A bit off-topic to the post, but maybe very relevant to HN techbros seeing this article, and musing about becoming (lower caste) finance bros...
You know how there's a boots on the ground truth to what an early tech startup's Incentive Stock Options are actually worth nowadays, and how people should think about them (but that most startups won't admit)?
With that secret reality in mind, how should software engineer candidates considering working for a hedge fund or private equity job think about the compensation there? Maybe especially about "carry"?
A recruiter for a firm seeking a "Principal" level engineer, which would require moving to NYC, mentioned compensation of "$X salary, 50% bonus, and $Y carry". Where $X is a usual current non-FAANG Senior+ startup SWE salary, and Y is only a bit larger than X.
The recruiter opened by stating the single number $((X*1.5)+Y), as if it were the annual TC familiar to us from levels.fyi.
When I Google for "carry", it sounds like some speculative share of something unclear about some investments the firm owns or manages, and then this share might vest over 5-10 years, if I remain with the firm that long. The $Y dollar amount sounds like it's a fixed amount bonus or capped value of a share. Also unclear whether there's an additional $Y+ grant of carry each year.
If this were most tech startup ISOs, I would know that the ISOs were probably worth $0 or less, and in some ways rigged to be that way, even if the company has a successful exit from which people with real shares profit.
For this $((X*1.5)+Y) job, the $X salary alone will cover a lifestyle of renting a modest apartment in Brooklyn, plus decent savings building from whatever the rest of it is. I'm unclear whether the bonus and carry make it even competitive with Google L6, though.
What do I need to know about "carry" or other aspects of the compensation? What time horizons, conditions, and probabilities are involved?
You know how there's a boots on the ground truth to what an early tech startup's Incentive Stock Options are actually worth nowadays, and how people should think about them (but that most startups won't admit)?
With that secret reality in mind, how should software engineer candidates considering working for a hedge fund or private equity job think about the compensation there? Maybe especially about "carry"?
A recruiter for a firm seeking a "Principal" level engineer, which would require moving to NYC, mentioned compensation of "$X salary, 50% bonus, and $Y carry". Where $X is a usual current non-FAANG Senior+ startup SWE salary, and Y is only a bit larger than X.
The recruiter opened by stating the single number $((X*1.5)+Y), as if it were the annual TC familiar to us from levels.fyi.
When I Google for "carry", it sounds like some speculative share of something unclear about some investments the firm owns or manages, and then this share might vest over 5-10 years, if I remain with the firm that long. The $Y dollar amount sounds like it's a fixed amount bonus or capped value of a share. Also unclear whether there's an additional $Y+ grant of carry each year.
If this were most tech startup ISOs, I would know that the ISOs were probably worth $0 or less, and in some ways rigged to be that way, even if the company has a successful exit from which people with real shares profit.
For this $((X*1.5)+Y) job, the $X salary alone will cover a lifestyle of renting a modest apartment in Brooklyn, plus decent savings building from whatever the rest of it is. I'm unclear whether the bonus and carry make it even competitive with Google L6, though.
What do I need to know about "carry" or other aspects of the compensation? What time horizons, conditions, and probabilities are involved?