Option Pool (ESOP)
Shares set aside to grant as options to employees, advisors and future hires.
An Employee Share Option Pool (often via the UK’s EMI scheme) reserves equity to attract and retain talent. Typically 10–15% of the cap table, it is created or topped up at funding rounds and dilutes existing shareholders. A well-sized pool signals you can hire the team needed to scale.
Examples
A startup creates a 10% EMI option pool before its seed round. — A key engineer joins for salary plus 0.5% in options.
How it relates to The Startup Foundry
The Team Report helps you assess team composition, and the Foundry’s tools help you use options to build the team investors want to back.