Turning a long-term relationship career, into a short-term benchmark game.
Pros
It IS a great learning experience to be with COUNTRY right out of college. You get sponsored for the 6/63/L/H/P/C licenses, and a little reimbursement when you obtain them. Full access to a full line of products. Good claims from what I've seen. Prompt answers to any questions. COUNTRY's planning station is a great tool, it is a computer program that helps the financial rep to make the best recommendations according to the rules in the program. There are plenty of good things about this company, but it's hard to focus on them when all the negative aspects have a nice spotlight on them.
Cons
Benchmarks, no matter where you are located as a Financial Rep. you start off with the same exact benchmarks as everyone else. I am currently in an extremely mature market, and am not competitive on P/C at this time. I understand P/C shouldn't be treated as a commodity, however, we are often $300-$600+ out of the ball park. You need P/C for your benchmarks and to convert to "career", unless you get handed a book. My manager shows up 2 days a week, and leaves after about 3 hours. Underwriting came to a meeting we had and told us to not focus on our current client base with our new discounts, yet we claim to be the best provider of financial security? There are limited financial services available at this time. Technology is not a priority for this company whatsoever, they claim they will be upgrading in the future though. 15 different voices saying 15 different things, often contradicting one another. If you are into lucrative steak dinners, pats on the ass for selling non-profitable items to clients, and a good ole boys club, then this is the company for you. Extremely, EXTREMELY high turnover, which looks bad for a prospective client. My little book alone has had 3 agents on it in the last 5 years, and my agency has fired 2 people in the last 5 months due to benchmarks.