The Founding Engineer Myth: Why Equity and Titles Backfire
Most founding engineers are just early employees with better titles. Here is what actually matters.
Equity and titles sound great in theory. But they rarely work for hiring your first engineers. Here is what actually matters.
Who This Is For
This provocative article challenges the conventional wisdom about founding engineer hires. It helps founders understand the difference between titles and actual responsibilities. Key arguments: Why most founding engineer hires are actually just early employees, what makes a true founding engineer, and why the distinction matters for your cap table.
The Uncomfortable Truth
Most founding engineers are just early employees with better titles. A true founding engineer is someone who could start the company themselves if you did not. They make technical decisions at the company level, not just the product level. They can hire and lead other engineers. They think about the business, not just the code. If your founding engineer cannot do these things, you hired a senior developer. That is fine, but price them accordingly.
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