Highmark Reviews

Pros

Good use of technology, old and new

Cons

Outsourcing to India becoming prevalent

Advice to Senior Management

none

Pros

Work/Life balance activities available, Wellness Center, On site clinic,

Cons

Very unstable, I've worked here 5 years and my area has been re-orged 5 times in those 5 years, the areas are not given time to become stable and effective/efficent before an executive or senior management decides its time for a change

Advice to Senior Management

Pick a plan and stick with it, allow it time to work before changing gears, this goes for management structure as well as technical solution and software packages.

Pros

employee gym, decent facilities great benefits
great benefits
decent facilities

Cons

political structure
inefficiencies
lack of management direction

Pros

Highmark offers great benefits and work from home opportunities if your lucky enough to be in an area that isn't swamped with work.

Cons

Employees are not treated well. Staff is considered a commodity to be used and thrown away. Experience is not prized above politics so common sense is absent in Senior Managment decisions including the "disregard" the torpedos move to offshoring operations to India.

Advice to Senior Management

Stop the outsourcing of operations and bring the business back into Highmark. Stop the throw away projects and manual work arounds due to unconsolidated project planning.

Pros

Work/Life balance and opportunities for continuing education.

Cons

As with many large corporations, difficult to maintain a sence of contact with senior management.

Advice to Senior Management

Offer more authority in staffing and compensation to directors and department managers.

Pros

- Flexible work schedules
- Competitive salary
- Generous benefit package (401k, investments, vacation, etc.)
- Emphasis on talent retention
- Tuition reimbursement
- Job stability
- You'll meet a lot of people that have been with the company 20+ years

Cons

- Limited job opportunities at the moment
- Some long time employees feel entitled to certain freedoms and get a way with a lot without contributing as much as they should
- Employees may feel left in the dark at times about the direction the company is moving
- Not many young people get the opportunity to move up quickly; a lot of employees who start right out of college get locked into Customer Service for 6-8 years before being able to pursue more business oriented positions within the company

Advice to Senior Management

My advice to leadership would be to focus on grooming the younger generations at Highmark to lead the company forward. Presently, there is an overwhelming number of people that are in their late 40's, 50's & 60's, while there are significantly less people in their 30's at a higher level and virtually no employees in their 20s that have made it beyond Customer Service. For Highmark to stay competitive in the pre- and post-Health Care Reform world, they need to develop the tech- savvy and driven young people to take over from the Baby Boomers who will be retiring in the next 10 years or so.

I also hope that leadership places on emphasis on performance in the future. There are many capable employees that with the right amount of direction and infrastructure could take this company to new levels. Sadly, a lot of these employees have gotten use to going through the motions and not kept up with technology and market trends that could make Highmark an even bigger force in the health insurance world.

Pros

Alternative Work Schedule is nice and benefits are above average

Cons

No opportunities for growth due to health care reform and the company's focus on becoming lean.

Pros

Highmark has great benefits and for some, work-life balance.

Cons

Too hierarchical. Egos rule. Many in leadership are all about control versus doing what's best for the company. Employees are afraid to speak up.

Advice to Senior Management

Go back to the great place to work concepts. Show your employees they are valued and they will assure the company is successful! Melani talks a good talk but doesn't really walk the walk. He needs to talk to people, not just his management team.

Pros

Misery loves company. They do have a gym but if you supervisor does not think it is necessary then forget any thoughts about using it!

Cons

Agree who you know not what you know. Small minded people in management. Supervisors on ego trip and worried about keeping their own job as we become more 'efficiient'. If supervisor decides they do not like you, you are screwed. Don't work here!

Advice to Senior Management

Question what your supervisors are doing and why they are letting so many good people go esp when they have worked for the company for decades and now all of a sudden cannot do their jobs. Supervisors have too much power when it comes to letting people go.

Pros

Highmark takes very good care of its employees and treats them very fairly. You get lots of training and there is plenty opportunity for career advancement

Cons

The organization is very top heavy and operates with a top-down management style. It is more important to follow policy, procedure and protocol than to get the assigned job done on time.

Advice to Senior Management

Please listen to the employees who have been assigned/hired to get the job done.