Can I Go From FB/GOOG/MSFT Engineering to Business Development?
Hey, I'm a long-time lurker first-time poster on this site with a somewhat oddball career change idea.
I'm a current summer software engineering intern at FB/GOOG/MSFT. The summer has given me a good idea of what it's like to be a professional software engineer at a top engineering firm. My co-workers are brilliant, my managers are nice, and my hours are great. However, I don't really see myself being an engineer in the longer term.
I would like to eventually make a move into corp development, business development, or corporate strategy. My plan is to work as a software engineer at the best company I can for 2-3 years, get into a top MBA program, and re-position myself as a strategy/development guy and network to get these kinds of jobs. How realistic would this plan be if I were to be working full-time at FB/GOOG/MSFT? What about at less prestigious, but still well regarded, companies (e.g. Amazon, Pinterest, Square, Apple)?
Most companies don't like job-hoppers. If you tell an employer you only want to be there for 2 years before you quit, no prestigious company will hire you. You're right that this is an oddball career move. Also, you can't intern for three competing companies at once. Employers don't like liars.
Wow you took his post way too literally.
(1) He is saying he plans on working for 2-3 years...that doesn't mean he is going to tell his employer that he is going to only work for x amount of time.
(2) I assume his internship is at one of those companies but he wants to retain some anonymity and therefore gives us an idea of where he is at.
OP - Your plan is sounds good. Top schools will open up a lot of opportunity for you particularly after 2-3 years as an engineer, however you might have to separate from work and go to school full-time in some of these top business schools.
Your plan sounds good to me, you could even consider applying to a 2+2 program with a STEM background. Even "less prestigious" tech puts you in a good position and it would make a lot of sense to do an MBA and switch into business development/corporate strategy roles.
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