| I think the article misses on all the biggest benefits I had working at a BigCo: 1) You can actually get to work with a lot of companies. We acquired a ton of companies over the years, and I'd often go work in those companies post acquisition while it was still being run as a separate company. So these were smaller companies that were generally successful - you got to see a lot of different practices. 2) Once you are done learning a new job/role (or new company as above), you can easily get the opportunity to move to around to different departments or jobs. I personally did consulting, product management, engineering, architecture, sales operations and strategy (sometimes for the mothership, sometimes for the acquired companies). 3) It's not about smart people I wouldn't say - its about mentors. At a small company, there are just less senior people around, and they are often more focused on delivering. At a big company, more senior execs are really willing and able to mentor the superstars in their teams that make them look good. You combine that with moving about companies or departments, and you get a mix of different mentors with different styles and strengths. 4) It won't apply to everyone, but I personally must have evaluated 50 - 100 companies for M&A or partnerships. I know exactly how to analyze a business, where to look for skeletons, what works well/what doesn't, what a big company will look for (and what are red flags) in an acquisition, when you can/can't get a partnership and what you can use to your advantage in negotiations, etc. Will all be extremely useful skills when you're on the other side of the table. Between the above things, you can learn so much. Stuff like the food/work environmental is so irrelevant compared to this. Don't get me wrong - I have no intentions of ever going back to a big company again. But these were the big benefits for me. |