http://www.allaboutcareers.com/articles/post/management-consulting-business-admin/culture-shock-the-difference-between-an-sme-a-large-corporate.htm
"Objectives vs. demands…
In a large corporate, you’re protected by a hierarchy, which is wrapped in ‘HR policy’ and cushioned by process. By this, I mean you’re given very clear objectives, you have a fair timeframe in which to achieve them, and your manager is on standby to oversee, guide and advise. Moreover, ‘the way things are done’ tends to involve a certain amount of diplomacy: nobody really says what they think because they’re so busy wrapping it up as ‘developmental feedback’ in accordance with the training they’ve received. It’s a very safe environment.
By contrast, in an SME (small and medium-sized enterprise), the CEO knows everybody and is aware of every activity. He doesn’t care about hierarchy because their probably isn’t one. If he wants something, he will come straight to you and, because time is so precious and clients are so demanding, you can often kiss goodbye to your weekend in delivering what he needs. It’s all hands to the pump and you all need to earn your salary.
An SME is much more efficient in its delivery, but a corporate is much kinder about it. Consequently, you need tough skin if you’re going to work in an SME because you're often in the direct firing line. However, you need patience in a large corporate because the process and procedures can often slow you down a tad.
Master of all trades, jack of none…
In a large corporate, you’ll often have a role profile and a set of five or six key objectives to deliver. You’ll have a personal development plan and training options. You’ll have a mentor, a manager and a coach. You’ll be in a team and a department with a certain focus and a specific area of expertise and you’ll learn the knowledge, skills and experience needed to add value to that department. To advance, you’ll need to master your topic. You’ll follow processes and track performance against key KPIs (key performance indicators).
In an SME, however, you will literally know, see and do anything and everything. You’ll learn faster, harder and in more depth than you would do in a corporate. Cross-fertilisation of knowledge and virtual working on projects is the norm. You’re very unlikely to ever do the same thing twice because everything is so bespoke and client-driven. It’s what my boss would call ‘on-demand hierarchy’, meaning the best person for the job gets the job on the day.
Obviously, the cons of this are: insecurity, randomness and the difficulty of outperforming against objectives because you probably won’t have any! However, you do get to see, touch and learn about every aspect of running a business; you become an all-round consultant (that awful C-word). You can get involved in finance, marketing, bids, PR, events management etc. Consequently, when it comes to your next interview, you can give yourself the job title that suits the role to which you’re applying. Bingo!
Sink or swim…
In a large corporate, you have such a thing as ‘performance management’, whereby you’re measured objectively against your specific core objectives (something you’ll rarely have in an SME). If you’re doing well, you get praised and maybe even promoted. If you’re not doing so well, you get mentored, guided and trained in a lengthy performance management process, which will help bring you back on track. It’s all very fair and drawn out, and it can lead to complacency.
In an SME, on the other hand, if you’re no good, you’re out the door! An SME can’t afford to carry ‘dead wood’, and so if you’re not adding value, you’re going to get your marching orders.
Consequently, in a large corporate, you can afford to have an off-month and coast through your role for a little while. You can let others in the team pick up the slack because you’re hidden to a large extent and protected by HR to an even larger extent. In an SME, however, somebody will notice the second you put your pen down, because it’s all hands to the pump and there is little luxury by way of hierarchy, HR and ‘corporate buffer’.
Having worked in both arenas, I can say that I learnt a great deal in both. I felt safe in my large corporate and I felt on edge in my SME. I learnt a lot about specific aspects of business in my large corporate, but I learnt a lot about running a business in general in my SME. A ‘win’ in a large corporate was expected, but a ‘win’ in an SME was a celebration.
Therefore, go into both areas of business with your eyes open and with an open mind. Each option has an entirely different package to offer you, and one is not necessarily better than the other; they’re just different and different can always be a shock to the system.
