How does a startup 'close'?
How does a startup 'close'?
Hypothetically speaking, a startup gets some rounds of investment from VCs, operates for a few years, and run out of runway. What do these final months look like? Do the investors try to get their money back?
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Talking about tech startups:
Depends on the startup. If they have a good team, they might get acqui-hired. If they have any patents or other IP, they might get acquired (for not much). Investors get the bulk of these types of exits, and the founders and employees get screwed.
If the startup doesn't even have that, they may just wrap up the operation and go out of business.
Interesting, the place I work at still has runway (apparently), but we're not close to being profitable, have no clearly defined market fit, and we're rapidly bleeding long term hires that are getting fed up and quitting. I'm sensing from the unusual silence from the founder that discussions of some sort are happening higher up that we're not privy to. I'm trying to figure out what the signals match up to.
we're rapidly bleeding long term hires that are getting fed up and quitting
unusual silence from the founder
You should freshen up that resume and LinkedIn profile
I agree. As well as getting out a few applications now- there’s always a chance when things go to hell, the stink comes off on you.
If the long term hires are leaving that’s a good sign it’s time to look elsewhere
Can you elaborate on your stink comment? Do you mean just being someone who was laid off (which I personally don't have an issue with) or something else?
Having worked for a shitty company like Theranos or whatever is not great for your resume. You want people to read your resume before the company name is tainted by bad press.
if there was some reason for it to close that wasn't "we just ran out of money", etc, then people from that start up can get a bad reputation.
For example, Theranos. when Theranos went to hell, with their boss being indicted for fraud and shit... employees started having to explain what they did there, and that they weren't part of it, when applying to new places. compared to people who left before it happened... for them it was easier "Well, at the time, we believed in the product and we didn't know it was fake," somebody in branding might say. For others who stayed on until it shuttered completely... It might be difficult to explain why that is.
simply having a product that doesn't work out isn't difficult. But when that product is a total fraud, that's a different story. Or if there were rampant corruption, or some other sort of thing.
I'm not saying that's how it's going... just that, if it's going down hill, jumping ship now might make it easier to land a new position elsewhere. If the old hats are jumping ship... it's not a good sign. it means the company has burned through that loyalty. And depending on your field, waiting with everyone else might mean having to compete for with a dozen others for the same position. you don't necessarily need to make a decision now, but, if there are dream jobs, you might as well apply for them.
I feel bad for the people who've worked at companies like that. Obviously the "morally correct" option is to quit as soon as you find out what you've been "working on" is fake, but I imagine not everyone would have that choice, particularly the low level peeps. I feel like you'd probably end up having to write off the experience entirely and exclude it from your resume or fudge the dates or something to have much luck of getting hired elsewhere
IMO? The morally correct thing is to report them. But yeah. It definitely sucks.
Oh, it's sparkling, and I've backed up all my proof of awesomeness to show the next job. I'm finally in a place after 25 years of constant employment where I don't fear unemployment. We've been diligent about building a buffer, and I have solid generalist skills and experience in a very popular tech movement.
We went through an intern phase, and the remaining ones (that are now employees) don't have the same experience moving between jobs, so my focus is on prepping and guiding them.
FWIW, not being profitable isn't such a red flag. It's not uncommon for a startup to never get anywhere near profitable but still be fine. But in your case, it sounds like there are other signals too.
"Bleeding long term hires" are reading the tea leaves. Better to get a new job when you have one, finding a job when you need it is much harder.