Some departments are better than others
Pros
Nice buildings in Phoenix! I worked at SF for 4 years in CCC Sales, then ILR (Claims), and next SF Bank. Sales was the best of the 3 departments. I am thankful for SF giving me a job opportunity for 4 years.
Cons
Horrible Metrics system: SF wants you to focus on both quality and quantity, which can lead to burnout syndrome. They have no understanding that focusing on both may cause the rep to experience a significant amount of stress, thus causing burnout. I could have showed them several articles on why it's "dumb" to focus on both, but I knew management would have not cared, nor have listened. Management: Like most companies management is "hit or miss". The most interesting moment was in ILR when I was 30 seconds off of meeting the required Average Handling Time. I was paired with the "best" person on the team and it turns out she was the "best" because she was skipping certain aspects of the ILR process and the customers were left not setup into a body shop. Meaning this "best" person would skip aspects of the ILR process, such as doing a simple Google search to find a body shop for a customer if it were not in the main SF system, thus causing the Express team to do more in the future. In another instance also in ILR two managers pulled everyone out into the hallway one day and made demands and threatened to "fire" people for having flat tires. Most managers have no idea how to be a "transformational" leader and would not even know about good management and leadership theory and practice. Upper management does not have a clue that while SF is initially saving money by hiring less reps and focusing on average handling time, in the long run this will decrease customer service levels causing more policy holders to leave SF and more employees could experience more mental and physical symptoms that may lead to burnout. Work/Life Balance: This is gone now since SF went to a new T2 timecard system and did away with sick and personal days. I could write many more examples and about events that occurred, but I do not want to waste more time. Shady business practices: If you research SF you will find several cases that have ruled again them for unfair business practices, similar to Allstate. Sad really, considering how "good" SF once was. Most employees who write State Farm really "good" may have not taken time to research past court cases that State Farm has been involved in to gather the complete picture.
