sns-network-solutions/businesses/01-networking/operator-compensation-proposal.md

SNS Infrastructure — Operator Compensation Proposal

Purpose: A competitive pay proposal for the one builder-operator who will stand up and run SNS Infrastructure LLC. Reflects the actual plan:

• Owner works this part-time (keeps a W-2 job).
• A ~6-month small-business loan funds the operator's payroll runway.
• Labor is project-based via Field Nation / Work Market — not a payroll crew — until steady work justifies hiring more than ~2 people.
• The operator is paid to build the business to self-funding profitability within ~6 months, with a bonus for hitting it.

Supersedes the comp section of sns-infrastructure-hiring.md.

Not legal/tax advice. Have an attorney draft the offer + commission/bonus terms and a CPA confirm the loan and payroll treatment.

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1. The Core Idea

The loan buys 6 months of runway. In that window the operator builds a book of project work (and ideally some recurring service) so that by month ~6 the business's own gross profit covers the operator's fully-loaded salary — i.e., it becomes self-funding and no longer needs the loan or owner subsidy. The bonus rewards reaching that line on time.

Because you need someone to build, not just maintain, the pay must include real upside tied to the revenue they generate — a flat salary alone attracts an operator, not a builder.

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2. Competitive Salary Proposal

Benchmarks (South Bend, 2026): field service managers run ~$57–82k; operations managers average ~$72–99k (senior ~$99k + ~$10k profit-share); senior network engineers $80–110k. A hands-on builder-operator belongs at the operations-manager level.

Recommended package:

Component	Amount	Purpose
Base salary	$78,000/yr ($6,500/mo); range $72–84k	Competitive, fundable by the loan for 6 months
Commission	10% of gross profit on projects sold & delivered	The builder engine — pays them to bring in and close work
Build bonus	$10,000 for hitting the self-funding milestone (§4)	Rewards building it to profitability on time
Vehicle	mileage reimbursement or ~$500/mo allowance	Lean — no fleet
Tools/certifier	company-provided or reimbursed (~$5–12k one-time)	Contractors often bring their own
Cert reimbursement	~$1,500/yr	Retention + skills

Why this is competitive: the $78k base alone matches the local operations- manager market, and the commission + bonus push realistic total comp to ~$95–110k if they perform — attractive to a strong builder while keeping your fixed cost at just the base.

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3. Sizing the 6-Month Loan

Keep the loan lean by using contractors for labor (no crew payroll) and minimal fixed overhead:

Item	6-month figure	Notes
Operator base ($6,500/mo × 6)	~$39,000	The core runway
Employer burden (~25–30%)	~$10,000–12,000	Payroll tax, workers' comp, minimal benefits
Tools + Fluke certifier (one-time)	~$5,000–12,000	Or rent the certifier to cut this
Insurance (GL + WC), licensing	~$3,000–6,000	Get quotes
Vehicle allowance / mileage	~$3,000
Marketing/launch + working capital	~$5,000–10,000	Website, cards, first-project materials float
Total loan target	~$65,000–$80,000	Covers payroll + startup + a buffer

Note: the loan funds the operator's pay and startup — not the contractors. Contractor labor is billed inside each client project and paid from that project's revenue, so it doesn't draw down the runway.

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4. The Build Bonus — define "built it" precisely

Tie the $10,000 bonus to a self-funding milestone, not a vague "grow it":

Milestone: the division produces monthly gross profit ≥ the operator's fully-loaded monthly cost (~$8,300) for 3 consecutive months, achieved within 6 months of start.

Suggested tiering so it's motivating and realistic (see the timeline caveat in §6):

• Hit in ≤6 months → full $10,000
• Hit in 7–9 months → $6,000
• Hit in 10–12 months → $3,000

After the milestone, the business is self-funding: the loan is repaid on schedule and the operator's base is covered by revenue, with commission continuing as the ongoing "act like an owner" incentive.

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5. The Contractor Labor Model (Field Nation / Work Market)

This is what makes 6-month profitability realistic:

• Scope high, dispatch flexibly. The operator sells and scopes the job, then dispatches skilled techs on-demand via Field Nation / Work Market for the labor.
• Typical platform rates: ~$45–75/hr (or flat per-site) for skilled low-voltage/network techs — marked up in the client quote, so each project carries its own labor cost and margin.
• Near-zero fixed labor cost: you pay for labor only when a paid project needs it. No idle payroll between jobs.
• Hire W-2 only when justified: once recurring/steady work reliably keeps ~2 people busy, convert your best contractors to employees.

Classification caution: Field Nation/Work Market techs must remain genuine 1099 independent contractors — set the scope/deliverable, not their hours or methods, or you risk worker-misclassification liability. Keep this clean.

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6. Total-Comp Scenarios (what the operator actually earns)

Assumes ~40% gross margin on project revenue.

Scenario	Revenue built (yr 1)	Base	Commission (10% of GP)	Build bonus	Total
Floor (guaranteed)	minimal	$78,000	~$0	$0	~$78,000
Target	~$300,000	$78,000	~$12,000	$10,000	~$100,000
Strong	~$450,000	$78,000	~$18,000	$10,000	~$106,000

The floor makes it safe enough to leave a stable job; the upside makes building it genuinely worth their effort.

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7. Honest Risk Flags (read before you commit)

1. 6 months to profitability is aggressive for B2B infrastructure — commercial sales cycles run 1–3 months per job, and you're part-time. That's exactly why the bonus is tiered (§4) and the loan carries a buffer. Don't bet the whole plan on hitting month 6 precisely.
2. Salary-only won't attract a builder. The commission is not optional — it's what separates "someone who runs jobs" from "someone who brings in jobs."
3. Loan reality: a brand-new LLC with no revenue history usually needs a personal guarantee and/or collateral; your steady W-2 income strengthens the application. Talk to a lender and to the Indiana SBDC (free advising, South Bend region) about SBA 7(a), an SBA microloan, or a bank line of credit.
4. De-risk further with contract-to-hire. Consider a short paid trial project (or a 1099 ramp) before putting the operator on the full 6-month W-2 runway — it confirms they can actually sell and deliver before the loan is on the line.
5. Protect the asset. Clients, phone number, domain, documentation, and vendor/ platform accounts stay in SNS Infrastructure LLC — plus a narrow Indiana non-solicitation clause (1–2 yrs). See the hiring plan §9.

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8. Recommended Structure — Summary

• Base: $78,000/yr (fundable for 6 months by a ~$65–80k loan).
• Commission: 10% of project gross profit — the builder incentive.
• Build bonus: up to $10,000, tiered, for reaching self-funding profitability.
• Labor: Field Nation / Work Market contractors per project; W-2 only past ~2 steady heads.
• Target total comp if they succeed: ~$100k — competitive locally and worth building for.
• Exit condition: once self-funding (3 months of GP ≥ loaded operator cost), the loan is covered by revenue and you can turn attention to Business #2.