There is no one-size fits all formula for this. Its what I did in the past and it had consequences I didn't dream of when I issued the shares. Here's a story of that company which shows how you can be wrong about the payroll comes first attitude:
Around '98, my company was me plus 8 employees. I was pushing hard to turn our model from a "consulting with a product model" to a full on product and platform business. This required taking some risks with our client base to enable us to invest in product R&D to make it ready for general consumption. We ended up with one client that year. They were a big-mother of a client and gave us access to a product strategy and acquisition if we pulled the job off. I became pushy with my client as we weren't getting to where I wanted to be quick enough. I finally lost my cool one day and the client told me he was through, get lost. This was going to cost him easily 20x what he had already paid to cut ties as his core product depended on us. But he was pissed off and I was pissed off and he could afford the big loss.
That same day, I went into the office after the client meeting and sat everyone down and told them our bleak outlook: we had enough payroll for 3 more months. The next day, each employee came to me individually and offered to work for free. Each one had a different story as to how long they could go without pay; 2 told me to quit paying them immediately.
They all acted like founders and I think its because I treated them like it.
This model probably doesn't scale well. But its an experience I'll never forget.
i know this is just one anecdote, but i respect that people often get what they pay for. you sound like a compassionate, collaborative, we are all in it together person. i bet you build teams. you weed out the non-committers from the beginning, and other savvy practical stuff. that's cool.
your parent post could also be sound. it depends on the philosophies of those hiring.
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There is no one-size fits all formula for this. Its what I did in the past and it had consequences I didn't dream of when I issued the shares. Here's a story of that company which shows how you can be wrong about the payroll comes first attitude:
Around '98, my company was me plus 8 employees. I was pushing hard to turn our model from a "consulting with a product model" to a full on product and platform business. This required taking some risks with our client base to enable us to invest in product R&D to make it ready for general consumption. We ended up with one client that year. They were a big-mother of a client and gave us access to a product strategy and acquisition if we pulled the job off. I became pushy with my client as we weren't getting to where I wanted to be quick enough. I finally lost my cool one day and the client told me he was through, get lost. This was going to cost him easily 20x what he had already paid to cut ties as his core product depended on us. But he was pissed off and I was pissed off and he could afford the big loss.
That same day, I went into the office after the client meeting and sat everyone down and told them our bleak outlook: we had enough payroll for 3 more months. The next day, each employee came to me individually and offered to work for free. Each one had a different story as to how long they could go without pay; 2 told me to quit paying them immediately.
They all acted like founders and I think its because I treated them like it.
This model probably doesn't scale well. But its an experience I'll never forget.
i know this is just one anecdote, but i respect that people often get what they pay for. you sound like a compassionate, collaborative, we are all in it together person. i bet you build teams. you weed out the non-committers from the beginning, and other savvy practical stuff. that's cool.
your parent post could also be sound. it depends on the philosophies of those hiring.