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I'm not meaning to be snarky here, but you're not really providing me with any new information. I'm not particularly interested in what the exact dollar amount

I'm not meaning to be snarky here, but you're not really providing me with any new information. I'm not particularly interested in what the exact dollar amount that I'm statistically likely to earn after taxes is, for example. What I'd like to know is the going rate for equity packages at start-ups. I'm suggesting using "dollar value of shares granted" as the way to measure this, and am providing what I believe is the best way to arrive at that: Use the valuation that the company would receive were it to raise money. (A typical lower bound for this would be 409A valuation, but likely would be much more). I'm confident this way of valuing options grants is sensible. If you have a better way of assigning a rough estimate to options' worth that would be applicable across all stages of a company, I'd love to hear it.

gumby 12y ago
But I am I'm saying your attempt to assign a dollar value is indeed nonsensical, in particular for early stage startups. That's why most people simply use percentages as their measurement of the "going rate" for early stage startups. Your complaint is that you can't get data using a different method of your preference. If you want to use your own metric it's up to you to deal with it. Not everything can be captured simply by measuring it in dollars.
- throwaway748937 12y ago
  Just to be clear: you believe equity %age vs number of employees is more informative than %age vs company valuation?
  - gumby 12y ago
    I believe that too, especially in early stages. But my point is that trying to convert your percentage to a dollar value in order to compare offers is probably not going to result in any predictive value.
    - throwaway748937 12y ago
      > But my point is that trying to convert your percentage to a dollar value in order to compare offers is probably not going to result in any predictive value. I am converting percentage into a dollar value _strictly_ for comparison between offers, and _not_ for predictive purposes.

gumby 12y ago

But I am I'm saying your attempt to assign a dollar value is indeed nonsensical, in particular for early stage startups. That's why most people simply use percentages as their measurement of the "going rate" for early stage startups. Your complaint is that you can't get data using a different method of your preference. If you want to use your own metric it's up to you to deal with it. Not everything can be captured simply by measuring it in dollars.

throwaway748937 12y ago
Just to be clear: you believe equity %age vs number of employees is more informative than %age vs company valuation?
- gumby 12y ago
  I believe that too, especially in early stages. But my point is that trying to convert your percentage to a dollar value in order to compare offers is probably not going to result in any predictive value.
  - throwaway748937 12y ago
    > But my point is that trying to convert your percentage to a dollar value in order to compare offers is probably not going to result in any predictive value. I am converting percentage into a dollar value _strictly_ for comparison between offers, and _not_ for predictive purposes.