Founder has all the control - Employee has none. So employee takes more risk.
Founder has all the information. Employee wouldn't even know, if the stock was diluted twice. Or if the company is going to seize to exist next day. Employee is in the fog - so employee has more risk.
Employee risks with her reputation. A nut case founder can consider employee a traitor for leaving the company and give bad references to future employers.
Employee has responsibility and obligations as well.
Don't get me wrong. A cutting edge startup can be amazing. But it is a lot of risk for everyone involved.
It reminds me of a story. Back about thirty years ago I bought a used surface mount assembly line from this guy who dealt exclusively in used manufacturing equipment. He was much older than me, a father figure, if you will. He was interested in what I was doing in my little startup. We got into a conversation while we setup the assembly line. I talked to him about some of the challenges I was facing. At one point he stopped, thought about it for a while and told me: A business is like a living breathing beast that has a mind of its own. If you think you can train, mold it or control it, you are likely to be wrong. The business tells you what you are going to do every day. The business pushes and pulls you around. The best you can hope for it so generally guide the zig-zag path in the direction you want to go and hold on. It's like sailing in a storm. You are not in control of the sailboat, the ocean is.
Fonder is in control? Ha. Very funny.
> Employee has none. So employee takes more risk.
I am not sure how to say this. Here it goes again: The employee can pick up and go any microsecond of any day. At least in the US. Nobody can force anyone to work under any conditions. That's control. That is having 100% control.
> A nut case founder can consider employee a traitor for leaving the company and give bad references to future employers.
I don't know where you are from. In the US that would be one of the worst mistakes a founder, company, executive or manager could make. Depending on circumstances the resulting lawsuit could yield millions of dollars for the ex employee. Nobody does that (unless they are suicidal).
How many employees would work for no salary but only equity? Disregard whether they have the material affordances to be able to do so.
Simply put, by necessity the founders have inherited more uncertainty with their life outcome than a salaried worker, regardless of the transience of the work agreement.
Founder has all the information. Employee wouldn't even know, if the stock was diluted twice. Or if the company is going to seize to exist next day. Employee is in the fog - so employee has more risk.
Employee risks with her reputation. A nut case founder can consider employee a traitor for leaving the company and give bad references to future employers.
Employee has responsibility and obligations as well.
Don't get me wrong. A cutting edge startup can be amazing. But it is a lot of risk for everyone involved.