startup survey v11 - amazon s3nor… · the price of startup talent one of the hardest things to do...

THE NORDIC STARTUP SALARY SURVEY 2018Covering Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden

Conducted by: Arkwright X and Danske Bank With support from: Startuplab

Arkwright X is a business incubator investing in promising tech startups. We combine our knowledge and competencies from management consulting with the know-how and expertise from seasoned entrepreneurs and founders from the Nordic startup scene.

Visit our website to learn more:

Arkwrightx.com

Danske Bank supports entrepreneurs in the Nordics with a dedicated Growth & Impact team. Together with regional players in the startup ecosystem we create strong solutions for ambitious startups and growth companies across the Nordics that want to scale their business and tackle global challenges.

WITH SUPPORT FROM

THE NORDIC STARTUP SALARY SURVEY 2018

CONDUCTED BY

Visit our platforms: Thenordichub.com // Plusimpact.io // Accelerator.plusimpact.io

ANDAgnes Theorell, Andrea Di Pietrantonio, Anna Munthe-Kaas, Anne Worsoe, Anniken Fjelberg, Arve Janbu Fresvik, Assel Limpin, Benedicte Eie, Catharina Halleen, Cecilie Kjeldsberg, Christian Bjerke, Christian Boysen Dinesen, Christian Thomas Clayhills, Daniel Caetanya Fossum, Eleonora Kurilchik, Erik Byrenius, Espen Malmo, Gro Dyrnes, Halvor Aurmo, Heidi Aven, Heidi Thaulow, Helene Heien, Henna Keränen, Henrik Grim, Hilde Indresøvde, Hilde Støle Pettersen, Ida Marie Christensen, Ida Boesen, Jessica Blechingberg, Joe Lesina, Jonatan Rasmussen, Josefin Albrektson, Kajsa Hedberg, Karolina Mazetyte, Katja Aalto, Katja Grothe-Eberhardt, Kent Due-Frederiksen, Klavs Hjort, Mads Løntoft, Maria Grabowska, Maria Jensen, Martin Krag Andersen, Matthew Smith, Mikael Dan Petersen, Mikkel Skott Olsen, Neil Murray, Nicolaj Højer Nielsen, Ninna Wicki Olsen-Stryhn, Oliver Sjöstedt, Onur Ay, Oskar Malm Wiklund, Pernille Spang Lyndegaard, Peter Jetzel, Petra Erätuli-Kola, Philipe Klintefelt Collet, Raoul Stubbe, Remi Dramstad, Sean Seton-Rogers, Shaena Harrison, Sigrun Syverud, Sondre Bergløff, Sondre Hauger, Sondre Vegheim, Sonia Kaurah, Stine Jersie Olsen, Teppo Antti Emil Havo, Thea Messel, Thomas Krogh Jensen, Thorbjørn Fink, Tor Daneshmand, Torunn Ølnes, Tuomas Kosonen, Una Silva Friis, Vegard Skaar Haveland, Zenia Francker 2

http://www.arkwrightx.com

http://www.thenordichub.com

http://www.plusimpact.io

https://accelerator.plusimpact.io

THE PRICE OF STARTUP TALENT

One of the hardest things to do in business, is finding the right price. Whether it is the price of a product, a service, a company or simply the price of a great team. For a startup, finding the right team, and making sure that they stay satisfied and motivated, is crucial for successfully scaling the business. Offering the right salary is an important part of this equation, but, unfortunately, there is limited data and transparency on this topic today.

Arkwright X work and meet with talented startups every day. We follow the Nordic startup scene closely and know the highs, the lows and the many challenges new businesses must overcome on their way to success. Together with Danske Bank, and with the support of StartupLab and a range of fantastic partners across the Nordic region, we set out to gather the necessary data to get a better understanding of salaries in the startup scene, in each of the Nordic countries. This resulted in the Startup Salary Survey, which is a guide to help entrepreneurs, investors, candidates and others benchmark the price of startup talent.

ABOUT THE SURVEY

The study is a collaboration between Arkwright X and Danske Bank, supported by StartupLab and a range of partners across Norway, Denmark, Sweden and Finland.

The study is based on an online survey among startup employees, with an impressive 689 relevant respondents holding various positions and with a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences. Though it is difficult to represent the entire startup population in a survey like this, we feel confident that our study can be turned into actionable insights for both startups, investors and other stakeholders, and serve as a benchmark for salaries.

The main focus of the study is visualization of the data. Still, throughout the study we have commented on interesting direct findings to help the reader understand the data. We would like to extend a warm thank you to everyone who has taken the time to answer the survey, as well as the fantastic people who have helped us collect responses.

We hope you will find the report useful and insightful.

Esben A. Poulsen

Head of Arkwright X

THE HEART OF THE NORDIC STARTUP SALARY SURVEY 2018

3

HIGHLIGHTED FINDINGS

Employees who own equity in the company work 8 hours more per week, on average, than those not owning equity.

Men have higher average base salaries1 than women, even when experience, function, seniority and company size are accounted for.

Startups in Norway work the most hours per week (49 hours, on average). Finnish startups work the least (42 hours, on average).

Employees in management- and technical functions have the highest base salaries1 on average.

33% of female respondents are founders in the company they work for, compared to 54% of male respondents.

1. Includes: base salary and bonus (not equity, or other perks)

8

€

€€

4

METHODOLOGY AND ASSUMPTIONS

When trans-Nordic salary aggregates are discussed, the figures have been converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity (PPP). The figures have been converted to “Finnish Euros” to be comparable across countries with different costs of living. Currency conversions have been done based on the average exchange rates and PPP for 20181.

