I think there are a couple of reasons why cash is a major motivator for start ups:
1) People understand the true value of equity which is to say in most cases, really not that much. As someone who was a non-vested dollar millionaire back in 1999 (and if you were working then who wasn't...), this time round I'm just far cannier about what that might be worth.
2) Big companies are getting wise to the vision thing. Maybe not the "put a dent in the universe" stuff, but the vision of what a company should be like and how it should work which is the stuff that impacts you day to day. Casual dress, flexible working, social activities... These aren't the exception any more, you can get them at large multinationals, you don't need to go to a start up for a nice working environment.
Unfortunately, you can't pay your rent or student loans with underwater stock options or "cool company vision". Most companies have something interesting or unique about their vision or product, so that's rarely a differentiator. And, the equity portion of a job offer usually ends up being close to worthless unless you're employee #1-10. So, at the end of the day, cash is king.
1) People understand the true value of equity which is to say in most cases, really not that much. As someone who was a non-vested dollar millionaire back in 1999 (and if you were working then who wasn't...), this time round I'm just far cannier about what that might be worth.
2) Big companies are getting wise to the vision thing. Maybe not the "put a dent in the universe" stuff, but the vision of what a company should be like and how it should work which is the stuff that impacts you day to day. Casual dress, flexible working, social activities... These aren't the exception any more, you can get them at large multinationals, you don't need to go to a start up for a nice working environment.