There are different benefits attached to working with different sized companies. When it comes to smaller and mid-sized companies your opportunity of learning a wider spectrum of skills is greater. When you enter a large organization which has a clear set of hierarchies and clearly defined work responsibilities, chances of you moving out of your responsibility zone and learning new things are lesser. This is the main benefit of working with a growing company. A mid-sized company which is spreading its wings is a hub of activity, sometimes even chaotic. Given the fact that there are fewer people, here everybody gets more chances of stepping out of their comfort zones and handle greater number of responsibilities. You might be an expert at client servicing, but in a smaller firm you might be required to improvise time and again and work on other aspects like event organization, writing newsletters, marketing your work on social media etc.

The exposure of all aspects of work and challenges you see at a mid-sized company are way more than at larger organizations. At larger organizations, younger professionals have a lot of cushion in the form of seniors who are available to guide as well as take the bashing. On the other hand, in a smaller organization, there is no such cushion. If you are handing a project, you have to be responsible for it and execute it to the best of your abilities. You may also be required to do a lot of things professionals in similar positions may not need to do in larger organizations. For example, researching about a project and preparing presentations and conducting client meetings may be the responsibilities of different people in a larger organization but a single professional may need to do all of it himself/herself in a mid-sized company. Naturally, the training is intense and useful for all your life.

For senior professionals, mid-sized companies offer a new form of challenge in that they need to train their juniors and guide them more comprehensively at different stages. Thus seniors get all kinds of exposure in a small or mid-sized company as opposed to a big company.

From the perspective of the human resources department, in a small company the employees can be given more flexibility in terms of working hours, salary structure and other such aspects. Today there are many startups which are letting their employees work from home or reach office at slightly different timings than usual. This way, employees are also able to contribute more and give their best. Giving such flexibility to employees in a large organization by the HR department is not that easy.

From the point of view of the employees, it is all the more worthy to work and prove his or her skills in a small organization than in a big one. In a small company, individual talent is recognized more easily than in big ones. Small organizations also allow an employee to think out of the box and implement such ideas or bring such ideas into action. Large companies may not offer that flexibility.

** The author is VP, HR, Sun Life Financial Asia Service Centre