Adequate, but career growth is stagnant, unless you are outside of the Customer Service Organization.
Pros
Salary - after years of bearing with associates who earned more than me and were eligible for overtime, the company recognized this disparity and adjusted my salary accordingly. Unfortunately, it took years of negative feedback until there was finally a plurality of coaches who described the same issue. Culture is second to none, and is increasingly reflecting a concern for needs of the business. Ethics and empowerment are strongly encouraged (and expected). Communication from middle and upper management is transparent. We know what is going on with the state of the company. Casual dress work environment. Continual hiring for customer service reps--higher than average market rate for new associates. Free cell phone service. Quarterly bonuses (if meeting expectations) Performance-based expectations are clear. Associates are expected to deliver customer service that balances the needs of customers with needs of the business.
Cons
Customer service organization culture has had a cult-like aura--such behavior is nearly non-existent in other departments, and this comes across loud and clear in interdepartmental interactions (I'm sometimes appalled at the lack of diplomacy exhibited by non-Customer Service personnel). Still plenty of bad eggs among the coaching ranks--it's like a high school culture sometimes, with back-stabbing galore. Not knowing how other customer service centers in the organization work, but I still feel overworked and underwhelmed. The work-reward ratio is clearly unbalanced. If you want growth based upon real performance, go into the retail environment, but use caution (see next point). The cellular industry is clearly a commoditized industry--everyone who ever wanted a cell/smartphone has one, and the differences between providers is minimal. USCellular seeks to deliver a better service performance, but lacks in many ways. The company outsources CS functions in addition to retaining CS within the company, and the difference between the outsource providers and USCellular is mind-boggling. The outsource providers are sorely lacking in delivering what we expect. Admittedly without proof, there appears to be a distinct disadvantage for someone looking to move from a leadership role in CS to a non-leadership (individual contributor) role in a different area of the business. Managers look upon coaches who seek individual contributor roles with a skeptical eye. The key is: coaches are burned out--period. It's a rarity for a coach to move into a non-leadership role, simply because managers regard leadership as an honor and cannot recognize the burnout factor. But as someone once told me: Milorganite may roll downhill, but it piles up on the lowest level of leadership. Associates are still treated with kid gloves compared to the treatment coaches receive. So this is why it's a dead-end. Be very careful if you decide to enter the coaching ranks.
