I don't know about IBM, but I have worked in several large well established companies and when someone (decent) quits everyone looks around to figure out WTF is going on.
I have lived through 2 mass exoduses, where a company started going downhill and the top 50% of developers all leave within 6 months of each other (often in groups).
There is nothing inherently special about a startup. Many established companies have make or break projects, and working on them requires the same sort of commitment.
In short, don't take shit off of potential employers. If they can't get it together enough to get back to you and treat you with whatever level of respect you expect, then that's a sign that you probably don't want to work there.
That's actually fair. After I walked away from the keyboard I realized I was probably unfair to larger corporations. That said, I feel like someone leaving a 5-person company is usually a bigger deal than someone leaving a 20-person team in a 20,000 strong company. Would you disagree?
At the company level I think you are right, at the team level if feels similar (at least in my experience). I guess I will caveat that by saying that the teams where I worked were well established units who worked closely on the same projects together. In companies where the teams are constantly rearranged I imagine there is more of a disconnect from you colleagues.
If you work as part of a twenty member team, then for most purposes that team is the company to you. Everyone else in the company is more or less outsourced services to your team.
I have lived through 2 mass exoduses, where a company started going downhill and the top 50% of developers all leave within 6 months of each other (often in groups).
There is nothing inherently special about a startup. Many established companies have make or break projects, and working on them requires the same sort of commitment.
In short, don't take shit off of potential employers. If they can't get it together enough to get back to you and treat you with whatever level of respect you expect, then that's a sign that you probably don't want to work there.