BAT Career Development FAQ

Pros

-Great package (car, insurance, gas, cell phone, per diems etc.) -Salary and bonuses are solid -Very talented people in the salesforce that put their best foot forward -flexible hours, as long as you put in the work

Cons

-weak corporate culture from the top, felt like there was no awareness of what is going on in the field and it shows. No work life balance, no real career advancement unless you want to live in MTL -fluctuating targets, you'll achieve your number and then suddenly your target goes up due to another region/country/whatever coming short -constant stress to hit a number, constantly fixing issues that you didn't create which harms customer relationships -customers can take out their frustrations on you due to the above issues

Advice to Management

Invest in your support staff (IT, Customer service, replenishment etc.) Trade reps should not be expected to to wear every hat in the business, and to manage a multi-category product offering for the same salary as a rep with only one category in a different company.

Pros

Excellent benefits, lots of opportunity to grow, training opportunities, collaborative community. Working in an industry that is truly transforming by ideation, creativity, and willingness to take some risks.

Cons

Upper management (EVP level and up) is not transparent. Decisions are made at the top with no input from middle management and without seeking information about the structure and properly assessing the impact of decisions. Impactful decisions are minimally revealed and then take months to execute while everyone is left wondering and worrying. Yet, slow execution is not tolerated at the lower levels. The pace can be overwhelming and exhausting at times. Work life balance can be difficult.

Advice to Management

Ensure impacts are fully assessed prior to taking action. Seek advice and information prior to making huge decisions and then don't drag the process out for months and months.

Pros

Descent pay and benefits including a company vehicle Lots of responsibility from day one Good learning opportunity for recent graduates Most coworkers are friendly and willing to help each other out.

Cons

NO work life balance, Expected to be available all the time, including weekends, Long hours driving and working alone, Expected to do admin at home after working a long day, Very little training or mentoring, Leadership through fear, sarcasm and ridicule, It's a dying industry, Poor to no career advancement, Soul crushing culture for trade account marketing managers, Everything you do is tracked, compared and ranked. The ONLY thing that matters is meeting your targets.

Advice to Management

Change the company culture if you ever hope to keep your employees. Money is nothing when you are burned out and miserable.

Pros

- Salary above FMCG standards - Opportunity to grow in different areas - Good working environment

Cons

- No Wok Life Balance - Not a lot of room to grow if you are not an extrovert kind of person - Promotions and performance more heavily relied on upper management perception

Advice to Management

Make room for all kinds of personalities for growing opportunities.

Pros

Many challenges, development opportunities, international experience, great work enviroment & culture

Cons

The industry is constantly questioned by others, you can be judged and you need to be able to managed that