Assurant Reviews

Former Employee – worked at Assurant

Pros – Flexible work schedule and support for telecommuting. Some positive moves towards modernization and cost reduction which, if carried out correctly, could remove much of the dead wood, making way for more energetic employees.

Cons – Very poor approach to software development. Lack of methodology in software development, antiquated systems, lack of communication on the part of business analysts and management. Talented developers had a way of turning invisible to middle managers and were thus, forced to look elsewhere for professional and personal development.

My middle manager was wholly unresponsive when it came to fulfilling administrative duties. I was treated pretty badly after giving notice. Not so much as a "thanks" and "good job" on delivering a stable set of code that was liked by end users. I don't take personally anymore; it's the way of the big company. But sadly, weak middle managers never seem to learn that they way they treat departing team members is observed by those who remain behind. In short: their behavior demoralizes. Good leadership requires empathy and not just treating colleagues like throw-away disposable wrappers peeled off candy bars. There is very little incentive for anyone to make a long term commitment to an organization that views them as "useful" for short periods of time only. In fairness to AIZ, I think the attitude predominates in any Fortune 500 company, hence the turnover rates in corporate IT departments. The old days of IBM and HP are gone.

While at the company, I noticed that some middle managers were able to acquire hangers-on in an effort to bolster their "management" umph. "I have X number of people reporting to me... " Entire teams of people surfing the 'net all day, but some of that is going away with the restructuring/off-shoring/in-sourcing strategy. The company does have talented developers, but middle managers with no development experience hire people often times in order make themselves more important on paper. In fact, improvements in methodology and more forensic work at the beginning of projects would go a long way towards keeping staffing costs down while improving the quality and delivery of software.

The software development methodology was rather unique at Assurant. Build the software with weak requirements and specifications, turn it over to the business unit and then spend many months letting them go back in and do a gap analysis/new round of requirements gathering. I have never seen anything like it.

One senior middle manager was fairly abusive towards employees and was shameless enough to belittle people in front of others. Women in corporate America tend to get away with so much and it's unfortunate that toxic personalities like hers are allowed to poison the waters.

Quite a few people would be happy working at AIZ. It's large and not very agile, so people looking for that kind of steady, slow work life would do well here. New college grads could find mentors among the talented developers (and there are several around). There are however quite a few stresses related to the lack of structure in the software development life cycle.

I had one teammate who complained non-stop about having to work until the wee hours of the morning for months on end. These situations should never be allowed to develop since all they do is demoralize teams, further weaken inexperienced middle managers and drive people out the door.

Advice to Senior Management – Directors need to be competent and intimately familiar with the area of concerns they manage.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Assurant

Pros – Assurant or formerly American Bankers Insurance Group (ABIG) was a great place to work and I should know I joined during the good old days and worked there for over 10 years. In its glory days, it was a big company that acted like a small, nimble company with a family atmosphere. Management truly cared about the employee's welfare, progression and innovation.

Cons – The company shifted gears in 2003-2004 and most of the leadership that had made ABIG great was ousted and replaced with a different management team whose main focus was the bottom line. Corporate politics took hold instead of doing the right and best thing for the company.

Advice to Senior Management – Revisit your original corporate culture. Focusing and investing in your employees resulted in better results, higher quality of work, innovation and loyalty.

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – Stock Purchase plan and 401K are great benefits
Some really great fellow employees are still employed there

Cons – HR feedback dictates how far you go. Play the game, the further you go. Dont play, dont go any further. Upper management has little engagement with the actual workers. Some upper managers have no clue on what is actually going on in the business.....placed there due to "knowing someone higher up" is common practice.
Most currently, they have started an internal "hit list" of those employees that they (and HR) deem to be not capable. Assessment made not on what they do, but future potential. Direct managers are FORCED to work on plans to get them out the door, even though they may think there is potential with the right direction.

