We Stealthy Over Here: Joining a Startup in Stealth Mode
What do you do when an amazing opportunity comes your way and in your gut you know you need to pursue it? Do you take it head on or do you let it slip through your fingers and say one day when I….
I like that saying, Day One or One Day. Well I chose the former — This was my Day One! When the CEO DMed me on LinkedIn with this opportunity, I thought wow this sounds too good to be true. It was everything and more I wanted to do. I am still in AWE that this is my job. Like for real….my job lol.
I have worked for two major corporations -IBM for 21years and Salesforce for 2years in my 24 years in the IT Industry. Between the two companies I have been a tester, developer, Sales Engineer, Solutions Architect and lastly as a technical client leader helping clients set vision and execute it into business value. These roles have given me a blend of technical and business skills.
As I was about to exit out of my AWS DevOps Boot Camp, I started thinking about what I wanted out my next company.
My four must have attributes were:
- Leadership: People leader responsibility.
- Experience-based learning: Learn several aspects of a business beyond technology.
- Innovation: Utilize my creativity and imagination to design and implement service or product.
- Impact: See the direct effect of my contributions to the company and the IT industry.
I knew that I would be able to find those attributes in a startup.
The CEO is another reason why I believe in this startup’s mission. He is a visionary and knows how to execute. He also has a vast background from recruiting to building out practices within corporations. What I admire most about the CEO is that he wants to help others to realize their potential. I can already tell that he knows how to lead people and manage processes. This is important to me because I have had leaders who did the opposite to the detriment of the team. We clicked from the very first meeting. We were both at a crossroads in our career journey and met at the perfect time. I call it divine providence.
As I come to the close of my first week at the startup, I see much has been accomplished. I have such peace and a knowing that I BELONG here! I know there is so much more work to come. I am looking forward to seeing what happens in the months and years to come.
So follow me, if you are not already, so you can stay informed about my startup journey. Also please share your experiences(good, bad and the in between) working at a startup in the comments.
Remember SHARING Knowledge is POWER! KEEP Learning!
