Need help choosing between offers | CS Career Hub | Page 1

knotty bronze Jun 22, 2024, 2:40 AM

#

company a:

public company (so i can sell rsus)
160 base / 50k stock / 0 bonus (apparently some rsu refreshers though, didnt ask for more details)
the role is generic (just webapp, not super "technical"), and the work + tech stack doesn't seem interesting (php)
apparently better wlb

company b:

private company (so i cant sell rsus)
175 base / 60k stock / 14k bonus
the role is specialized (financial fraud), and the work + tech stack seems a lot more interesting

i keep thinking i should choose a because of:
a = 160 + 50 = 210k relevant comp
b = 175 + 0 + 14 = 189k relevant comp

but my heart is in b..

#

i guess im just looking for someone to confirm that me choosing b isn't stupid

cerulean stag Jun 22, 2024, 2:41 AM

#

B.

#

Would B be higher TC?

knotty bronze Jun 22, 2024, 2:42 AM

#

i also think im relatively young and i dont have kids so wlb doesnt matter too much for me

#

b is higher TC if i count the RSUs, but its a private company and i can't sell them until a liquidation event that might not happen for a long time, so to me the RSUs are just monopoly money

cerulean stag Jun 22, 2024, 2:44 AM

#

True.

#

B does have higher base and private has some benefits.

#

I think fraud is fun. Is it fintech?

knotty bronze Jun 22, 2024, 2:46 AM

#

working in fraud sounds really fun. it seems like it has a lot of interesting challenges. yeah they're both in fintech but the role for the first company is just building webapps -- i wont be working directly with any interesting financial problems

#

second is ill have direct impact on finding and prevent fraud/risk

#

ugh it’s hard to choose bc i love being able to sell rsu’s but i love working on interesting technical problems

cerulean stag Jun 22, 2024, 3:02 AM

#

Work both.

shy narwhal Jun 22, 2024, 8:01 AM

#

knotty bronze b is higher TC if i count the RSUs, but its a private company and i can't sell t...

not necessarily true. depending on the class of shares, nature of the contract, size of the company, and other factors, might not be too hard

#

to view it as monopoly money (i.e valueless) could be grossly undervaluing the stock

#

do your research and ask them info that you can't find like of what you're getting, how much equity does that represent of the company

warm river Jun 22, 2024, 3:15 PM

#

What I can tell (from the shared information) these two offers are absolutely not different.

Unless you're planning to max out your cost of living (which is an absolutely insane decision), the difference will not affect you. Stocks and bonuses are different types of golden handcuffs, because both require you to stay at the company for a period of time for them to be useful.

If you can live happily at [insert number < 120]k, the rest of it is going in some sort of future savings anyways.

If you have no dependents that can sway you for external reasons, then all you have to decide if you're a problem chaser or a life chaser. You don't have to be one your whole life, but if you like problems chase a problem. If you like life chase a life.

I have mostly chased problems. I don't know if it was a good idea or not, that's not really my place. I know that it was a decision that I made, and there are really good reasons for either.

#

You also can always counter offer. I don't have any advice on this matter because I typically don't, but everyone says it's a great thing to do.

knotty bronze Jun 22, 2024, 5:04 PM

#

i do think i have a good excuse to counter offer for company b -- "company a is public so i value the stock more, could you either exchange some rsu for base, or increase rsu more"

like you i imagine, i really want to choose b because i really enjoy working on technically interesting problems, for my sake and because it looks better on a cv

#

yeah good point, even if they never ipo, the comp is only a 20k difference. post-tax like a 10k difference. for my lifestyle where i save the majority of my paycheck, it seems negligible for interesting work

raw zinc Jun 22, 2024, 7:59 PM

#

@knotty bronze I know you want to keep the companies anonymous, but I feel like in today's industry if you are junior/mid level it's better to go with whichever the better brand name is.

I am working for a unicorn atm, and I will be switching to big n in the near future. Really regret joining that unicorn and wished I started with big-n in the first place.

Another thing about WLB even though worse WLB could mean you get to work and learn more that might not always be the case. What if you are stuck on operations and support work 75% of the time? That wouldn't help your career much.

knotty bronze Jun 22, 2024, 8:24 PM

#

they're both kinda equal in brand name. public company is more known for non-tech people but i think they're kinda equal popular fintech companies. i think i prob gave enough info where the companies are easy to guess

#

yeah good point.. company B's recruiter offered to set up a meeting with the TL of the team i'm joining where ill ask a bunch of questions to confirm i want to choose them, but my heart tells me to choose them anyways

#Need help choosing between offers