I’m a pretty recent graduate (2011). Since graduating I did a few internships at various product design consultancies. Now I am a full time industrial designer at a large tech corporation. I made the jump from consultancies to corporate because I wanted to experience working in a larger team, learning from many different experts and resources available in the corporation, and also to get deeper into the whole process of product development. The products that the corporation makes isn’t as sexy or exciting as what I was working on before, but I thought I could learn a lot professionally. I consulted many of my friends and professional contacts in making this choice, and most seemed to think it would be a useful experience.
Now that I’m here (and I’ve only been here for <1 month), I find myself really missing the fast paced nature and exciting projects of my time in consulting. I miss the large amount of responsibility I was given, and the level of interaction with the clients I had. I also miss just being busy all the time, and getting things done. I miss working with people who are super excited about what they’re doing.
Since I’ve gone corporate, I haven’t really done much. There are minor tasks that I’ve helped on here and there, but compared to before of course my level of influence and responsibility is much less. I feel like a very low rung on a long ladder. The amount of bureaucracy and the culture here is also starting to put me off a bit. I am aware that there is a transitional period, and the team here needs time to know what to do with me, but in my gut I think I know that I want to go back to a more dynamic and youthful consultancy environment.
I accept that perhaps I made the wrong choice to begin with, taking this job even though I wasn’t fully sure, but now I have to decide how to deal with this situation. The way I see it I have these options:
- Quit now/soon (unlikely, because I do need income and I am still learning stuff despite my qualms about the work environment)
- Stick it out for 6 months - a year and learn what I can while looking for other opportunities
- Just keep going, and hope that I get used to it/it gets better
My questions:
-how important is corporate experience at the beginning of your career?
-Is it something that will help me a lot/be attractive to consultancy employers down the line?
-Will it actually put consultancies off if I stay here too long?
-Will it reflect badly on my resume if I leave a company less than 2 years after joining?
Plus any other advice would be appreciated!