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Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

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Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#91

Post by ta-20161001 »

jeffwass wrote: post #61
ta-20161001 wrote: post #59

Mid-30's. Male. Married. A few kids. SF bay area. > 10 yrs at top tier post-IPO SV company. Backend infra development (C++). One of the top 10-15% engineers in the company. > 400K total comp this year - Going forward, it seems stocks will dominate the total compensation but its okay given the current state of my company. Taxes: effective 35-40% (federal + state + payroll).

When reading these compensation threads, I've been curious about this for awhile. In your valuation, are you counting the stock's price at the time of issuance or time of vesting and delivery? If quoting as of time of delivery, I think it's a bit confusing as it mixes in the capital appreciation or loss of the stock with the employers actual intended total compensation for the year of the award. For example, let's sa…

The stock value is at the time of vesting. So if I am awarded 40 stocks in 2014 with a grant price of 100$ and vesting over 4 years, 10 of them will vest in 2016. If 2016 (average) vesting price is 200, I am quoting 2000$ as my stock compensation. Basically, whatever will be reflected on my W2 under Adjusted Gross Income.

But I agree, someone's stock compensation is tricky to evaluate - some quote it at the grant time, some quote at vesting time but at grant value, some quote otherwise.

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#92

Post by totalZero »

jimmywanger wrote: post #60
totalZero wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where in South America do you spend most of your time?

Why do you ask?

I'm looking for new places to go. My experience with South America has been that some of the best places are the ones that don't readily appear as tourist destinations for North Americans like myself.

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#93

Post by dylanz »

I'm 37 and work part time from home. I used to work a lot of hours in a CTO and CEO role, making more money, but opted for a smaller salary and having more free time in my life. I'm very happy right now. edit: I should note, I have 2 kids and treat myself to a lot of luxury, so I barely scrape by month to month. I'm fine with that. Carpe Diem.

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#94

Post by HugoDaniel »

HugoDaniel wrote: post #6

Male, 33, 8 years of experience, 24k EUR in my last job. (Currently trying to bootstrap a personal proj.) Lisbon, Portugal.

Before tax, that was exactly 1700EUR per month * 14 (here we get paid 2 extra months). After tax it was about 1300EUR per month.

It was my highest paying job to date here, at a startup of 4 people.

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#96

Post by throawaybay »

125k base + some stock... 8 years experience, age 36. Bay area. Full stack, mostly java.

Talking with friends it seems like salaries have exploded the past 1-2 years. I know of two at ~160k and recruiters are indicating 160-180k base right now.

So it seems like I'm leaving a lot on the table....

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#97

Post by bbcbasic »

yulaow wrote: post #88
blub wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes on the other hand I have the impression that it's very easy to fire someone at will in the US and healthcare is very expensive and is tied to the company. Overall I have the feeling that workers have fewer rights in the US. This is usually working fine for something that's in demand, but can quickly become terrible.

Also hours of works per week and vacations days are very different. In EU I start with 5-6 weeks of vacations per year even in the most basic position, and sick days and national holidays are not in that count. Typically I work 38-40h/w, rarely more than 45 (and just few days per months). When one of my friend asked me to move to SV in the startup he is working in I would get almost 3x pay, but far less vacation and…

What if you did one year on two years off?

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#98

Post by throwaway_java »

throawaybay wrote: post #96

125k base + some stock... 8 years experience, age 36. Bay area. Full stack, mostly java. Talking with friends it seems like salaries have exploded the past 1-2 years. I know of two at ~160k and recruiters are indicating 160-180k base right now. So it seems like I'm leaving a lot on the table....

good time to job hop

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#99

Post by ohgh1ieD »

HugoDaniel wrote: post #95
ohgh1ieD wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Before tax ?

Yes, sorry i pressed the wrong reply button. See above :)

Ok got it, well I do think that you should ask for a raise, at least 100 euros, that's very little for 8 years of development.

Re: Ask HN: 30+ men and women in software, how much do you make?

#100

Post by sydthrow »

jackgolding wrote: post #86
sydthrow wrote: post #66

Male, 43, Sydney, 17 Years experience. No degree. Self taught. 2008 - $125k + 20% bonus - Full-time employee 2009 - $80k - Started my own web development company 2010 - $110k - Built a product 2011 - $132k - Daughter born 2012 - $145k - 2013 - $150k - 2014 - $150k - Son born 2015 - $250k - Hired 1st employee 2016 - $480k - Hired 2nd and 3rd employees

As an Aussie do you have any advice on making the inhouse to running your own thing shift? I'm still very young but am earning a very nice wage, I'm afraid my as income gets higher (and responsibilities start flowering) it will be harder to make the jump.

In my experience to successfully start and run a consulting/web dev company, you need to communicate to decision making business people better than the majority of others in IT, and have a reputation for getting shit done. Your reputation doesn't have to be wide and huge, it's probably more important initially for it to be with the right people. I've found most (if not all) of my work has come via referrals from people high enough to make or influence decisions leaving their old job, and recommending me at the new one when a problem comes up that I helped them solve before.

It also helps if you're a nice person, because people don't choose to work with people they don't like. Being nice, having good communication skills, and getting shit done will lift you head and shoulders above other IT companies and IT employees.

Some tips:

- Good communication takes empathy

- Listen more than you talk

- Stop talking when people are tuning out. This comes naturally to some people, but it's hard to know if you do it or not. Ask a friend, family or trusted co-worker and practice when in conversation.

- Don't use IT acronyms with business people, unless it's unavoidable or you're joking around

- Learn about the businesses you serve so you can intelligently talk to them

- Know enough about the technology you offer to explain it simply, without condescension

- Be good humoured and a little bit fun, but you have to know when to stop or who you can play around with

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