Pros
It is not a good place to be.
Cons
I couldn’t figure out how people continue on in the Amica environment. It is a toxic at best. The long term “tenured” employees, mostly managers, will tell you canned hype about how the company culture is the best, that everyone is like a family, that it is fun and there is a framework of support because everyone is in a brick and mortar building together - just a desk away. I believed them, I looked for this amazing supportive environment, but it just isn’t true. Maybe it used to be good at some point, but it is not like that now. Newer employees are struggling and most are not able to meet the impossible standards set for them. There is a very large turnover of employees - both managers and workers. Fair warning - be very sure you want this job, because once you have obtained your license, you will have to pay them $1000 to leave. You will literally have to pay them to leave. Learn from those before you - it does not get better - it is not worth the allure of pay, benefits, bonuses and training. As a new hire, there is training to take billing calls and learning the systems. Training is rushed, the training system rarely works and you will be told there is no way to train for the calls you will take. You will not feel ready to take calls, but off you go. Many of the callers have received cancellation notices, are upset that their rates have increased or just want to be mad. If someone tells you that the customers are all very nice - do not believe them. Next, you will “graduate,” to start training to obtain licensing and are then able making changes to policies. They show you how to do something once during training and after that it is practice on your own. While taking calls, expect to feel really really bad for asking any questions of management. Try to figure it out quickly on your own while a person is on hold and make sure you don’t take a lot of time doing it because hold times, after call times, in call times, outbound call times, away from desk times - everything is monitored to the second. If someone tells you not to worry right out of training , that they aren’t watching your metrics - Do. Not. Believe. Them. They are watching and will let you know of all mistakes made and how they expect you to improve, these mistakes will also affect your metrics. At this level you will be at a more intense part of customer calls. Customers will be very upset more often and managers are reluctant to help. After a short period of time, you will have no choice but to continue on to “utility” training where you will be expected to know it all. You will get the complicated/problematic calls, you will be the person people call and expect to know the ins and outs of all that is insurance. In training you will again be shown how to do complex transactions once, again be left on your own to “practice” and once taking these calls managers are even less responsive to questions. The intensity of expectations increases at each stage and once finished, the laundry list of what is expected daily and in each call is impossible to accomplish. Emails are sent about taking too many breaks, Skype messages are sent asking why taking so long, meetings will be made to discuss your performance and managers rarely leave their desks. A hiring manager may tell you that as a call center rep you do not have to solicit insurance. Do. Not. Believe.Them. There is an insurmountable amount of pressure to solicit every single call you receive and make. Managers will tell you it is easy, all you need to do is ask and how well they performed once upon a time when they were in your position or about a past employee that got hundreds of successful solicitations. Life insurance is number one, sell sell sell - just ask - even the woman that just lost her husband, she needs to think about life insurance - get the sale. If you aren’t able to meet the goal, even if you give the highest form of customer service and the customers adore you - your performance will be based on whether you met their metrics. They make it seem that it is intentional and that you are not trying, they will change what qualifies for metrics and will give the same unhelpful answers if you voice your struggle. There are high pressure office “games” for solicitation performance and dozens of emails every week. The goal is a moving target. When working for Amica do not expect consistency, expect a new manager ever month, expect work life balance to be used as leverage, expect to feel disposable, expect to feel like an idiot on a regular basis and expect no matter how hard you try or how clear you communicate you’re struggling - to be told it is you that is the problem or even worse - ignored completely. Six different managers in the first six months, enough said.
