Johnson Financial Reviews

Former Employee – worked at Johnson Financial full-time for more than 8 years

Pros – Raises were based on performance, not just market comparisons
Management did a great job communicating with employees
Senior Management Embraced technology
Opportunites for advancement and willing to pay for education for staff

Cons – a bit "big brother" when it comes to internet access

Advice to Senior Management – No more lay offs

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Johnson Financial full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – Good work/life balance. Good benefits. Access to company store, workout facility and daycare.

Cons – If you aren't in the "sorority" your life will be miserable. People that actually do the work don't get recognized. Instead, those that ACT like they work, succeed.

Advice to Senior Management – You have lost a lot of good people in recent years due to the cons listed above. Analyze the trends.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Johnson Financial full-time for more than a year

Pros – Family oriented
Personal
Johnson products at a discount

Cons – Economy
Hard to advance
Restructuring
"Thats how we have always done it"

Advice to Senior Management – Things are constantly changing, use this to build a strong company. Don't let things stay the same just because thats the way people are used to and thats the way you have always done things. Sometimes change is more profitable and takes less time in the end.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Johnson Financial full-time for more than 3 years

Pros – When you have a positive, involved supervisor/manager, worklife is very supportive and encouraging.
Most Supervisors are extremely flexible regarding scheduling.
Their health benefits are extremely expensive, but they will pay $330 towards a health club membership.
Their 6 weeks of paternity leave is almost unheard of.
Profit Sharing WAS a nice benefit, but that has been done away with for the most part. In 2010 and 2011, employees received $200 gift cards. 2012 brought a larger profit payout depending on duration with the company.
The ability to buy SC Johnson products at cost is one of the only reasons I stayed there.

Cons – Depending on the branch, and this is company wide, the working environment varies from being extremely supportive to extremely negative.
Tellers are expected to bring in so much business and have so many responsibilities, but are the least valued employees in the company.
The referral goals are unrealistic, at best, particularly considering the limited amount of referral types that qualify and the fact that the client base is usually pretty regular (meaning you see the same people day in and day out).
Due to the the recent change in the banking industry, JB is changing their customer service model from client-centric to product-centric. Gone are the days when you CARED about your clients - now tellers are expected to look at the clients as purely numbers....how many credit cards you can get, how many NEW accounts can you get them to open, etc. etc.
Some managers in the Kenosha area are extremely uninvolved and care more for brown-nosing their way to a higher position than fostering the talent that they employ (to the degree of essentially ignoring their teller line and any difficulties they have). Additionally, the manager(s) in question completely embody the "product-first" mentality of the current Executive Level management to the point where they alienated a long term client because they did not create enough revenue - when the client closed their account, she did it happily and without batting an eye.
Their HR department is no more than a glorified execution squad. For the most part, branches will not see an HR representative unless someone is getting fired or is in trouble. Additionally, their hiring process is so over-bloated - it takes months to fill a position, and even then they don't always hire the best candidate (and usually because they try to low-ball candidates on salary). For instance, one of their Invest positions has been open for 18 months and the old Invest employee is working PT waiting to fully retire until they hire someone. Most of the Kenosha branches are so short handed on both the Teller and Banker lines, that customer service quality is being negatively influenced in no small part because the employees are so overworked.
In many of the branches, cooperation and communication between tellers and bankers is limited - in some cases, bankers will act put-out if a teller has a question.
Their year-end review process is horrible. It is essentially a self evaluation that is so bloated with silly corporate-speak that almost every employee that I knew dreaded having to work on it. Additionally, the man hours required to fill it out were actually a detriment to morale and customer service quality. As of June 2012, merit increases had STILL not been addressed - even though they were supposed to have been handed out by the end of April.
Merit increases, particularly for the lower echelon of employees are a joke. For instance, on one Teller Line in 2011 (after the company not receiving a merit increase for 2010), even the most accomplished teller received a 1.5% increase.
There is absolutely no consistency in following policy and procedures, and when a change is introduced, resistance from every level to the change is Herculean.
Communication is subpar across the board.
In 2008, JB was voted one of the best companies to work for. It held that distinction until 2011 and when it fell off that list, it seemed upper management could really care less. One of the overriding feelings in the organization from 2008 through to 2011 was that of the employees being a family. From 2011 on, there was no sense of teamwork much less family.
They have been restructuring so much lately, that some of the upper level managers are redundant - yet they are kept on hand while excellent employees beneath them are let go.

