Team Composition Analysis
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Design optimal team structures, hiring plans, compensation strategies, and equity allocation for early-stage startups from pre-seed through Series A. Use this skill when planning headcount, determining which roles to hire next, setting compensation or equity ranges, designing org structure, or building a hiring budget aligned to funding milestones.
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| name | team-composition-analysis |
|---|---|
| description | Design optimal team structures, hiring plans, compensation strategies, and equity allocation for early-stage startups from pre-seed through Series A. Use this skill when planning headcount, determining which roles to hire next, setting compensation or equity ranges, designing org structure, or building a hiring budget aligned to funding milestones. |
| version | 1.0.0 |
| 1 | --- |
| 2 | name: team-composition-analysis |
| 3 | description: Design optimal team structures, hiring plans, compensation strategies, and equity allocation for early-stage startups from pre-seed through Series A. Use this skill when planning headcount, determining which roles to hire next, setting compensation or equity ranges, designing org structure, or building a hiring budget aligned to funding milestones. |
| 4 | version: 1.0.0 |
| 5 | ---A5 — No allowed-tools declared — no way to tell what this skill may touch |
| 6 | |
| 7 | # Team Composition Analysis |
| 8 | |
| 9 | Design optimal team structures, hiring plans, compensation strategies, and equity allocation for early-stage startups from pre-seed through Series A. |
| 10 | |
| 11 | ## Overview |
| 12 | |
| 13 | Build the right team at the right time with appropriate compensation and equity. Plan role-by-role hiring aligned with revenue milestones, budget constraints, and market benchmarks. |
| 14 | |
| 15 | ## Team Structure by Stage |
| 16 | |
| 17 | ### Pre-Seed (0-$500K ARR) |
| 18 | |
| 19 | **Team Size: 2-5 people** |
| 20 | |
| 21 | **Core Roles:** |
| 22 | |
| 23 | - Founders (2-3): Product, engineering, business |
| 24 | - First engineer (if needed) |
| 25 | - Contract roles: Design, marketing |
| 26 | |
| 27 | **Focus:** Build and validate product-market fit |
| 28 | |
| 29 | ### Seed ($500K-$2M ARR) |
| 30 | |
| 31 | **Team Size: 5-15 people** |
| 32 | |
| 33 | **Key Hires:** |
| 34 | |
| 35 | - Engineering lead + 2-3 engineers |
| 36 | - First sales/business development |
| 37 | - Product manager |
| 38 | - Marketing/growth lead |
| 39 | |
| 40 | **Focus:** Scale product and prove repeatable sales |
| 41 | |
| 42 | ### Series A ($2M-$10M ARR) |
| 43 | |
| 44 | **Team Size: 15-50 people** |
| 45 | |
| 46 | **Department Build-Out:** |
| 47 | |
| 48 | - Engineering (40%): 6-20 people |
| 49 | - Sales & Marketing (30%): 5-15 people |
| 50 | - Customer Success (10%): 2-5 people |
| 51 | - G&A (10%): 2-5 people |
| 52 | - Product (10%): 2-5 people |
| 53 | |
| 54 | **Focus:** Scale revenue and build repeatable processes |
| 55 | |
| 56 | ## Detailed section: Role-by-Role Planning |
| 57 | |
| 58 | Originally a 1720-byte section in this SKILL.md. Moved to `references/details.md` to fit Codex's 8 KB skill body cap. |
| 59 | |
| 60 | ## Compensation Strategy |
| 61 | |
| 62 | ### Base Salary Benchmarks (US, 2024) |
| 63 | |
| 64 | **Engineering:** |
| 65 | |
| 66 | - Junior: $90K-$120K |
| 67 | - Mid-Level: $120K-$150K |
| 68 | - Senior: $150K-$180K |
| 69 | - Staff/Principal: $180K-$220K |
| 70 | - Engineering Manager: $160K-$200K |
| 71 | - VP Engineering: $180K-$250K |
| 72 | |
| 73 | **Sales:** |
| 74 | |
| 75 | - SDR/BDR: $50K-$70K base + $50K-$70K commission |
| 76 | - Account Executive: $80K-$120K base + $80K-$120K commission |
| 77 | - Sales Manager: $120K-$160K base + $80K-$120K commission |
