How to Hire a Superstar Engineer for Your Startup

Introduction

This post was originally part of my “Ask the Attorney” series which I am writing for VentureBeat (one of my favorite websites for entrepreneurs).  Below is a longer, more comprehensive version.  Please shoot me any questions you may have in the comments section – or feel free to call me directly at 310-288-6667 (Los Angeles) or 415-979-9998 (San Francisco).  Many thanks, Scott

Question

We launched a consumer internet site about a year ago, and we’re starting to get some really good traction.  We’ve spoken to a bunch of angel investors and they all told us that we need to get an engineer on our team (my partner and I are both business guys and we outsourced the development).  The problem is we’re in Silicon Valley, and we obviously don’t have the money to compete with the big tech companies for talent.  Can you please give us some advice on hiring a superstar engineer and the key legal issues that we should be addressing.  Thanks!

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Tags: 409A, Chris Dixon, Founder Stories, Meebo, offer letter, silicon valley, startup, stock option plan, vesting
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