The way the FSS position is portrayed is not even close to realistic, beginning with the training. The company has several trainers who have been AE's training for a completely different position, one that doesn't sell uniforms. They get you very hyped up and excited to go out and sell, making the whole sales process look simple. The way the bonus structure is designed is the same for AE's. I have seen the AE's hit the goal, which is great. There's one problem for the FSS's - the opportunity size of the sale is 1/3 of what an AE closes because we can't sell uniforms. On top of this, there is no internal support like the AE's receive. You will not get lead shares.
A bigger obstacle than selling a five year contract to a small business is actually after the close. Working internally with Aramark has been one of the most unprofessional environments I have ever worked. I have had to hand over opportunities to AE's that were ready to close, that I prospected, and I never received pay or even recognition for that matter. They say that AE's will pass you smaller deals, but they won't. Why would they if they're not being enforced to? I also closed a business that was not in my direct market center, and the district manager cancelled my opportunity without installing or even notifying me, just because he didn't want to go to a smaller customer. That's four opportunities I worked hard for that were taken away from me after I did all the work. Those numbers are not reflected in your reviews, so it makes your metrics look worse than they actually are.
As long as I have been with Aramark, going on almost a year, I have seen one person within two different districts hit the territory bonus goal. Mind you, that is the reason you want to be with Aramark. If you don't hit that bonus, you're looking at about a 50k gross with gas included. You will see shortly that Aramark is no different than many other churn and burn companies. Since I have been here, only three people are with the company in a 12 person sales department. Three left within the first month. On top of this, the first week our Regional manager quit, and as of last week, the President quit. I have not seen one internal promotion since I started. To my knowledge, not one FSS has ever been promoted.
When dealing with the Aramark direct sales team, you better stay on tp of your opportunities. Many times they will run of stock with no notification, not reach out the customer, and you are left with an angry prospect with no potential of working together again. Also, if it isn't a current customer, they are likely to be placed on a credit hold, which means they won't get their items shipped as promised until whoever decides they pass their credit check. Again, this will leave you with an angry prospect and a terrible first impression based off the inability to be organized.
The route drivers don't care about customers unless they spend over $100 a week on their contract. Why should they when they get paid 10% of each route delivery? If a customer is having issues and they don't spend a lot of money, they are advised to call an 800 number to listen to a customer service rep read a canned script of what to say. When the customer is ready to quit, no one cares because the revenue isn't enough to chase them down. Too many times does the customer quit within a five week range because of all the issues. The problem with that is you don't make your commissions until a five week audit takes place to ensure they are purchasing at the rate and size of the opportunity you closed. If they cancel before, you don't get paid, which is entirely not the sales persons fault. Another issue is the quality of their floor mats. They look like a beat up mat that has been laying out in the rain. How does that enhance a customers image when the mat is old, grey, faded, and torn apart? The lead times to install with some of these customers takes a minimum of two weeks. With uniforms, it can take a few months. That is NOT included in the five week audit process.
Will you be successful at Aramark? Maybe, but I haven't seen it. Will you hit your bonus? Sure but the odds are slim to none. Will you become incredibly frustrated with how sloppy this company is run? Probably.
The point of this review is not to bad mouth Aramark. I'm sure there are much more positive regions than my own. The point of this is to let people know the truth about the challenges you will 100% face and see every day. It will not be like what you learn in training or role plays. It will be extremely difficult to sell into companies with a very competitive landscape. So if you are leaving a job for this position, you may want to think twice. If you have other opportunities out there, they may be better suited for you. Just be prepared that if you do take this job, the chances of you struggling are going to be very high because you will be accountable for all metrics assigned to you, regardless of what your situation is
