They say you can't truly enjoy the light until you've experienced the darkest darkness. If you work at Hi-Line, you'll quickly realize that your next job can only be better!
High Turnover – Turnover of recruiting staff and Territory Managers is ridiculously high. While Hi-Line states they are in a “growth mode”, in reality they are simply chasing their tail. As soon as two Territory Managers are hired, two quit.
Poor Management – The CEO has a tendency to intimidate employees with his bullying nature. My manager lacked managerial experience and had a tendency to take out his poor mood on employees. One particular member of management makes inappropriate comments on a regular basis. Upper management is very aware of the problem and are said to have addressed it yet the behavior continues. It’s a wonder the company hasn’t been sued for harassment, discrimination or hostile work environment.
Questionable Hiring Practices – If a candidate ever caught wind of what goes on behind the scenes during the decision making process, Hi-Line would more than likely be in court. Managers don’t want to hire candidates for the Territory Manager position who are too old, too young, too fat, too wealthy, too poor, too single or God forbid, too female. The hiring process for Territory Managers is very invasive. For example, managers have been known to use Google Earth to see what a candidate’s home looks like. Candidates are asked to divulge financial information such as IRA, 401(k) and savings account balances as well as salary information for their spouse. Candidates are rejected for the most ridiculous of reasons and the reasons vary on which way the wind is blowing and which sales manager is doing the hiring.
Poor Benefits – With the exception of the medical plan, Hi-Line has poor benefits. Dental and vision plans are discount plans, not true insurance plans. I received a greater discount when I provided my AAA membership number to my Optometrist. Employees can’t participate in the 401(k) plan for a year. Match is minimal ($500). My manager felt Hi-Line offered rich benefits but considering he has never been employed anywhere else (other than bartending), I’m not sure he knows what rich benefits are.
Cheap – The recruiting staff are required to use their personal computer for work purposes. I suppose when you churn through employees at such a fast pace it minimizes the risk of a disgruntled employee, and there are many of them, destroying or refusing to return company property. Most of the employees I worked with, myself included, had to purchase a new computer which was a personal expense of well over $600. The cost of ink/toner for staff working from home isn’t reimbursed to the employee. The company has a $35/day meal per diem when traveling which is significantly lower than the national average of $59. It just seems cheap and petty when you have knowledge of how much money the company spends in other areas of the business.
Clearly my overall opinion of Hi-Line is a poor one but I would like to end my review by expressing my overwhelming disappointment with my manager. In the end, he failed me completely and that will always leave me with a bad taste in my mouth. I know he will read this and I know he will know exactly who wrote it. I was always upfront, professional and transparent with him and in the end, he couldn’t provide me with the same courtesy. He fed me a BS line about why we had to part ways instead of just coming clean. Pathetic.
