Google's Riches Trickle Down

posted by Jared Fruland
copied from MarketWatch

All those harried days juggling phone calls have paid off handsomely for Shannon Hermes.
Hermes now owns about $1.3 million worth of Google (GOOG, news, msgs) stock, the result of Google's acquisition of YouTube last year, according to a new regulatory filing by Google.

But this new millionaire isn't one of the founders of the video-sharing startup. Nor can she take credit for planting the venture-capital seed money that got it off the ground. Hermes, as it happens, is none other than the receptionist and office manager for YouTube.

It's well-known that Google's $1.65 billion purchase of YouTube made very rich men out of co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, who each received hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Google stock. There's also been lots of attention paid to how Sequoia Capital, one of YouTube's original venture-capital backers, stands to make about $442.3 million from the deal.

Video: YouTube's big break

But what's emerging now is the dozens of less glamorous YouTube people pocketing multimillion-dollar rewards, at least on paper, from the acquisition. Most appear to have been with the company since it was founded in mid-2005, and they occupy positions far from the boardroom.

Aside from Hermes, there's Julie Supan, YouTube's chief spokeswoman, who received Google stock worth $4.9 million, according to the company's regulatory filing. Heather Nicole Gillette, YouTube's director of customer support, is facing a potential $4 million payday.

For helping to build YouTube's systems, Bradley Wayne Heilbrun has a potential $6.1 million payout. Christina Brodbeck, a senior user-interface designer, is now worth at least $8.9 million. For serving as a YouTube community advocate, Micah Jody Schaffer Shebar could cash out with $1.63 million.

"It's just mind-boggling," said Joe Capobianco, a mergers-and-acquisitions attorney with Reisman, Peirez and Reisman, a Garden City, N.Y., law firm.