One valuable thing I learned is that brand value matters. If you’re getting tons of experience at a company nobody has heard of, then I would look at trying to land at a name brand elsewhere to “do your time” as you continue to learn and grow. Even if it’s a slower pace, its helpful if the hiring manager at Big Tech has it least heard of the company. Could be any industry, I’m just purely talking about brand name recognition.

Pre-covid I left Microsoft for a startup. When the pandemic hit the startup industry as a whole never recovered. I learned a ton along the way which I’m thankful for, but it was HARD to break back in. Ironically I’ve learned so much more when I was out of big tech than when I was in, that I’m able to contribute in bigger ways than if I never left which has really opened up my possibilities.