The survey was distributed by email to startups in Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland during the period August-December 2018.

In total, 733 respondents answered. 44 respondents were not based in the Nordics and were therefore excluded.

Respondents’ age, experience level, working hours etc. were given as intervals. When calculating averages based on these, the true figures are assumed to be in the middle of the interval. For the open intervals, e.g. 20+ years of experience, an estimate is made as to what the true figure is.

Unrealistically small salaries have been assumed to either miss a zero (a tenth of true figure) or have been mistakenly entered as monthly salary (a twelfth of true figure). As it is difficult to say which salaries have missed a zero and which have been entered as a monthly salary, we have multiplied the few salaries where this was the case with the average of the two, which is 11.

For salary comparison we look at yearly base salary + bonus and analyze equity separately. This is because equity distorts the comparisons and hence is analyzed in a separate section.

As some respondents left some questions blank, the number of respondents might change from question to question.

You will find the full list of survey questions in the appendix, in addition to the classifications we have used and referenced throughout the report.

1. PPP rates source: https://stats.oecd.org/Index.aspx?DataSetCode=SNA_TABLE4 FX rates source: https://www.norges-bank.no/en/Statistics/exchange_rates/

Average values for salary, equity and working hours only include respondents with a non-zero answer.

5

SECTIONS

BACKGROUND // SURVEY RESPONDENTSRespondent demographics Analysis // Company investors Analysis // Equity ownership Analysis // Founders

SALARY

EQUITYBenchmark // Avg. equity shares split by founders and seniority Benchmark // Avg. equity shares for founders split by seniority and company size Benchmark // Avg. equity shares for non-founders split by seniority and company size

WORKING HOURSBenchmark // Avg. working hours split by country Benchmark // Avg. working hours split by seniority and company size Analysis // Avg. working hours

IMPACT STARTUPS Analysis // Impact startups

SALARY AND GENDERIntroduction // Comparison of average salaries for men and women Analysis // Gender and seniority Analysis // Gender and company size Analysis // Gender and function Analysis // Gender and experience

s. 8

s. 10

s. 11

s. 12

Denmark: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, seniority and company size Denmark: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, function and experience

s. 14

s. 15

s. 27

s. 28

s. 29

s. 31

s. 32

s. 33

s. 35

APPENDIX

s. 37

s. 38

s. 39

s. 40

s. 41

Finland: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, seniority and company size Finland: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, function and experience

s. 17

s. 18

Norway: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, seniority and company size Norway: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, function and experience

s. 20

s. 21

Sweden: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, seniority and company size Sweden: Benchmark // Avg. yearly salary split by country, function and experience

s. 23

s. 24

6

s. 7

s. 13

s. 26

s. 30

s. 34

s. 36

s. 42

BACKGROUND // SURVEY RESPONDENTS

The startup scene is diverse, and compensation is complex.

It is important to get a good picture of who the respondents are and what type of companies they work for to be able to better understand

and apply the results from the survey.

Throughout the survey we have taken measures to avoid any potential biases in our analyses caused by skewness in the mix of respondents.

SECTION CONTENT

Respondent demographics Analysis // Company investors Analysis // Equity ownership

Analysis // Founders

7

26

Q.1

GENDER

WOMEN

MEN

18 TO 24

25 TO 34

35 TO 44

45 TO 54

55 TO 64

65+

AGE

Q.2

180

70

18

3

60

JOB LEVEL1

Q.22

CEO

CFO

COO

CTO

CMO

CPO

HEAD OF UNIT

SENIOR EMPLOYEE

REGULAR EMPLOYEE

OTHER

228

9

36

33

24

8

80

58

110

YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

Q.25

0-4 YEARS

5-9 YEARS

10-14 YEARS

15+ YEARS

Q.4

COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE

NO

DK

FI

SE

275

152

147

115

COMPANY REVENUE STAGE

PRE-REVENUE

POST-REVENUE

UNKNOWN

Q.10

180

509

215

440

34

330

128

59

95

358

26%

74%

31%

64%

5%

37%

1%

6%

5%

4%

1%

13%

9%

18%

4%

9%

52%

26%

10%

3%

<1%

54%

21%

10%

16%

40%

22%

21%

17%

RESPONDENT DEMOGRAPHICS

1. See appendix for classifications used in report 8

LESS THAN 1 YEAR

1 - 2 YEARS

2 - 3 YEARS

3 - 4 YEARS

4 - 5 YEARS

TENURE AT COMPANY1

Q.9

COMPANY FOCUS

Q.5

SOFTWARE

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IN TECH

OTHER NON-TECH

SOFTWARE + HARDWARE

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES IN

NON-TECH

HARDWARE

COMPANY AGE

Q.8

0-1 YEARS

2-4 YEARS

5-9 YEARS

10+ YEARS

Q.11

COMPANY PROFIT STAGE

NEGATIVE PROFIT

BREAK-EVEN

POSITIVE PROFIT

UNKNOWN

375

100

69

61

47

33

425

79

143

42

225

313

104

37

217

135

58

33

49

19755%

15%

10%

9%

7%

5%

62%

11%

21%

6%

29%

31%

20%

8%

5%

7%

33%

46%

15%

5%

5+ YEARS

91. More precisely, the intervals are; less than 1 year, 1 year to 2 years, 2+ years to 3 years, 3+ years to 4 years, 4+ years to 5 years and 5+ years.