| 78 | - VP Sales: $150K-$200K base + $150K-$200K commission |
| 79 | |
| 80 | **Product:** |
| 81 | |
| 82 | - Product Manager: $120K-$150K |
| 83 | - Senior PM: $150K-$180K |
| 84 | - Head of Product: $150K-$180K |
| 85 | - VP Product: $180K-$220K |
| 86 | |
| 87 | **Marketing:** |
| 88 | |
| 89 | - Marketing Manager: $90K-$130K |
| 90 | - Content/Demand Gen: $70K-$100K |
| 91 | - Head of Marketing: $130K-$170K |
| 92 | - VP Marketing: $150K-$200K |
| 93 | |
| 94 | **Customer Success:** |
| 95 | |
| 96 | - CS Representative: $60K-$90K |
| 97 | - CS Manager: $100K-$130K |
| 98 | - VP Customer Success: $140K-$180K |
| 99 | |
| 100 | ### Total Compensation Formula |
| 101 | |
| 102 | ``` |
| 103 | Total Comp = Base Salary × 1.30 (benefits & taxes) + Equity Value |
| 104 | ``` |
| 105 | |
| 106 | **Fully-Loaded Cost:** |
| 107 | |
| 108 | - Base salary |
| 109 | - Payroll taxes (7.65% FICA) |
| 110 | - Benefits (health insurance, 401k): $10K-$15K per employee |
| 111 | - Other (workspace, equipment, software): $5K-$10K per employee |
| 112 | |
| 113 | **Rule of Thumb:** Multiply base salary by 1.3-1.4 for fully-loaded cost |
| 114 | |
| 115 | ### Geographic Adjustments |
| 116 | |
| 117 | **San Francisco / New York:** +20-30% above benchmarks |
| 118 | **Seattle / Boston / Los Angeles:** +10-20% |
| 119 | **Austin / Denver / Chicago:** +0-10% |
| 120 | **Remote / Other US Cities:** -10-20% |
| 121 | **International:** Varies widely by country |
| 122 | |
| 123 | ## Equity Allocation |
| 124 | |
| 125 | ### Equity by Role and Stage |
| 126 | |
| 127 | **Founders:** |
| 128 | |
| 129 | - First founder: 40-60% |
| 130 | - Second founder: 20-40% |
| 131 | - Third founder: 10-20% |
| 132 | - Vesting: 4 years with 1-year cliff |
| 133 | |
| 134 | **Early Employees (Pre-Seed):** |
| 135 | |
| 136 | - First engineer: 0.5-2.0% |
| 137 | - First 5 employees: 0.25-1.0% each |
| 138 | |
| 139 | **Seed Stage Hires:** |
| 140 | |
| 141 | - VP/Head level: 0.5-1.5% |
| 142 | - Senior IC: 0.1-0.5% |
| 143 | - Mid-level: 0.05-0.25% |
| 144 | - Junior: 0.01-0.1% |
| 145 | |
| 146 | **Series A Hires:** |
| 147 | |
| 148 | - C-level (CTO, CFO): 1.0-3.0% |
| 149 | - VP level: 0.3-1.0% |
| 150 | - Director level: 0.1-0.5% |
| 151 | - Senior IC: 0.05-0.2% |
| 152 | - Mid-level: 0.01-0.1% |
| 153 | - Junior: 0.005-0.05% |
| 154 | |
| 155 | ### Equity Pool Sizing |
| 156 | |
| 157 | **Option Pool by Round:** |
| 158 | |
| 159 | - Pre-Seed: 10-15% reserved |
| 160 | - Seed: 10-15% top-up |
| 161 | - Series A: 10-15% top-up |
| 162 | - Series B+: 5-10% per round |
| 163 | |
| 164 | **Pre-Funding Dilution:** |
| 165 | Investors often require option pool creation before investment, diluting founders. |
| 166 | |
| 167 | **Example:** |
| 168 | |
| 169 | ``` |
| 170 | Pre-money: $10M |
| 171 | Investors want 15% option pool post-money |
| 172 | |
| 173 | Calculation: |
| 174 | Post-money: $15M ($10M + $5M investment) |
| 175 | Option pool: $2.25M (15% × $15M) |
| 176 | Founders diluted by pool creation before new money |
| 177 | ``` |
| 178 | |
| 179 | ## Organizational Design |
| 180 | |
| 181 | ### Reporting Structure |
| 182 | |
| 183 | **Pre-Seed:** |
| 184 | |
| 185 | ``` |
| 186 | Founders (flat structure) |
| 187 | ├── Contractors |
| 188 | └── First hires (report to founders) |
| 189 | ``` |
| 190 | |
| 191 | **Seed:** |
| 192 | |
| 193 | ``` |
| 194 | CEO |
| 195 | ├── Engineering Lead (2-4 engineers) |
| 196 | ├── Sales/Growth Lead (1-2 reps) |
| 197 | ├── Product Manager |
| 198 | └── Operations |
| 199 | ``` |
| 200 | |
| 201 | **Series A:** |
| 202 | |
| 203 | ``` |
| 204 | CEO |
| 205 | ├── CTO / VP Engineering (6-20 people) |
| 206 | │ ├── Engineering Manager(s) |
| 207 | │ └── Individual Contributors |
| 208 | ├── VP Sales (5-15 people) |
| 209 | │ ├── Sales Manager |
| 210 | │ ├── Account Executives |
| 211 | │ └── SDRs |
