How do I reflect a single company's complicated history (such as buyouts) on a CV?

Question

I have worked for my current company for over a decade at this point. This company was bought out a few years ago, adopting the larger company's name. This larger company then sold us a couple of years ago to a private equity firm, and my company reverted to its original name. A few months after that, we were bought by another large company (though we still call ourselves by our standalone name...for now). It's been the same logical unit the entire time - even in the context of a larger organization, we just become a division.

Thing is, I've moved up/around significantly in positions over the course of my employment here, so I have to reflect that in my CV. Right now, I'm using the standalone company name for every position over the years, since if I put down what the company was called at each time, it'd look like I hopped companies - which I haven't. When the inevitable happens and we are absorbed enough into our new larger company and rebrand, I don't want to suggest that I've worked at the larger company for 10+ years. The standalone company has name recognition in its space, but the two larger organizations are much more "household names."

• Stage 1: "ABC Standalone Company"
• Stage 2: "ABC Standalone Company, a Division of Big Company 1"
• Stage 3: "Big Company 1 Standalone Services"
• Stage 4: "ABC Standalone Company (a holding of XYZ Private Equity)"
• Stage 5 (current): "ABC Standalone Company, a Division of Big Company 2"
• Stage 6 (future): ???

How should I best show that I've been with the same logical company/division the entire time, but also get in front of what is probably a confusing Google search for anyone digging deeper?

Answer 1

I would go with the simplest approach, based always on the present, as that is the most relevant and easiest to research:

Current Company name and Division (formerly also Company name and Company Name)

Positions held chronologically:
 - Starter 
 - Mover-Upper
 - Position-Changer ...

Answer 2

I think trying to represent all the different versions of the company is confusing and looks like you're moving when you aren't. The ownership of the company doesn't make too much of a difference to how you worked, so isn't really relevant. I'd just list it as ABC Standalone Company throughout (if the dynamic changed going from standalone to corporate, it's something you can point out at an appropriate point in the interview).

By all means if you want to show the different roles/progression in this company then list them individually, but only if they are a real change from the last (if your job title changed due to the buyouts but was the same job, I wouldn't list it).