Job Offer - Lower Salary - Equity Counteroffer?
Discussion
Morning all. I'm a regular poster on here but have used a temp username as you never know who reads these forums!
Bit of background; I am a project manager for a top 5 construction main contractor. I am young for the position I am in and even through the recession I have never been short of job offers from elsewhere, none of which have really tickled my interest until now.
At some point over the next few years my intention is to either go it alone, or possibly look for an equity stake in an existing company - obviously this would need to be in a smaller company looking to grow.
In my area a lot of small to medium construction companies have folded lately, and as a consequence there is a big gap in the market for the right small company to grow into a significantly larger company to fill the void. I have recently been approached by a company in exactly this position asking me to make the jump. Because I come from a large company background where a lot more systems and processes are in place that the smaller company does not have, I know I would offer them a lot. I also have my own client base to take with me, if the offer is right.
I had an initial meeting with the smaller company last Friday which went very well - they are a young, dynamic company who have a clear vision of where they want to go, and because of my background I know I could offer them a lot.
My current salary is £46k and when he asked what salary I would want to go, I said £53k which is the industry average for that position, so to my mind, not unreasonable. However, I've received a call off the same guy this morning asking if I would go for a second meeting with the owners next week, and would I be willing to take a drop in salary to go to prove my commitment. The short answer to this is no, to which he said "when I joined I took a drop in salary." What he probably does now know is that I know he is one of the equity directors, so of course he would have been willing to take a salary cut?
My question is this, I would be willing to take a cut to join them, if they would add some equity into my package, even if it was only a small amount to begin with, possibly increasing based on performance and results. Is this a ridiculous suggestion? Would I be willing to take a drop in salary on its own - no.
Bit of background; I am a project manager for a top 5 construction main contractor. I am young for the position I am in and even through the recession I have never been short of job offers from elsewhere, none of which have really tickled my interest until now.
At some point over the next few years my intention is to either go it alone, or possibly look for an equity stake in an existing company - obviously this would need to be in a smaller company looking to grow.
In my area a lot of small to medium construction companies have folded lately, and as a consequence there is a big gap in the market for the right small company to grow into a significantly larger company to fill the void. I have recently been approached by a company in exactly this position asking me to make the jump. Because I come from a large company background where a lot more systems and processes are in place that the smaller company does not have, I know I would offer them a lot. I also have my own client base to take with me, if the offer is right.
I had an initial meeting with the smaller company last Friday which went very well - they are a young, dynamic company who have a clear vision of where they want to go, and because of my background I know I could offer them a lot.
My current salary is £46k and when he asked what salary I would want to go, I said £53k which is the industry average for that position, so to my mind, not unreasonable. However, I've received a call off the same guy this morning asking if I would go for a second meeting with the owners next week, and would I be willing to take a drop in salary to go to prove my commitment. The short answer to this is no, to which he said "when I joined I took a drop in salary." What he probably does now know is that I know he is one of the equity directors, so of course he would have been willing to take a salary cut?
My question is this, I would be willing to take a cut to join them, if they would add some equity into my package, even if it was only a small amount to begin with, possibly increasing based on performance and results. Is this a ridiculous suggestion? Would I be willing to take a drop in salary on its own - no.
vescaegg said:
How small are they? A lot of even medium sized companies are worth f
k all on paper.
Some headline figures for year end April 14;k all on paper. T/O - £19.2 million (up 4%)
Gross Profit - £958k (up 50%)
Cash in bank - £2.4 million
Total assets - £7 million
Total liabilities - £5 million
They've been trading for over 100 years so not a flash in the pan company by any means.
jfbrin said:
Without equity, signing up to a pay cut does not make sense. You should be looking for a significant pay rise with any move especially if you are bring a client base with you.
Totally agree - and unless equity is part of the deal I won't be going for a pay cut.jfbrin said:
If you intend to work your butt off and are confident in delivering - if you have faith in the management and your new bosses and feel you have some control in your future then equity allows you a great opportunity to benefit from the potential upside. Also, you don't spend it until you receive it so it's a great way to save.
Don't underestimate your potential value to a smaller competitor. If they really want you, they will pay.
Good luck.
Appreciate your input and positivity - thanks.Don't underestimate your potential value to a smaller competitor. If they really want you, they will pay.
Good luck.
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