[1270018080]

What were the events leading up to getting such a big equity pay out?

What # employee were you?

Was it options/RSUs?

What % of the company do you have?

How long did you work there?

I ask because I am at a series B, and I'm very optimistic for our future. But I am only employee #100 or so and don't see a big payout for me barring a multi billion dollar exit (a little too far fetched). I'm just curious how it all goes down for those lucky employees.

[qqqwerty]

I think you are in the sweet spot. Equity compensation drops fast for early employees. Roughly, the first employee might get 1-2%, but by employee #10 it is down to 0.25-0.1%. At that level, you would still need a billion dollar exit to get into FU money territory.

And keep in mind, at the early stage startups salaries are often lower and the startup is likely pre product market fit. So it is much more risky. Employee #100 feels like the sweet spot because it likely means the startup has found product market fit and is hitting the accelerator re growth, but you still get a taste of early employee equity.

Of course this is just in terms of maximizing "IPO lottery" potential. If you are trying to maximize probable net worth, FAANG probably wins due to higher compensation.

[quickthrower2]

Thanks for that insight. While I can't say what mine is, but your ranges mean I'm OK. I see it as a lottery ticket, you need a billion for someone with say 0.1% to be worth a million, and that is assuming no dilutions.

[quickthrower2]

Also what % do you have out of interest? I'm outside the US so I feel my % is less than you'd get at US startups that generally compensate better. Obviously % isn't everything but it's a metric to track.