Pros
Competitive compensation and benefits. Opportunities to build strong client relationships and develop HR and leadership skills. I was fortunate to work for a direct manager who genuinely supported and believed in me, which made my experience positive for several years. High performers can receive meaningful recognition, such as Presidents Club, and the role provides valuable experience in employee relations, recruiting, operations, and client management that can strengthen your résumé. A good company to get some experience but not a good long term company to work for.
Cons
Lack of transparency and accountability. My biggest issue was not being terminated—it was how the company handled it. Although I understand Connecticut is an at-will employment state, I believe employees deserve an honest explanation when their employment ends. Despite repeatedly asking, I was never told why I was being terminated. I went nearly three months without an answer and only learned the company’s stated reason after reviewing unemployment paperwork they submitted while contesting my claim.
Prior to my termination, I had never received formal discipline or written warnings. Just two months earlier, I had earned Presidents Club, one of the company’s highest performance recognitions. Going from being recognized as a top performer to being terminated without a meaningful explanation was shocking and left me questioning the company’s commitment to transparency and fairness.
In my experience, Human Resources did not provide answers or advocate for transparency. Instead, I felt they supported leadership’s decision without giving me the information I was requesting.
During my years with the company, I also observed situations involving other employees that, in hindsight, made me question how employment decisions were handled. After my own experience, I came away feeling that performance alone did not determine job security. I also perceived that long-tenured employees were treated differently than newer employees, regardless of performance.
One of the most unsettling parts of my experience was feeling that if leadership became unhappy with an employee, that employee could be terminated with little explanation. Whether or not that was actually the reason in every case, it created an environment where I felt job security depended more on staying in favor than on performance. That uncertainty made the workplace feel unpredictable and, ultimately, unsettling.
If transparency, communication, and feeling valued as an employee are important to you, my experience suggests you should ask careful questions before accepting a position. My experience at the end of my employment was completely different from the company I believed I had been working for during my first several years.
