For a late-stage startup how many hours/wk is reasonable to expect from employees each week (non-crunch-time). There’s a thread on Reddit’s Blind board where people at are saying that 50hrs/wk is excessive, and are calling people who expect that workaholics. IMO it’s a professional job and if the company is serious about winning then everyone should be working hard (and 50hrs/wk isn’t even that hard). Who is right?
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Anything more than 40, for a late-stage not in crunch time, is inhumane, and leads to burnout and high turnover.
$80-$120/hr is reasonable
Some people can just get more done in less time. Some like to work long hours as a competitive advantage. If the base expectation is longer hours you might risk getting folks who aren’t as good but have no lives so they’ll work all the time. My point is, focusing on hours could be misleading.
Agreed, 50 should be the standard. It is a blessing to be able to work in Tech and should be treated as such. Now, family is also important so I would say diligence and intentionality are key. But 50 hr work week FTW.
Expect 40, if you want to keep them. Develop your culture to inspire them to work more and take ownership. Don't expect people to sacrafice for your business. Inspired people will sacrafice for you.
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Coming from a startup, I think 50 hours is fine to expect when you're not in crunch time. But don't expect a high % of people to stick around if things don't change after a couple years. Especially after things start to vest. A lot of people who want to work at startups want the challenge and they're looking for something worth spending extra time on. But people still need time to have a life. 50 hours isn't crazy, but it wears on people.