ANALYSIS // COMPANY INVESTORS

EQUITY

FFF1 INVESTOR // Founders, friends & family EARLY-STAGE INVESTOR //

Angel, crowdfunding, incubator, accelerator INSTITUTIONAL INVESTOR // Family office, venture capital, private equity

Note: wherever salaries are PPP adjusted and converted to Euro, we advice the reader to focus on differences rather than the absolute numbers 1: We are aware that FFF is normally used for “family, friends and fools” but we leave out the fools and use founders instead. 2: Responses were converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity. Salary is referring to ppp-adjusted base salary + bonus. 3: Value of equity is calculated by taking the respondents' current equity ownership and multiplying this with their company's most recently closed funding round. This number is not PPP adjusted.

As one might have expected, average personal ownership decreases with more outside investors, while the average value of the equity increases.

RESPONDENTS' AVERAGE SALARY2 (EURO)

RESPONDENTS' AVERAGE WORKING HOURS PER WEEK

Q20

RESPONSES

FFF

FFF, EARLY-STAGE

FFF, INSTITUTIONAL

FFF, EARLY-STAGE,

INSTITUTIONAL

35% 186

25% 132

11% 61

29% 157

Q.13, Q.19, Q.20

FFF

FFF, EARLY-STAGE

FFF, INSTITUTIONAL

FFF, EARLY-STAGE,

INSTITUTIONAL

49k

Q.20, Q.24

FFF

FFF, EARLY-STAGE

FFF, INSTITUTIONAL

FFF, EARLY-STAGE,

INSTITUTIONAL

47.2h

42.0h

51.4h

43.2h

48k

58k

53k

Q.16, Q.20

RESPONDENTS' AVERAGE EQUITY OWNERSHIP

FFF 49%

FFF, EARLY-STAGE 26%

FFF, INSTITUTIONAL 18%

FFF, EARLY-STAGE,

INSTITUTIONAL16%

RESPONDENTS’ AVERAGE VALUE OF EQUITY3 (EURO)

Q.16, Q.20, Q.27

FFF

FFF, EARLY-STAGE

FFF, INSTITUTIONAL

FFF, EARLY-STAGE,

INSTITUTIONAL

582k

597k

802k

518k

SALARY AND WORKING HOURSCompanies with institutional investors offer their employees the highest salaries, on average. Moreover, employees at companies with both FFF-, early-stage- and institutional investors tend to work the longest, on average.

95

86

27

104

121

112

57

152

186

132

61

157

31

68

18

82

10

The results below are split based on the respondents' reply to who have invested in their company. The investor types are classified in the following way:

ANALYSIS // EQUITY OWNERSHIP

Note: wherever salaries are PPP adjusted and converted to Euro, we advice the reader to focus on differences rather than the absolute numbers 1. Responses were converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity. Salary is referring to ppp-adjusted base salary + bonus.

BACKGROUND

RESPONSES

Out of all respondents, 67% own equity in the company that they work for.

Q.14

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

33%

67%

210

429

AVERAGE WORKING HOURS PER WEEK

Q.14, Q.24

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

40.5h

48.6h

203

409

Q.13, Q.14, Q.19

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

49k 180

35152k

POSITION, EXPERIENCE AND GENDER

SHARE OF MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS

The results show that it is common for employees in management functions and employees holding CXO positions to own equity in the company they work for.

Q.14, Q.23

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

25%

75%

40

118

Q.14, Q.22

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

18% 61

282

SHARE OF CXO POSITIONS

82%

AVERAGE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

Q.14, Q.25

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

5.9 years

7.4 years

203

409

WOMEN

SHARE WITH EQUITY PER GENDER

55% 92

71% 337MEN

Q.14, Q.1


SALARY AND WORKING HOURSEmployees owning equity tend to have slightly higher base salaries and work 8 hours more per week, on average, compared to employees with no equity ownership.

11

OF WOMEN

OF MEN

RESPONSES

ANALYSIS // FOUNDERS

Out of all respondents, 48% are founders of the company that they work for.

Note: wherever salaries are PPP adjusted and converted to Euro, we advice the reader to focus on differences rather than the absolute numbers 1. Responses were converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity. Salary is referring to ppp-adjusted base salary + bonus.

Q.21

NON-FOUNDER

FOUNDER

52%

48%

316

296

SHARE OF MANAGEMENT FUNCTIONS

AVERAGE YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

SHARE WHO ARE FOUNDERS PER GENDER

AVERAGE WORKING HOURS PER WEEK

Founders work 8 hours more per week, on average, while earning no apparent premium in terms of salary, compared to non-founders.

The results show that it is common for founders to be in a management function or to hold a CXO position in their own company. Women are generally underrepresented as founders. Only 33% of female respondents are founders in the company they work for, compared to 54% of male respondents.

Q.21, Q.23

38%

62%

60

98

Q.21, Q.22

20% 70

Q.21, Q.25

5.3 years

8.6 years

316

296

NON-FOUNDER

FOUNDER

NON-FOUNDER

FOUNDER

NON-FOUNDER

FOUNDER

27380%

WOMEN

MEN

Q.1, Q.21

33% 52

54% 244

SALARY AND WORKING HOURS

NON-FOUNDER

FOUNDER

NON-FOUNDER

FOUNDER

42.0h

50.1h

316

296

51k 293

21951k

Q.21, Q.24

Q.13, Q.19, Q.21

SHARE OF CXO POSITIONS


12

BACKGROUND POSITION, EXPERIENCE AND GENDER

OF WOMEN

OF MEN

SALARYWhat is a competitive yearly salary for a startup employee?

