it is what it is - TMIII BAT Employee Review

field morale in the US is in the toilet, though my understanding is that that doesn't matter to home office anymore. the fact is, trade in its current iteration is no longer necessary, or won't be very soon. others have pointed out on the Reynolds review page that we are essentially overpaid merchandisers at this point. this isnt lost on anyone in Winston. after all, as more and more customers sign on to Scan the majority of the core functions of the TM role are being handled directly by customers on the computer. the presence component can be outsourced to anyone who can read a planogram. so why pay 2000 people 60k to drive around resetting fixtures? just get as many as possible on Scan, have everyone submit photos of their backbar, and then pay customers or 3rd party to do the leg work. withhold discounting if they don't. it's the logical course to take, and i get it. i imagine we'll continue to force out product to artificially inflate share and volume (artificial bc savvier customers know this game and simply hold off on their next several orders - the bumps are temporary). pricing in many markets is no longer competitive; doesn't even matter, just squeeze the poor losers- they're just addicts. that's how we treat them anyway. it's revolting. we also don't do consumer engagements anymore, so good luck clearing out some of that stuff piled up mr. retailer. just fire sale it, whatever. i know i forced you to take it, but really it's not my problem. very few trade people enforce EDLP compliance anymore, even at the highest levels apparently (circle k anyone?), because we'd all be gutting our own numbers, the ones that we're measured on. the account team will tell you wholesale is a mess and out of stocks on good sellers/overstocks on slow movers there are commonplace - another ongoing own-foot-shooting situation. meanwhile, here on the ground, 10 calls a day is mandatory in my region. whether the calls are productive is a different question. anecdotally, the majority are not. DMs are in it with us - how are they supposed to motivate when they are forced to constantly backtrack, amend, and outright contradict themselves? upper management has them looking like idiots half the time and it's not their fault. tough job and i feel for them, even the ones who are jerks. the pressure on DMs is crazy. the forceout bandaids, the call counts, the fed up customers, the constant shifts in direction, the ever-multiplying priorities, the endless box-checking, the sheer waste (hundreds of pounds of useless/outdated materials nobody ordered sent to dumpsters), the never ending product launches, the bogus cherry picked reports circulated by angry and confused people who don't even go into the field that nevertheless Must Be Addressed Immediately, etc etc: bad and counterproductive behavior is essentially being encouraged at this point. integrity does not matter anymore, and no win, no matter how well executed, is good enough. at least not in trade. we accept all this for a regular check (less than our main competitors' in an equivalent role, but whatever), an opaquely calculated "moving target" quarterly bonus, and an annual increase that's like a point below inflation - so we're ultimately working much harder for less $ over time. hilarious, in a certain light. that most recent call had me cracking up - 30 minutes about how home office is letting people come back to work in the building again, and oh how awful this past year was, but we made it through and took the pandemic seriously the whole time and maybe we will allow "flexible fridays" and follow local guidance and blah blah blah. i've been getting coughed on in gas stations for a year lady. half my team caught corona. what am i doing here? i also heard that someone from home office called the field marketing team "rats" on a recent call - disrespectful sure, but an apt description if you accept reality, which is that trade marketing is sinking, and everybody's just scrambling to get off the boat. just a rumor, but it wouldn't surprise me (or many others in the field) at all if it's true - and that says a lot right there. which brings me back to morale - it has been truly astonishing to witness some of the most dedicated, passionate, and talented professionals i've had the pleasure to work with basically throw their hands up and say "whatever", be let go, forced out, or simply leave. i don't know anybody who feels happy or motivated to excel in this industry anymore. it's sad, but hey. that's the business now i guess. it is what it is.