Part one of a two-part series

Read part II of this series: 5 ways to evaluate a small company

Todd DeLaughter, President of Opalis

When Todd DeLaughter told his colleagues he was stepping down as VP of Hewlett-Packard to join Opalis, people were shocked.

It didn’t make sense, they said, that he would give up his high-profile position in a global organization to head an unknown, 60-person company.

“Going to a smaller company made people stand up,”—DeLaughter

Why did these three accomplished and secure tech professionals roll the dice with a startup? Because they felt that the reward ultimately outweighed the risk.

Taking Career from A to B

In DeLaughter’s case, the decision to move from Hewlett-Packard to Opalis was inspired by a need for professional development.

“[Despite] having run a division in HP as a general manager, I didn’t have CEO experience, I wanted that,” he says.

Peter Ng was looking for similar development, the chance to directly and personally impact on a company’s success.

“I wanted an opportunity to help grow, operation-wise, a successful business,”—Peter Ng

For Twinney, joining a young organization meant wider responsibility and more creativity.

Morning discussions, afternoon decisions

Joining a small company can mean stretching yourself personally and professionally. The work is hands-on and ideas turn into action very quickly.

DeLaughter loves that he can enter a meeting in the morning, discuss ideas, and see those ideas implemented by the afternoon.

“In a larger company, the process takes a lot longer because there’s more analysis. You can’t do that in a small company, because you’ll get killed by [the] competition,” says DeLaughter.

“Being in a smaller company, you’re able to create something as you see it, instead of following the footsteps of someone doing the job before,” he says.

Often, he adds, this requires you to take on some interesting roles.

“One moment, you’re preparing financial statements for the bank, and the next you’re [putting] the fire extinguisher back on the wall,”—Twinney

Ng compares a small company consisting of 10 employees to one with 10,000 employees.

“[In a small company] every single person is a stakeholder. Every single person has to roll up their sleeves. If someone’s not pulling their weight, that’s already 10% of the company,” he says.

What it takes

All three men agree that fast-growing companies aren’t for everyone.

“There are certain attributes that you need to have to work in a small environment,” says DeLaughter.

One is being responsive to change and the other is comfort with doing work that lies outside of a job title.

Ng says that the most successful big-to-small transplants operate well outside of that comfort zone, embrace risk, are creative, and have an entrepreneurial spirit.

“You don’t have an army of people to help you. You have to do more with less. You need can-do type of people.” – Ng.

DeLaughter adds that increased responsibility means higher and lower emotional swings.

“Every deal takes on a heightened importance,” he says. “Every win is a greater win and every loss is a greater loss.”

This also means that working for a smaller company requires more energy and hours spent at the office.

“There’s more responsibility because you’re part of the steering mechanism of the company,” says Twinney.

Looking before you leap

Ng, DeLaughter, and Twinney are all can-do type of people, which might explain their personal and professional success.

But all three tech professionals say that making the switch to a small company still requires due diligence.

“There are lots of small companies out there that will just stay small,” says DeLaughter.

Delaughter suggests prospects look at the market and see if the company has a compelling product.

In the end, DeLaughter, Ng and Twinney not only knew what they were getting into, they were eager to do it. The opportunities and challenges in front of them were fresh and promising, and the trails were theirs to blaze.

Each of them found not only success, but professional satisfaction. Asked if they’d take that same plunge, all three replied with an unhesitating yes.