Mahalo Startup: Does CEO Calacanis Power His Humans with Equity?
By DONNA BOGATIN • Mar 8th, 2008 • Category: BIG PICTUREJason Calacanis attempts to neutralize conference partner Michael Arrington’s TechCrunch’s page view boosting accusatory headline which characterizes the Mahalo CEO as “firing people who have a life,“ with his own rhetorical headline, “Can you have a life and work at a startup company?”
Unfortunately for the Web’s startups, however, while the Mahalo and TechCrunch rhetoric entertains, it neglects to concern itself–or their sites’ readers–with the heart of the startup staffing matter: INCENTIVIZING VIA EQUITY.
“Fire people who are not workaholics,” Calacanis advises “fellow” entrepreneurs, because “this is startup life,” not the post office. The Mahalo CEO backs up his rally for startup staffers to “work really hard” by citing his own CEO–and presumably largest equity holder–Mahalo work ethic:
Mahalo doesn’t feel like work to me. It’s so much fun to build a service, evolve it, and spread the word to people who might find it useful.
What’s more, Calacanis assures he is egalitarian, when it comes to working hard:
I have never asked anyone to work harder than I do, and I work seven days a week. I never stop thinking about whatever project I’m working on. Sure, I’ll go on vacation, but that’s when I get my inspiration and when I do a ton of thinking about solving problems.
In fact, (I) make folks lives BETTER by bringing in food, getting them great equipment, providing resources and buying the good coffee.
BUT, Calacanis doesn’t indicate how he makes his Mahalo staffers’ future lives REALLY better for the long term. Calacanis inspires/cajoles Mahalo staffers to work longer and harder for his own Mahalo equity account, but gives no indication that they are building up their own equity value within his startup as well.
At the (never) end of the startup staffers’ day, the core financial differentiator–and motivator–between a on-the-clock “post office” salary and a 24/7 entrepreneurial gig is the promise of a big equity payout, not a free lunch!
Calacanis’ Mahalo tag line is “the human powered search engine.” The Mahalo CEO has not shared, however, if he is sharing his prospective shareholder wealth with the very humans that power his current $20 million VC backed effort to garner more startup riches for himself.
MORE: DONNA BOGATIN LAUNCHES STARTUPALPHA.COM: SILICON ALLEY ENTREPRENEURSHIP CELEBRATED
DONNA BOGATIN is the Founder & CEO of STARTUP ALPHA
Contact This Author | All posts by DONNA BOGATIN
