Table Pre-Money Valuation Stock Options Option Pool 112

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 23, 2010

But, tragically, 3 years after their apex, this firm sold for less than their annual revenue, laid off nearly the entire staff, and left common stock shareholders, my friends included, with nothing. Rand said he gets credit for a successful exit, but the exit didn’t include any of the employees who had stock options.

Common Stock 63

Common Stock Stock Options Stock Cofounder 63

www.startupnorth.ca

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Being an early hire at a startup gives an individual the ability to make tremendous impact on an organization as it grows – and both the founders and those hires should know it.” This should force companies to think about building value with each early hire, and not just filling a position. It’s just unfeasible.

Employee 41

Employee Founder Salary Equity 41

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 9, 2013

Deal with company admin: 409a valuations, approve stock options, vote on key measures (15%). should we ramp up sales hires now or wait for more traction? should we charge SaaS revenue, ad revenue or volumetric billing revenue? should we cut staff early since our revenue isn’t growing?

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Advisory Board Valuation Stock Options Seed Money 337

Ben's Blog

APRIL 28, 2010

Salmon points out that “not a single one of the 12 [candidates] is a CEO who was hired to run a company by its board of directors.”. This knowledge becomes the foundation on top of which a gigantic knowledge pyramid gets built which includes: Knowledge of every employee who gets hired and why. If you do, hire him!

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Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 78

The Next Web

SEPTEMBER 16, 2012

The best general rule of thumb is that if your role is to generate revenue for the company, then you are in Bucket X. If your role is not actively creating revenue, then you are in Bucket Y. What about company stock options? Some companies grant stock options, while others grant restricted stock units.

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Stock Options Startup Stock Salary 141

Duct Tape Marketing

MAY 23, 2019

You’ve hired all these smart recent grads from Ivy League schools, how do you then keep them once you get them there? At one point, there was a sentiment that it’s easier to get hired here in the first place than it is to move to another team, because there are a lot of variables that have to happen internally.

Programming 62

Programming Finance Turkey Stock Options 62

Berkonomics

SEPTEMBER 13, 2010

Compensation’s charter is to approve stock option grants for any employee, no matter how small the grant, and all salary and benefits for at least the CEO if not the next level down, to avoid conflict of interest with the CEO. Email readers continue here.]

Covenant 59

Covenant Software Review Stock Options Vesting 59

A Smart Bear: Startups and Marketing for Geeks

MARCH 11, 2014

So hiring more people and being around more people and getting more things done is not actually one of the reasons. How do you split revenue? You may call it employee number one with a really low salary and really generous stock options and as the company grows, you’ll fix their salary. Lots of things change.

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Technical Cofounder Cofounder Software Review Management 220

ReadWriteStart

JUNE 15, 2012

To learn more about how your startup can find, hire and keep the top talent and quality workers it needs to succeed, download this free ReadWriteWeb Report: The Talent Wars: Today’s Toughest Startup Challenge.). Instead, give them a revenue or profit-sharing option. a paycheck plus bonuses or stock options).

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Developer Equity Ruby Cofounder 130

www.paulgraham.com

APRIL 28, 2010

There never has to be atime when you have no revenues. Ifyour competitors offer employees stock options that might make themrich, while you make it clear you plan to stay private, yourcompetitors will get the best people. You dont have to spend time on bureaucraticstuff, because you havent hired any bureaucrats yet.

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Technical Review Startup Software Review Angel Investor 76

techcrunch.com

OCTOBER 23, 2010

Inevitably, the excuses begin: I need to hire people to build the product. In later posts I’m going to get into more detail on specific topics like hiring, raising money, what types of ideas have the potential to get big, finding your founders, and the like. In my neck of the woods programmers are hired guns at first year in college.

Technical Review 84

Technical Review Cofounder Technical Cofounder Software Review 84

Ben's Blog

MARCH 17, 2011

Should your company make Vice President the top title or should you have Chief Marketing Officers, Chief Revenue Officers, Chief People Officer’s, and Chief Snack Officers? Andreessen argues that people ask for many things from a company: salary, bonus, stock options, span of control, and titles. Yes, definitely.

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Employee Stock Options Engineer Management 78