You've graduated from college and you have a couple of job offers on the table. On one hand there is a high-paying entry level position at a reputed multinational company in your field. On the other hand there is a job offer from a small startup that is just kicking off. You've seen their product, believe in their mission, and like their approach, but you are not sure whether you want to take the risk of working at a startup. You are leaning towards that multinational job and good pay with nice benefits. The smart choice. Or is it?
Usually, multinational careers are more attractive. But despite the lure of stability, structure, and benefits of a multinational job, more newbie job seekers are now taking the less road taken, especially now with tech startups.
The decision depends to a large extent, on your career goals. How do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years? If you have visions of becoming a CEO for a large company, a multinational job may help you turn that dream into reality. On the other hand, if your entrepreneurial spirit is far greater, you might want to think about setting up your own company. In reality, you might take up a job because you need to fulfill certain immediate necessities; but a career is something you would build painstakingly and consciously throughout your lifetime, with bits and pieces of it happening every day.
One point where startups score higher than multinationals is career growth. Startups are on a growth phase at any given point of time, at the same time a great platform to showcase your innovation. One can experiment with one's ideas and make themselves heard, which is not the case with multinationals as roles are quite well defined in such organisations.
Startups can also be the right choice for the current generation as they are "cool" places to work. As most of the startups are flat organisations with little hierarchy, the younger crowd prefers them over multinationals. MNCs are also very process-driven which makes the whole delivery system very slow in comparison to startups.
Are you the type who works best in a more relaxed culture? Or do you perform better in a structured environment? There are people who thrive well in "think-outside-the-box" type of environments while others tend to be more productive when provided with a methodical way of doing things. Neither is actually better; it all depends on your personality, work style, and career goals
So the debate here comes down to passion vs profession; should one choose a stable, secure profession, or pursue one's passion that is soul satisfying but takes you nowhere monetarily in the initial stages. There are several instances of IIM and IIT graduates who have the courage to eschew the safe corporate haven for pursuing their dreams; be it setting up a specialised restaurant or starting a niche service; these youngsters have stuck to their guns and veered from the traditional route. A practical approach would be to first look after your physical needs and after attaining financials security branch out to cultivate your passion.
Column by: Kunal Sen, Senior vice president, TeamLease Services
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