What is the Best Type of Organization for You to Work In?

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Part of your personal branding is the type of company you choose to work for. Exciting small start-ups seem promising and progressive but on the other hand a legacy company offers proven systems, procedures and security. To compare and decide what is right for you, consider the differences:

The Small Start-Up Firm

This type of company is likely to have:

• A sense that no one is really in charge
• A sense of chaotic growth (say, from a staff of 14 to a staff of 400 within 12 months)
• Lots of wasted money (usually the investors’ money)
• No time to train you
• Little stability
• Limited support resources
• Fourteen-hour days, seven days a week
• Zero vacation or free time
• No clear payroll or human resource policies
• No clear practices
• No one to complain to
• No experienced managers as mentors
• More openness between management and rank file
• Increased speed of project execution
• Shorter time for advancement
• Increased risk of failure

The Blue-Chip Legacy Company

This type of company is likely to have:

• Opportunity at almost every level
• Resources
• Profitability (more likely, but not guaranteed)
• A proven reputation
• Security
• Stability
• A large peer group of colleagues
• Experienced managers as mentors
• Assistants
• Vacations
• Longer wait for advancement
• Greater chance of ultimate success

Both types of organizations have a time and a place in a career. The trick is to pick the right time and place for yours.

Picture of Debra Benton

Debra Benton

D.A. (Debra) Benton has been helping great individuals and organizations get even better for over 20 years. Just as exceptional athletes rely on excellent coaching to hone their skills, Debra's clients rely on her advice to advance their careers. She focuses on what is truly important to convert what you and your organization want to be from a vision into a reality. TopCEOCoaches.com ranks her in the World's Top 10 CEO Coaches noting she is the top female. And as conference keynote speaker she is routinely rated in the top 2%. Her client list reads like a “Who's Who” of executives in companies ranging from Microsoft, McDonald's, Kraft, American Express, Merrill Lynch, United Airlines, and PricewaterhouseCoopers to the Washington Beltway and U.S.Border Patrol. *She is the author of ten award-winning and best-selling business books including The Virtual Executive and CEO Material. She has written for the Harvard Business Review, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Businessweek, and Fast Company. She has been featured in USA Today, Fortune, The New York Times, and Time; she has appeared on Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, and CBS with Diane Sawyer. To learn more Debra advising leaders, coaching, facilitating a workshop, or speaking: www.debrabenton.com

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