Joining a startup an option I had never considered, mainly because it lacked "brand recognition". In fact, it wasn't until we started hiring our first employees that I realized what a great learning experience joining an early stage company can be.
First of all, it's super exciting being a part of an organization that grows rapidly, whether you're an employee or a founder. But in terms of a learning experience, I can't think of one better.
The very early stages of a company are difficult to describe to an outsider. It's made worse by the fact that most founder stories obscure many of the details that happen, and that so few founders write about in the moment experiences. If you join an early stage startup, you see the non-Techcrunched version of a startup. You see the decisions that were made that would make or break the company. You see all the things that didn't work. You see founders at each others throats. You see their first bad hire that they needed to fire. You witness the janky backend code that was created to get the product launched, and then clean it up. And you see the company go through different phases of growth. This learning is incredibly valuable.
Additionally, if your founders are legit, you'll have access to their mentorship and networks when the time does come. You will also meet potential cofounders, and have a network of people from different areas of business – marketing, sales, development, product management, ect. And if you joined a good company, you'll be surrounded by bright and driven people who will only make you better.
TFA has a bit of triumphalism, but makes solid observations, too.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Tuesday October 13 2015, @02:14AM
The point of an MBA is to give you enough exposure to all aspects of running a business that you can appreciate them for what they are, their needs, their contributions to the whole, and just a little bit of what makes them tick.
The startups I participated in were so bloody small that everyone in the company effectively got a continuous MBA style education, we were always interfacing with every aspect of the business. I did it long enough to come to the conclusion that, at this point in my life (young kids at home), I have no aspiration to management type work: people are just too damn needy, double that sentiment for HR. No lust for sales: I've traveled the world enough and really don't get a thrill from flying places like I used to. No patience for quality: no explanation necessary, I would think. And, between manufacturing and design, I much prefer putting out fires on design timetables instead of manufacturing ones.
I suppose, someday, I might try to cash in my startup chops and make a run at upper management, but, really, there's an awful lot of undignified hazing that goes on before they let you on that floor. Maybe if I'm invited without having to pay 5-10 years of dues, but I doubt that will ever happen.
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(Score: 3, Interesting) by frojack on Tuesday October 13 2015, @03:01AM
Yeah, continuous MBA pretty well describes it.
We started our own code house, which grew it size but never so big the principals didn't know what was going on in every project. And as one of the two top principals, I can only think of one time there was serious disagreement, which lasted at most two days. Our second level managers were treated like equals, paid well, everyone was eligible to join our 401K, etc.
We started after a few years stint in different companies. Those taught us a lot, but we always saw ourselves as running our own business sooner or later. After leaving those companies we could walk back in with a proposal in response to various RFPs, and the same advise we gave to management (only to have it ignored or turned down) as employees was suddenly golden.
We started a couple joint ventures with other companies, both of which ended badly, but we came out undamaged (mostly), but wiser. We fired a few mistakes but were very selective in who we hired.
Our own expansion into hardware and international sales was very profitable, but caused a lot of midnight hours. We even got played by a scammer once, for a few thousand bucks in hardware.
TFA reads pretty true from my perspective, which was sort of from the other end, not the employee side.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday October 13 2015, @08:57AM
and the same advise we gave to management (only to have it ignored or turned down) as employees was suddenly golden.
That is why one must never sell oneself short or take a position that is below one's level of expertise (except when there is a financial need).
0. If your worth is 100, never take 90.
1. If your level is (technical) project management, never accept engineering.
I've done both of those and became wiser afterwards.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Gaaark on Tuesday October 13 2015, @12:05PM
Reminds me of watching the formation of Soylentnews: at first from the inside, then the outside.
Chaos, brought under some kind of control. Good work Soylent leaders!
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Tuesday October 13 2015, @10:28PM
>Joining a startup an option I had never considered
Really? That seems kinda lazy. At least stick a [sic] in there if you're not going to fix it.
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(Score: 2) by Yog-Yogguth on Wednesday October 14 2015, @02:01PM
I think it might be missing a comma or semicolon:
Joining a startup; an option I had never considered …
Or maybe an is is missing :)
Joining a startup is an option I had never considered …
Easy to skip a few characters now and then.
Of course there's no reason to limit oneself:
Joining a startup, now in the name of the great flying spaghetti monster (with extra meatballs) and its noodly appendages of deliciousness there's an option I had never considered …
I.e. it might have been too much editing :@
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(Score: 2) by darkfeline on Wednesday October 14 2015, @11:18PM
Even if you use a comma or semicolon, that sentence would still be missing a verb. That verb would be "was".
Both your first and third example are still not grammatically correct, and your second example is in the wrong tense given the context.
(That's 0 out of 3 correct.)
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(Score: 2) by Yog-Yogguth on Thursday October 15 2015, @01:24AM
English is a lot more flexible and nuanced than what you're arguing, however “was” is also an option and particularly if one wants to imply that joining a startup is a possibilty that no longer applies. Yet another option ”would be“ would be more of a stretch and sound too old-fashioned to most people.
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