Board seat

A place on the company's board of directors, which oversees the company and can hire or fire the CEO.

Example

A three-person board: two founders and the lead investor.

Important

Board composition matters more than most valuation terms. Control of the board is control of the company.

Related terms

• Term sheet — A short, mostly non-binding document setting out the main terms of an investment before the full legal documents are drafted.
• Board of directors — The group legally responsible for overseeing the company on behalf of shareholders.
• Governance — The rules and structures by which decisions get made and the company is held accountable.

Lessons that explain it

• Reading a term sheet — Two to four pages that decide the next several years. What each clause means and which ones actually matter. (15 min)

All 176 terms in the Founder glossary