What is an expected range for different functions or experience?

The following section serves as a benchmark for startup salaries for each of the Nordic countries. Bear in mind that the data presented

includes base salary and bonus only - not equity or other perks.

SECTION CONTENT

Benchmark // avg. yearly salary split by country, seniority and company size Benchmark // avg. yearly salary split by country, function and experience

For the benchmark data: In addition to average salaries, the illustration shows how respondents are distributed to display how outliers and small samples might impact the average.

13

NOTE

BENCHMARK // AVG. YEARLY SALARY SPLIT BY COUNTRY, SENIORITY AND COMPANY SIZE

SENIORITY

Salary includes base salary + bonus

COMPANY SIZE

REGULAR EMPLOYEE SENIOR EMPLOYEE CXO

11-5

01-

1050

+

542 K DKK

402 K DKK

AVERAGE

2

1.545 M DKK

11-5

01-

1050

+

518 K DKK

424 K DKK

0

628 K DKK

11-5

01-

1050

+

401 K DKK

470 K DKK

397 K DKK

0 0 0

1

2

4

0

5

2

0

01

0 0

0

3

01

0

23

5

10

DISTRIBUTION

1-10 EMPLOYEES 11-50 EMPLOYEES 50+ EMPLOYEES

CX

OSE

NIO

R E

MP

LOY

EER

EGU

LAR

EM

PLO

YEE

2

19

30

0 0

0

2

12

6

0

0

4

00

0

1

0 0

2

0

2

1

1

01

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0

0

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

Q.4, Q.7, Q.13, Q.19, Q.2214

BENCHMARK // AVG. YEARLY SALARY SPLIT BY COUNTRY, FUNCTION AND EXPERIENCE Salary includes base salary + bonus

