Finding Opportunities in Private Sector Companies

Today there was talk by Prof Larry Smith to UW students about finding hidden jobs in private sector companies. He called them hidden because they are there, but not known to the majority of the people.

The basic premise was that there are misconceptions of how students think about large companies, i.e. the size of the company is proportional to its financial compensation. Case and point, Wal Mart. No further discussion needed.

The main reason why we can only name public sector companies is because that's all we know. And why is it that they are all we know? because by law they obliged to tell the world about themselves. Private companies aren't obliged to this at all.

Private companies don't go public because generally, they posses something that services a niche market, they have little or no competition, and therefore can charge whatever they want for their products. Consequently, they function purely on cash. The only private companies that go public are those that are starved for cash - but the elite private sector companies - the ones that you don't know about, run on good old cash.

Another misconception that students usually have is that they will get bigger responsibility in bigger companies / public companies. This couldn't be further from the truth. Look at it mathematically; in a large company, there are thousands of other workers just like you, trying to suck up to the same people and trying to be ahead of the field. When there are 999 of everyone else, and 1 of you, the odds are against you. However, in a private company, generally a smaller size (10-100 people), every employee is an intellectual asset - every worker is of a high value, consequently, you get more responsibility. Furthermore, in elite private companies that function only on their cash flow, there is a tremendous amount of wealth. And when you don't have to share your earning with share holders, guess where the money goes?

So how do you go about finding these companies?

1) Family (networking) - it starts at home. No matter who you are, your family knows people. Talk to your parents and other close family, in a serious manner, about your career and see where those discussions lead to and the people that come up in those conversations.

Pay attention to old people at dinner parties. Old people are rich and if you work for them, math says that there is a chance that you will be taking over the company when they retire in the near future.

When meeting people, you are building a physical social network - not this virutal Facebook nonsense. Take advantage of this time!

2) Trade Shows - on work terms, do your damned hardest to get into trade shows with your company. But why with the company and not just as a normal guest? Because when you go as a company, you get a badge that says DELEGATE, not VISITOR. People will pay attention to you. Also, when you go with companies, chances are that the trade show is closed to the open public, so the people at the booths are people that matter - not coops that are there to try and say something intelligent.

If you don't have an opportunity to go with a company, make your own company. It costs less than $200 to register yourself as a legal company and can be done online. This way, you are legally entitled to apply for, and attend the trade shows.

==> Every trade show in the world: http://www.tsnn.com/


3) Tech Associations - attend your local city's tech association events and meet people and learn new things about what is going on. Pursue things that interest you.

4) Venture Capitalist Group Websites - Private companies have private investors and are usually funded by VC's. Big VC groups will often post a list of companies they are affiliated with on their website - partially to brag, partially to let you know that they are looking for talent. Research these companies and contact them. Remember, private companies are always looking for the enthusasiatic employee that can contribute in meaningful ways - intellectual assets.

5) Browse Matchmaking Website - use job matching services - there are numerous online. A suggested one by Larry Smith was: http://www.enternships.com/companies


After talking to Larry Smith after the lecture, the one big point I got out of it was that as students, we are still young. There shouldnt really be an element of risk involved at such a young age. Co-op only lasts four months. If you go work for a startup, it is unlikely they will collapse while you are there, and if they do, they will at least pay your last pay cheque - so why worry?

I'll leave you with this:

"Stay Hungry, Stay Foolish"
- Steve Jobs