Affinity to Ex-{employer}

I have seen many people use terms like ‘ex-Amazon’, ‘ex-Google’ in their LinkedIn title. I have also come across people who will say ‘When I was in company X, we did this and it worked well there and we should do something similar here’. I have a negative reaction to such headers and comments and I also know people who like to hear such comments. There is no universal answer on how it is perceived– may be a good idea for a snap poll on this topic.

Why do I have a negative reaction? My initial reaction is if someone puts an ‘ex-‘ in their title, may be they wished they were still at their ‘ex-‘ company and could not make it there, particularly if they had short stint there. At the next level, it exudes one’s insecurities and inability to articulate the value they bring to the table. The positive interpretation is that they are messaging their competence in getting through the bar raiser at big tech and survived there for X years. Either way, that only works with people who think that way. Putting an ‘ex-Amazon’ or ‘ex-Google’ might possibly catch someone’s attention when your profile comes up in a search, however a competent hiring manager or a leader will look for the value you will bring.

What I like to see is the confidence in your own ability and the value you bring to the table regardless of who your previous employer was– Articulate the learnings from your experiences (success and failures) and how you will apply that to solve problems and challenges. Demonstrate that you understood the problem, the solution and how the solution solved the problem and the impact it had (and why it had the impact). Don’t just say ‘ We did it this way in another company, we should do that way’– Instead say ‘Here is the problem, my recommendation is this and the why, and here are other options I considered’