Career Lessons Learned by an Analog Guy in a Digital World

No company is perfect, and whether you work at a start-up or large corporation, there will inevitably be days where you wish you worked on the other side.

Tim Garbutt, the Director of Corporate Marketing and Communications at Flintco LLC, has been on both sides and knows how the other half works.

On this episode of Knowledge is Power, he shares with host Brandon Pfluger his experiences on both sides of the professional world and a few things he’s learned along the way.

“My dad was a small business owner, so that’s what I grew up around,” Garbutt said. With smaller, privately held companies, “the owner was always in the room, so to speak. You could walk down the hall and talk to the guy who was leading the charge.”

However, after a large, publicly held corporation acquired the smaller construction company he was working at, Garbutt suddenly found himself thrust into the corporate world.

“When the acquisition happened, and I saw the layers of bureaucracy of a publicly-owned company – the careful nature of everything that’s done and how everything is vetted and scrutinized and there’s a structured approach to everything, it became apparent to me how real that is,” he said.

Another career move led him to Flintco and back to the freedom of a privately held company, “and I realized at that moment where I really fit,” he revealed. “My experience has always been that you got to do a lot more interesting stuff in the privately-held company, where decisions are made a lot faster and it’s just more energizing to be a part of that.”

Subscribe to MarketScale Radio on Apple Podcasts and Spotify for the latest insights and learning moments from industry experts in a variety of B2B fields.

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

Engineering
Scaling Experiential Learning in the Curriculum: How Iron Range Engineering Transformed Engineering Education
June 1, 2026

Engineering has transformed nearly every part of modern life, from the phones in our pockets to the systems powering global industry. But the way engineers are educated has often moved far more slowly than the profession itself. Employers are asking for graduates who can navigate ambiguity, communicate across teams, and contribute meaningfully from the…

Read More
vascular surgeon
When Geography Meets Purpose: How One Move Reshaped a Vascular Surgeon’s Career
May 28, 2026

Medicine isn’t what it used to be—not for the people practicing it. Independent physicians are becoming the exception, not the norm, as more doctors move into hospital systems, corporate groups, and academic networks. At the same time, the pipeline of specialists isn’t keeping pace with growing patient needs, particularly in complex fields like vascular…

Read More
safer HVAC chemicals
From Second Chances to Stronger Teams: Bradley Henderson on Structure, Culture, and Trades-Based Redemption
May 26, 2026

The trades have always demanded grit, but grit alone doesn’t build a strong workforce. People need structure, clear expectations, and a sense that their work is taking them somewhere. That’s especially true in HVAC and mechanical services, where employers are trying to hire, retain, and develop talent in a labor market that feels tighter and…

Read More
courage
Creative Confidence and Moral Courage: The Leadership Traits Business Schools Should Be Betting On
May 25, 2026

What students need from higher education is becoming harder to pin down than it once was. As higher education faces mounting pressure—from student disengagement to the rapid rise of artificial intelligence—institutions are being forced to rethink not just what students learn, but who they become. New research and industry signals suggest that technical knowledge…

Read More