2 ms·

Do TVCs get stock? Most or all of the big silicon valley corps employ a ton of temps, contractors etc.

mrandish 5y ago
> Do TVCs get stock? Since they actually work for the contracting or temp company and not the contracting customer of that company, the arrangement doesn't generally include equity, profit-sharing and other benefits from the contracting company. However, the employee of the temp or contracting company might be able to negotiate equity, profit-sharing or other benefits from their employer if their market value is sufficiently high. It all depends on the arrangement the employee makes with their employer and that is usually driven by how in-demand, rare and proven the particular employee's skills are. I've found it valuable to have the flexibility to choose whether I want to be an employee or a contractor depending on the market, company and my goals at the time. Over the decades I've experienced the upside and the downside of being an employee working alongside contractors who were taking home substantially more per day than I was but not getting equity. Sometimes my options ended up being nearly worthless and other times it worked out extremely well. Conversely, at other times I've been a short-term contractor able to negotiate fantastic weekly take-home pay. Sometimes that worked out very well and other times it would've been even better for me to have taken the job offer and been an equity employee. But I would have had to stay three or four years to vest, sacrificing the flexibility to pick my assignments, location and schedule. Having experienced all sides of this, I've found the determining factor isn't really the choice of compensation model. What matters most is developing unique skills and being able to consistently deliver tangible value. How I choose to monetize my value is up to me and, like any investment, I get to 'pick my poison' and live with the consequences. Barring random luck, increased certainty and immediacy of minimum guaranteed compensation tends to come at the cost of potential maximum upside.

> Do TVCs get stock? Since they actually work for the contracting or temp company and not the contracting customer of that company, the arrangement doesn't generally include equity, profit-sharing and other benefits from the contracting company. However, the employee of the temp or contracting company might be able to negotiate equity, profit-sharing or other benefits from their employer if their market value is sufficiently high. It all depends on the arrangement the employee makes with their employer and that is usually driven by how in-demand, rare and proven the particular employee's skills are. I've found it valuable to have the flexibility to choose whether I want to be an employee or a contractor depending on the market, company and my goals at the time. Over the decades I've experienced the upside and the downside of being an employee working alongside contractors who were taking home substantially more per day than I was but not getting equity. Sometimes my options ended up being nearly worthless and other times it worked out extremely well. Conversely, at other times I've been a short-term contractor able to negotiate fantastic weekly take-home pay. Sometimes that worked out very well and other times it would've been even better for me to have taken the job offer and been an equity employee. But I would have had to stay three or four years to vest, sacrificing the flexibility to pick my assignments, location and schedule. Having experienced all sides of this, I've found the determining factor isn't really the choice of compensation model. What matters most is developing unique skills and being able to consistently deliver tangible value. How I choose to monetize my value is up to me and, like any investment, I get to 'pick my poison' and live with the consequences. Barring random luck, increased certainty and immediacy of minimum guaranteed compensation tends to come at the cost of potential maximum upside.