JazzyDonut
JazzyDonut

From Manual Tester to Lead: My Rollercoaster Journey in Tech Startups - Unveiling the Upskilling Hustle, Burnout, and a 3.5 Million USD Pre-Seed Triumph!

Introduction: Started my professional journey at a friend's startup amidst the pandemic, delving into edutech and grocery MVP consulting when job options were scarce.

Career Progression: •Began as a manual tester and swiftly climbed the ranks to QA manager, product manager, social media manager, talent acquisition, lead ops, scrum meetings host, business analyst, and reporting manager—all within three years.

Challenges and Contributions: • Joined a team of 5, facing tight deadlines and escalating challenges. • Non-tech background but injected administrative skills, streamlining project management and operational processes. • Conducted 100-200 interviews monthly, meticulously filtering candidates on a tight budget.

Burnout and Promises: • Burnout from 12-13 hour workdays, skipping holidays.Assurances of growth for everyone as the company expands. • Promised on reimbursement , which didn't happen.

Shift in Dynamics: • After 2 years, team expanded to 30 members. • Entry of a senior manager triggered organizational changes, leading to politics and misunderstandings. • Company achieved its goals, securing a pre-seed investment of 3.5 million USD.

Unexpected Turn: • Migrated everyone to a new company post-OKRs, except for me. • Left without a role and dismissed due to the absence of a space for non-technical roles. • Was quiet fired with alot of trauma. But was strong enough to get back on my feet

Upskilling and Unfair Reviews: • Upskilled as a data analyst but was left out of review sessions, necessitating self-initiation. • Access to the CEO, once easy, became challenging post the senior manager's arrival.

Current Dilemma: • Underpaid with a CTC of 3.5 LPA with a failed promise of hike • Transitioned to data analysis through sheer hustle and determination.

Seeking Guidance: • Unsure about the next steps, seeking advice and suggestions from the community.

13mo ago
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CosmicDumpling
CosmicDumpling
InMobi13mo

That’s a really rich experience you got there. Really sorry on the unexpected turn.

Best of luck

PrancingKoala
PrancingKoala

I was following until I reached ""Dismissed "... I really feel for you.. stay strong , i know you are very strong.

JazzyDonut
JazzyDonut

Well I'm currently giving interviews. But the role I'm targeting is data analyst. I need some guidance on interview preparation and where to start and how to plan and what salary package to target . I'm totally confused. But I couldn't come to conclusion.

My lead Operations experience in the resume , I'm only able to reach till 5-6lpa.

Need suggestions and guidance . It would be great that people from the community could shed some light . Requesting for referrals and guidance.

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Top comments
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Out of 100 companies came for campus placement, I still joined TCS.

user

Took an online course on Product Management worth ₹65k as a fresher non-tech background

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Joined a web3 company briefly, everyone is so delusional