3 ms·

Yeah they always assign a dollar amount to options instead of a % amount which is what really matters. $100,000 in options sounds great but if it’s .01% of opt

Yeah they always assign a dollar amount to options instead of a % amount which is what really matters. $100,000 in options sounds great but if it’s .01% of options then you’ll have to be part of a monster IPO or sale to get a windfall. Always insist on the % amount. Most founders will try not to share it.

hkmurakami 9y ago
If you have the dollar amount and the # of shares, then you can backtrack it to a rough percentage. Also options are a % increase in share price play, so $100,000 strike price can at least give you some information wrt how much $ you can make if the per share price of the company triples, etc. It's not always better to know % and % only. Let's say you get 1% options of a company valued at $10B. Options are priced at the preferred price, no discount. The company IPOs at $10B. Did you make $100M? Nope you made $0 so far!
- timr 9y ago
  "If you have the dollar amount and the # of shares, then you can backtrack it to a rough percentage." Perhaps. But if a company will not give you a percentage of ownership and expects you to accept this as compensation, you should quit. Full stop. If the company won't tell you how to fairly evaluate your options, they're operating in bad faith, and should not be rewarded for their sleazy behavior.
  - hkmurakami 9y ago
    I agree with you on that regard fwiw. I've wondered whether a company will tell me what the liquidation preferences and antidilution clauses for its preferred shares are, since that also comes into play pretty significantly wrt evaluating the value of ones equity offer.
    - timr 9y ago
      This gets into a fuzzy area, since it's a multidimensional equation, and often, even the founders can't tell you what your share is "worth" without lots of caveats and time spent on spreadsheets. There's usually not a single answer. The important principle, though, is that they shouldn't be hiding anything from you. If the company won't even tell you the percentage your shares represent, you can't trust them to do anything else.

hkmurakami 9y ago

If you have the dollar amount and the # of shares, then you can backtrack it to a rough percentage. Also options are a % increase in share price play, so $100,000 strike price can at least give you some information wrt how much $ you can make if the per share price of the company triples, etc. It's not always better to know % and % only. Let's say you get 1% options of a company valued at $10B. Options are priced at the preferred price, no discount. The company IPOs at $10B. Did you make $100M? Nope you made $0 so far!

timr 9y ago
"If you have the dollar amount and the # of shares, then you can backtrack it to a rough percentage." Perhaps. But if a company will not give you a percentage of ownership and expects you to accept this as compensation, you should quit. Full stop. If the company won't tell you how to fairly evaluate your options, they're operating in bad faith, and should not be rewarded for their sleazy behavior.
- hkmurakami 9y ago
  I agree with you on that regard fwiw. I've wondered whether a company will tell me what the liquidation preferences and antidilution clauses for its preferred shares are, since that also comes into play pretty significantly wrt evaluating the value of ones equity offer.
  - timr 9y ago
    This gets into a fuzzy area, since it's a multidimensional equation, and often, even the founders can't tell you what your share is "worth" without lots of caveats and time spent on spreadsheets. There's usually not a single answer. The important principle, though, is that they shouldn't be hiding anything from you. If the company won't even tell you the percentage your shares represent, you can't trust them to do anything else.