fp.

Fintech unicorn Kikoff's CEO sent this google doc to all employees this week saying that she doesn't want to IPO even though the business is doing well. Says that engineers need to "build more value" first. Not sure if her reasons make sense but would you work at a startup that actively didn't want to IPO?

dogecoinzzz•6mo ago

if there's no upside, why are you even there? might as well rest and vest at FAANG

Elendil214•6mo ago

Gone are the days when early IPOs were the best upside. The companies that make ridiculous returns for ESOP holders stay private longer and IPO in much stronger positions a few years later.

JohnFen•6mo ago

> would you work at a startup that actively didn't want to IPO?

I'd be much more likely to work at a startup that didn't want to IPO. I see how striving for and getting to an IPO affects how a company operates, and that's not at all my cup of tea.

Elendil214•6mo ago

You would much rather work at a company that is growing and able to stay private than a company trying to IPO as early as possible. Unstable growth or minor dips are typical, especially with volatility in the world right now, and going public makes you extremely, extremely exposed to minor performance variance. The last thing you want is leadership destroying long-term value in pursuit of quarterly targets but this is exactly what going public incentivizes.

It's a rare company that can train their public investor base to behave rationally and allow them to invest in future growth even at the expense of immediate quarterly performance.

Centrino•6mo ago

I read the whole doc, I think it's excellent advice.

mattydread•6mo ago

Nothing wrong with this, it's not "work 80 hour weeks or get fired" or even particularly annoying LinkedIn-style hustleporn. It's a very realistic assessment of what it takes to go public - and a call to focus on customers.