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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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Tech Employees Want to Cash in Early

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(Newser) – Facebook’s recent deal to let employees sell some of their stock to private investors has sent Silicon Valley scrambling, as workers at other start-ups ask for similar deals, the Wall Street Journal reports. Start-ups rely on the promise of future stock sales to lure and retain talent, but with the market upheaval scaring most companies away from public offerings, employees are getting restless.

Facebook itself found that demand to sell outstripped the $100 million that Digital Sky Technologies had earmarked for buying employee shares—and the clamor for similar deals is leading other companies to try to accommodate, hoping it’ll keep talent happy while giving them more control over employee transactions with third parties. But some fear that offering such deals sends the message that the company’s value is falling. “I’m not convinced that liquidity equals retention,” said one venture capitalist.

Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg speaks to press and advertising partners at a Facebook announcement in New York, Monday, November 6, 2007.
Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg speaks to press and advertising partners at a Facebook announcement in New York, Monday, November 6, 2007.   (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)
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Start-up employees are seeing the Facebook process unfold and are asking their management about when they're going to get the
same thing. - Hans Swildens, a principal at Industry Ventures in San Francisco

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BlueAyez
Aug 21, 09 3:59 PM CDT
There goes the neighborhood. I can empathize with the employees not wanting to be left holding the bag, but wait til you see how it turns the internet into another paragon of greed. I hope you all have fat wallets if you use the www a lot. Reply
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cochiserocks
Aug 22, 09 9:42 AM CDT
I think it's not a bad thing that the line between workers and owners has been blurred a little. I think it adds greater commitment and involvement in products and companies that think more long term - and that means not screwing the market for a quick buck because your bonus needs a boost - Maybe bankers would have been a little more careful if it was their money they'd been risking. Either way - what's the point of a promise which is never kept - if I've been offered shares with no way to sell them, and given the fickle nature of the industry, I think they're being pretty straight up in letting this happen . Reply
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