J
J

Juancallclose

Director

Catalyst
Opinionated
Valued Contributor
+3

Start up vs Legacy company job security

I used to think the legacy companies (Oracle, SAP, SFDC, etc) were better if you were only worried about job security but recent layoffs seems to contradict this. Multiple rounds of mass layoffs in the 4 figures for a lot of companies.


I know it's popular to say "well, startups don't have as much capital so they're apt to pull the plug overnight." Maybe so, but if you're a team of 3 AEs with one VP, and you're trending well, maybe not. The start up needs you more.


JMO

Start up or Legacy are safer

Attached poll
*Voting in this poll no longer yields commission.
🏰 War Stories
15

24 comments

Sort by:
Sunbunny31
Politicker
9
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
As we've seen, both have risks. I selected legacy, but only because in the case of a layoff, they are usually in a better position to take care of their (former) employees with severance packages.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
3
🦊
Absolutely. They have the means to actually support you.
punishedlad
Tycoon
3
Business Development Team Lead
Legacies are safer as a rule. When it comes to the torpidity/downright decline of many legacy companies right now, it (at least for now) seems to depend entirely on the industry and how aggressively they hired during the pandemic.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
2
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
The tough part to sort out, if you're not in the company, is if it's a division or department or initiative that's affected. Sometimes an entire org is let go, which is huge if you're in that org, but if you're in one of the divisions that is considered "investment" then you're in good shape.
But I remember being in the offices when whole floors were let go, when their solution was no longer actively being invested in. Those days were rough.
BTQ
Politicker
6
Account Manager
It’s an interesting question. My start up has been hiring amongst all these layoffs.

We’ve been around since 2015, while we aren’t profitable (yet) we’re close to break even.

Depends on where you’re at but with enough funding startups can be somewhat insulated from outside factors that effects legacy companies.

Just my two cents
Sunbunny31
Politicker
4
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
For sure, not all startups are created equal, nor are legacy. There's a range in all of them. Sounds like you are in a good spot!
Nairobi
Politicker
5
AE
Like most have said, both are risky. I'm leaning toward the legacy just because I feel like if you suck at your job, there's a chance you might last longer at a legacy company than at aa startup. Would love to see a study on this topic though, would be interesting.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
3
Sales Rep
Not as familiar with the start up landscape. But I feel like when the large companies more people get laid off since they are such a large company, causing it to pop up on your feed more.

Compared to startups, where you aren't going to be reading in the news when they do layoffs even though it might be a high % of the company employee count
Space_Ghost20
Valued Contributor
2
Account Executive
Yup. My company had two round of layoffs in 2022, each one laying off over 40% of headcount. No news about it, because it was only 70 and 50 people each time.
Space_Ghost20
Valued Contributor
3
Account Executive
I don't know, my last job was at a startup. Three AEs when I started in 2021, by mid 2022 we were up to 10 AEs. They laid off 5 of them in the summer, and then the remaining 5 of us were laid off a few months later. I suppose they "needed" us, but that didn't save our jobs. VP and director are still employed though, doing all the sales on their own.

In any case, I think the legacy companies are safer. A lot of startups don't really understand where they fit in the marketplace, and have no idea how to replicate whatever success they have had. And in my case, sometimes waste a bunch of money on R&D for some new product they think will change everything without any idea how to monetize it in a quick enough fashion to make those R&D dollars worth it.

When I hear about the severance packages some of these legacy folks get, I can't help but be a little jealous. I got a week's pay as severance. But to be fair, the legacy companies would never hire someone like me, so it's not like I could have worked for them anyway.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
2
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
So...I lucked into my legacy job through acquisition of my start up. No idea if I'd have gotten the initial job otherwise. Spent a great amount of time at the legacy after that - and I can tell you, I'm no different than many reps here, except older than most.
Point being, you never know - don't sell yourself short.
Space_Ghost20
Valued Contributor
2
Account Executive
To me, it's less about my ability to succeed at a legacy company, and more about their hiring standards and philosophy. There is a profile you usually need to fit. People who got into software/tech mid career don't usually fit their hiring profile.

Granted, it's been 2-3 years since I've even interviewed at a legacy company, so maybe things have changed, I don't know.
Sunbunny31
Politicker
2
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
If you’ve spent the last few years in software/tech … you might fit their profile at this point. But if you’re not seeing anything you’re interested in pursuing at one of those companies, then it doesn’t matter. Just hate to see someone think they can’t when it’s not as elite as they’d like to have you believe.
CuriousFox
WR Officer
3
🦊
🦊❤🐇
Sunbunny31
Politicker
1
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
Mutual, my friend.
Juancallclose
Catalyst
1
Director
Hadn't thought about it that way....yeah
braintank
Politicker
3
Enterprise Account Executive
Depends
Justatitle
Big Shot
2
Account Executive
it's a crap shoot either way. Will never go back to legacy companies though
Diablo
Politicker
2
Sr. AE
Both are not safe but legacy is a better than start up but start up can reach you to be much stronger
DungeonsNDemos
Big Shot
2
Rolling 20's all day
Overall, legacy. But also if you find somewhere in between it can have the best of both worlds. Just depends what kind of company you're looking for.
Maximas
Tycoon
1
Senior Sales Executive
IMO.

It won't make that big difference between this and that as I think most of the Layoff reasons for both of em are common and the most common one is not relying on the human factor that much as it used to be with more new technologies particularly the AI one have entered the battle!!!
countingmyinterest
Politicker
1
Account Executive
I selected legacy cause it's usually an easier sell + better benefits (usually).
Startups have a lot more turbulence and may be the first to be cut when a company is looking to reduce spend.
Juancallclose
Catalyst
0
Director
Yeah, I don't disagree completely. I guess I'm picturing a legacy vp of sales saying "reduce the head count by 34% or fire the entire west midmarket fools" vs a start up saying "fire Juan and his three AEs" First scenario is so impersonal
GingerBarbarian
Opinionated
0
Lead Sales
I don't see a difference in terms of job security. We have seen so many major companies announcing 10% layoffs in the past few months I so not think anywhere is safe.
I think the bigger consideration in choosing legacy vs startup is how versatile you are and enjoy being. In a start up world, you have to wear way more hats than you do in legacy sales. Legacy companies tend to have you be more specialized in a role as opposed to solving problems as they arise. If you like complex problem solving and procedure building, go with a start up. If you want a more defined role go legacy.

Related posts

8

Consultant VS Contractor job offers

Discussion
👥
🧠
🤝
7
Your contract type, my current is "contractor" regardless if you work in consulting.
54% Contractor
46% Consultant
24 people voted
5

How do I market myself after a successful consulting gig?

Question
🚀
🤘
5
11

Machine learning/AI SaaS vs Cybersecurity, which is a better field to get into?

Question
☁️ Software Tech
16
Bravado is a community of trusted sales professionals endorsed by their customers.
Apple Store logo
Products
The War Room Jobs Salary Guide Tech Sales U
Company
About Us How It Works Blog Bug Bounty
Contact
Press Careers
© 2024 Bravado Inc. All rights reserved.
Privacy Policy Legal and Privacy Center Sales Jobs
If you are hired as a contract sales rep by a Bravado customer, we may ask you to prove access to the employee email account provided to you by that customer. This data will be shared with customers to track your sales productivity; customers can use this data to confirm you meet the minimum activity requirements to pay out your ramp stipend and commission.