Would it make more sense financially, during this time to join a larger company? How long do you think before we start seeing regular IPOs of tech companies?
As an older guy who has been through a number of these economic cycles, my feeling is that this will be a mild recession. Nothing like 2000 or 2008. (I'm not always right about the economy but I did correctly take my money out of the stock market on Thanksgiving weekend 2007.) Joining a THRIVING large company right now is a good idea. Google, Apple, Dell. Not HP or Yahoo. Some of the large consulting companies are also in good shape although from my experience they don't know what to do with good software engineers. Also good would be auto high-tech, like BMW or Mercedes Research. That field is in a growth curve that will do just fine during the recession.
Having also been through a few recessions, of also advice anyone who works in training or marketing to get out now. Training especially is one of the first things companies cut during hard times. Experienced that painfully in 2001.
Great advice. In recessions, small companies tend to disappear entirely, medium sized companies get gutted, and larger companies, although they do cut, you've at least got a chance to survive and they're not going to go out of business. Take it from another older guy who spent his life in small and medium sized companies and lived through 2000 and 2008 as well, although not as good a the stock market as you :)
Genuine question: Would big companies also lay off people during recession? I mean companies like APPL/GOOG/FB. What happen to their employee at that time though? Did they get a pay cut?
Wages are generally pretty sticky. So bonuses might be eliminated and pay increases deferred but it's relatively unusual for base pay to be cut. (And, of course, stock based compensation may suffer in a downturn.) AFAIK, neither Google nor Facebook have yet had significant layoffs. Apple certainly has in the past.