The True Redpill: Vanguard, the Client Relationship Specialist role, and The Culture
Pros
I have made what I hope to be lifelong friends during my time with Vanguard. The number one perk of this job is the people you will struggle alongside. Your comrades, who know exactly how you're feeling, who are in the same pit that you're in. They made it in some way worth it. You get nifty benefits but let's be honest, you can get them anywhere. 401(k) is nice, but...who cares about that if your life is misery? I learned about how the financial world in all of its greed functions, and learned through agonizing experience how not to behave or think in a work environment. I also learned what my limits are, patience wise, and that some things just aren't worth it. Let's note another thing here: Vanguard isn't the worst place place to work IF YOU'RE NOT ON THE PHONES. God help you getting that new role. Some make it. Most, and this is true, don't last that long. Honestly.
Cons
I am going to be completely honest about everything I observed during my time with Vanguard. First, we should talk about the role itself. I'll be blunt: DO NOT TAKE THE JOB. SERIOUSLY. DON'T DO IT. But why, you ask? Let me explain. Here's your day, let's say a 8:00 AM-4:30 PM shift on the phones in Foundational Client Services, the new name they gave to Personal Investor. You walk in the door to your building, and take the elevator to your floor. When the elevator door opens, a short hallway leads to a massive bay where hundreds of your comrades are preparing for the same long day that you've been sweating since you went to bed last night. It's not even Monday. You know exactly what you're in store for. You've been doing the job far too long, and are well equipped to do it, but you're still despondent. You get to your cubicle, throw your stuff down, take a deep breath, and prepare. Once 8:00 hits, you're on a call. When that call ends, you get another call. There will be no downtime, unless you're just avoiding calls, which will not go well for you. Once you've put an hour or two behind you, you take a break, which is notated by you clicking a button on your computer. This button helps leadership track your status. You are being watched, be sure of that. You have planned your breaks for months as you hope to break the day into manageable chunks so you don't go insane on the spot. A few more hours pass, and it's lunch time. That hour passes quickly, and it's back to it. You have one of your TWICE-WEEKLY meetings with your team leader about your performance this afternoon. You are not congratulated on putting up with this brand of garbage, nor should you be. Instead, your deficiencies are discussed and any "wins" you might have had are relegated to a conciliatory "good job." The meeting ends with nothing of any import occurring, and you just feel more drained, derailed, and hollow. Back to the phones. You end up leaving at 5:30, instead of 4:30, because a client went ballistic when a form that they filled out was completed incorrectly. By the client. This was the third client TODAY that you were on the phone with for more than 30 minutes. It's the second who was insane with anger. Your metrics are shot for the day, but you don't even care. You haven't cared for months about your metrics. Because you just want to go home. Repeat the above every business day for two years. This one day might be a bad one. There are days where your clients are fine, no one screams at you, and maybe your meeting wasn't terrible. However, the reality is that you're still working for Vanguard, doing this awful phone job, and all the signs are telling you that you're stuck. At least that's how it was for me. I won't get too detailed for obvious reasons, but I made mistakes at Vanguard. Some were actually kind of serious. These were also entirely my fault. I'm mentioning this as a warning: if you do take this job out of desperation or whatever, keep your nose clean. Don't take PTO too often (though you need to so you don't snap). Your boss will start asking you if you plan to quit. Don't take your break at the end of the day, or a team leader looking for a gold-star will report you to their betters and you will be disallowed from posting to a new role for a period of at least 60 days (this is a death sentence). These infractions will also be on your record forever, so anyone looking to hire you can see them, and draw their own conclusions, unless you team leader is actually competent, where you can at least badger them into calling and advocating on your behalf. Don't count on that though. There is nothing genuine about Vanguard. Its purported "culture" is one of people reporting on each other for good-boy-points. Its culture is just a facade, an act designed to lull you into complacency while they suck your soul dry and pay you WELL BELOW industry average. Partnership is a hostage act and a joke, just read the other reviews. Vanguard's culture could not be more forced, artificial, and nauseating. I was once chastised for not having joined any of the Crew groups at the company. I'm not interested in political ideology or activism in the workplace, I just want to do my job and be rewarded for hard work. I'm not there to make waves or make a statement. I just want to not be miserable. Most of my peers often remarked that we had wished that we had failed the Series 7 exam, because then we would have been free from this. Upper management knows there are problems. They don't know what to do. They're trying to change to culture, but shockingly, they're mishandling it, like they do with most things. Instead they're making it more oppressive and degrading. I think the saddest thing is that college grads start there and think Vanguard is how work and jobs function. John Bogle once called Vanguard "too big for its britches." He was right. STAY. AWAY. FROM. THIS. COMPANY.