| 212 | ├── Head of Product (2-5 people) |
| 213 | │ ├── Product Managers |
| 214 | │ └── Designers |
| 215 | ├── Head of Customer Success (2-5 people) |
| 216 | └── CFO / Finance Lead (2-5 people) |
| 217 | ├── Recruiter |
| 218 | └── Operations |
| 219 | ``` |
| 220 | |
| 221 | ### Span of Control |
| 222 | |
| 223 | **Manager Ratios:** |
| 224 | |
| 225 | - First-line managers: 4-8 direct reports |
| 226 | - Directors: 3-5 direct reports (managers) |
| 227 | - VPs: 3-5 direct reports (directors) |
| 228 | - CEO: 5-8 direct reports (executive team) |
| 229 | |
| 230 | ## Full-Time vs. Contract |
| 231 | |
| 232 | ### Use Full-Time for: |
| 233 | |
| 234 | - Core product development |
| 235 | - Sales (revenue-generating roles) |
| 236 | - Mission-critical operations |
| 237 | - Institutional knowledge roles |
| 238 | |
| 239 | ### Use Contractors for: |
| 240 | |
| 241 | - Specialized short-term needs (legal, accounting) |
| 242 | - Variable workload (design, marketing campaigns) |
| 243 | - Skills outside core competency |
| 244 | - Testing role before FTE hire |
| 245 | - Geographic expansion before permanent presence |
| 246 | |
| 247 | ### Cost Comparison |
| 248 | |
| 249 | **Full-Time:** |
| 250 | |
| 251 | - Lower hourly cost |
| 252 | - Benefits and overhead |
| 253 | - Long-term commitment |
| 254 | - Cultural fit matters |
| 255 | |
| 256 | **Contract:** |
| 257 | |
| 258 | - Higher hourly rate ($75-$200/hour vs. $40-$100/hour FTE equivalent) |
| 259 | - No benefits or overhead |
| 260 | - Flexible engagement |
| 261 | - Easier to scale up/down |
| 262 | |
| 263 | ## Hiring Velocity |
| 264 | |
| 265 | ### Realistic Timeline |
| 266 | |
| 267 | **Role Opening to Hire:** |
| 268 | |
| 269 | - Junior: 6-8 weeks |
| 270 | - Mid-Level: 8-12 weeks |
| 271 | - Senior: 12-16 weeks |
| 272 | - Executive: 16-24 weeks |
| 273 | |
| 274 | **Time to Productivity:** |
| 275 | |
| 276 | - Junior: 4-6 months |
| 277 | - Mid-Level: 2-4 months |
| 278 | - Senior: 1-3 months |
| 279 | - Executive: 3-6 months |
| 280 | |
| 281 | ### Planning Buffer |
| 282 | |
| 283 | Always add 2-3 months buffer to hiring plans. |
| 284 | |
| 285 | **Example:** |
| 286 | If need engineer by July 1: |
| 287 | |
| 288 | - Start recruiting: April 1 (12 weeks) |
| 289 | - Productivity: September 1 (2 months ramp) |
| 290 | |
| 291 | ## Budget Planning |
| 292 | |
| 293 | ### Compensation as % of Revenue |
| 294 | |
| 295 | **Early Stage (Seed):** |
| 296 | |
| 297 | - Total comp: 120-150% of revenue (burning cash to grow) |
| 298 | - Engineering: 50-60% |
| 299 | - Sales: 30-40% |
| 300 | - Other: 20-30% |
| 301 | |
| 302 | **Growth Stage (Series A):** |
| 303 | |
| 304 | - Total comp: 70-100% of revenue |
| 305 | - Engineering: 35-45% |
| 306 | - Sales: 25-35% |
| 307 | - Other: 20-30% |
| 308 | |
| 309 | ### Headcount Budget Formula |
| 310 | |
| 311 | ``` |
| 312 | Total Comp Budget = Σ (Role Count × Fully-Loaded Cost × % of Year) |
| 313 | |
| 314 | Example: |
| 315 | 3 Engineers × $202K × 100% = $606K |
| 316 | 2 AEs × $230K × 75% (mid-year start) = $345K |
| 317 | 1 PM × $162K × 100% = $162K |
| 318 | Total: $1.1M |
| 319 | ``` |
| 320 | |
| 321 | |
| 322 | ## Quick Start |
| 323 | |
| 324 | To plan team composition: |
| 325 | |
| 326 | 1. **Identify stage** - Pre-seed, seed, or Series A |
| 327 | 2. **Define roles** - What functions are needed now |
| 328 | 3. **Prioritize hires** - Critical path for business goals |
| 329 | 4. **Set compensation** - Base salary + equity by level |
| 330 | 5. **Plan timeline** - Account for recruiting and ramp time |
| 331 | 6. **Calculate budget** - Fully-loaded cost × headcount |
| 332 | 7. **Design org chart** - Reporting structure and span of control |
| 333 | 8. **Allocate equity** - Fair allocation that preserves pool |
| 334 |
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