Farmers Group Reviews in Kansas City, MO Area

Pros

Great benefits and pay for an entry-level position. The work week is 40 hours for most office claims adjusters. When the amount of claims increases employees can request overtime hours. Farmers offers tuition assistance to employees after six months for "related courses." The hours are fairly flexible. OCRs work core hours (six designated hours each day) and then build up the 40 hours/week around that.

Cons

Insurance is a tough business. Most customers will feel "wronged" by the company even if it is the correct liability decision or fair value for their vehicle. There is not a lot of clear communication between agents, field adjusters, and office adjusters. A lot of times it feels like good cop, bad cop between the agents and claims adjusters. Claims adjusters are often micromanaged by supervisors and Quality Assurance.

Advice to Senior Management

I would advise opening the lines of communication between the different positions within the company that have to work together.

Pros

working for a large national company.
working for an even larger international company (Zurich).
steady hours.
good work/life balance.
ability to relocate.

Cons

repetitive, boring work.
felt like an assembly line.
having to constantly argue with contractors and unhappy policy holders.
having an outgoing personality is definitively not good for this position.

Advice to Senior Management

There isn't really much advice to management you could give in my situation, i just didn't like the work period. The atmosphere was okay, but it was the job itself that really killed my personality. I felt like a drone in this place.

Pros

Farmers has a career path that allows for individuals to advance at a fairly reasonable time. Management tries to make changes but thanks to the lawsuits, the workplace has become more of a babysitting feeling than an adult works here type of place. Compensation is average to below average. The benefits used to be amazing. Health insurance was reasonable, the profit sharing was great and the month of profit sharing was a party. It really made you feel valuable to the company. With the move to Zurich, profit sharing is now one week and the guidelines are so stringent, getting off the phone for call center employes removes most of the activities available to them. Places change so it is something to get used to.

Tuition reinbursement is great if you are getting a business associated degree. They paid for my education. I think they are a somewhat fair company to work for depending on your position.

I feel that upper managment really cares about the employees and they aredoing all they can to be good liasons between Zurich and the Farmers employees. Yet when it gets to middle management, there seems to be a disconnect. The VP's will travel around and say grat things and make you feel good about the company you work for, yet, when their vision is put into practice by mid levels, everything falls apart. David Travers and Bob Woudstra and those around them seem to just "get it". Once you leave their presence, it is more of a sheep vs. wolves atmosphere. There is a department whose sole job is to increase employee morale or engagement. Great idea, now put the money behind it to move it along. It is amazing at how diffferent the employee engagement survey is when employees actually feel valuable and not despised.

Farmers is well run and very conservative. So the technology is a bit behind and they are covering flesh wounds with bandages for the time being. But having over 8 million policy holders, it takes time change a system based on old technology and code.

An honest company who I think wants good things for their employees.

Cons

The non-exempt employees are treated as children. The mid level exempt employees are over-worked and not thanked enough and the leadership, sometimes one questions WTH... Depending on location the supervisor job can be heaven or hell. Some of the directors are complete idiots who care about nothing but themselves and treat those around them like they are in the way whereas others really show they care about the employees. Leadership training is little to none. So if you are not a good supervisor before you get the position, you will not become one. Sometimes they promote based on performance but my experience is, they promote based on favortism. The matrix system is one that can be manipulated and weighted to promote the individual they want in the position. And, your leadership can sabatoge your career with one salary review that is not exceeds expectations. The promotional capabilities really fall under how well does your direct leader like you. Performance is questionable. I have seen individuals who are amazing with their co-workers get turned down for leadership because they think the friendships will get in the way of their ability to criticize and employee in review times. So then they hire the heartless individual who has no people skills and we lose some great employees.
Idea stealing is rampant because you can be promoted based on one good idea. So there is a wall up around employees who have been here a while.

Leadership could do better at recognizing talent and rewarding jobs well done. They moved form cash spot bonuses to a point system and now instead of receiving cash for something you have done, they divy up the points to small groups and say, take this 5 points and buy yourself a pack of bubble gum.

Middle-management has serious issues. They think that everything that comes out of their mouths is the greatest thing for the industry. A wise manager said this, "The industry is over a hundred years old, you ar selling a policy and covering claims. Don't make it harder than it needs to be."
Middle management seems to read the newest books then implement the easiest parts of the ideas without any follow through. then when problems arise they jump to new books and blame the process for te issues and not themselves. It is somewhat funny at times and painful at other times to watch. Then again, they are just people trying to make it along in this lonely life.

Advice to Senior Management

Pay well for great leaders and cultivate that trusting feeling between management and personelle. As bad as the economy is, the best people can still find jobs with companies that respect them and will pay them for a job well done. If you really want to become the premiere company, your middle managers are the ones that need to take your vision to the employees.

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

The people, supervisors and managers are all great. There is a lot of growth potential especially if you work hard. I received my first promotion in less than a year of working at Farmers. You get 20 days of vacation a year. They have a tuition reimbursement program that is also very nice.

Cons

It can be difficult to work in a call center, and we are always very busy. Sometimes it seems that we are very micro-managed.

Pros

Farmers has tremendous opportunities for those truly interested in the claims operations.

Cons

Farmers does not embrace change unless mandated by government entities which makes them a company that's less agile than others in their industry.

Pros

Fun place to work, always having BBQ's and fun activities that keep the place great to be at

Cons

They claim to have an "open door" policy, however when you use the open-door policy you kinda become looked down upon once you run to HR about a problem that has not been addressed.

Advice to Senior Management

Pay more attention to your workers!! Wether you want to believe it or not, they are the victims when you have more than 1 complaint against a single supervisor!!!

Pros

Not a bad first job.
Decent pay and a good atmosphere.
Good coworkers
Good location to live in

Cons

Management does not take decisions made into consideration
They expect a LOT of work to be done in 40 hours a week and do not give overtime
Hard to get the work done in the 40 hrs required.

Advice to Senior Management

Make better decisions with integrating and allow time to make sure the process is in order and things are good before making further decisions. It doesn't always have to roll downhill.

Pros

flexible schedule, good co-workers, good benefits package, bonuses can be relatively good, number of company events, field positions can be very lucrative

Cons

management goals and expectations are not rooted in reality, slow advancement and opportunity for raises, not very good communication within the company

Advice to Senior Management

Stop and think before making statements regarding goals and objectives, as it sometimes appears that not enough thought went into making decisions.

Pros

Being in business for your self and by yourself... Always have the life insurance requirements hanging over your head too... Wait - those are cons too!

Cons

As a farmers agent you have the privilege of paying to get licensed and start up expenses so that you can sell their increasingly expensive policies. Costs will add up as customers churn out the door due to 60+% rate increases over the last few years while you sit through meetings telling you how you have to spend more on marketing (their way). Eventually you get tired of the cycle and Farmers sends you to collections for the lack of ability to immediately pay back all of your subsidy.

Be an independent agent or at least start as a producer for an IA so you learn the industry first.

Advice to Senior Management

RATE STABILITY! and actually work with agents vs against them... If the rules on certain issues are changed- there needs to be knowledge of it before rather than just after the fact.