In the News: Startup Employees in the Dark on Equity

“Mary Russell, an attorney who founded Stock Option Counsel to help employees evaluate their equity compensation, says the first step is for employees to make sure any equity is theirs to keep. Some companies have repurchase rights in their equity agreements that give them a right to buy back shares and options from any employee who leaves; and some give founders or investors broad latitude to change the terms.

“If the company can take back employee shares it dramatically limits the value of those shares,” says Ms. Russell. “It’s the sort of thing an employee needs to know about when they go into a job.” She says it’s as simple as asking whether the company can take back vested shares.”
— Katie Benner, The Information

See Katie Benner's full article, Startup Employees in the Dark on Equity. The Information is a subscription publication for professionals who need the inside scoop on technology news and trends. 

Negotiating the Right Job Offer – Long Form Q&A Between Stock Option Counsel and BINC Search

Thanks for reading our shorter blog post: Bull's Eye - Negotiating the Right Job Offer. This is the full Q&A between Mary Russell and Boris Epstein. It’s long, but it’s full of lots of insights on how to negotiate the right compensation offer from a company.

Mary Russell counsels individual employees and founders to negotiate, maximize and monetize their stock options and other startup stock. She is an attorney and the founder of Stock Option Counsel.

Boris Epstein is the founder of BINC Search, a next-generation recruiting startup that helps Silicon Valley companies hire technical talent at the scale they need.

Mary Russell, Attorney @ Stock Option Counsel: Welcome, Boris. I’ve always enjoyed our discussions on compensation negotiations because you seem to believe that a candidate and a company can discover a “right offer.” Employees who come to me for Stock Option Counsel want to get to that “right offer” for salary and equity, and I’m happy you’ve joined us to share your perspective on how to get there.

Boris Epstein, Founder @ BINC Search: Thank you. I think there is a right offer in a compensation negotiation, and companies and candidates arrive there by identifying four data points:

1.     The candidate’s Past Comp

2.     The Peer Comp of the candidate’s level within the company

3.     The candidate’s Desired Comp and

4.     The Market Comp or competitive scenarios in the market

The epicenter of all the different data points would be what they would arrive at to get a right offer. So if all four numbers align, it’s really easy. If the four numbers are divergent in some way, then someone’s going to have to make tradeoffs and concessions. If the person’s making $100,000 but then they want $200,000, and market’s $150,000, someone’s going to have to make a tradeoff somewhere to arrive at the right package.

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VIDEO Startup Stock Options: Exercise Price Basics

Stock Option Counsel for individual employees and founders in all matters relating to startup stock options or other employee stock. This video describes stock options in a simple, accessible way. Call us when you want to evaluate, maximize or monetize your stock options or other startup stock. (650) 326-3412. www.stockoptioncounsel.com. info@stockoptioncounsel.com.