Start with a
Start-Up - My Top 10 Learning
When
I first time walked in my first Start up organization for interview some three
and a half years back, I got confused and jolted. It was a small office as
compared to where I was working then and not to mention the count of employees
was only four and I being expected to be the fifth. My parents and dear ones
were worried and kept repeating if I was taking the right decision to join
a Start-Up by leaving a reputed MNC. I too had a few nervous nights before finally
deciding to take the plunge.
Was
it a calculated decision?
Absolutely
not..!!
Getting
into what ultimately made me join might be another tale to tell however, the
experience so far has been absolutely gripping and the road ahead looks really
exciting. This compels me to suggest that a start-up experience is a must to
have in one’s career.
After that I have joined one more start up and
started working being first employee in organization, Being Finance & HR
specialised it’s a great feeling when you get incorporate one company and start
it’s operations by your own .It’s more like equivalent “Giving birth and nurture
a baby”
My current organisation is also a start-up and it’s
more than amazing feeling again to be the first employee.
The
early the better :)
Let
me share the learning of my last three years’ experience with Satrt-ups .
Working
in a start-up requires one to own up a lot of effort and end result. No matter
how small my role was, I didn’t have the choice but to be responsible for what
good or bad the work has taken shape. It is indeed a pressure situation but
then it laid the foundation of a ‘thinking mind’ and
a ‘strong heart’ as I had to assess me decisions
before execution and then stand by them once executed.
Also,
since we couldn’t have too many heads, we ended up working 16-17 hours daily.
Interestingly, what it did was to kill the fear called ‘work load’. Juggling
between multiple projects and keeping a track of the key deliverables is the
art that I learnt unknowingly. Alternatively, it taught me to get the maximum
out of whatever time I got when I was not working. My CEO once said that it’s not important as to how much time you get for your family and
friends, but what’s important is what you do with even that little time you
get’
As
we bagged project after projects, it gave me a lot of opportunity to do
different things and at the same time try doing them differently. There was no
rule for the game but it was up to me to set the rules and create frameworks.
I've lost track of all the different tasks that I had been able to take part
in. I had the liberty to experiment and establish norms. I could define the
operating protocols and performance matrices. Most importantly one becomes the
prime contributor towards the building the culture of the organization.
Most
of us understand organizations just as a pictorial representation through org
charts; however, here I got to see the concept of functions, departments and
practices taking actual shape. I got to understand the inter-linkages between
departments and functions. To be an effective Finance manager and adept HR
professional and Add on responsibility for office management, this was a very
crucial experience.
No
team building activity is better than the exercise called start-up. We were bound to sort differences and
come together as ‘successful delivery’ was/is the only motto. It ranged from
fixing IT issues to conducting recruitment drives to inducting new team
members. Inflated egos were dumped in bins as everyone just wanted to keep the
boat sailing no matter what it took.
No
matter how small or big role one played, he/she was asked to participate
actively in decision making. From operating strategy to branding to colors of
the chairs – the spectrum was broad yet stimulating. I felt to be part of a
bigger family and it taught me to voice opinions fearlessly and logically.
No
one had the time or patience to take me in a room and share their opinions in
private. Bosses and team members observed the process and identified inefficiencies,
throwing up essential constructive feedback almost spontaneously. I needed to
be on my toes all the time as the system is edgy to give you any time. Your
reaction interval to a situation needs to almost match the reflexes of a ‘slip
fielder’ in the game of cricket.
What
Darwin said in the theory of natural selection that it’s the fittest who can
only survive and fittest are those who innovate continuously and receptive to
the environment. I have seen my organization do that. Start-ups in still in us
the feature of agility and slay our anxiety towards change. Entrepreneurial
ventures are great places to learn from as they identify a problem and keep on
finding a new efficient way to solve it.
I
had no choice but to understand as to where the money comes from and where it
goes and how to save it in between. ‘Top line and Bottom line’ were no longer
the mumbo jumbo of the televised business shows but a reality that had to be
targeted, tracked and tackled positively. I discovered the craving of earning
and saving, rather than just consuming.
Both
of us supported one another in happiness and tough times. As the organization
expanded so did my role and responsibility. It trusted my capability and I
believed in its worth and the opportunities to flourish.
"Keep learning , Keep growing"
