Pros
The people that work here are great. The benefits are decent. I met some of my best friends while working for this organization.
Kontras
Where to begin! This company used to be one that was completely member focused, employee led, and treated people as humans. Now? Well, there has been a fall of priorities. Ask any member who has been with the company for more than ten years, and they’ll tell you the differences—the increase in fee structure, the lack of leeway given to members who have fallen on hard times, and the overall sales nature the company has incorporated. Senior management is a closed door in terms of willingness to hear new ideas and desire to be better. Most of them have been in their roles for 10+ years and they have zero desire to change. They gaslight their manager into becoming bullies in order to be promoted and show more loyalty to themselves and their image than they do to any of the employees. (With the exception of Nora who was recently promoted. I haven’t worked with her since she became a senior exec, but the experience I did have with her is phenomenal. My only hope is that she can lead the way for some of the other execs) Branch operations is a disaster. They are consistently having panics about being out of compliance and then make the employees pay for it when in reality the branch staff are overworked and for the most part under paid. Now, I say for the most part because if you’re a lifer who has been there for more than 5-10 years, more than likely the co-worker that was hired a week ago makes much more than you do. Now as for specialty areas in the back office—all of them are severely underpaid. When I left back in 2019, I received a 40% pay bump and was at an entry level position within my specialty. It doesn’t matter if you show them what the market standard is for compensation. They say they have plans for you, but in reality that’s only a gimmick to get you to comply and not ask questions. As far as they’re concerned, you’re disposable and as soon as you ask questions or try to hold them accountable, they railroad you until you quit or fire you. During covid they advertised that they didn’t lay anyone off, but what they failed to mention is that they had a mass firing for anyone who was “not a high performer”! So many people lost their jobs in the middle of a pandemic and didn’t receive any severance because they were fired. So I’m not sure exactly what they’re proud of. All of this is to say, this company has some of the best people I have ever met, but if they don’t get it together and start taking care of their employees, it won’t last. Listen to what your employees are telling you. INVEST IN TECHNOLOGY THAT WORKS and stop paying the minimum amount and cheating out routine maintenance. If you value your mental health, steer clear of this place. The benefits are decent, but the pay and the unrealistic expectations they have will drive you into the ground. It makes me sad because I used to genuinely love working there, but as time went on I saw what they did to people and the cavalier attitude they had about kicking anyone out that didn’t fit their “culture”. (They’re not as diverse as they advertise—especially in their senior leadership or in their board or directors)
