I always shudder everytime someone is going to ask about my company. Well - disclaimer first - I love my company, the products we are offering are great! The people are great! The pay is great! - wow this feels like an advertisement - moving along, the only problem I have is that my company is not (yet) a household name. So everytime someone’s going to ask me, hey what is your company?, I would never say the name of the company, ok I only whisper it, then I always add, well it is based in Europe! And our clients are worldwide telecom firms! And they will reply, well ok… Sensing they are lost, I reiterate, you know Globe or Smart right? Well those are the type of clients we have. But then they will never back down and ask, so are they your clients? *sigh* Hopefully *sigh*.
This wasn’t the first time that this happened to me. When I was still employed back in Cebu, I always told back home that even though they didn’t know my company that it is a big Japanese firm and it’s famous in Japan. Ah just like Sony or Toyota? Well err no, more like like like oh I give up! People will always equate big, established and famous companies as ‘THE’ company to worked for. Everyone (especially the parents) wants you to work for a big conglomerate because then they can be proud of you and endlessly be boasted among their circle of friends. Usually the conversation will start this way, parents: Oh my son/daughter works for <insert big name firm>! Friends: Oh really? That’s great, what is his/her position? Parents: We don’t really care as long as he/she works there.
*Sigh* It feels so hard to justify where you work. *sigh* But hey it is in Makati! Oh, still in the Philippines… But hey! Google started as a small company and look at them now! Oh, we aren’t the Google… But! Our clients are abroad and they are really big firms! Yes, but did you happen to be deployed abroad already? Oh…………….