From Stellar to Subpar In 5 Short Years
Pros
*The people at the non-executive level are amazing. I worked in multiple departments and beyond the typical mild personality conflict here or there, the people I worked with on a day to day basis were kind, genuinely decent people. *There is s company contribution to the HSA on the extremely high deductible health plans.
Cons
*Internal promotion or change is very difficult. If you're seeking a promotion or to change roles it is unlikely you will be able to do so. Especially if you are not a white male. Often it comes down to who on the executive tier (typically the CEO) is looking to place someone they know from a previous company (usually Liberty). Roles are filled from outside candidates thr majority of the time. *Mediocre benefits which are consistently promoted as better than average and essentially as something you should be grateful to have. There is an emotional value attached from HR and marketing to try and gaslight employees regarding the quality and depth of benefits available. The message is that the average employee should be grateful to even be offered benefits at all. *The executive population has grown exponentially under Richard Poirier's leadership. Instead of redistributing power and who makes important decisions, the added VP and EVPs simply add another level to the hierarchy because ultimately all decisions go through the CEO. Department heads have the power to decide to have a pizza party, but any meaningful decision ultimately ends up on Rich's desk. Regardless of what the outcome will be and the negative impact on a department or the company as a whole, if it is not within Rich's narrow world view then it is not happening. *Turnover is extremely high. At least twice to three times what I have seen at any other company in 15 years of insurance. When covid restrictions began to ease Mr. Poirier advised that the only option was to return to the office. His words in a company wide video message were that if anyone disagreed with him, it was best to part as friends. I can't speak to the "friends" part of the equation, but I can confirm there was a mass exodus in many departments in response to his dictate. His dictate and complete lack of flexibility or ability to let Department heads choose what is best for their department has left the remaining employees burned out and overloaded. The empty promise of "light at the end of the tunnel" is continually made. The only light I saw was the one that engulfed me when I burned out. *Technology and system limitations. The systems are extremely dated and take twice as long to do things as other companies. Regardless of the system limitations the company will hold you to national standards (derived from companies with modern systems) so if you are hoping you hit that maximum merit increase of 3.5%, good luck. It is extremely unlikely. *Annual reviews and merit increases. Even if you're the best of the best of the best, you will not see an increase even close to the cost of living. In the 8 years I was with the company merit increases maxed out at 3.5% and averaged 1% or 2%. *Culture. The company plays mouth service to being a diverse, thriving company who welcomes open communication and an open door policy. That is quite literally the opposite of the truth. Again, the CEO holds all of the power. He does not like being questioned or challenged and as such he takes things very personally. Retaliation for challenging him or not being appropriately submissive takes the form of stalled promotions, dead ending in your career there, even being advised to not ask questions in an allegedly open forum because he finds them upsetting and you're on his radar. *The Old Boys Club. It may be 2022 but the Old Boys Club rules Church Mutual. It is a small group at the top, but the next generation of polo shirt wearing, white males who golf are being groomed to take over in the next 20 years. 0 out of 10. I do not recommend this company.
