What You Can Learn

I think sometimes you need clarity when you work for a company like Enterprise. When I left there, I was really down on the company. I was there for four years and was a branch manager. A lot of what is said here is true. You get worn down, you suffer burn-out, the hours are long. But what is not true, or wasn't true for me is that you have to do some butt-kissing to get anywhere. I did none of that and got promoted. I learned a lot about the corporate latter, customer service, and running a business.
I currently am running my own insurance/financial planning office and am happy I learned some sales, marketing and business skills from Enterprise.
It's not for everybody, and it shouldn't be forever (no matter what they tell you-they tell you that you should be a lifer or get out), but it was definitely a learning experience that I don't regret.
I haven't worked for ERAC for about four years now, and I feel badly that so many people here have tried to turn people off from going there. I make 6 figures at my job now basically working for myself. I don't think I would be if it weren't for ERAC.

I wouldn't be where I am today either, if it wasn't for Erac. I may have also not landed my current job if I didn't log onto the internet at the exact moment when I did and send my resume in to the company. IAlso, may have avoided a huge accident this morning by leaving 5 minutes later. Point is everyone has experiences that lead them in some way to where they are now. Working for erac is no different. I give erac no credit to where I am now, but I give credit to myself for taking the good things from what I experienced and apply them. At erac you can attain valuable experience, but much of what you learn there you can learn at many retail jobs. Where you are now, you credit erac. You could have received similar expereince had you worked elsewhere...who knows? I think it's great that you are doing well now, but what you did was simply take and utilize experience that you got from a sh1t company that you could have gotten anywhere and apply it. Don't credit erac for where you are now...credit yourself.

Hey Stubbs,

How is a retail store manager or retail assistant manager really any different than branch manager or assistant at erac? How is the MT any different than the retail store employee? Greg, c'mon. Compare apples to apples, not apples to peaches. Do ya really learn how to run a business at the entry level MT position? Naw, you pretty much 'straighten the racks' which is the erac equivalent of washing cars and picking up customers. As for running the business...naw. You're simply managing it trying to control costs and raise profits just like you would if you were a store manager at Dillard's or Home Depot. Sure I got my experience at Erac, simply because I didn't apply to JC Penny.

What you are failing to see is that at those other retail establishments, you may be a manager of some employees or a department, but you are not given the autonomy to set pricing, promote, market, and reach out to the community that you are at ERAC. I have known people in the retail management end of things. They are told what to do, and it is up to them to do it.

When I was job hunting, I spoke to many recruiters who were anxious to get their hands on former Enterprise people because of the management training program that they offer as opposed to those of similiar companies (a more fair comparison might be Sherwin Williams or Fidelity).

Would I go back to Enterprise? Absolutely not. Too many times, I was left stressed out on Sunday nights and overwhelmed by the fleet management, etc, but at least I was left in a position of where I could deal with those situations as the ultimate decision maker. You can't say that for most companies in corporate America.

"but you are not given the autonomy to set pricing, promote, market, and reach out to the community that you are at ERAC"
--(Set pricing) ya mean calling Hertz, Avis, and Budget pretending to be a customer to find out their rate so you can adjust yours accordingly
(Promote) ..after hours grill training
(Market)...Bring Donuts to body shops and dealerships to 'fact find' and find out that they wish you had more staff and cars to handle their customers. OR going on a sales call to an insurance company just to hear the same complaints that seem to never get corrected
(Reach out to the community)..Yeah...They SO care about the community. If money or good public image wasn't on the table, thier wonderful coomunity work they do would be non existent


"I have known people in the retail management end of things. They are told what to do, and it is up to them to do it."
-Again..I fail to see your explanation of how Erac is different than retail


"I was left in a position of where I could deal with those situations as the ultimate decision maker. You can't say that for most companies in corporate America."
-And ya can't say that for erac either. Sorry to bust your bubble bud, but you weren't the ultimate decision maker. You may have had the nifty title of 'branch manager' but your area manager controlled you and your branch..and they were controlled by the regional manager..who in turn was controlled by the VP of the group...who was controlled by the wonderful people in St. Louis.
THAT is exactly how Corporate America works

in all fairness to ERAC and those that support that it is a place where you learn valuable skills that headhunters look for;

yeah, we think that it's funny that ERAC considers bringing donuts to body shops "marketing" and calling other companies to find out what their rates are "price setting", but that says to a headhunter a couple of things: this individual knows the basics of marketing and sales, (which is the hardest thing to learn, and the easiest to mold,) and that they understand how to stay competitive and take a personal interest in their company. Also, any headhunter who used to work for ERAC, or knows anything about it, knows of the insane hours we are/were required to put in. (You have to respect at least that.)

