Member-only story
“I want missionaries, not mercenaries,” The CEO of a startup I am working with, “Jeff,” said to me the other day. He was frustrated because his VP Sales just asked to increase his base salary to $230K/year.
The VP Sales was doing a great job since joining the company a year ago, but this salary request was a bridge too far. It would wreck the company’s salary structure if he gave in.
“I feel like all I’m doing is kicking the can down the road (if I give in),” Jeff said to me. “There will just be another outrageous request 12 months from now.”
You want missionaries not mercenaries when you’re building your executive staff.
Yes, you absolutely have the option of offering cash, lots and lots of cash, to hire an experienced executive team. And cash might work if you’re just trying to quickly turn around a company and sell it in a couple of years. This type of company sounds a lot more like a private equity funded company than a venture capital funded company.
The problem with cash as the only incentive is you’re going to have overpay versus the market to get someone good to join your company. Almost by definition, the person you hired is a mercenary.