At this point, if you were looking to get hired on in the branch level, I'm not too sure I would suggest it. Working in the corporate offices, from what information has been relayed, is actually quite pleasant. But I would highly suggest staying away from the northernmost Kenosha branches until a good, less sycophantic manager is hired.

Advice to Senior Management – Please go back to the old customer service model: clients first, product a distant second. When I started working for JB, the clients and their needs were always, first and foremost, the most important aspect of everyday working life. Over the past two years, with the acquisition of more and more upper managerial level employees from the rival M&I bank, products are becoming more important than the clients and customer service is suffering because of it.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Johnson Financial

Pros – Our tag line is "Treat you like family" and for the most part that's true - for clients and associates.
Locally and privately owned with a long-term view.
Outstanding Customer Service is a core value.
Work/Life balance is important and encouraged.

Cons – Under the new leadership team, new hires have been - almost without exception - from management's former company; current employees' opportunities for advancement very much in question.
Management - new and old - seem averse to advertising so we remain one of Wisconsin's best kept secrets!

Advice to Senior Management – You've got talented people who were almost fanatically devoted to JFG. We embraced our core values - look them up on the orientation booklets. Your actions speak louder than the words in you use in emails and town hall meetings. Make sure the people who are on board KNOW you appreciate their abilities, that you want them to stay, and there is a professional future for them with JFG.

Current Employee – been working at Johnson Financial

Pros – Client focus, relationship and service focused.

Cons – Technology needs to be updated.

Advice to Senior Management – Keep giving us information on how the company is performing.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Johnson Financial

Pros – Employees are treated with dignity. Flexible work options are offered. Work life balance is important and management recognizes that. The corporate facility has a lot of nice amenities.

Cons – The great health and dental benefits have gradually trimmed down to good benefits.
As with most companies of thier size and larger, real talent can go unrecognized.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Former Employee – worked at Johnson Financial

Pros – It truly does seem that JFG tries to employ people that make a good fit with the culture, as well as have the necessary skills to fit the job. In addition, I feel that they try and be the best company to work for, and to reflect the values and ideas of the Johnson Family and the founder Sam Johnson. As a company, they do go out of their way to treat their employees well as a whole, and maintain the family atmosphere.

Cons – As with any company, it comes down to the people that are in positions to make decisions that has an impact on the culture. What I observed on the reverse side of the coin during my employment was some inconsistent practices.
It seems that JFG has the proverbial 'glass ceiling' when it comes to hiring and promotions for female employees. As far as I could tell, most were never promoted beyond AVP, after being there many years, yet there were men counter parts either promoted after a short period of time, or hired from outside with the title of VP.

In another example, I know of two people who were terminated for the exact same reason, on the exact same day, and the terminations were handled by two different HR Reps.
The first person was treated as if they had given a two week notice, and were allowed to get their personal belongings, and an email was sent out to employees announcing the departure 'to seek new opportunities'. This person filed for unemployment, and JFG chose not to respond to the State unemployment office as to the reason for the termination, so unemployment benefits were granted.
The second person was walked out of the building, was told they would call so that he could pick up his belongings the next week, and the whole departure was hushed up. This second person filed for unemployment, this time JFG responded with their version of details of the termination to the state unemployment office. The employee's explanation wasn't good enough for the unemployment rep, so they chose to take JFG's side, and denied unemployment benefits.

My opinion is that this is a grave inconsistency. Regardless if the terminations were for cause, they were for the exact same offense, and the response to the unemployment office should have been the same for both. I feel that this had to do with the two diiferent HR reps handling the terminations. That department should be sure they are all on the same page.
Anyway, if you are truly a family company, if you had to terminate someone, unless it involved stealing and actual charges are being filed, just let them get their unemployment benefits.

Advice to Senior Management – Review your hiring and firing practices. Make sure all employees and new hires are treated fairly, as well as how your terminations are handled. Be sure that promotions and titles are granted to all who deserve them.

Current Employee – been working at Johnson Financial

Pros – "Family atmosphere", smart leadership, caring people

Cons – Very tenured staff, which is great for the company but for people who are young and want to stay with a great company the opportunity for advancement is lower because of the minimum turn over.

Advice to Senior Management – Doing good, keep up the good work, and Thank You for not getting involved with the sub-prime investing. It makes me sleep more soundly at night knowing that S.M. is looking long term and not just for the quick buck.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend