[geoka9]

I get your point, but if, after extending an offer (and having it accepted) you suddenly found out the role has been "made redundant", would go out of your way to get your executive compensation reduced so that the new hire could stay and you wouldn't have to "burn bridges" with the person?

I'm not taking sides here, but am curious to see your argument.

[hn_neverguess]

I've been a startup founder for the last 20 years, and the short answer is yes. I did exactly that same thing in 2020 to help onboard someone in February who we otherwise wouldn't have been able to keep. Our board asked for a hiring freeze, and I pushed through a candidate by cutting my salary by 50% (I would have done it anyway out of principle, but that's a different story). I know a lot of other startup CEOs who lowered their salaries to help extend their runways.

[User23]

That's rational. If a startup CEO is motivated by salary rather than equity, that's terrible for everyone involved, from the investors on down to the early employees.