Funding winter takes the bloom off the ESOP rose

For one graduate of a top-tier management institute, the funding boom of 2021 was the perfect time to switch jobs. The record $35.2 billion in funding that flowed into Indian startups that year had sparked a hiring frenzy, with companies getting equal parts creative and generous in their quest to snap up the best available talent.

The management graduate, who worked for Aditya Birla Fashion, received an offer from a leading social commerce company. The total compensation package was a whopping 150% higher than her salary at the time. There was just one catch—a significant portion of her compensation would be in the form of an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).

She accepted readily. ESOPs, which allow employees to own shares in the companies they work for, were all the rage among startups since it allowed them to attract talent while saving on salaries. Employees, on the other hand, got to share in the wealth created by companies’ fast-rising valuations. “We were growing over 60% quarter-on-quarter in the year ended March 2021 and investors were lining up to invest,” recounts the social commerce executive.