Long story short, half the company is being acquired. I was part of the sale/due diligence process and it looks like it may go ahead. I was just told, that me and two others from “leadership” would be required to go (at least the acquiring company is insisting we’re part of the package). Benefit is bump in pay and stock (but remain with company for x years and a quarter of it is provided each year). Thoughts? WWYD?
I've seen acquisitions where the acquiring company does RIFs on the incoming acquisition's workforce. So apart from the salary + stock it would be a slight risk to stay. That being said, in a broader stroke of things it'd be safer to go with a company IMO that is looking for growth + acquisitions now versus companies that did so in 2020/2021 and grew too quickly and are selling off their company or doing RIFs. Stock vesting on that schedule is pretty standard, although typically its quarterly per year, first year being a cliff, and then vesting monthly afterwards. TL;DR: There is not nearly enough information to really have anyone here to really supply any valid opinions on whether or not to take the offer.
Nobody here can legitimately answer your question since we know even less about what the heck is going on or who you work for, but... good luck.
How educated are you on the new company their leadership and your own market value? Read about the new company, ask to interview the new leadership and do a market analysis of your title. If it's a net positive, stay. If it's not, leave. Jobs at this stage of your career are a two-way process. You aren't a kid flipping burgers and you aren't chattel.
Sometimes staying with the company you have worked for and are happy with is more important than a pay raise.
The vesting schedule is pretty standard. I'd be interested if they have a severance policy, where the stock vests 100% if you get let go do to a layoff. Do you have the option to stay at the previous company, or is your product line moving so it's either A) Go to new Company, or B) get laid off? I've been in two "mergers" (really acquisitions) over the last 4 years or so. In both I stayed with the newco and didn't really like it. Main thing was that the new folks just didn't have the same culture. Like, I went to oldco to work with specific people and a specific way of operating, and that changed in the merger. Newco weren't necessarily bad companies or anything, just different. Only way to really figure that out though is to work there. So really, if you have option of staying you have to weigh out the potential new culture shifts VS new dollars your getting.
If you remain at the old company even though the old company's sale would have really benefited from your inclusion in the sale, will the old company still be a pleasant place to work or will the remaining leadership resent you for not playing ball? Also, while there might be culture shock issues with going to a new company, there may be culture shock issues with remaining in the old company with half the business sold off. It won't just stay the same.
If he'd be getting additional compensation that vests over 4 years, that doesn't sound like the case. Doesn't take 4 years to train a replacement. Anyway, he might need to go back out into the job market after training his replacement, but that is always true in our economy. If he's valuable enough that he's actually named in an acquisition deal, I think he's going to be alright on the job market. I've been on the acquiring side of many transactions and a lot of people do fall out after an acquisition, but I've also seen more than a few execs that came from acquired companies that became important fixtures for us. After all, we were acquiring capabilities with these deals, and its the acquired leadership that hold a lot of that know-how we wanted.
Is there a bonus for being acquired, and as you're a part of leadership, can you ask for a larger stake? Don't know the context, like if the acquired division is the company's way to get expertise or if they just want the IP and gradually replace the people. Obv, if it's the former, you have more freedom and bargaining power because you have intangibles they wanted to acquire in the first place.
Exactly if you don't like it after transition you can leave - and you lose the extra stock.....sounds like you are in a great spot. DD
Yep, I’m getting more details today around the vesting and stock but once you do it over a four year period it’s about a 65% increase. I believe there would always be an option to go back to the old co at some stage, if needed. Wont be training a replacement, they have no footprint in this particular state and they want me to be the P&L owner and grow/other smaller businesses (in the industry) to grow their footprint in this state. Only concern is culture and values but work at the end of the day is work and as long as the hours are reasonable, may be a decent option.
Like others have said, do your research on the new company. Ask for more $ and equity up front since they seem keen on having you. Doesn’t hurt to ask. Sounds like you’ve already spoken to them about the role, but it would also be nice to have a talk about long term growth and career trajectory with the new company. It’s always good to have both sides understand expectations from one another
