【アレスグッド アドベントカレンダー Day24】Navigating From Corporation to Startup With Purpose and Passion

🎄このエントリーはアレスグッドの Advent Calendar 2023 という企画の24日目の記事です。

Season's Greetings! I'm Jesse, currently doing infrastructure engineering at Allesgood. Today is Christmas Eve so I thought I'd write a little program in Golang to show some holiday spirit. The following program displays an ASCII tree and the height is adjustable.

Transitioning To Startup

Until this past November, I'd spent my entire career working for large organizations. I think that transitioning from a large, established company to a startup requires adaptability, resilience, and a willingness to embrace change. Here are some key takeaways I've encountered in my short time at Allesgood so far:

1. Culture Shock

   • Flexibility: Startups appear to be more agile and flexible. While large corporations have much more established processes, startups require employees to wear multiple hats and adapt quickly to changing priorities.

   • Risk-taking: I think corporations have a difficult time focusing on innovation. At my previous company, I was very eager to introduce new technologies but every time I presented a business plan it was shot down as being unnecessary and not in the interest of the business.

2. Autonomy and Responsibility:

   • Ownership: Since an infrastructure team hasn't been defined yet, I feel like I have more ownership in my projects and decisions. This is more autonomy than I'm used to so I feel very empowered.

   • Resource Constraints: Startups tend to operate with limited resources. Learning to do more with less has been challenging and rewarding.

3. Adaptability

   • Dynamic Environment: Change has been a constant in my short time at Allesgood. The need to adapt quickly to market trends, customer feedback,  and internal shifts is apparent.

4. Communication

   • Open Communication: While at large companies I have had had 5 or more direct reports, startups seem to have much more direct lines of communication.

5. Network and Visibility

   • Visibility: In large teams I found it easy to get lost in the crowd. Startups have smaller teams so contributions are more visible.

6. Vision

   • Alignment With Vision: It's important to understand the startup's mission and vision. I think that aligning with these goals will contribute to my satisfaction and commitment to Allesgood.

Conclusion

I thought that transitioning from a large company to a startup would be an enriching experience that offered me challenges and opportunities for both personal and career growth. It's required me to shift my mindset, adapt, and think more about innovation. I think that as I continue to thrive in a dynamic and entrepreneurial environment it will be immensely rewarding.