
Ask HN: CTO of a $10M Company or SDM of a $150B Company? - jcahill84
Asking for a friend... &quot;Should I jump ship from my great corporate job as an engineering lead&#x2F;manager to go run the technology operations of a nearly-profitable pre-Series-A SaaS startup?&quot;<p>Both offer similar technical challenges, problems to solve, etc. Both have similar compensation.<p>Thoughts?
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whichdan
I did the reverse; started as a Head of Engineering at a startup, then moved
into Engineering Lead/Manager roles. It was risky (we ended up getting shut
down) and extremely stressful (I was involved in a dozen fires at any given
time), but I learned an incredible amount.

If you can handle the risk and stress, the CTO job will likely be more
rewarding.

That said, it's absolutely critical to find a mentor outside of the company to
lean on. It's likely that your peers will know nothing about running
engineering teams, and having an experienced voice of reason can make-or-break
your experience.

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jcahill84
+1 for "find a mentor outside of the company to lean on"

I'm an experienced manager, but this is still a hugely important point. Mentor
relationships are really underrated.

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farseer
>>nearly-profitable pre-Series-A SaaS startup

If the startup is loosing money, no matter how small. You would be under a
titanic amounts of stress. Though I can't really judge the future potential of
the startup based on the information you have provided. I'd say stay put. Use
the spare energy and sanity to work on your own side projects.

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jcahill84
This is a really good point. I agree it's a better use of energy to work on
side projects while your work-life is stable, rather than injecting stress
into your life.

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xstartup
I am a founder of $25M company.

$150B must be coming with more BS but more benefits.

If you are in a mood to relax, ofc $150B company.

If you want total control, $10M sounds more fun.

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jeffrese
Do it, take the startup job. No downside. If it all goes tits up you will now
have lead technology operations on your resume so your next corporate job will
be a jump up.

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staticautomatic
"No downside"? You've been drinking the Kool-Aid, my friend.

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nik736
If you have to ask this questions and are not able to provide more details the
latter.

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jenkstom
The former if you can afford it and there is potential. The latter if not.