422 K DKK

785 K DKK

AVERAGE

0 0

3

500 K DKK0 0

1

DISTRIBUTION

MA

NA

GEM

ENT

MANAGEMENT

0-4 YEARS

TECHNICAL

5-9 YEARS

SALES

10-14 YEARS 15+ YEARS

10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y

399 K DKK0

7

0

0

3

600 K DKK

560 K DKK

0

4

605 K DKK0 0

1TEC

HN

ICA

L

482 K DKK0

8

2

0

2

0

0

0

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

0

0

2

12

0

0

0

0

1

0

1 1 1

0

1 1

2

0

1

7

2 2

FUNCTION

EXPERIENCE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

1

15

BUSINESS / OPERATIONS

10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y


473 K DKK

AVERAGE

0 0

1

420 K DKK0 0

1

DISTRIBUTION

MANAGEMENT TECHNICAL SALES

371 K DKK0

3

0

0

1

475 K DKK

350 K DKK

0

3

502 K DKK0 0

340 K DKK7

1

0

1

0

0

0

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

0

0 0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

2

5

1

SALE

SB

USI

NES

S /

OP

ERA

TIO

NS

0

00

11

0 0

1

0

0

0

4

0

FUNCTION

EXPERIENCE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

16


10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y

0-4 YEARS 5-9 YEARS 10-14 YEARS 15+ YEARS


SENIORITY


COMPANY SIZE


11-5

01-

1050

+

46 K EUR

46 K EUR

AVERAGE

165 K EUR

11-5

01-

1050

+

48 K EUR

36 K EUR

0

54 K EUR

11-5

01-

1050

+

38 K EUR

29 K EUR

52 K EUR

0 0 0

5

7

0

43

0

6

0

0

3

01

0

3

7

7

DISTRIBUTION


CX

OSE

NIO

R E

MP

LOY

EER

EGU

LAR

EM

PLO

YEE

3

106

0

0

41

4

0

9

00

0

1

0 00

2

0

2

0

1

0

12

0

2

0

0

0

0

9

0

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

0

0

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

Q.4, Q.7, Q.13, Q.19, Q.2217

BENCHMARK // AVG. YEARLY SALARY SPLIT BY COUNTRY, FUNCTION AND EXPERIENCE

FUNCTION


EXPERIENCE

46 K EUR

AVERAGE

0 0

1

78 K EUR0 0

1

DISTRIBUTION

MA

NA

GEM

ENT


41 K EUR0

6

0

0

11

60 K EUR

43 K EUR

0

4

98 K EUR0 0

1TEC

HN

ICA

L

38 K EUR0

11

2

0

1

0

0

0

0

0 0

1

0

0

0

0

4

0

31

0

0

0 0

11

1

1 1

0

0

0

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

18



10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y

BENCHMARK // AVG. YEARLY SALARY SPLIT BY COUNTRY, FUNCTION AND EXPERIENCE

FUNCTION


EXPERIENCE

49 K EUR

AVERAGE

0 0

39 K EUR0

2

DISTRIBUTION


45 K EUR0

3

0

01

85 K EUR

49 K EUR

0

6

52 K EUR0

35 K EUR20

0

3

0

0

0

0 0

0

0

0

0

0

0

1

4

81

SALE

SB

USI

NES

S /

OP

ERA

TIO

NS

00

01

0

0

30

43 K EUR

1

1

1

1

2

11

0 0

1

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

0-19k 20-39k 40-59k 80-99k60-79k 100k+

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

19



10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y


SENIORITY


Q.4, Q.7, Q.13, Q.19, Q.22

COMPANY SIZE


11-5

01-

1050

+

716 K NOK

585 K NOK

AVERAGE

0 035 4

2

16 1132

7

1.117 M NOK

11-5

01-

1050

+

605 K NOK

582 K NOK

0

0

0

758 K NOK

11-5

01-

1050

+

491 K NOK

562 K NOK

570 K NOK

0 0 0

4

1

3

2

5

4

5

0

1 1

0

2 2

3

8

4

8

0

01

6

01

0

01

3

0

4

0

0

4

9

01 2

12

37

DISTRIBUTION


CX

OSE

NIO

R E

MP

LOY

EER

EGU

LAR

EM

PLO

YEE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

20


676 K NOK

750 K NOK

AVERAGE

0 01

7

2

742 K NOK0 0 0

4

2

2

4

DISTRIBUTION

MA

NA

GEM

ENT


611 K NOK0

2

6

9

0

4

2

0 1

4

4 2

852 K NOK

609 K NOK

0 01

11

2

853 K NOK0 0

32

4

TEC

HN

ICA

L

483 K NOK0

5

19

4

0 1

4

32

0 0

0

0 0

FUNCTION

EXPERIENCE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

21



10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y


595 K NOK

750 K NOK

AVERAGE

0 0

1

594 K NOK0 0

3

1

DISTRIBUTION

SALE

S


493 K NOK0

6

0

1

0

3

591 K NOK

549 K NOK

0 0

7

904 K NOK0

53

3

BU

SIN

ESS

/ O

PER

ATI

ON

S

508 K NOK19

2

0 1

13

3

0

0

1

0 0

1

0 0 0 0

0 0

3

21

1 1

1

2333

FUNCTION

EXPERIENCE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

22



10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y


SENIORITY


Q.4, Q.7, Q.13, Q.19, Q.22

COMPANY SIZE


11-5

01-

1050

+

611 K SEK

456 K SEK

AVERAGE

12

3

960 K SEK

11-5

01-

1050

+

450 K SEK

354 K SEK

0

585 K SEK

11-5

01-

1050

+

401 K SEK

325 K SEK

425 K SEK

0 0 0

1

2

5

0

0

3

3

0

0

2

0 0

0

3

0

5

0

3

5

01

3

10


CX

OSE

NIO

R E

MP

LOY

EER

EGU

LAR

EM

PLO

YEE

0 0

2

3

1

8

43

0

0 0

0

21

1

2

0

0

2

0

00

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

3

0

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

23

DISTRIBUTION


584 K SEK

812 K SEK

AVERAGE

0 0

2

660 K SEK0 0 0

1

DISTRIBUTION

MA

NA

GEM

ENT


452 K SEK0

1

4

0

1

0

1

3

427 K SEK

522 K SEK

0

3

533 K SEK0 0

1

1TEC

HN

ICA

L

412 K SEK0

5

2

0

3

1

0

0

0 0

0

1

0 0

0

11

2

1

0

1

0 0

0 0

0

FUNCTION

EXPERIENCE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

2

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

24



10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y


667 K SEK

580 K SEK

AVERAGE

0

1

564 K SEK0

2

DISTRIBUTION


400 K SEK0

4

1

0

1

580 K SEK

422 K SEK

0

4

447 K SEK 1

1

322 K SEK2

2

8

2

0

0

0 0

0

0 0

0

0

0

SALE

SB

USI

NES

S /

OP

ERA

TIO

NS

1 1 1

0 0

0 0 0

0 00

2

0

1

1

21

13

FUNCTION

EXPERIENCE

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

0-199k 200-399k 400-599k 800-999k600-799k 1m+

2

Q.4, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23, Q.25

1

25



10-1

4 Y

5-9

Y15

+ Y

0-4

Y10

-14

Y5-

9 Y

15+

Y0

-4 Y

EQUITYHow much of their company do startup employees own?

How do equity shares vary with seniority and size of the company?

The following section shows average equity shares for startup employees with different characteristics.

As companies differ in size and value, there can be a significant difference between the value of 1% equity for respondents with

otherwise similar characteristics. The following overview of average equity shares can nevertheless provide a guiding range.

SECTION CONTENT

Benchmark// Avg. Equity shares split by founders and seniority Benchmark// Avg. Equity shares for founders split by seniority and company size

Benchmark// Avg. Equity shares for non-founders split by seniority and company size

For the benchmark data: In addition to average equity shares, the illustration shows how respondents are distributed to display how outliers and small samples might impact the average.

26

NOTE

BENCHMARK // AVG. EQUITY SHARES SPLIT BY FOUNDERS AND SENIORITY

SENIORITY

FOUNDERS


FOUNDERS NON-FOUNDERS

Note: More precisely, the distribution intervals are; 0–2%, 2.01–5%, 5.01–10% etc.

