Company co-founders often split ownership of their startup evenly. It seems fair and simple.
But starting off equal may hurt the company’s chances of getting off the ground.
New research finds that early-stage companies formed with an equal ownership split—such as 50% each for two partners or 25% each for four—were less likely to have measurable revenue or employees one year later, says Dave Noack, an assistant professor of entrepreneurship in the Goddard School of Business and Economics at Weber State University in Ogden, Utah.
