First Investors Corporation Reviews

Pros

Friendly work environment. Fun trips with the company. They provide training for sales pitches and a supportive work team. Unfortunately the majority of employees are very young, I would prefer individuals with more experience.

Cons

No base pay, one must pay for all of the testing, the gas to transport to work. The cold calling is horrible, no one has even heard of First Investors. There are no benefits and my savings is completely gone due to the expenses of becoming registered. If one could access the draw program earlier I would feel much more secure with my position in the company.

Advice to Senior Management

You must support your employees and offer a base salary. Medical benefits would be a major plus.

Pros

I have worked at First Investors basically since college when I interned for the company. I really liked my internship with FIC and that is what eventually brought me back to the company after I graduated from college. I also really enjoyed the people in the office where I interned at and felt that it was the right kind of atmosphere for me and what I was looking for in an employer. Another thing that drew me back to the company was the fact that there are tons of opportunities for growth. I saw that my career would start one way and continue to morph positively as the years go by. It's been a few years and I have already seen my career form and change into new and exciting directions. I like that I am able to control my success depending on what kind of work I put into my job.

Cons

I think one of the downsides to working at First Investors is the fact that getting your career jump started is a lot of work - especially in the first few years. You've got tests to take to get your licenses and you start your business from the ground up. The first few years are certainly busy, but in the end I feel that it pays off quite well.

Advice to Senior Management

My best advice to the management would be to keep finding news ways for us to make a positive difference/impact for our clients and their financial goals.

Pros

Unlimited growth and income potential
Possibility to control ones schedule

Cons

No base salary
Only compensated for exam fees when reaching a certain level of sales
Required to cold call
Not many benefits

Advice to Senior Management

Come up with an actual base salary to lower the turnover rate

Pros

We work as independent contractors. Training is phenomenal and I have received a lot of support from management. Company has been around 80+ years and has a strong financial rating. In addition, company just merged with a lesser known yet international giant, Foresters. Bonus payouts are extremely high and company is big on rewarding and giving incentives to staff.

Cons

It is an incentive based career. Not everyone can survive without a fixed income. However, in the long run bonuses and compensation make up twelve fold. You can easily build a six figure career, which is something the majority of salaried positions do not offer, unless you are an executive.

Advice to Senior Management

Keep recruiting and keep up the good training as well as incentives you provide to the representatives.

Pros

- They train you to get your insurance license and your Series 6
- Everything is based on how you as an individual works

Cons

- Bad management
- Pyramid scheme
- They do not care about you, all they care about is your numbers

Pros

stable company, strong training program, opportunities for growth

Cons

requires a significant investment of time to get started in the beginning

Advice to Senior Management

provide a base salary in the beginning

Pros

Getting experience as to whether the financial services industry is the right industry for me.

Cons

The internship is only for college credit. I paid a hefty penny to go to/from the office every other day.

Advice to Senior Management

Instead of awarding college credit, pay the college students a small stipend to offset the costs to go to/from the office. It gets expensive and students do not have the money to go back and forth all of the time.

Pros

flexible hours and good environment to work.

Cons

There should be some sort of base pay.

Advice to Senior Management

Explain in detailed to interview candidates what exactly they're interviewing for.

Pros

The position is very flexible as far as scheduling. They also provide some great training and the ability to move forward within your career.

Cons

I loved the job, but the commission structure made it very difficult to continue to pay my bills while working. Don't expect to make any money within the first 6 months minimum.

Advice to Senior Management

Helping your employees out while learning the business.

Pros

-flexibility in scheduling
-lots of incentives
-staff is nice
-provided with a mentor
-great if you're an outgoing people person

Cons

-commissions based salary
- lack of professional growth
- very high turn over rate
- success is based on personal connections

Advice to Senior Management

I would offer a stipend in the beginning to help new employees offset some of their expenses. It is very hard to be fully dedicated to the position when there is no money coming in and bills are piling up!