Advice to Senior Management – Be aware of what is really going in...you will or are loosing some really good employees.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – Open to new ideas
Open to promotion from within
International locations
Low rate of layoffs compared to other Fortune 500 companies during recession
Telecommute options

Cons – Some negative press about the ESC and Health products

Advice to Senior Management – Open social media sites to employees. Don't be so concerend about negative press - it's out there anyway. Allow employees to take advantage of the benefits that social media has to offer.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – Flexibility, Benefits, People, Experience
Assurant provides a fun, challenging and exciting environment.

Cons – Senior Management does not listen very well to feedback and information provided, making things very difficult in some situations. Sometimes there seems to be too much internal politics.

Advice to Senior Management – If your employees are performing well, don't try to come up with something just to have a topic to add for area that needs improvement.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Assurant

Pros – I was part of Assurant Solutions and all these comments are applicable to that unit.
-An old fortune company,one of the biggest employers in Miami.
-Stocks are good.
-Some departments allow work from home one day per week

Cons – -A heavily politically charged environment
-Incapable people move up just by playing politics and being an yes boss person.
-Bias and partiality in recognitions.
-If you land up as a lead engineer or business analyst and plan to grow eventually (HR or your manager will say this in interview) it never happens. So what you get as initial offer is what you have..
-No bonuses, no big hikes
-They had good HMO medical plans which were cost effective, which is no longer available and all you have is costly PPO's
-There is a new managment in Assurant Solutions and this has changed the entire picture. Now focus is more on offshoring to reduce cost and layoff persons including employess with 20+ years in the same company.
-The new management has brought in a bunch of folks from their old company along with them and few of the existing employees have played smart politics to be in their good books..Now politics is what's happening rather than real work.
-IF you are a Java guru or any other technology then there is no room here for you any more..All technologies are now shifting towards Microsoft without even properly evaluating the merits of the technology for the business need. This also include Database technologies.
-Consulting companies which had previous relation ship with the new management are now brought in without much evaluation or discussion.
-Too much micromanagement by management and sometimes your peers who are buddies to top management boss around you.
- You may not be consulted even on technical inputs in your own area and decisions will be taken behind closed doors between persons who have a rudimentary knowledge of technology.
-There is no project management but only bossing around.
-Unrealistic estimates most of the times.

Advice to Senior Management – You can 't expect much from Assurant Solutions management any more , the earlier corporate (read Assurant,Inc NY) puts brakes on these folks, better it will be for the company.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – Diverse business lines and lots of work for those that like to roll up your sleeves.

Cons – Difficult to make leap into middle management if this is your goal

Advice to Senior Management – Take the time to listen to your employees.

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – Assurant offers a small company environment where it is easy to meet people from other departments and interact with several different levels of associates which you can use to nuture your growth oppotunities within the company. Assurant is able to offer this small company environment all the while offering large company benefits. Employee development has become a big focus lately within the company, so many supervisors, managers, and directors are available for coaching and mentoring opportunities. If you get in and truly work hard, the company rewards you.

Cons – Assurant has offices all over the world, so there are many different working styles and working environments throughout the company. As we begin to work closer with other offices these different working styles can clash.

Advice to Senior Management – Overall, great job. I would like to see less corporate red tape and true, open feedback come through.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – If you are a top performer it's pretty hard to get fired.

Cons – Low compensation, corporate red-tape, tons of corporate 'chaffe' co-workers.

Advice to Senior Management – Compensate your top 10% performers better and get the bottom 10% to leave through attrition.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Assurant

Pros – Assurant has excellent benefits, locations, sound financial company - I have been with the company for many years. The one thing for certain is change and change is good - but the management has to give the employees tools they need to be successful in doing the job.

Cons – There has been a lack of training when new applcations / companies are taken on. While I see the benefit to the changes, our customers do not benefit when the employees are not properly prepared for the changes.

Advice to Senior Management – Prepare employees for changes. Provide tools we need to be successful. Listen to your employees. They are trying to do a good job and they are the ones on the front line who are most ble to tell you how we can provide excellence. We are all partners - ensuring our company has a bright future.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend