Well, every individual goes frenzy when it comes to your first job, and I am no exception. As a young developer, I myself wasn’t sure of the right career path when I graduated. Back then in 2003, most of the IT services were focused on backend operations and had limited scope for product development. There were only a handful of product companies in the market.

As a young engineer, I craved to experiment, learn, code, and build new products. Like many new graduates, I too was weighing in the pros and cons of joining a service company versus a product company. I wasn’t sure of the technology that I loved the most. But I was determined to keep my passion for building new products and learning new technologies alive.

Luckily for me, I got the best of both worlds when I joined Trilogy, a product development service company. Back then, the concept of SaaS product development services was still new. As people realized the business benefits of SaaS product development services, the demand and market for SaaS began to increase. Over the years, I got to work on a variety of technologies and lead projects for Fortune 500 companies across the world.

Now, after nearly a decade of experience in product consulting, I can confidently say that joining the product development services company as a newbie was the best career decision I made in my life.

While there are many perks of joining a pure product company, in my personal experience a service company is a good choice in the initial stages of your career (a stage where you are uncertain of what you want in your life).

My stint at several SaaS product development services gave me the necessary exposure, and experience I needed. This paved a way to nurture my real interest and start my own company, HashedIn Technologies in 2010.

Here are the top 5 reasons to join a Product Development Services Company in the initial stages of your career:

1) Technical Breadth

When it comes to technology, a services company is like a love cum arranged marriage, while a product company is like an arranged cum love marriage. In a product company, you are restricted to a few choices and technologies to work with. On the contrary, a product development service company gives you the chance to date and explore various technologies before you finally settle with the one that you are really passionate about. You are given the opportunity to play with multiple tech stacks and get wide exposure, before choosing your area of expertise. This also gives you the flavor of trying everything. This in a way helps you to get the right kind of exposure to diverse technologies in the initial stages of your career.

2) Right Mentors

The best part about working at a product development service company is the kind of mentors you get to work with. A good mentor can accelerate career progression and help you grow as a person. While there is a lot of focus on growth in product companies, there is limited opportunity for mentorship. In a race to move fast without breaking things, all efforts and resources are focused on scaling fast. You are mostly on your own. As a newbie, this can be scary. At a product development service company, you have the opportunity to work with experienced mentors who have been there, done that, and can guide you towards the right solution.

3) Work With Industry Leaders

In a product development service company, you are graced with the chance to work with a variety of customers and leaders like AWS, Redis, and Heroku. After your stint in an IT service company, you will have familiarity with multiple domains which would eventually help you to upskill yourself to a greater extent.

4) Culture of Learning

The work culture in product development service companies are very people friendly and focuses a lot on aspects like hiring, training, and events. As a fresher, I got to learn a lot from other teams with a wide exposure to varied scenarios of learning.

5) Wear Multiple Hats

If you want to get a taste of something more than just development, a product service company is the best option. As a newbie, I got to interact with clients, and manage projects besides just coding. In the early days of your career, this opportunity to explore multiple roles and don many hats helps you build an astounding portfolio for yourself.

To conclude, your professional success depends on how well you know what you want in life. Some people figure this out early on. Some people take their time to find their true calling. There is no one right way to succeed. As a newbie, if you haven’t yet figured out life, it is okay. Join a product service company to kickstart your career, get the exposure you need to figure out what you really need and venture into a horizon that would lead you up the ladder of success.