An allocation can look long term while leaving a basic question unresolved: what happens when a recipient leaves? ALFA's indicative team-and-founders category is 10%, with final vesting and release conditions unpublished. The departure rules should be agreed with the award, so the programme does not have to invent them when circumstances become difficult.
Distinguish earned and unearned positions
An award agreement should define how entitlement develops and what events alter it. Time served, completed milestones and continued service can produce different outcomes. Transfer restrictions may continue after entitlement has developed, depending on the documented terms.
These conditions should be expressed separately. A published calendar cannot resolve the recipient's position if the agreement never specifies the effect of resignation, termination or a changed role. The programme should also identify the responsible entity and authority for determining the position, avoiding a conflict between the employment record, award agreement and technical release mechanism.
Walk through a role change
Suppose a hypothetical engineer receives an award for a defined development engagement and later becomes an external adviser. The organisation needs to decide whether the original conditions continue, end or are replaced under a new agreement. That decision should be recorded before further releases. The transfer of knowledge, access and unfinished work also requires attention, but it should not be confused with the economic entitlement. A person may have completed an earned milestone while still needing to return administrative access. Both matters deserve clear treatment, with neither used casually as a substitute for the other.
Match enforcement to the agreement
OpenZeppelin documents vesting-wallet mechanisms, but the chosen implementation must match the actual commercial conditions. A standard time schedule may not enforce a condition based on employment status or milestone acceptance without additional design. The release file should state which conditions are automated and which depend on authorised action.
If recovery or cancellation of unearned amounts is intended, the agreement and technical arrangement should support it. The programme should avoid claiming a clawback merely because managers expect voluntary repayment. Any such capability also needs careful permission review because it can materially affect a recipient's position.
Explain the category after departures
A supply register should identify the treatment of unearned awards and any revised commitments, applying the approved policy consistently. The public report can explain category changes without exposing unnecessary personal details. ALFA's current brief establishes no specific cliff, departure rule or clawback power. Publishing the final terms would let readers assess the intended alignment more accurately than a percentage alone. It would also give the organisation a fair way to maintain its development budget when people and roles change, with a dated record connecting the original award to its eventual release or cancellation.
