The situation is that I've accepted the position and have been rolling with it now for about a half a week. Since I am due an annual salary review in June I've decided to hold off demanding a comp increase until then. The reason is that I've been granted the golden parachute of "if it folds, we'll bring you back within the parent organization." If I received a commensurate raise right now it would put my salary at such a level that I would be at risk of being too costly for the job I perform (if rolled back in). An example of that would be Drew Bledsoe of the Patriots (he makes way to much money to be a backup quarterback). If we are able to get the 2nd installment of venture capital it will be before mid June. With money in the organization and a track record of me helping get them there, I will be in a stronger negotiation position.

As to the stake in the company I have to say that I've read the business plan and it has merit. The concept itself is brilliant in its simplicity and addressing of an obvious need. While of course I can't go into details I can tell you that the services (yes I've got them to agree to that) to the client pay for themselves in an average of 4-6 months after which the clients start to realize increase in profit for the next 5-10 years. A no-brainer huh? Since the business plan has not yet been finalized I am in a position to have major influence on the part that defines how shares of the company is broken out. One can hope anyway. With both A shares and B shares on the table, it is my hope to jump into the A share category. If I can make my push for partner level type involvement I can elevate my standing as a whole. The game is afoot.

One of the first things I've done to alleviate my concerns regarding risk is to institute a "risk sharing" policy. By identifying the various functional areas of the company and assigning individuals as "owners" I'm farming out responsibility for success and failure to those resources best suited to complete tasks. By giving them easy to acheive goals that are measurable and obtainable within the allotted time, I am able to break this Herculean effort into bite size chunks that keep it from being overwhelming. Together, we are identifying the short-term and long-term needs that constitute the critical path to success. These critical paths (I'm not going to explain this term...look it up) are key to getting through all of the noise of nice to have versus need to get done. That complete, I can now plan our resource's focus in helping us meet our business goals.

As to my personal goals, if I'm able to mentally compartmentalize (thank you Bill Clinton) these needs such that I too can remain focused on just those tasks that demand immediate attention, then I can go home at a reasonable hour and spend time with my family enjoying life. I actually spent most of this weekend with my wife and son shopping or at the park. The rest of my time was mainly spent visiting with old friends in Richmond, wrestling on the floor with my son, and getting in a couple hours of Civilization III (side note: If you can win at Civ, you have what it takes to be a manager. Maybe not a good one but a manager none-the-less). I even went to a late night showing of Blade 2. This movie is not for the timid as the new type of vamps are a weird cross between Aliens and Predators (you'll see). Though I have to say that the WWF elements of the fight scenes were hilarious. Always good to see Wesley Snipes suplex (sp?) a henchman or to watch the major badguy jump off the "top ropes" to elbow smash our hero. Good for a chuckle at least.

BTW: I never use the term "synergy" but often find myself talking about "process improvement." Kind of the nature of the beast really. The word I hate but (damnit) have to use all the ime is "paradigm." I just can't stand using it. I'll do everything in my power to not use the word but it's just too fitting for many of situations I run into.

Anyway, for them what care, there it is.