Big advantages of working for small enterprises

SMEs offer workers opportunity to be a part of business operations at different levels and across functions. PHOTO | FOTOSEARCH 
 By NJOKI KARUNGU

The tide is changing, and more and more people are discovering the strategic opportunity that small and medium -sized businesses provide in terms of experience, learning, growth, investments and the unique opportunity to build networks.

Previously, it was considered a huge risk working for small and medium entreprises (SMEs) and they were always considered as option two, while job seekers continued to actively pursue and wish to be hired by the big global brands and multinationals.

Millennials and other generations after them are different and have a free-spirited approach to work and the way they assess opportunities. They have a growth mindset which has been fuelled by the various opportunities that innovation has opened up.

Many have ambitions of setting up their own companies and even for those in employment, very few intend to mimic their parents’ journeys and remain with an employer for life, eventually receiving a tidy pension along with a long service awards certificate.

There are so many justifications as to why working for an SME has strong advantages and could be just what you need to propel your career forward in a quicker and seamless fashion. Some of the notable advantages that smaller companies have over bigger ones include:

Holistically Understanding the Business: Few companies will give you the opportunity to be a part of business operations at different levels and across functions. Even with bigger organisations that provide this, the advantage is reserved for a select few who have been categorised in the top talent group.

Working for an SME will give you in depth exposure across different facets of the business if you are proactive and within a short timeframe too. While there is a possibility that you are getting this exposure because you are simply amazing, the most likely reason this exposure is generously given is because there are limited resources in terms of manpower, meaning everyone has to roll up their sleeves and get stuff done.

This is an advantage to you either way as you will have cross functional opportunities, in depth understanding of the organisation and involvement in brainstorming sessions that would otherwise involve just senior management in bigger companies. That’s huge value for your career and development.

Less Politics: Human beings are innately political so if you are trying to get away from your current job because there is too much politics, I am afraid you will be doing the rounds around town seeking your perfect employer. The only difference is that SMEs have less politics simply because there are fewer people and fewer social complexities as a result. This advantage means that most of the time, what you see is what you get and you don’t have to overthink approaches to sharing ideas or raising concerns. You have the luxury of simply speaking your mind and sharing your thoughts without having to think critically of the politically correct approach to do so.

CAREER PROSPECTS:

There are better career prospects than you have available to you in a bigger company especially if you demonstrate your value and are consistently delivering. The chances of you being overlooked especially if you have an introverted personality are higher in a bigger corporation than in an SME. You may even be lucky enough to pioneer and set up a whole new department from scratch as the company continues to grow.

MAKING A MARK:

Being at an SME at a very strategic time just when they are about to blow up will do wonders for your track record and your profile. You will have the opportunity to proudly indicate that you were part of the rock star team that took the company from obscurity to being a large and well respected organisation.

One of the big indicators as to whether this will actually happen include the leadership approach and strategic thinking of the CEO and leadership team, financial management, quality of talent, how vested the Board are in the success of the company and the level of investment.

Working for an SME however does have its disadvantages some of which may include occasionally getting anxious towards the end of the month as you hope payroll goes through on time, missing out on some perks that you would easily enjoy in a larger company and possibly experiencing higher levels of stress due to having an intense workload.

However, depending on your risk appetite, it may well be a welcome and exciting move for you if you would like to shake things up in your professional life.