CHS Inc Reviews

Pros

Excellent management staff, praise for a job well done, excellent benefits package, if your a dedicated float they comp you for travel, FAST advancement.

Cons

You start off at minimum wage (depening on experence) and work graveyards, very strick guidelines, inhouse alcohol and tobacco stings, possibility of being robbed very high. Strick dress code.

Advice to Senior Management

Double up on graveyard for all stores. You are now owned by a major corporation so a higher starting pay rate should be a top priority.

Pros

CHS is a stable work environment, CHS provide moderate benefits. THE company is expanding a great deal all over the world.

Cons

No Enterprise Vision. Only after money. IT is fragile and has too much load. No clear vision of where the company is going.

Advice to Senior Management

Eliminate the current silo environment which will cause an implosion if something is not done to bring the company into an enterprise model.

Pros

The pay is above average and they provide good benefits. They offer a flexible schedule. There are a lot of opportunites to learn but the more you learn the more they expect.

Cons

No opportunities for career advancement.
Politics- Departments are constantly fighting about every issue.
Management is worried about production rather than safety.
Improvement projects are turned in as a safety hazard to get them approved.
Operations is constantly fighting with Engineering
The manager in charge of operations and engineering doesn't want to hear about it and makes no effort to create peace.

Advice to Senior Management

The problem is with the local management and Senior management doesn't make site vists to determine what is actually happening. Senior management assumes things are fine since we turn a profit.

Senior management should make some management personnel changes and make unannounced plant vists to determine what is happening in their plants

Plant management is never there. Plant management needs to listen their employees. We have managers but no supervisors therefore there is no accountablilty and people do as they wish.

Management should get rid of the low performing employees. Management should actually investigate internal theft rather than ignore anonymous complaints.

Pros

Great place to work, great management, great pay, great sense of ownership and responsibility.

Cons

IT systems behind the curve

Advice to Senior Management

Update IT systems, and integrate more up to date tech.

Pros

Good people, and fair pay. Because the company is so diverse means there are opportunities as an employee if you want to move to other areas.

Cons

There are too many managers and this results in too many people involved in decisions. I think in the end this makes the customers suffer. CHS is stuck in doing things "the way they have always been done" and aren't willing to adjust with the market.

Advice to Senior Management

Be willing to change with the times and invest in the future of the company. There have been a number of opportunities that CHS has passed on because of its conservative nature only to see competitors snag those opportunities end up making them a big success.

Pros

excellent incentive packages and profit sharing for manager level employees

Cons

older facilities, 5 years employement before more that 2 weeks vacation

Advice to Senior Management

reinvest back into ag operations in the US and keep integrity as top priority

Pros

CHS has a wonderful corporate office, a good culture, and strong financials and benefits. The 401k, pension plan, and medical insurance were far better than you can normally expect (mostly because they are a co-op). The business units are small, and there isn't a lot of cross-work with other business units, so if you like being focused on your primary responsibilities, this is a good thing for you.

Cons

The business units are completely closed off--you're not going to be moving horizontally within the company anytime soon. Management power is retained at the very top--managers within business units are unable to give you guarantees about salary, promotions, etc. Mid-management seems to lack focus, at times. Strange corporate policies that are not enforced company-wide. Salaries are lower than elsewhere, but that's because the benefits package is good.

Advice to Senior Management

Lighten up the culture a bit. It's very structured, which is a good thing, but as your work force begins to turn over, most of the younger generation workers are turned off by the rigidity of the business units and the outdated incentive programs. Although the benefit programs are great, deferral of benefits for increased salary would be nice to see.

Pros

CHS is a diverse company with lots of opportunities within different industries if you chose to pursue them. The company is well established with a great track record of financial success. CHS has taken great strides to improve training opportunities for employees. In recent years they have worked at strengthening the CHS name by bringing all of the business units under the same name. This recognition is much better than it was 5 years ago. CHS is well respected in the agricultural industry because of the great leadership and integrity John Johnson has displayed while he has been in his current role.

Cons

CHS seems to still be a very old fashioned company that doesn't promote employee movement unless you, as an employee, push for change. The limited movement can make it a frustrating place to work if you are wanting advancement. CHS is diverse but this diversity can be a downfall because they are not a major player in any single area which doesn't make them a market leader.

Advice to Senior Management

Keep employees engaged and encourage more movement from business unit to business unit.