Start-up or Big Co: Which is right for you?
One of the biggest shifts in my career was when I transitioned from being the Chief Technology and Strategy Officer at Cisco to joining an unknown China based start-up called NIO. We scaled NIO from a tiny start-up to a multi-billion dollar public company. The next big transition in my career came when I started my own company, Fable.?
I went from overseeing a global team of thousands to working alone as a founder and entrepreneur. Of course, over time our team grew, and Fable now has about 30 employees. We are still tiny compared to my team at Cisco, or NIO for that matter.?
Now comes a question I get asked a lot: Which is harder, leading a start-up or leading big tech?
It may seem like leading a small team would be easier than leading a big one, but it’s not that simple. Running a start-up is the most fulfilling job I’ve ever had, but it’s also one of the most challenging. With limited resources, every person on the team has to be scrappy, bold, resourceful, and innovative. Each of us wears many hats at Fable, so having core expertise combined with a growth mindset is essential. Key to success in a start-up is the ability to roll up your sleeves and get things done. Start-up roles require a lot of resilience and the ability to thrive with ambiguity.?
Bigger companies, and especially public companies, offer their own challenges and opportunities. There tends to be a more direct career ladder, and plenty of experienced peers to show you the ropes. Working at a large company can sometimes make you feel like a cog in a wheel, though, and it can be hard to feel like you’re making an impact. On the other hand, you learn a lot about scale and managing risks. Leadership roles in large companies are often extremely demanding on your time. Big company leadership roles require both physical and intellectual stamina.
领英推荐
So what’s the right career path for you: the wild west of a start-up, or the more established world of larger companies? There’s no one right answer, and people do switch between the two. The decision between an established company and a start-up ultimately depends on what skill sets you're hoping to develop at this stage in your career.
Are you hoping to dive deep on a particular skill, and emerge an expert in that field? Larger companies tend to have more room for subject matter experts than a scrappy start-up. On the other hand, if you’re ready to get your hands dirty across multiple disciplines and have a direct impact with your work, then a start-up is a great environment.?
Of course, the benefits and job security of a larger company versus a start-up are quite different, too. If you’re looking for stability and established benefits, a larger company might be a better fit for you. If you’re ready to work hard to shape a company from the ground up, though, there’s an opportunity to create great wealth at a promising start-up.?
Anything I missed about the start-up vs big company debate? Where have you found the best fit in your career: a start-up or an established company?
Chief Technology Officer
2 年Padmasree, ever since our first trip to China ????, I have been impressed with your enthusiasm for technology and your genius for linking them to commercialization. Following your career has been thrilling to me — and I appreciate that you have chosen to use your super-powers to CREATE jobs! Jobs that fed 100’s if not 1000’s of families— thank you for that. For setting an example of taking risk while giving it all — I appreciate you!
Engineering Leader|Coach|Mentor
2 年It is always good to get some experience at a Start-Up … I think it is less risky to be in a start-up when you are starting your career...the hunger/energy - all are high.... Big-Co - it is a different environment...the pace/processes etc are all different.
Writer ? editor
2 年You said something so good to Reid Hoffman in your uncut Masters of Scale interview that I've quoted it to at least 5 people since: To lead in a large company, you need a lot of stamina. When I was a C-level executive at Cisco and at Motorola, I could start my day at 4 in the morning, I would have a million things to do; I can end my day as late as I wanted to and I would still have a million things to do. So you need a lot of intellectual, physical, and emotional stamina to deal with the bandwidth of input you're getting, and being able to be very decisive, explain your decisions, motivating everyone to move forward, traveling a lot. In a startup it's different, it's resilience. It's the ability to keep going, knock down those barriers. There'll be 10 people that will say no to you and you're fundraising, and you just need the 11th person to say yes. But you can't give up, you have to keep going. Same thing when you're trying to hire people. A lot of people will not feel comfortable coming to a very risky startup, but you need that one great person to come join you. It's that resilience to keep going that's important in a startup.
Imagine all your data, all your customers, in the fastest, most scalable, accurate and easy to use enterprise database built for operationalizing successful Gen Ai outcomes.
2 年Your one of the best Mark in the industry . Great guiding hand, visionary and executioner which are traits all startups need.
Founder, ex-GoPro, ex-GE, ex-Motorola
2 年Startup! Why? Because 1) stay true to my clients pain points 2) execute startup strategy with no boundaries of big company bureaucracy 3) startup hunger & focus Thank you for sharing Padmasree Warrior