Director at PayPal vs VP at unknown startup
9YOE Non-eng, non-product TC @ Square: $1M+ (Joined at IPO), L7/Director level Sick of my boss and no other team has an immediate need for my skills as it’s fairly niche. I’m leaving to take time off regardless. Two offers: 1) Director at PayPal, priority area for the company, high visibility. Annual TC: ————— $225K Base 25% Bonus $150K RSU annually $100K Signing Bonus I heard they do 50% RSU refreshers annually. High potential for future growth given importance of role. Very aligned and great rapport with VP. 2) VP at unknown startup. I’m confident it will either IPO or get acquired within 2yrs given the recent C level hires they’ve done, but it’s a very old business that recently got its shit together, somewhat. Reporting to the CEO. Annual TC: ————— $225K Base 25% Bonus ??? Options $25K Signing Bonus Vague promises of generous options grants annually. Reasonable outcomes would mean Annual TC of 650-750K, highest projected outcome is TC of 1.5-2M if all the stars align and my acceleration triggers kick in. There is a downside scenario where the company continues to stay private after 2yrs, in which case my annual TC stays around 285 (base and bonus) I know a bunch of people at PayPal, and it’s comfortable work IMO. The VP role is a step up in title but they need a lot of work in everything including culture. The people are definitely not top tier, and I’m not super passionate about the field they’re in, but the mandate of the role is very interesting. What would you do?
Follow your passion
They’re both interesting in their own regard. I think the core business of PayPal is more interesting but the roles themselves are equally cool.