Growing Software Practices

What’s Different about a Small Software Company?

Leading software development in a small software company is different from running a software team in a large company. A manager from a large company who is put in charge at a small firm can run in to big problems. Let’s look at some of the key differences between what happens in large software firms and your experience leading engineering in a small company.

In a large company, support staff handles many of the different routine things.

In a small firm, you are the support staff.

In a large company, the engineering manager reports to another manager up the management chain.

In a small firm, as head of engineering, you report to the CEO.

The power of belief

When you were interviewing for the technology manager position at your company, you may have asked your interviewers to talk about their company culture. The answer might have included a reference to their corporate mission, perhaps recited from memory or stumbled over during an impromptu recollection. Possibly your corporate mission and some core values are hanging as a wall placard that you, and everyone else in your organization, passes by each day.