Program · Advisor Seat · equity only
This is not Analyst-in-Residence at a discount. You may have never been a founder. You may have no GTM and no language a buyer will fund. Conversion to cash may be a year away. That is more risk and more work, with no check. The grant cannot be small. You choose the track.
A pre-revenue founder cannot write a $10K/month check. The positioning mistake made today costs ten times that next year. Many founders at this stage have never held the seat, have no GTM, and have no language a buyer will fund.
A 1-2% grant prices a light monthly hour. This is a year of unpaid heavy lift. That is not a donation.
The commercial brain for a year. GTM, language, the round story. Two-year vest, one-year cliff.
Everything in Advisor, plus the name on the cap table and the board roster.
Becomes the cash Analyst-in-Residence. Equity stays. Cash within 30 days of close. May be a year away.
A year of unpaid heavy lift is not a donation. The grant is large because the work is large, and because conversion to cash may be a year out.
You can sell without Howard in every meeting.
A CIO will pay for the sentence. A tagline will not.
The story survives the room.
5% or 7-10%. Not 1-2%.
Howard's equity in your cap table is the honest signal that he believes in the company. Investors notice. The size of the grant is the honest signal that this is not a hobby.
Every agency will wordsmith your message. We are the buyer you are trying to reach. Howard Holton has been the CIO, the CTO, and the CISO, more than once, across many companies, sizes, and industries. This is not one analyst's opinion. It is the read of the person who signs the check.
Advisor Seat: $0 cash. Advisor 5% or Board 7-10%, two-year vest, one-year cliff. At the next priced round, converts to cash Analyst-in-Residence. All equity retained.