What you mean with pay to compete? The goal of Signal to exist is to offer a privacy oriented chat app. Non-profit companies serve a propose, and people not aligned with that, shouldn't be working there in the first place. If you join a non-profit to make money, you are doing it wrong.
> talented leaders.
In Bay Area? I'm quite sure you get great people all around the World, or in USA, by much less.
We are talking about C*, Engineer Manager, getting almost 700k/year. Not developers.
It's also how and why long ago they tried to outsource a lot of engineering. They still do try. But that's not an easy transition either.
What is the problem of managers of a non-profit company earning around 700k/year and the company is writing blog posts complaining that the the company operation is too expensive? I think if you read it aloud, you will understand it.
But sure. What do you think is a fair salary or totalccomp for a founder and CEO of a popular, privacy focused app?
From a company living from donations... It is illusion (probably a California thing), to think that you are going to compete salary wise with FAANG. The time will tell (well their complaining about money, is already hinting it)...
I don't even work at a FAANG and I was making almost as much as the director there who lists 200k or so total comp. Probably with 20 years less experience to boot. I don't live in SF either; High CoL area but not SF.
That's why I asked you what's a "reasonable" salary. I'm wondering what your POV here is in terms of compensation.