Client Services Associate (Ambrose) - Client Services Associate TriNet Employee Review

2.0
Jan 29, 2015
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Compensation - Benefits - You will get to work with great people (for the most part) - PTO/Holiday policy is generous

Cons

- Work-life balance is sometimes non-existent - PTO black-out period during X-Mas and New Years - Completely reactionary in its approach - Lack of growth opportunities CSAs on the Ambrose side are given extremely high headcounts considering that we are to provide "white-glove" service to both client contacts and the WSEs (unlike the other TriNet brands, Ambrose CSAs are the main point of contact for everyone at their client sites). The expected response time of 4 business hours is extremely stressful considering the sheer volume of emails that are received on a daily basis. The fact that the internal support system is spotty at best at times it makes for sheer hell - depending on the department you are working with on a resolution to a client/employee issue. The tension throughout our department is palpable. Internally, Ambrose is a hot mess at the moment. All focus is on the upcoming integration into TriNet's systems (which has now been going on for over 1.5 years), with no attention being given to our awful legacy system. How can I be expected to deliver great service when 25% of my day is dedicated to trying to figure out why people can't log in, print a pay stub, access their I-9s - simple stuff that should not be my responsibility. New hires are thrown into the mix without proper training, which has resulted in a terrible turn-over rate. Honestly its a vicious cycle at this point with Ambrose just replacing people who are leaving. Be prepared for a heavily reactionary environment. Procedures are constantly changing, but no one is on the same page. We are also not told about new items until just before they are implemented or when, surprise!, it is already a thing. On top of that, be prepared for no one to be able to answer questions you may have about these changes a lot of the time. As I mentioned under the "Pros" you will have a nice compensation/benefits package, at least for me this is true, but be prepared to have 0 opportunities for growth. The only ways to advance within the Client Services department at Ambrose are to become a Team Lead or a Specialist, both of which are not expected to open up until at least post-integration (meaning there are no plans to open anything up). Specialist roles are a joke at best at this point and now involve you taking on even more clients. When these roles do open up, you'll have basically the whole department to compete with, so good luck! My experience with TriNet as a whole is limited since Ambrose is still kind of its own entity, but they are 110% focused on growth with no real direction for doing so. Sales are definitely the most important thing here so everything is done to make sure to close those deals with no thought about whether or not clients will actually be a good fit. Let me tell you that it makes for awkward (mostly really unpleasant) conversations when you start the new client on-boarding process as sometimes things have been "promised" that are not actually in line with what we do/can do. TriNet seems to overlook that while new clients are nice, it is the existing clients who are happy (thanks to CSAs) who will bring long-term success and referrals. You will get to work with mainly wonderful people, but that being said, any real concerns that you bring to the table will go no where. Management (not the Team Leads, but they are essentially powerless) is seriously out of touch with the CSA experience and are doing nothing to improve retention. Simply throwing money at a group of intelligent people is not going to cut it, folks.

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TriNet Response
11y
Thank you for your very thorough feedback. We will share this information with the appropriate executives and encourage you to speak with your management team as well. We thank you for being patient with us through this growing process. We are confident that you will see positive change as we evolve. If you have anything else to add about your experiences working at TriNet, we welcome your feedback at MYHR@trinet.com.

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Pros

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Cons

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3.0
May 3, 2026
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Pros

There is a path to success if you work really hard and are willing to stick it out for 3-5 years, but you must know how to play the corporate politics game and can't slip, have a little bit of luck, inherit profitable relationships, and prospect and develop new broker relationships. Benefits are good, and the director's I worked under were great people. If you're in your 20's, it's not a bad place to start your sales career and make decent money. Most deals only close if the benefits pricing is favorable, Always found the offsites and team outings fun.

Cons

Highly political environment.   Highly commoditized product. A fair amount of favoritism.  The prospecting infrastructure is horrendous and limiting for even the best hunters. Splits are the devil and cause resentment amongst sales reps. If you're over 30 and looking to build a career here, would recommend you find a different PEO as there is a 90% turnover rate with first year reps and within 3 years most new hire classes are gone. About 10-20% of sales consultants find success, and the variance of new consultants who find success is in the low single digits.  TriNet isn't exactly well positioned in the market and hasn't been for a few years.   Bad blood with clients and prospects due to decisions made a few years ago for short term business gains. The executive directors and upper management come from a different time in the business.  They found success in a completely different way and completely different market that was more beneficial. They lead with a stick and that trickles down.

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