When to use us
When to Use Fulcrum Employment Advisory vs. When to Hire an Attorney
We are an employment advisory and negotiation coaching service, not a law firm. Here is how to decide which option fits your situation best.
Choose Fulcrum Employment Advisory If…
- You want to negotiate a higher severance payout or base salary (rather than pursue a legal claim through an attorney.)
- You have leverage to negotiate with, including experiences while working at the employer.
- You need practical wording to narrow a broad non-compete or IP clause.
- You want unvarnished commercial advice on what employers actually agree to.
- You want predictable, flat-fee transparency without high legal hourly rates.
Hire an Employment Attorney If…
- You are filing a formal legal lawsuit or administrative claim against your employer.
- You experienced unlawful discrimination, harassment, or illegal retaliation, or other legal claim and want those claims reviewed by a licensed attorney.
- You need formal legal representation in a courtroom or arbitration hearing.
- You are pursuing a high-stakes, multi-year litigation dispute.
If your situation belongs in this column, we will tell you plainly and point you toward licensed counsel rather than take the engagement.
What we advise on
Five advisory areas, grouped by where you are — before you sign, while you're employed, and after the exit — each with its own flat-fee engagement and a written playbook you deliver yourself.
Pre-employment
You have an offer, a contract or an equity grant in hand and you have not signed yet.
Employment Agreements
Non-competes, IP assignments, non-solicits and change-in-control terms — what they cost you and how to narrow them.
- Non-compete scope: duration, geography and defined activity
- IP and invention assignment reach, including prior and side work
- Non-solicit of colleagues and customers
While you're employed
You are still on payroll and something has changed — a plan, a pay dispute, a manager, a reorg.
PIPs / Performance Plans
Exit timelines, building leverage before the exit, and how to respond to the plan in writing.
- Reading the plan: realistic timeline and likely end state
- Response strategy — what to put in writing, and what not to
- Building exit leverage before a separation conversation
Compensation Plans
Bonus structures, equity and vesting schedules, and commission dispute strategy.
- Bonus structure: discretion language, pro-ration and employment conditions
- Equity grants, vesting cliffs, acceleration and post-termination exercise windows
- Commission plan mechanics: crediting, chargebacks and clawbacks
Job Issues
Managing workplace disputes, constructive dismissal scenarios and internal negotiation strategy.
- Framing a workplace dispute so it stays solvable
- Constructive dismissal scenarios and how to document them
- Internal negotiation strategy: role, scope, pay and reporting lines
After the exit
A separation or severance package is on the table and the terms are still open.
Severance
Release scopes, cash delta negotiation and clawbacks — read in commercial terms, then turned into asks you can actually make.
- Release scope: what you are signing away and how far it reaches
- Cash delta negotiation on gross base severance, in priority order
- All rounds of the negotiation included, coached exchange by exchange
Fulcrum provides employment advisory and negotiation coaching. We are not a law firm, we do not provide legal advice, and we do not represent you in any legal or administrative proceeding.