Pros
EVT - you're able to buy 40hrs of vacation time every year
Cons
The Annuity Customer Service department is like working in a sweatshop, yeah, a beautiful sweat shop in Newport Beach. If you like being micro-managed to the point that your bathroom breaks are timed, then this is the place for you! The bottom line this place is nothing more than a call center and you are considered a machine, nothing more than a rat spinning on a wheel signed on to your phone 7.35 hours day. If you are signed on even 1 minute late, it goes in your file and if this happens more than 6 times in a rolling 12 month period, you will be written up and it will be part of your permanent record. God forgive you if an emergency comes up or you get sick and ask to go home. That will cost you too big time! 1 of your allowable 6 occurrence for that same rolling 12 month period. You are not allowed to stay home and actually get well with such limitations, so everyone continues coming in sick and spreading their germs around until we are all sick which means, you guessed it, written up because you went passed the allowable sacred 6. REMEMBER...you are not a human in this department but a producing machine that better not break down because management can't keep the department fully staffed and they need you to be on the phones every second of the day until you are sucked dry. Here’s a snip it of what your day will look like: You will take 99 plus calls in a very complicated environment where the rules change on daily basis You will need to know massive amounts of information without missing a beat You must say the caller's name thought-out the call but nobody will tell what that number actually is, how convenient, they can downgrade your call with a whim You must acknowledge the caller and you’d better use the word "happy" or guess what, that's right, the caller's experience will be tainted (as well as your file) You must do a three-part close even when the caller tells you they don’t need anything else If you need to use the restroom more that twice in one day you are wrecked and won't make the required UT All calls must be P-E-R-F-E-C-T You are required to respond to every question within 20 seconds or a 3 minute hold, and with the amount of information you need to know, it is impossible and keeps growing and changing on a daily basis. Don’t dare complain or put up the white flag either, management doesn’t care, it’s the expectation of your job. Oh yeah, management wants everyone to sit the entire day while taking calls for 7.35 hours too. I am not kidding, they tell you not to stand up!!! You are expected to sit on your rear until they turns numb. When your legs ache and start to cramp you are fearful mgmt will spot you stretching. Customer Service peeps are the red-headed step children of Pacific Life. We are never allowed to participate with other parts of the company because they can't afford to give you time away from the phone. Recently the entire company had a ice cream event for 1 hour but we were only allow 10 precious minutes to get down, crab a cone and race back to the 4th floor to take more calls. Don't ever complain or try to stand up for yourself, because if you do, you will end up on the "you are a trouble marker" list F-O-R-E-V-E-R! Basically we all learn early on to just shut down and be quiet ! Good luck ever getting out of this department too, but that's how HR bates you excepting the position in the first place. Making statements like, CS is a stepping stone to other opportunities within the company and a great place to get your foot into the door. DON'T BELIEVE IT!!! All lies!!! Maybe 1% actually get out of this dept! That place and the entire department is basically the most depressing atmosphere I have ever had to endure and I can‘t wait until the economy picks up so I can adios-amigos! I'm actually fearful of someone going ballistic in that place before I get the heck out. I hope to God I call in sick THAT day! (and it’s my 7th occurrence haha). If you are ever desperate enough to still considering working for Annuity CS, then count yourself warned!
