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Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

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Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#301

Post by throwaway2016a »

am8 wrote: post #285
throwaway2016a wrote: post #281

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can't tell if you're being serious or trolling but using modulus in front-end is not all that uncommon. Especially when doing reporting or animation. For years the only way to do zebra striped tables was that way. Also, I never said... 1. We were taking about front-end. 2. We reject solely based on it. I just used it as an example of a type of question. In fact we've hired candidates who didn't know what modulo was…

I said Front end as an example could apply to most developer jobs really. Anyway, this guy you placed as a "lower mid", this is your judgement, how do you know it's correct? Did other people say the same? Perhaps he didn't have the skills you were looking for but was good at other things. Saying the other company didn't do their diligence is easy but is that really what happened? If you are hiring developers and plac…

First I didn't say "lower mid" ... I said "middle"... you are miss-categorizing what I said. It's a minor difference but the fact you changed the facts of the discussion in a direction that makes me look more extreme is very telling. Not only did you twist what I said but you even quoted it as if it is a citation.

Second one of my other posts talk about how we've had great luck bringing on and mentoring juniors and they have been successful. I have hired people who literally dropped out of school freshman year. Again, you're either not reading or not listening.

I think you may be projecting your pre-conceived image of who I am and I don't think I can convince you otherwise.

I also think the fact I have almost 1700 on my throw away account and you have -1 on your year old account is very telling. I shouldn't have even engaged. I'm done now.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#302

Post by dllthomas »

owyn wrote: post #300
TeeWEE wrote: post #170

What is the net income over a 150k salary in San Fransisco?

In California/SF the net take-home is about 8k/month on that salary. Average 1 bedroom rent is about $3000. Knock down another ~1000 per month for average things like a car, parking, phone, internet etc and your spendable take home is about half the actual paycheck. Congrats, you're really making $50k a year!

You mean, you're saving $50k/year, minus what you spend on fun. And yeah, congrats! That's quite a bit better than most people.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#303

Post by emodendroket »

humanrebar wrote: post #252
dbg31415 wrote: post #226

Man, every startup at SXSW was bitching about this. I think it's an easy fix... 1) Startups need to pay more than they want to. If you want a talented engineer, they aren't free. I see a lot of startups offering WAY low salaries and then getting frustrated they can't find devs... it's basic supply and demand. Budget accordingly and stop making business plans that involve finding devs for lower-than-market-rates. 2) H…

> ...realistically these days the only hard part about managing a distributed team is when they are in dramatically different time zones Well, there are cultural issues. You need to write things down more to work remotely effectively and lots of people don't like to read or write.

I think those are going to be less than insuperable if you want to hire people in, like, Montana.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#304

Post by emodendroket »

tutufan wrote: post #296
jessaustin wrote: post #229

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Very few people fly to Kansas. There isn't really a major airport in the state.

Technically true, though everyone on this board thinks Kansas City is in Kansas...

I mean, there is one.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#305

Post by emodendroket »

ghaff wrote: post #137
watertom wrote: post #66

The biggest thing hurting startups is the fact that big companies provide health care. Having Businesses provide health care, IMHO, is the biggest issues facing job growth in the U.S. Having been on the ground floor of 3 startups, the biggest issues wasn't salary it was health care, the only people that you can recruit are those young enough not to care, either because they are single or they don't have children. If…

Which is part of a reasonable benefits package. So you're arguing that, in addition to underpaying base comp, they also want to bypass a competitive benefits package--but that may not be obvious to young people who don't think they need insurance.

I mean it is just inherently more expensive to provide good benefits per-employee if your headcount is lower.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#306

Post by dbg31415 »

humanrebar wrote: post #252
dbg31415 wrote: post #226

Man, every startup at SXSW was bitching about this. I think it's an easy fix... 1) Startups need to pay more than they want to. If you want a talented engineer, they aren't free. I see a lot of startups offering WAY low salaries and then getting frustrated they can't find devs... it's basic supply and demand. Budget accordingly and stop making business plans that involve finding devs for lower-than-market-rates. 2) H…

> ...realistically these days the only hard part about managing a distributed team is when they are in dramatically different time zones Well, there are cultural issues. You need to write things down more to work remotely effectively and lots of people don't like to read or write.

Think about every issue in your current backlog. What's the real reason it's in there, and not in the done pile? I'd willing to bet the root issue is lack of documented scope leading to a lack of ability to estimate which leads to a lack of ability to prioritize... Writing and reading are important; I wouldn't let people get away with half-baking requirements even if I worked right alongside them... always be kind to your future self and document.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#308

Post by timdierks »

pbecotte wrote: post #291
alpha_squared wrote: post #260

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 1% chance of exit at 600M valuation after those 5 years Ah, I see, I wouldn't have taken that into account since I'm not sure it quite works out that way. It seems you've intertwined probability with opportunity cost, is that correct? EDIT: Thanks for the breakdown, by the way! I really appreciate the insight.

He did it correctly... Except he didn't account for the time value of money, which would have made the salary side even stronger.

This is the right math if he's stuck there for 5 years, but his opportunity cost is lower if he can exit the role earlier if the company isn't trending towards the exit he wants.

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#309

Post by wpietri »

humanrebar wrote: post #218
wpietri wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a reasonable tactical perspective. For the individual entrepreneur, it's valid. That doesn't mean that this article isn't a valid complaint from other perspectives. E.g., It's totally reasonable that CEOs and investors will grumble about this. I'm sure Bezos, Page, and Brin were grumbling at the costs back in the day. But I think the interesting perspective here is at the ecosystem level. If startups have to s…

> If startups have to spend a lot more, it changes what's possible. We'll have fewer startups. Paying higher salaries and spending more on development are related but distinct things. You might be able to get more done by having fewer, higher paid employees. Or maybe you need have more of a mix of different ability levels to keep costs down. > If startups have to spend a lot more, it changes what's possible. Sometime…

What makes you think I'm blaming anybody?

Re: Big Tech Company Salaries Are Hurting Startups

#310

Post by wpietri »

fpgaminer wrote: post #225
wpietri wrote: post #186

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a reasonable tactical perspective. For the individual entrepreneur, it's valid. That doesn't mean that this article isn't a valid complaint from other perspectives. E.g., It's totally reasonable that CEOs and investors will grumble about this. I'm sure Bezos, Page, and Brin were grumbling at the costs back in the day. But I think the interesting perspective here is at the ecosystem level. If startups have to s…

This is why I'm kinda getting on board Courtland Allen's belief in indie startups. They're a counter reaction to that unicorn obsession of the current startup world. And the developer and entrepreneurial ecosystem is now such that launching and running small, competent businesses with useful products/services is easier than ever. In other words, yes, the ecosystem is starving out traditional startups. But it seems li…

Definitely. A friend is bootstrapping a company that she just loves. It will never be a unicorn, but it doesn't have to be. They already have a bunch of wildly satisfied customers, good press, and excellent prospects for sustainable growth. This is probably the last year she'll have to consult on the side to pay the bills. And she's so happy with it.
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