H&R Block Reviews

Pros

It is seasonal work of 16 weeks allowing you to work at other job to give you additional income.
You progress at your own rate. Although you can set the days and hours worked, the more you are available, the better chance to be scheduled more hours. Great open friendly enviroment. The company does provide excellant opportunity for training to increase tax knowledge.

Cons

You may not get the number of hours to work you would like to have as it only 16 weeks. You need to be more of a sales person and actually get out there to promote yourself than in past years.

Advice to Senior Management

I find the communication was not alway s there or forthcoming.

Pros

co-workers are professional and make it a great place to work

Cons

very low hourly rate for this position

Pros

Very good training manuals and classes for all levels of employees. Very flexible scheduling. The people who work for H&R Block seem very happy to be there. Company provides employees with the tools they need to succeed on the job, and is receptive to suggestions for improvement. Company offers limited benefits for the seasonal employees.

Cons

The pay scale is quite low for the amount of experience and professionalism that is expected of its employees, as well as would be expected of a nationally known company.

Pros

The managers have worked with my schedule so I can get back into the workforce while continuing to raise my children. They have fantastic training and a great outlook to the future.

Cons

You start at the bottom which is not necessarily a con. The pay this year is low, but with it comes extraordinary opportunities to take classes.

Advice to Senior Management

Continue doing what you are doing. Taking the time to train Tax Professionals is the way to go. In the past you hired and fired (at least I heard that was the culture.) The culture to train and have experienced Tax Pros will pay off in the end!

Pros

One of the perks of working here is free tax prep.

Cons

The Tax professionals (all that I've met) in my region are very unprofessional.

Advice to Senior Management

N/A

Pros

The pay is decent.
Flexible hours.

Cons

Office Gossip
Management is rude
Overall, not the ideal place to work

Advice to Senior Management

Be more of a people person and learn how to talk to others.

Pros

Due to it being seasonable you have the advantage of taking a break.

Cons

Very little support from upper management and the lack of concern for their customers.

Advice to Senior Management

Focus more on the needs of their customers so that we do not lose them to the competitors.

Pros

Block is a good place to learn about the tax preparation business. The training is what you make of it...you can learn just about anything about taxes that is available. It is a great way to make money on a part-time, seasonal basis. It is fairly easy to obtain a job with the company - if you have management experience, it is easy to become an office manager. With hard work over time, (several years) you can create conditions where you are making a good amount of money ($10-$20k) in a realtively short period of time. (2-3 months) The pay is commission-based - with a draw that does not have to be paid back if you do not make enough to cover the draw.

Cons

This is not a full-time job. Only those who work in the corporate office, or who are District Managers level and above have the opportunity to work full-time. The initial hourly draw pay is poor for entry-level workers - for the first two years, it is much lower than one would expect. It is still not what you would expect for long-term employees and/or office managers. Because of this, turnover is higher than you would expect for a company this size. There is little incentive for entry-level people to return - could be a problem for Block in the future.

Advice to Senior Management

Block needs to look to provide more opportunities for those who are seeking full-time employment - maybe expand into bookkeeping/accounting services. They also need to look at their compensation plan a little better. The draw against commission is fine, but the commissions definately need to be higher for those who have trained and grown through certifications with the company.

Pros

My co-workers are wonderful and I enjoy helping the customers. The only thing that really keeps me motivated these days is when I can truly help a client through an emotional and tricky tax return successfully.

Cons

As someone with a college degree in accounting and actual experience in taxation, I'm being limited to preparing simple returns, thus ensuring I will only earn the minimum wage and never enjoy a "bonus" at the end of tax season. If the job situation in my area would recover, I'd be out of here as quick as possible. Unfortunately, this is the only option available at present. Block treats employees abysmally. In preparation for this tax season we were required to attend numerous meetings and classes where the same things were discussed repeatedly. One meeting would have sufficed. Continuing education credits are required and are unpaid hours. There is nothing wrong with continuing education, except many long-term employees simply take the same classes each year for the same credits. Obviously, this criteria of continuing education credits is not meant to reflect any "new" knowledge. Block has a "level" system whereby you take various "classes" and then are tested to obtain the next level. Higher levels will garner you an addition fifty cents per return against your draw. However, the "classes" typically utilize as their textbooks the books CPA's use as reference books. You are forced to learn the minutia that even a CPA doesn't bother with because it's in a reference book. It is obvious that advancing through the levels is not encouraged. So, you are faced with roadblocks at every turn as far as advancing your career with this company.

Advice to Senior Management

Have someone who is not strictly market driven also advise in the running of this company. Block is forgetting the customer and the employee at the expense of marketing. If you want to retain customers, you need to treat them well. If you want to keep good preparers, you need to treat them like human beings. If you want to attract customers, give them a product not just a gimmick.

Pros

Flexibility
Interaction with a diverse group of people
Opportunities to advance career

Cons

Training was disorganized
Communication was nil

Advice to Senior Management

During training, Office Managers should be required to contact new employees and introduce themselves and give contact info. They should then follow up with employees for schedules and reviews. A new employee should never leave orientation without having contact with office manager first.