
Ask HN: How do I present my side project to my current company? - d--b
Hi HN,<p>I have been working on a side project for a while, and now I think I have a prototype that is not quite ready for beta, but almost. At the same time, a partner at my current job told me that they have a project they want to do, and they don&#x27;t really know how to make it happen. What they don&#x27;t know is that the side project I have been developing would be perfect for the task.<p>So I really want to take advantage of the situation by approaching the partner and telling him that I have been working on a tool on my own, and that it would make sense for them to use it for their project.<p>What I would like to do is:<p>1. Create a company (not yet created because I work in finance, and if I create a company I have to tell my boss for legal reasons...)<p>2. Make sure the company owns the IP of the tool I developed<p>3. Still work at my current job, part-time if possible, to keep the money coming and to integrate my tool into their infrastructure, and to have some time to work on the company (raising money, communicate, finding other clients)<p>4. In 6 months or so, leave my current job, and work full time on the company.<p>So, I am asking myself the following questions:<p>a. Is that a sound plan?<p>b. How do I present my plan to them?<p>c. This must happen all the time, are there any kind of templatized legal agreements for my point 2 and 3 above?<p>d. Are there any pitfalls? What are the ways I can get screwed?<p>Any help, past experiences to share, or good advice would be much appreciated! It is a rather exciting &#x2F; stressful time!
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dudul
A few thoughts:

. Be really sure that your current company can't claim ownership of your
project. Have you ever worked on it during work hours? Have you used company
property to work on it? Have you used code produced at work in it? Also, some
states are very unfair towards employees, and everything they do on their
spare time belongs to their employer.

. I see a big conflict of interest if you own the company developing the
product and work at your current job to integrate it. What if something needs
to be fixed? Are you gonna do it at work? But then they're paying you to fix a
product belonging to another company. Are you gonna have a contract with them
to improve the product? Why would they keep you on the payroll?

My advice: create your company, work on your product on your own time, find
another first customer.

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iolothebard
Why do you need to tell your current company anything?

Just work your normal job until it becomes too inconvenient to keep working
there, give 2 weeks notice and be on your way.

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d--b
Because it's a great way to show that there is a market for the product?

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saluki
Sounds tempting to get them to try it out . . . but I would avoid mixing your
work world and future company/product world, keep them isolated, you have your
contract that states it's your IP but if this thing is really awesome and
fills a need they are looking for they could change their mind or create a
legal hassle for you. Maybe not likely but possible.

I would contact other potential users of the product while staying away from
your direct competitors to your day job just to keep things isolated. Grow
some users/revenue then think about putting in your notice once you reach a
level of revenue that you are comfortable with.

Signing up your current company isn't really a way to show their is a market
for your product since you have an inside connection.

Grow an email list and test out signing up people/companies you don't know.

Good luck with your company, sounds promising.

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cjslep
I am in a somewhat similar position, having worked on a few side projects but
seriously doubt my current company will ever be interested in them. They do
not conflict with my current employer's business interests. When I was hired
onto my current employer I signed a document that transferred rights of
software I develop to them. IANAL, I was naive coming out of college, so I
don't know if that was standard.

What this has manifested as so far is I have sent emails to HR when
contributing to open source code under guidance of my mentor, and they have
not cared so far. I am on good terms with management so coming to an agreement
about side projects is not out of the question.

All advice I've gotten so far points towards having a clear separation of
resources used, target market, and ensuring current employer is on good terms
with what you do.

Edited for clarity.

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jeffmould
IANAL, but a few items you may consider:

1\. Did you work on the side project using any of the resources of your
current company? If so, they could potentially claim they own the IP. Even
still they could try to say that you developed the product knowing there was a
need for it within their company therefore they should own the IP.

2\. Do you have any sort of employment agreement that stipulates ownership of
side projects?

3\. Depending on your company they may force you to quit before allowing you
to sell a product back to the company. Some companies can be touchy when it
comes to potential conflicts of interest like this.

4\. Most importantly, I would talk to an attorney before proceeding to discuss
any potential pitfulls. A few hundred dollars spent now could potentially save
you thousands down the road in legal fees.

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d--b
1 no 2 yes, the contract states that everything that I do outside of work
hours and not using the office equipment is mine 3 ah didn't know that 4 I did
that, yes, that was definitely useful

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nodivbyzero
Watch Silicone Valley
[http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2575988/](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2575988/)

Exactly the same story

