The Account Manager job is very repetitive and boring. You may be pulling the same report 25 + times per day for weeks on end while also needing to rate, quote, propose or issue different policies within your territory. Each account has multiple policies that all require different ways to rate, quote, propose and issue within different systems. Knowing every nuance for each type of policy within every system and website used to complete supplementary work, along with each state an account is located in has different nuances on top of this in multiple facets, can be very overwhelming. An extremely organized, concrete-linear thinking person is a good fit for this job but I am more on the creative abstract-thinking side and know this is why I was never able to fully engage or get into the work.
All work is monitored through a "transaction manager" that you update; however the system can make errors or work can be transferred incorrectly (for example, "service" aka the workers in India that are gradually taking over Account Manager responsibilities are people that you transfer a task to complete may not complete the task in time and you have to keep checking to make sure it is completed or you are responsible when managers look at your "numbers" aka stats) and many employees keep track of their work through their own personal excel sheet because of the risk that the "transaction manager" does not list an account assigned to you. However, management does not want you to use additional tracking on your own excel sheet because "transaction manager" is so highly endorsed from the top. Your manager reviews your "transaction manager" scores and judges your work from this system but cannot say which account was late or backup the numbers. You can email your manager on why "transaction manager" made a mistake or if an insurance agent (client) was the reason for a specific late work but I do not really know the point of this. My manager must have received over 50 emails a day and how do they keep track of all of these emails from their subordinates when there are more pressing issues to deal with? Seemed semi-pointless to email an excuse for why "transaction manager" is wrong to me when the manager still takes your "numbers" as is. Also your "year-to-date" numbers can haunt you if you mess up and are hard to get back up so try to get all work in on time. I was not aware how important getting all work in on time was in the beginning of my time at Travelers because some well respected co-workers had a lot of red (aka late work) so I did not think it was very serious to have some late work. However, they had larger territories (aka more work that month). I wish that trainers and managers would emphasize how important on time work is in the beginning of your time at Travelers (and each trainer and manager is different, you may luck out and have a great one or a horrible one) instead of acting so relaxed or just simply not saying anything about this at all until it is too late to make yourself look good. Certain work needs to be completed a certain amount of days before a policy is renewed and this was not even communicated to me. Yikes, glad I finally figured it out. Sorry to write so much on this topic but "transaction manager" is a topic that many employees have issues with and hopefully the kinks will be worked out within the next few years. It takes awhile for changes due to red tape.
There are so many differences between states (the state that each account is issued in has different requirements aka insurance forms added or removed manually or different tools to run that are input for renewal; and your territory includes multiple states for those out there not familiar with insurance) and computer systems that you must memorize and once you figure a system out they usually change it.
You can't work from home but your boss can. A couple times my coworkers wrote that they were "working from home" on their status. They were obviously working from home to accommodate a doctors appointment, sick child, whatever it may be, but I was told that working from is never aloud from my boss. This made me feel very devalued as an employee because it is favoritism that was never addressed. I was lied to about it. Work accommodations are confidential but when it comes to working from home the entire department needs the same policy. Employees from other departments have also worked from home but each manager makes their own rules. However, do not expect to work from home at all if you are an Account Manager. Account Executives, aka Underwriters, have more freedom to work from home but they also have sales goals to meet and are not hourly employees.
There is a separation between Account Managers, aka Underwriting Assistants, and Account Executives, aka Underwriters. Some Underwriters act like they are above the Account Managers who do SO much work for them. However, some Underwriters are great. Just be aware of this unprofessionalism at times. It can make you feel small if you make a mistake but we are all human and most of us all have the same four-year degrees (not that that even matters).
I was told that there are advancement opportunities but if you decide that insurance is boring and dry or do not want to commit to a developmental program offered (the leadership program requires one year of living out of state for a rotation and takes four years to complete the program) you are kind of stuck as an Account Manager. It is unclear how to become a Senior Account Manager. There was only one in my department who had been there over 10 years. It seems very much up to the manager. I am also not sure how you would jump from Account Manager to unit manager. Seems unrealistic to me.
Coworkers, peers and Underwriters, will watch your every move and report to your manager any slip ups. This may be a passive aggressive trait specific to Minnesota or may be just how corporate life is. This creates internal friction and a distrust within the workplace.
Biggest con of all: was trained by a trainer from a different department with different procedures to complete work! This was only because my new manager was trying to create "emersion" between two departments that he managed. He did not work in business insurance at his previous role at Travelers and must not have understood that our departments were so different otherwise he would have understood he was setting my up for failure. This also may have happened because our department was understaffed and too busy to train or sometimes answer questions.
Typical of any large business, but SMALL cubicles! When I first started they were on the small size but got reduced to an even smaller size (I believe 6x4 feet) after renovations. I would have to move my trash can almost into the aisle when I wanted use my desk as standing so there would be room for my chair to move backwards. Account Executives have slightly larger cubicles, and typically closer to windows. Managers have closed doors but typically in the middle of the floor with no windows to the outside.
Never received a pay increase/bonus or even an annual inflation increase. This is never discussed. It would be an incentive to know what you could personally do in order to increase your chances of earning one. However, maybe you receive the same pay forever. I will never know.
