Looking for Fractional CROs or Startup Advisers to Help Pressure Test a Deal
Any Fractional CROs or Startup advisers in here? Would really appreciate your help pressure testing a deal. detail in thread 🧵
Any Fractional CROs or Startup advisers in here? Would really appreciate your help pressure testing a deal. detail in thread 🧵
I'm evaluating an equity-only advisory engagement and I'm genuinely unsure if I'm being fair to myself or unreasonable. Would love input from people who've been on either side of this. The situation:
Early-stage SaaS, ~$800 MRR, 2 paying customers
I've been working with them informally for 8 months - helped build their GTM strategy, ICP, positioning, and coached them through closing their first customers
Founders are technical, based offshore, selling to a market they're not physically in
They're opening a funding round in March
The offer:
1% equity (FAST agreement)
Up to 10 hours/month
No defined term ("until we hit $1M ARR and hire a sales leader")
Board/angels have told them 1% is the max - "standard advisor rate"
What they want from me:
Weekly deal coaching (help close pipeline)
Pricing and positioning advice as market feedback comes in
Help hiring their first salesperson
General "sales therapist" availability
My concerns:
At a conservative $2M valuation, 1% = $20k. At 10 hrs/month for 12+ months, that's $166/hr in high-risk equity. Below market for fractional work.
The real need is execution (founder doing outbound, getting referrals, attending events) - not more strategy. I've already delivered the strategy.
No term cap means I could be tied to this for 2-3 years watching slow growth.
If they fail due to execution gaps, does my "advisor" title hurt my credibility?
What I'm considering:
Counter with 6-8 hours/month max
Hard 12-month term cap
Accept the 1% but tightly define scope (deal coaching + hiring support only, no product/marketing scope creep)
My questions for you:
Is 1% reasonable for this level of involvement at this stage? Or am I rationalizing a bad deal because I have relationship equity?
For those who've done equity-only advisory: what made it worth it vs. a waste of time?
How do you protect yourself from becoming the scapegoat when a founder can't execute?
Would you walk, negotiate, or take it?
Genuinely curious what others have experienced. looking for pattern recognition from people who've seen this movie before.
Sachee P. This is a very real advisory dilemma, and you’re not overthinking it. The issue isn’t really whether 1% is “standard.” It’s that 1% + no term cap + undefined scope quietly turns into: • Unlimited execution liability • $80–$170/hr equivalent in high-risk, illiquid equity • Reputational downside if execution stalls (even if strategy was sound) A few patterns I’ve seen work better: • Put a hard 12-month cap on any equity-only advisory • Define scope by hours (not vibes): deal coaching + hiring only • Tie any upside to execution milestones you don’t personally own • If there’s no cash, there has to be structure If the founders resist structure, that’s usually the answer. Happy to share a concrete framework I’ve used to evaluate and renegotiate these deals if helpful.
Your thinking is right already Sachee P., limit the term to 1 year and have the 1% equity on a 12 month vesting schedule (3 month cliff if they push back, otherwise no cliff). I would also recommend that you introduce a commission line beyond a minimum MRR/ARR floor. I.e. once you get the company past $250k ARR, they pay you 5% deal commission on all deals and an additional 15% on deals you personally source / introduce. Obviously, this depends on how involved you want to / can be, but it creates upside and alignment.