AVERAGE DISTRIBUTION

SEN

IOR

REG

ULA

RC

XO

16%

14%

40%

FOU

ND

ERS

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

58

136

40

1712

3425

2

4

2

1

2

00 0

00 000000

1

SEN

IOR

REG

ULA

RC

XO

2%

0.7%

9%

NO

N-F

OU

ND

ERS 3

5

12

1

600 0

00 0000

17

0

33

2 1 10

16

1

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

0 0 0

11

0

1

Q.16, Q.21, Q.22

27

BENCHMARK // AVG. EQUITY SHARES FOR FOUNDERS SPLIT BY SENIORITY AND COMPANY SIZE

FOU

ND

ERS

11-5

01-

1050

+

30%

42%

27%

CX

O

11-5

01-

1050

+

22%

16%

5%

SEN

IOR

EM

PLO

YEE

11-5

01-

1050

+

14%REG

ULA

R E

MP

LOY

EE


Q.7, Q.16, Q.21, Q.22

2

0 0

1

0

1

0 0

1

6

21

3 3

55 54

33

7 5 10 1429

620

53

1

0 0 0 0 00 0 0

0 0 00 00 0

11

0 0 0

3

111

2

0 0 0 0 00 00 0

0 0 0 0 00 00 0

0 0 0 0 000 0

1

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

SENIORITY

COMPANY SIZE




0

28

BENCHMARK // AVG. EQUITY SHARES FOR NON-FOUNDERS SPLIT BY SENIORITY AND COMPANY SIZE

NO

N-F

OU

ND

ERS

11-5

01-

1050

+

2%

14%

2%

CX

O

11-5

01-

1050

+

0.9%

4%

0.8%

SEN

IOR

EM

PLO

YEE

11-5

01-

1050

+

REG

ULA

R E

MP

LOY

EE

2

0 0 0 0

4

76

5

1 3

0 0 0 00 0

0 0 000

0 0 0123

0 0 0 0 00 00

0 0 0 0 00 00

0 0 0 0 00

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

5-10%2-5% 20-30%15-20%0-2% 10-15% 30-40% 40-50% 50%+

0.3%

0.9%

0.3%

2

0 0 0

7

0 0 0 00 0 0

0 001

01

6

2

17

0 0

10

10

3

0

3

11

1

SENIORITY

COMPANY SIZE





Q.7, Q.16, Q.21, Q.22

29

WORKING HOURSHow much do startup employees work?

How do working hours vary across countries, and how is this affected by ownership and experience?

In the Nordics, work-life balance is highly valued. Still, many startup employees need to work long hours to get their business off the ground. In light of these opposing forces we thought it would be

interesting to look into average working hours in the Nordics.

SECTION CONTENT

Benchmark// Avg. working hours split by country Benchmark// Avg. working hours split by seniority and company size

Analysis// Avg. working hours

For the benchmark data: In addition to average working hours, the illustration shows how respondents are distributed to display how outliers and small samples might impact the average.

30

NOTE

BENCHMARK // AVG. WORKING HOURS SPLIT BY COUNTRY

Q.4, Q.24

The data shows that most people work between 41 and 50 hours per week. On average, Norwegian startup employees clock in 7 hours more per week than Finnish startup employees.

54

42

0-30h 31-40h 41-50h 51-60h 60h+

42 h 45

15812

46 h18

12

25

6

44 h37

2216

35

17

49 h100

52 4248

6

31

BENCHMARK // AVG. WORKING HOURS SPLIT BY SENIORITY AND COMPANY SIZE

Q.7, Q.22, Q.24

SENIORITY

COMPANY SIZE




11-5

01-

1050

+

53 h

50 h

57 h

11-5

01-

1050

+

43 h

41 h

44 h

11-5

01-

1050

+

39 h

38 h

42 h

CX

OSE

NIO

R E

MP

LOY

EER

EGU

LAR

EM

PLO

YEE

62 524216

0-30h 31-40h 41-50h 51-60h 60h+

100

1316

100

20

45

01

2

30

17

4

0-30h 31-40h 41-50h 51-60h 60h+

32

102

21

1

18

4 2

11

0

13

40

22

7

0-30h 31-40h 41-50h 51-60h 60h+

14

21

1

10

412

1111

20

32

ANALYSIS // AVG. WORKING HOURS

EQUITY OWNERSHIP

SENIORITY

Q.22, Q.24

SENIOR EMPLOYEE

REGULAR EMPLOYEE 39.1h

42.4h

CXO 50.5h

GENDER

Technical functions tend to work less than other functions, on average 3-5 hours less per week.

Generally, working hours increase with seniority. CXOs work, on average, 1 day more than the average senior employee, and 1.5 day more than the average regular employee, every week.

Employees with equity ownership in the company work 8.1 hours more, on average, than employees with no equity ownership. This corresponds to an extra working day. This might be linked to the larger share of CXOs owning equity in the company.

On average, men work 3.5 hours, or 8%, more than women weekly.

Q.14, Q.24

NO EQUITY

EQUITY

40.5h

48.6h

Q.23, Q.24

FUNCTION

SALES

BUSINESS/OPS

MANAGEMENT

TECHNICAL

48.2h

46.1h

47.3h

43.1h

Q.1, Q.24

WOMEN

MEN

43.3h

46.8h

65

214

158

157

203

409

343

138

110

157

455

33

IMPACT STARTUPSAn increasing number of startups support one or several of the

UN Sustainable Development Goals, and these companies, hereby defined as impact startups, are growing in popularity.

We wanted to see if there were any significant differences between employees in impact startups and more traditional

startups, in terms of seniority, salary, equity and working hours.

SECTION CONTENT

Analysis// Impact startups

34

ANALYSIS // IMPACT STARTUPS

BACKGROUND218 respondents (37%), said that their company support one or more of UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.

Non-impact // do not work for an impact startup Impact // work for an impact startup Don't know // don't know if they work for an impact startup

Q.29

IMPACT 37% 218

RESPONDENTS WORKING FOR IMPACT STARTUPS

NON-IMPACT 20% 117

SALARY, EXPERIENCE AND WORKING HOURSThere is no significant difference in average salaries when comparing impact startups to others. However, the employees on average have 2 more years of experience and work 3 hours more per week.

