This week, we’ve been asking whether people would rather work at a startup or large company, and why. Almost surprisingly, most of the young professionals we’ve polled have said they’d prefer a startup/small company environment. Why? The most popular reasons were the ability to have a demonstrable impact on the company’s overall success, as well as a greater sense of involvement and the potential for growth that comes with building a company as part of a small team.

We asked three people for their perspectives on working at startups versus large companies. Does size really matter for your career? Read on to find out.

First up, we asked Sprouter community manager Erin Bury for her perspective on working at a startup, and why this kind of environment might be more attractive to job seekers. Here’s what she had to say:

“It’s common for new grads to look to a corporate environment to give them their first career experiences. After all, big companies have lots of room to climb the corporate ladder, and they often have bigger budgets, offices, and bonuses. I went to a mid-sized company after graduation, and I have to admit that the catered lunches, subsidized French classes and swanky Christmas parties were fun. Then I went to a startup, and all of those big company perks went away. In their place I found an environment where you are truly allowed to take charge of your career – to learn from an entrepreneur first-hand; to take on projects way above your experience level; and to contribute meaningfully to the direction of a company.

If you had asked me three years ago whether company size mattered, I would have said no. But now, size is everything. I’ve been part of a team of four for the past few years, and I can honestly say I wouldn’t go back to working at a company over 20-30 people. Sure, you can climb the corporate ladder at a big company. But at a small company, you start on the top rung. You are the CEO of your department at a startup, because you often don’t have a direct boss checking in every day.

In terms of opportunities, there might be bigger salaries and bonuses at a big company. But working at a startup is almost like playing the stock market: you don’t always win, but when you do the payoff is huge.  When you work at a startup, especially when it’s backed by investors, you make a competitive salary, and you often get equity in the business. While the company may not ever be acquired, owning a piece of the company makes you that much more motivated to see the company succeed.  The biggest advantage to working at a startup, aside from being able to wear jeans every day and have patio meetings whenever it’s warm, is the ability to be a part of a company’s growth from nothing to a potentially great company. And it’s something I wouldn’t trade for a lifetime worth of catered lunches.”

What about new grads? Do they feel like a small company is the way to go right out of school? We asked Sheena Bhola, a marketing resource manager at Maritz Canada, for her opinion:

“As a new graduate, I feel the size of a company matters. There is this perceived belief that a large company which has been around for a while will give new employees more resources to expand skills, such as courses and training. The advantage is knowing there are benefits which may not be offered at startups at all, or on the scale of a major company; including health, pension, wellness, etc. A startup may not have the financial resources and manpower to offer and implement these benefits.

Personally, a large company is more attractive to me because there is structure and process put in place. In a way, it’s a particular culture and community you become part of. In my opinion, to effectively work for a startup you need to have the passion and drive to ensure the organization’s success at a higher level than you would working for a major company, where teams are larger and there are more resources to divide tasks and goals amongst.”

What are some of the differences between working at a large company versus and startup, and does size really matter for your career? We asked Dmitri Tcherbadji, a startup aficionado and entrepreneur, for his thoughts:

“Just like most things, working in a startup company has its advantages and disadvantages. I have been always attracted to small businesses, probably due to cultural stigmata and personal experiences with past employments. I like the close relationship between the business and I - it motivates me to work harder and enjoy the results more.  I know that my success will ring louder in a small company. And if it goes big, my name would still float up top.

Nobody wants to be an office drone so starting up at the bottom in a large corporation could be frustrating (I would guess). But I imagine growing with bluishness could lead to work with larger teams. An opportunity to be one of the “founding fathers of a next Google” is one of the greatest perks in the small business environment, which is often complimented by relaxed atmosphere, more flexibility in hours and greater impact on the business’ future (I mess up – business suffers, I do good – business prospers). I prefer being responsible for everything that I do, as opposed to not being able to change anything.

Working at a startup implies certain outlook on your career. There are often no health benefits, the position is less secure (so is the business’ future) and work load is often higher. It is best for people who are not afraid of change, motivated to grow and don’t like to get bored.”

All things considered, would you rather work for a startup or small business over a large company? We’d love to hear your opinion - check out our LinkedIn poll and comment below.

Erin Bury is the community manager at Sprouter.com, an expert Q&A site for startup founders around the world. You can follow her on Twitter @erinbury and read her blog at ErinBury.com.

Dmitri Tcherbadji is an art director at Henning Solutions, currently working on Kidobi – an online smart playlist generator for preschool children. He is also running his own production company, Dmitri’s Animation.

The above photo borrowed from this post.