When we think about career progression, we often think about upskilling, moving up the ranks, getting salary increases and getting new jobs in bigger companies and global businesses.
There’s nothing wrong with this career trajectory, but if this is your automatic thought process, you could be missing out on some golden opportunities and stronger skills that only a small company can offer.
Bigger companies often have a lot of departments, a lot of processes and a lot of red tape to get through when you’re looking to implement a new process, start a new project or try a new strategy.
Working at a smaller company will mean less red tape, which means that you will have more of a change to be innovative, streamline processes, try new projects and generally get a chance to stretch your skills and shine. Having the autonomy to spearhead projects will do wonders for your CV.
When you are part of a global business or even just a very large organisation, you could be dealing with much bigger projects than at a small company. However, the part you play in that project is more than likely much smaller.
In small companies, you, your efforts, your achievements and your work is much more visible and often has a much more direct effect on the business itself. This can feel much more impactful and meaningful when you go into work every day.
The bigger the company, the more staff there is, which means more segregation of roles. The benefits to this can sometimes be that you never have to give a dig out to other departments or leave your comfort zone. However, the downside is you are less likely to learn how other departments work.
In small companies, employees often wear many hats, take on additional responsibilities and brainstorm with other departments. This means that you will gain valuable, in-depth knowledge far beyond your own role. When it comes to your own career progression, this will mean a lot more skills and areas of expertise for you to brag about.
Finally, when you take a role at a smaller company, it means you’re working a lot more closely with your colleagues, other departments and leaders. Not only will you get the chance to get to know your colleagues because there will be fewer people to get to know, but you will get to have much more face time and interaction with senior members of staff. It also means you will more than likely be a lot closer to the ‘coal face’ of the business, be that customers, clients or both.
These conversations can make employees more understanding of other departments and the needs of the business as a whole, making for a more fluid work environment and leaves you with excellent communication skills, relationship-building skills and skills around working with stakeholders.
Taking a role at a small company can be even more beneficial for employees who have only ever been in large companies or international businesses.
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Written with contributions from the RECRUITERS team
Big and small plant photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