Q.13, Q.19, Q.29

IMPACT 51.3k


NON-IMPACT 51.5k

Q.25, Q.29

IMPACT

YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

NON-IMPACT

Q.24, Q.29

IMPACT

AVG. WORKING HOURS PER WEEK

NON-IMPACT

7.6

5.8

49.0

45.8

GENDER AND AGEComparing gender, a slightly larger share of women state they work for an impact startup (76% of women vs. 62% of men). The average age of people working for impact startups is slightly higher than for non-impact startups (36,2 vs. 34,7)

Q.2, Q.29

IMPACT 36.2

AVERAGE AGE OF RESPONDENTS

NON-IMPACT 34.7

Note: wherever salaries are PPP adjusted and converted to Euro, we advice the reader to focus on differences rather than the absolute numbers. 1. Responses were converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity. Salary is referring to ppp-adjusted base salary + bonus.

DON'T KNOW 44% 258

Q.1 , Q.29

MEN

SHARE WORKING FOR IMPACT STARTUP PER GENDER

WOMEN 62

156

76%

62%

117

218

170

100

117

218

117

218

35

OF WOMEN

OF MEN

SALARY AND GENDERStartups are the businesses of tomorrow. Although there has historically

been a difference between salaries and opportunities for men and women, we wanted to look into if these differences were prominent in companies

that will shape the future of business.

As the reported salary numbers could be affected by skewness in the sample of respondents, the data is split on a variety of different variables.

SECTION CONTENT

Introduction // Comparison of average salaries for men and women Analysis // Gender and seniority

Analysis // Gender and company size

Analysis // Gender and function Analysis // Gender and experience

€

A number of other analyses were made to cross-check the findings below, all with the same results. On average, women in startups make less than men. This may be a result of several different factors.

We have tried to rule out any biases that could be caused by skewed data, but this survey has not analyzed underlying causes further.

36

NOTE

INTRODUCTION // COMPARISON OF AVERAGE SALARIES FOR MEN AND WOMEN

Note: wherever salaries are PPP adjusted and converted to Euro, we advice the reader to focus on differences rather than the absolute numbers. Note: n in the graphs only count respondents with a regular salary. 1. Responses were converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity. Salary is referring to ppp-adjusted base salary + bonus.

THE ANALYSISTo best compare salary levels for men and women, the data set has been split based on different factors that may affect the results, with seniority, company size, function and years of experience having the strongest impact. It is important to consider the gender comparisons in light of these factors, as skewness in the data related to these could bias the results. This means that we are comparing men and women with similar seniority, company size etc. to attempt to rule out that our results are skewed by the mix of respondents.

Below you see the overall average salary for each of the four factors mentioned. On the following pages we present more detailed analyses of each of these factors, split by gender.

It is important to note that the gender comparisons in this section are made based on base salary and bonus only. Equity is not included due to feasibility. Still, comments and previous sections will contribute to shed some light on this aspect as well.

Q. 13, Q.19, Q.22

SENIOR EMPLOYEE 51k 131

CXO 54k 265

Q.7 , Q. 13, Q.19

COMPANY SIZE

FUNCTION

Q. 13, Q.19, Q.23

BUSINESS/OPS 45k 181

SALES 47k 54


SENIORITY

REGULAR EMPLOYEE 43k 102

11-50 PEOPLE 52k 154

50+ PEOPLE 67k 72

1-10 PEOPLE 47k 306

TECHNICAL 54k 141

MANAGEMENT 56k 123

YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

Q. 13, Q.19, Q.25

0-4 YEARS 43k 272

5-9 YEARS 57k 119

10-14 YEARS 59k 51

15+ YEARS 64k 70

37

ANALYSIS // GENDER AND SENIORITY

Note: wherever salaries are PPP adjusted and converted to Euro, we advice the reader to focus on differences rather than the absolute numbers. Note: n in the graphs only count respondents with a regular salary. 1.Responses were converted to Euros and adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity. Salary is referring to ppp-adjusted base salary + bonus.

Q.1, Q. 13, Q.19, Q.22


SENIORITY

44k 36SENIOR

EMPLOYEE

54k 95

43k 69

REGULAR EMPLOYEE

41k 33

CXO

49k

55k

49

216

As evident from the graph above, average salary increases with seniority for both men and women. Still, men’s salaries increase more than women’s salaries, particularly from regular employee to senior employee. We also see that men, on average, earn more than women at each seniority level.

When further exploring the underlying data we find that, compared to women, a larger share of men owns equity in the company that they work for, and that men, on average, own a slightly larger equity share than women (except for CXO level where men and women own approx. the same share of equity). This means that the higher salary levels for men cannot be explained by women rather having more equity ownership, as this is not the case.

When accounting for the size of the respondents’ companies, i.e. comparing e.g. CXOs working for companies of similar sizes, we find that the salary gap between men and women persists. Moreover, we see that the salary gap generally is most sizable for more senior roles in larger companies.

38

ANALYSIS // GENDER AND COMPANY SIZE

Q.1, Q.7 , Q. 13, Q.19

42k 39

COMPANY SIZE

11-50 PEOPLE

55k 115

48k 236

1-10 PEOPLE

43k 70

50+ PEOPLE

57k

72k

24

48

As evident from the graph above, men, on average, earn higher salaries than women within all three company sizes. We also see that average salaries increase with company size. For women, however, this effect does not kick in until the companies reach a size of 50+ employees.

When further exploring the underlying data we find that, compared to women, a larger share of men (~18%-points more) owns equity in the company that they work for (except for companies with 50+ employees where the tendency is reversed, but only slightly so). In terms of the average size of equity ownership, this varies between men and women across all company sizes.

