90 days after Google…and life is great!

Summary

Ann Marie Lavigne shares her invigorating experience transitioning from Google to a Series C start-up, Primer.ai, emphasizing increased ownership, impact, and authenticity.

Abstract

After leaving Google in November 2021, Ann Marie Lavigne joined Primer.ai, a Series C start-up, where she found a renewed sense of energy and purpose. In a LinkedIn post marking her 90-day milestone, she highlights the excitement of making decisions with immediate impact, broadening her perspective through diverse interactions, and embracing authenticity in a culture that aligns with her values. Despite the end of her journey at Primer in May 2023, Lavigne remains enthusiastic about the start-up world, encouraging others to seek opportunities that offer a similar sense of ownership, impact, and authenticity, especially in the face of tech industry layoffs.

Opinions

Lavigne feels a heightened sense of ownership and impact at Primer.ai, where daily decisions directly affect customer success and business direction.
The start-up environment has broadened her perspective, offering new ways of thinking and a wealth of diverse experiences from her colleagues.
She values the authenticity at Primer.ai, noting that she can truly be herself, which aligns with the company's culture and evaluation criteria.
Despite the strategic and CEO changes that led to the end of her tenure at Primer, Lavigne is grateful for her start-up experience and the opportunity to work with talented individuals.
Lavigne advises those affected by tech layoffs to pursue opportunities that align with their values and offer a sense of ownership and impact, affirming that there's no looking back once they find the right path.

90 days after Google…and life is great!

Source: Author-generated image.

tl’dr — I felt a renewed sense of ownership, impact and purpose since moving to a Series C start up after ~15 years at Google…and it’s exactly the adventure I needed. Sharing here for others who may be contemplating a similar change.

Since leaving Google in Nov ‘21, many friends have reached out to hear about my experience at series C start up Primer.ai. Some are just curious. Many are trying to assess whether it’s time for them to make a similar change. All respond the same way in our conversations — “wow, you sound so energized! This is inspiring.”

At 90 days in, I took the opportunity to assess why I was feeling so inspired, and posted the following on LinkedIn (copied verbatim):

— — -

… I am still super energized by my experience, driven by:

1 / Ownership & Impact — Every day I am making or influencing decisions that have an almost immediate impact on the success of our customers and the direction of our business. Every day there is a question of “who can decide this?” or “what should we do now?” or “how do we handle this super tricky decision that needed to be made yesterday?” and we work it out, quickly, and move on. My judgment, strategic thinking, and communication skills are tested every working hour. The velocity and willingness to move forward with a good decision (rather than a perfect one) has been refreshing (and fun!).

2 / Broadened Perspective — By nature of our size, stage, and business, I am finding my perspective to have dramatically expanded, even in just 3 short months. There are so many more opportunities (and a huge need) to engage outside the virtual walls of our company — with peers, customers, advisors, or investors. Even within those virtual walls, the team I work alongside hails from many more diverse backgrounds than ever before — and is offering me new ways to think and very different experiences to draw on. As a result, my life has become richer both professionally and personally.

3 / Authenticity — Finally, after many years, I feel like I can be myself again. It was in my fourth week here that I realized this (and how happy it made me!). I think some of it is cultural fit — staying curious, collaborating openly, delivering on promises, all while having fun. And a big part is that my values align with how I think my work will be evaluated — i.e. making customers successful, driving business growth, and developing our teams — without drama. Whatever the driver…everyone close to me has noticed, and I’m happier than ever to be able to truly be myself every day.

Of course, this is my “from / to”. If you are considering a move from Google or other big tech companies to a start up, consider what you value and how much of it you have in your current job.

The best way to describe my current experience is an adventure…and I’m so thrilled to be having it at a series C Start up, with so many fearless, fantastic fellow travelers. Excited for the journey to continue!

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Fast forward to now — my journey at Primer ended in May 2023 with a company strategy & CEO change. I will forever be grateful that I made the leap back to start-up land, and worked alongside so many smart, capable individuals. And I stand by everything I said above.

As I look forward, I will continue to seek ownership, impact, and authenticity, to apply my experience to build a company that transforms the lives of others. Many tech employees are being forced to reconsider their paths right now as a result of layoffs — if you are in that bucket, I can tell you there are amazing opportunities out there, and you will find one. And when you do, there’s no looking back.

Onward & upward, folks!