Farmers Group Reviews

Pros

Good benefits and competitive salaries.

Cons

Our dept was downsized and moved to another state. The proper resources weren't put in place to make it profitable. My position's duties were greatly reduced; I had little to no authority. Doing self-performance reviews were difficult when you have very little opportunities to change your job. Also, if there was a position you want to move into, you needed a college degree.

Advice to Senior Management

No longer work there so, none.

Pros

Farmers pays its employees fairly well in our market, and provides a financially rewarding work environment to include 401(k) matching, annual bonus, and fairly competitive salary. The office environment varies wildly from office to office, but in the one I work in it's collaborative, and friendly.
This is a good place to work if you can work hard, and have less of a life than most people.

Cons

Cons at Farmers include the fact that you can expect to be overworked, and have obstacles put directly into your way. Claims representatives are often overloaded with work, but yet are often asked to attend meetings, training conferences, and the like that take upwards of a half day or more on a fairly frequent basis. The performance management system is also a place that is rife for abuse, with a significant portion of your review dedicated to "behaviors" which are highly subjective.

Advice to Senior Management

- Do better, more accurate business projections, and hire accordingly, quickly.
- Get into the trenches with the employees and work our desks with us for a few days and see
  the chaos for yourself before you think about adding more metrics or raising the bar on current
  ones.

Pros

1. The benefits are outstanding!
(Vacation accrual is the best in the business! You have lots of opportunities to take a lot of a vacation, even after being there only a year. Health benefits are excellent as well.)
2. Competitive Salary and Compensation.
(Farmers is in line with what other companies offer, in some cases a little bit more. Eligible full time employees also have the opportunity to participate in Farmers Profit Sharing program, which is surprisingly good.)
3. Lots of opportunity for growth and development.
(Like the company, but don't like your position? Being a large company, Farmers has lots of departments and there are always openings. Although the exact position you may want may not be available all the time, there are plenty of opportunities for openings. If you are willing to relocate, the opportunities are almost endless.
4. Training Program is top notch.
(I worked for 2 other insurance companies prior to coming to Farmers. Farmers has been the best so far. They invest a lot of money and time into training their employees. I trained for over 3 months before I started in my position.)
5. Good upper management
(With most companies, upper management says they care about their employees but their actions clearly indicate the opposite. Not at Farmers. Farmers upper management says they care and I get the feeling they really do. They are by no means perfect. And there are times they make decisions to do things that aren't very popular on the front lines. But, they listen to constructive feedback and if it's possible to change, they change. Insurance is a tough business, sometimes tough decisions have to be made that aren't the most popular, but I do get the feeling upper management looks out for the company as a whole.

Cons

1. Claims can be rough.
(It is no secret that people working in the claims department are generally not the happiest bunch. It is a tough job. As a claims adjuster, you have to tell people bad news; it is part of the job. You are working with all different types of people too. Claims can be stressful.
2. Performance Reviews.
(For the most part they are fair. However there are portions of your performance reviews that are based entirely on the actions or feelings of others. I wish there was a way to change this.)
3. If you don't like change, don't work at Farmers.
(Personally, I don't mind change. I like it. If you don't like change though, don't go to Farmers. Farmers is constantly changing the way the day-to-day operations and their way of doing business. Most of the time, it is for the better. The joke at the company is, if you don't like something, wait a few months and it will likely change.)

Advice to Senior Management

Overall, the company is headed in a good direction. Keep providing opportunities to everyone in the company and encouraging cross-training across departments. Benefits are outstanding.

Pros

The training program is a work in progress. A ton of information served out in a relatively short amount of time...one month whereby production expectations begin and the training is ongoing...albeit in more manageable increments. The corporate philosophy is well intended and often mentioned. In an industry that does not always get a good wrap this company stands behind the idea that an agent is there for the client, consults with the client in the clients best interest as it relates to insurance. The company's compensation plan is very generous in the form of a subsidy that gets paid out monthly and helps to offset the initial "challenges" of growing one's agency...but this money is not yours...really. This money must be paid back over time either by business you generate or out of your own pocket if you do not meet the "required" quotas. You've got to make it happen like any sales job.

Cons

Bottom line if you do not meet the monthly expectations you've got to make up missed policy counts as well as meet the next months business expectations. If you miss the months mark in terms of policy requirements you do not get the subsidy and things can really sprial downward from there. Essentially you are working for free until you catch up...if you can. It really is a numbers game and the unfortunate reality is that insurance for most people is not a priority. A lot of follow up with unanswered phone calls and delay tactics by consumers not willing to commit even when all objections are diffused. Patience and a thick skin are the order of the day.

Advice to Senior Management

Be clear and consise as to what lies ahead for new hires.

Pros

Opportunity for advancement is limitless.

Cons

Organization is truly a problem. Management needs to be managed

Pros

As an independent contractor, you are free to set your own production goals. Hard work and perseverance will pay off.

Cons

Too many new agents do not work hard or smart enough to be successful longer than two to three years. Older agent live off of renewals.

Advice to Senior Management

Management creates obtainable objectives if pricing is accurate. Training is good. Hard work is recognized and rewarded. To many agents.

Pros

Good benefits, possibility to eventually move into another department where employee satisfaction is higher.

Cons

Lousy pay compared to other companies in the industry, poorly run management, severe micro-management style, punishment-based performance, low office morale.

Advice to Senior Management

Revamp Albuquerque management team, implement new performance measurements and punishment/reward system, hold employee satisfaction meetings that are ACTUALLY USED toward making changes.

Pros

Profit sharing was the best thing about being there. They are always pushing and praising furthering your education and bettering yourself.

Cons

Pay increases do not match merit. Everyone gets a certain amount regardless of how much (or, for some, how little) you work and the effort you put in to your job.

Advice to Senior Management

Pay accordingly, based on merit and reviews. Not because you have to stay within a range. It brings down morale for those that are working harder than their coworkers but yet make the same, or less, than their less than effective counterparts.

Pros

Owning you own book of business, residual income, make your own schedule.

Cons

There really are no downsides, beside the fact that pay is pretty much 100% commission for the first few months so you need to have some money saved up, because it will take time.

Advice to Senior Management

none

Pros

Farmers is a good stepping stone for anyone interested in insurance since the company incorporates Bristol West, Coast Nation, 21st Century and Foremost. Employees have a chance to immerse themselves in all of the companies' various insurance polices.

Cons

The company is extremely performance driven. So much, that they are sometimes seemingly inconsiderate of the employee and their well being. Stress is a common ailment for any employee due to the increased workload.

Advice to Senior Management

Leadership needs to be more consistent and transparent to their employees. Claims managers have the duty to teach and mentor new employees so that they understand what they are doing instead of just performing a task without understanding the reasoning behind it.