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Conclusion
If investors address issues like these early on, the challenges can be dealt with constructively, to everyone's benefit. At the fund-raising stage, it is easy to overlook the people issues, as everyone gets their heads down to pore over the figures. But if people really are the most valuable asset, some HR due diligence is essential - perhaps even critical. For Silicon Fen and similar companies, employee share schemes are here to stay. However, investors are entitled to challenge whether a company has the right kind of employee share scheme.

If you have any comments about employee share schemes, or if you would like to take part in N W Brown's survey of share schemes in private companies, please email: share.schemes@nwbrown.co.uk

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