All businesses aren’t created equal. What may be normal for a small company could be strange for a large one. But when deciding where to work, those distinctions matter. 
“There are a number of differences,” says Kathleen Downs, a recruiting manager at Robert Half International. “I wouldn’t say one is better than the other, but they are certainly different.”
From culture to job function, here’s a look at ten differences between working for a small firm and its larger brethren.
Getting the job
Even getting hired at a small business is different. According to Anita Campbell, Chief Executive of Small Business Trends, chances are landing a job at a small business is going to be a much quicker process. “In large companies it’s not unusual to go through five, six even ten interviews before you are actually given a job,” she says.
The bigger the more bureaucratic
Everyone knows that when you work for a large company there are more hoops you have to jump through to get anything done. Small businesses, on the other hand, tend to have less bureaucracy, less organization and less complexity, says Kim Ruyle, vice president and managing principal at Korn/Ferry International. In a small business “it’s simpler to navigate the organizational maze to know who makes a difference,” says Ruyle.
It’s a family affair
If you work in a large company, its likely you’ll only get to know the people you work with day in and day out. At a small company you’ll probably know everyone from the receptionist all the way up to the boss. “There’s going to be more personal relationships,” says Campbell. “If you get along then it may feel like a family, but on the other hand if you don’t get along, you don’t have the distance of a big company.”
You get to wear more hats
Working for a small business can give you much wider exposure to job functions, because everyone tends to wear more than one hat. For instance a comptroller in small company may have his or her hands in budgets, forecasting and creating financial statements while in a large company he or she may only be responsible for preparing financial statements, says Downs.
Better working conditions
Small businesses typically have less rules and thus more flexibility in the work life balance they offer. They know they can’t provide the same benefits that a large corporation can, so often times they will go out of their way to make the working conditions really good, says Campbell.
More specialization at large firms
At a large company you’ll get the chance to specialize and more fully develop a specific expertise or job function. If you want a career in the tax side of accounting that can be great, but according to Ruyle it may be less appealing to the person that’s seeking a broader perspective of the business.
Opportunities abound at big companies
Most of the time at a large company there’s more opportunities to grow. After all large companies typically have a structure in place to move up the career ladder. That doesn’t mean you will be stuck in a dead end job at a small firm. According to Ruyle many companies start out small only to grow into huge enterprises.
Exacting change
Many people go into a career not only to make money but to make a difference. Chances are much higher that you can affect change at a small firm. “A publicly traded company has documented processes and procedures for doing everything,” says Downs. At a small business things can “change on a dime,” she says.
Mission is more than the bottom line
Every business is created to make money, but at a small company it’s not only about pleasing shareholders. According to Phil Marsosudiro of management consulting company Marsosudiro & Company, at small companies the owners can have multiple goals. “A small business may have other priorities like the environmental benefits or other social benefits,” says Marsosudiro.
More job security
When you get a job at a small company, often times you are considered part of the family, so letting you go may not be as easy. It can be “painstaking,” for the small business owner, says Downs. “Sometimes at larger companies there will be a mandate from someone at the top that cuts will be this deep and they don’t know the people personally.”
