H&R Block Reviews in Kansas City, MO Area

Pros

Excellent training done by Block. They truly want to develop their employees into contributing members of their team. All of the management is extremely friendly and creates a fun work environment.

Cons

Very strict guidelines on attendance with little flexibility. This can lead to termination for events that are out of employee control.

Advice to Senior Management

My advice to management is to keep up the good work. You guys do an excellent job and I was highly impressed when I joined the company.

Pros

My friends I met there.

Cons

Salaries at the tax office are abysmal. No where in the career website does it mention the pay rate. If you have a college degree, stay away. It's not worth it. You could flip burgers for more money.

Advice to Senior Management

Try opening up your wallets for your so called dedicated employees. You want the employees to dress professionally, speak highly of HRB when you pay sub standard wages? How is that supposed to work? Social media department dictates how and what you can say on YOUR OWN Facebook? Ever heard of freedom of speech, people?

Pros

I was able to pursue interests that were outside of my defined job description.

Cons

No interest in trying something new, lots of road blocks to solving constant problems.

Advice to Senior Management

Try every once in a while to change the course of the Titantic...and give it more than one or two tax seasons to work.

Pros

Interesting industry.
Seasonal nature of business makes for high level of energy and excitement Dec through April.
Linkage with IRS provides ability to have broader view of the tax process.

Cons

IT organization works autonomously, not focused on customer.
Blaming culture, lack of personal accountability.
Breeden and Smyth drove away most of the best executive management.

Advice to Senior Management

Make IT a staff function and stop allowing them to drive the business.

Pros

People are very nice to work with and a very diverse culture.

Cons

Technology landscape can be difficult to navigate

Advice to Senior Management

Don't overlook digital

Pros

The best think about the experience was that I was able to work on a variety of problems. I was able to impact business decisions with my work. I enjoyed the new building and the physical environment. It is in the heart of the Kansas City Power and Light district

Cons

Bad manager. My manager was way too critical of my emails that I sent out. Nit picked at the fact that I wrote one more sentence than I should have. I had another boss, however who was very good.

Advice to Senior Management

Stop eliminating jobs at the "low end of the totem pole". In our department, it was very "top-heavy" with directors (who didn't add as much value as the statisticians). Oh, but they controlled who got laid off. Hmmmmmm.

Pros

paid well. little pressure except for end of season. good job security if you are able to make the management happy.

Cons

little to learn, just filling orders and duplicating work done in the past year over year. no career potential at all.

Advice to Senior Management

ppl do not see what is encouraged and what is not in the organization, which is really disappointing. better to change it.

Pros

Great Benefits
Beautiful location in the KCP&L District
Opportunities to learn

Cons

The company seems to be constantly downsizing.

Advice to Senior Management

Close more offices. There are too many.

Pros

The benefits and compensation at H & R Block were very competitive compared to other companies in the Kansas City Marker. Also the building and locations were great pros. Being part of the power and light district was a real plus.

Cons

There is just too many cons to list -- poor communication being at the top of the list though.

Advice to Senior Management

Didn't stick with the three year Will to Win plan -- had to go right to the layoff option after the first tough year of the 'three year' plan. You lose credibility with associates if you tell them to stick with us through the hard times and then you dont stick to the plan.

Pros

Good senior management team. Strategic focus. Willing to make tough decisions in order to do the right thing for the company.

Cons

Tremendous change. A lot of 'shuffling the deck' - reorg's etc.

Advice to Senior Management

Implement some stability and growth opportunities for the staff. Otherwise, once the job market opens up, you're going to lose a lot of good people.