Short answer: compare the cash you can rely on, the stock value you might receive, and the risk that the stock price changes before or after vesting.
Stock-heavy offers look precise. A company may show total compensation as salary plus bonus plus RSUs. The number can feel real.
But the RSU part is not cash. It depends on vesting, share price, taxes, refresh grants, and whether you hold or sell after vesting.
Separate cash from stock
Start with guaranteed or near-guaranteed cash:
- ✓Base salary.
- ✓Sign-on bonus.
- ✓Expected cash bonus, if reliable.
Then treat RSUs separately.
For RSUs, write down:
- ✓Grant value.
- ✓Number of shares or calculation method.
- ✓Vesting schedule.
- ✓First vest date.
- ✓Refresh grant policy.
- ✓Trading-window restrictions.
- ✓Tax treatment at vesting and sale.
Do not compare two offers only by headline total compensation.
Model three stock scenarios
Use simple scenarios:
- ✓Stock down 30 percent.
- ✓Stock flat.
- ✓Stock up 30 percent.
This does not predict the future. It shows how dependent the offer is on one variable.
If one offer looks great only when the stock rises, it is not the same as cash. It may still be worth taking, but you should know what you are accepting.
Check vesting timing
A four-year grant does not mean four years of cash today.
Ask:
- ✓When does the first vest happen?
- ✓Is there a one-year cliff?
- ✓Are vests monthly, quarterly, or annually?
- ✓What happens if you leave before a vest date?
- ✓Are refresh grants common or discretionary?
Vesting timing affects cash flow. It also affects risk because you may be exposed to share-price moves before shares become yours.
Check concentration after joining
If you accept a stock-heavy offer and hold every vest, employer stock can become a large part of net worth quickly.
That is not automatically bad. But it needs a plan.
Before accepting, decide how you will treat vested shares. Will you sell a fixed portion? Hold all? Sell above a threshold? Use proceeds for Indian expenses or global diversification?
The offer decision and the future selling rule are connected.
A quick check
Before accepting a stock-heavy offer, ask:
- ✓What is the cash floor?
- ✓What happens if the stock falls before vesting?
- ✓How much of my future net worth could depend on this company?
- ✓What tax applies when shares vest?
- ✓Will I have a selling rule after joining?