| Category | Rating |
|---|
| Pay | 3 |
| Respect | 5 |
| Benefits | -3 |
| Job Security | 5 |
| Work/Life Balance | 5 |
| Career Potential/Growth | 4 |
| Location | 5 |
| Co-worker Competence | 0 |
| Work Environment | 3 |
I've read a lot of good reviews and a lot of bad reviews. Either you love it or you hate it. I love it....
1) I'm one of the most ethical people on the planet and when I book appointments to meet with someone my goal is to leave that client in a better position than when I first met them. Not all agents are out to just write business without having any validity behind the sale - that is few and far between. When I do hear it happens, a lot, also is done unknowingly. The application process is tedious, the portfolio huge, all of the laws, etc. Writing business and managing it has so many layers, which contributes to the confusion.
2) Bankers has some of the best training models that I have ever seen, but it is up to the agent to take responsibility instead of whining - you are given the tools now use them, learn and grow from it. Its a shame that not all branch offices have good managers and mentors.
3) I have worked and/or represented many companies previously, and I don't care what company it is, they all have legal departments. I don't find Bankers having more lawsuits than some other ones out there. Shame on some other major corps (American General, Allianz, Smith Barney, State Farm, Met Life, etc.) Some of my clients have shown me contracts they have, which I felt were not done in the person's best interest. Even a local branch of BB&T Bank called up one of my "75 year old clients" and insisted he take his $10,000 and invest it in stock - come over to the branch and we will take care of that for you. Isn't that unethical? At 75 you should be preserving your assets not putting them into something so volatile.
4) For those people just starting out - I knew what I was getting into when I started and I also knew it would take time to build a client base. I looked at this as just any other start-up company - you have to work at it to be successful. Not everyone is cut out for sales so find something else.
5) The leads - I know some companies that all they give you is a phone book. And as far as recycled leads....how do you know for sure the previous agent was able to connect? I do wish there was a better way of managing this; though. It is chaos trying to keep all together and then you rarely get the territory you want because they have already been given out to someone else.
6) I love the product line - very well rounded, competitive in pricing and uniqueness in features that other companies do not have. I love having the opportunity to meet with a senior with the opportunity to help them in more than one area as opposed to being stuck in one specialization.
Overall, I believe everything to be great. I will take the flexibility of my time and the opportunity to learn as much as I want any day compared to being stuck in a corporate office, at a dead-end job with 20 other people shooting for the same promotion.
What I wish would change....
a) the lack of cross management between offices. It's like going to a restaurant - some are good places to eat and some are not. How can you control the corporate culture and what the managers are doing, which funnels down to the agents if the corporation is not working cohesively. Is someone listening to all the complaints and working on turning them around?
b) not commission, but providing more benefits to their agents as opposed to none - maybe if you are there in 6 months this is what you are eligible for, 12 months, etc.
c) look into the best practices and success of other insurance carriers and model some of those onto us
d) quit hiring everyone off the street - better job of screening new recruits. (can't blame all of that on the branch office; though, when your unemployed its easy to say yes to an opportunity even when you know - its not for you)