Ask HN: Pros and Cons of First Job Out of College at Small Company

2 pointsjoeclef10y ago2 comments

What are the pros and cons of getting your first job out of college at a small company? Does that have any kind of negative impact on your future job prospects? Thank you!

2 comments

stray10y ago

You're young. And because you're young, you should gather experience of a wide array of work situations. You'll learn from them all and that will make you more valuable.

For me, working at large corporations whose names are universally recognizable caused me to become technically lazy yet adept at socio-political maneuvering.

Small companies can be awesome. But not always. Sometimes they re horrible. But you usually get a chance to gain more varied experience than you will at BigCorp.

smt8810y ago

Pros:

- Possibly more educational

- More face time with executives

- Likely to be less rigid in structure, responsibilities, working style, etc.

- Possibility to share in profits if company succeeds

- Possibility to earn valuable stock options (though you should always treat stock as worth nothing if the company isn't cash-flow positive or doesn't have a thriving customer base)

Cons:

- Less of a resume booster (in the eyes of some)

- Potentially worse salary

- Potentially more/harder work

- Less opportunity to switch roles, offices, teams, etc.

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