The Real Impact of Startup Experience on Your Resume and Job Search

Why Employers Value Startup Experience

There are few experiences as humbling as working for yourself or being part of a startup. Only in a startup do you see the "boss" doing the same work that entry level team members do. This experience creates embedded work archetypes that are highly sought after by savvy companies.

Hiring Managers often view startup backgrounds as a badge of scrappiness, a diploma of capability if you will. Startups don't have the luxury of extra options for support, so if you were there, you probably learned how to roll up your sleeves and get stuff done. That kind of resourcefulness translates into adaptability, problem solving, and initiative. All traits that hiring managers are after.

These traits are difficult to detect on resumes through subjective bullet points on their own. No matter the number of positive sounding verbs like owned, directed, led, or created, what a Hiring Manager is really after is someone who can perform and deliver.

The Caveat With Larger Companies

Larger, enterprise companies may have some concerns with hiring those who only possess startup experience. Big companies often have bureaucracy that requires careful navigation which can make it difficult to get items over the finish line. Decision making is slowed, stakeholders lists widen, and timelines drag on. It takes the right kind of navigator in this environment to succeed. It also takes the right of Hiring Manager to help shepherd their new hire into this organization that differs from their startup world.

How to Present Startup Experience

The key is positioning, then presenting your startup experience. The results you delivered, the challenges you overcame, and the impact you had should all be things top of mind when talking through what you did. No interviewer needs to hear that you were also the one who started the morning coffee for the office (I was previously because I was always the first one in the office!)

If you're interviewing with a larger company, relate your startup experience to how you might work cross functionally, with larger groups. Tie your experiences in the fast paced, startup world to how you would adjust in the enterprise world. Call out common concerns like navigating the different layers and your plans for how to hit the ground running.

Bottom Line

Startup experience is valuable, not just on your resume, but in proving your resilience and creativity. Embrace opportunities to spend time with smaller companies where you're able to broaden your impact. This experience will be marketable and useful the next time you're searching for a new role.