When accounting for the respondents’ function at the company that they work for, i.e. comparing e.g. technical resources working for companies of similar sizes, we see that the largest differences in salaries between men and women are found within technical- and management functions at the largest companies. In fact, the only combination of company size and function where women make more than men is for technical resources in small companies with 1-10 employees.



39

ANALYSIS // GENDER AND FUNCTION

Q.1, Q.13, Q.19, Q.23

FUNCTION

47k 113

42k 68

BUSINESS/OPS

40k 9

49k 45

SALES

51k

54k

16

125

TECHNICAL

46k

59k

29

94

MANAGEMENT

As evident from the graph above, men, on average, earn more than women within all four job functions. We also see that although the highest paying function differs for men and women, technical- and management functions overall provide the highest average salaries for both genders.

The largest absolute gap in average salary between men and women is found within management functions, where men, on average, earn ~13,000 Euro more than women. Further exploring the underlying data reveals that within management functions, a larger share of men also tends to own equity in the company they work for, and that their average equity share is slightly higher compared to that of women.

The smallest absolute gap in average salary between men and women is found in technical functions, where men, on average, earn ~3,000 Euro more than women. Within this function, however, we see the largest gender gap in terms of equity ownership. On average, more men own equity in the company that they work for, compared to women (66% vs. 29%).



40

ANALYSIS // GENDER AND EXPERIENCE

Q.1, Q.13, Q.19, Q.25

0-4 YEARS

44k 193

40k 79

5-9 YEARS50k 27

59k 92

10-14 YEARS44k 5

61k 46

15+ YEARS58k 15

66k 55

YEARS OF EXPERIENCE



As evident from the graph above, men, on average, earn more than women with the same number of years of experience. We also see that the gender gap in average salary generally increases with experience level.

When further exploring the underlying data we find that, compared to women, a larger share of men owns equity in the company that they work for. In terms of the average size of equity ownership, the levels are quite similar between men and women across all experience levels.

When accounting for the respondents’ function at the company that they work for, i.e. comparing e.g. respondents working in sales with the same experience level, we see that men earn more than women for most combinations of the two variables. The difference is most sizable for business/operations functions with 10-15+ years of experience and for management functions with 5-15 years of experience.

A possible explanation for the fact that men generally have higher average salaries than women, despite the same level of experience, could be that men tend to hold more senior positions, which generally provide higher average salaries. However, when accounting for seniority, i.e. comparing men and women who have both the same seniority level and experience level, we still find that men generally have higher average salaries than women, especially at CXO level.

41

APPENDIX

42

SURVEY QUESTIONS //

1. What is your gender?

2. What is your age?

3. What country and city is your company headquartered in?

4. What country and city are you based in?

5. Your company's key focus?

6. What industry does your company primarily operate in?

7. How many people currently work in your company?

8. Age of company?

9. How long have you been with your current company?

10. Company’s current revenue-stage?

11. Company’s current profit-stage?

12. Do you get a regular cash salary as part of your compensation package?

13. What is your gross annual cash salary?

14. Do you own shares or options as part of your compensation package?

15. Do you know approximately how many % of the company you own as part of your compensation package?

16. Approximately how many % of the company do you own as part of your compensation package?

17. What is your vesting period?

18. Do you receive a cash bonus as part of your compensation package?

19. What’s your cash bonus? (in % of annual base salary)

20. Current investors / owners in your company?

21. Are you a (co)founder of the company?

22. What is your current level?

23. What is your primary functional area in your company?

24. How many hours do you work per week (on average)?

25. How many years of total work experience do you have in your function?

26. Do you know your company’s pre-money valuation at the most recent round of funding?

27. What was your company’s pre-money valuation at the last round of funding?

28. When did the last round of funding close?

29. Does your company / business model support one or more of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals?

PLEASE NOTE

Not all questions listed below were used in the report. Many of the questions had notes or guidelines to the respondents to make sure nothing was misunderstood, these are not included below. We have not included the answer choices to each of the questions below

43

CLASSIFICATIONS USED IN REPORT //

FUNCTIONAL AREAS

Data Science Design

Engineering/Development Finance

Business Development HR

Marketing Operations

Strategy Product Management Project Management General Management

Sales Other (please specify)

Technical Technical Technical

Business/Operations Business/Operations Business/Operations Business/Operations Business/Operations Business/Operations

Management Management Management

Sales Other

LEVEL IN ORGANIZATIONORIGINAL DATA

CEO CFO CMO COO CTO CXO CPO CRO CDO CSO

Senior employee Head of unit or department

Regular employee Consultant

Intern Other (please specify)

Board

CLASSIFICATION USED IN REPORT

CXO CXO CXO CXO CXO CXO CXO CXO CXO CXO

Senior employee Senior employee

Regular employee Other Other Other Other

ORIGINAL DATA CLASSIFICATION USED IN REPORT

44

EXCHANGE RATES AND PPP // AVERAGE RATES 2018 NORGES BANK AND OECD

1.0000

1.0000

EUR/EUR

PPP ADJUSTED

0.0975

0.0983

SEK/EUR

PPP ADJUSTED

0.1042

0.0837

NOK/EUR

PPP ADJUSTED

0.1342

0.1276

DKK/EUR

PPP ADJUSTED

45

Conducted by: Arkwright X and Danske Bank With support from: Startuplab

startup survey v11 - amazon s3nor… · the price of startup talent one of the hardest things to do...

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