other retail management positions don't allow you to show what you can do as well as ERAC. What a manager there does is more monkey work; write schedules, do books, work cash register when high school kid doesn't show up for 4-7 shift. That and usually a manager of a grocery store, department store, whatever, got to that position because they started working there 15 years prior and worked their way up. ERAC allows for rapid movement, and unlike most other retail outlets, you cannot advance simply by showing up, doing the minimum, and waiting for your seniority to kick in. Advancement in ERAC proves that you have gusto.

That being said, ERAC sucks.

I guess it depends on what headhunter or recruiter you deal with when applying to other companies. Some know Erac and what you did there and others see it simply as a rental car company that you received retail experience and or retail management experience. Anyone can bolster up their resume and talk up a storm in an interview to get a job..

Maintained the professionalism of the rental branch (which consisted of vacuuming, lawn care in certain circumstances, dusting, taking trash out)

Marketed surrounding area and brought in new business (settup corporate accounts that often times didn't rent enough to even qualify, but was pushed through to get setup to reach my monthly goal of corp accnts setup)

Marketed surrounding area and maintained current accounts
(drove to Randy's Auto and dropped off Bagels....inquired about potential to increase leads where Randy would tell me the same thing that he did last month. Drove to the Ford dealership and promised that there would be the correct size car in accordance of the erac/Ford aggreement knowing damn well that your branch just received 10 new cars stock Silverados rather than 10 compacts or standard size cars)

Managed the cashflow of the office
(balance cashbox)--similar to balancing cash register

Responsible for the regular maintenance schedule for the branch's fleet
(got the Cavalier into the shop for that needed oil change when I had the time and another car to roll)

Advanced to Branch Manager within 1 year of starting
(Happen to sell well and say the right things to the right upper manager)

Provided quality customer service
(Can be done anywhere)


Resumes can read any way you want them to read. I'm not saying that I didn't learn valuable skills that helped me, but many of the jobs that you may apply to may not give two sh1ts about the name of the company that you got that expereince at. I'm sure that a retail store manager's resume and an erac branch manager's resume can be made to look very similar. It's all bullshit for the most part anyway.

I know what your saying, john sears, but many people give Erac way to much credit for where they are today. Truth be told, ya can't know for sure if you'd be where you are now if ya got similar experience elsewhere..because that wasn't the path that you chose to begin with. It may have worked that way..maybe not. I work with plenty of people that had worked in retail and retail management and they are just as knowledgeable and as professional as many people I worked with at Erac. And they didn't receive the erac training that I did.

I'm sorry, but unless you haven't put your resume out there at all, you DO get calls back just because you worked for ERAC. I have had that happens several times. One recruiter in my area told me that they had an employer looking specifically for an ERAC or Ex-ERAC employee. One where I actually took a job said something to the effect that they were always looking for Enterprise people, but found it difficult to woo them.

A lot of what you say is absolutely true, but you have to give them some credit.

Further, maybe to you, marketing was just dropping of donuts, but I know I was in charge of the second largest claim center in my state and worked out an exclusive contract with the largest dealership in my state. There is some donuts and bagels and pizza marketing, but it does go beyond that. You just have to take the initiative.

That's what I mean...if you take the opportunity given to you and make something of it, you can get a lot out of ERAC because of the autonomy that is given you. You can also just do what you did, Reality Check, and do the usual suggested things like donuts, etc. Then you will get nothing out of it.

By the way, right when I left, ERAC was starting to change their sales training and was using a Sandler-type sales system. Maybe that was my region, but that just goes to the heart of what I'm saying. You might have a good region or a bad region, but check into it. Don't just listen to the sour grapes of some ex-employees. I'm an ex-employee without sour grapes.

Marketing usually consisted of me going out and hitting a few accounts, then getting a call to come back because they needed the car I was in for a deal. Ya get back and then you have to pick up a customer and write some more deals. Marketing day suddenly over. Erac marketing experience varies depending on many factors. Being consistently short staffed didn't equate to much marketing time in my old group. As for getting calls back for jobs, like I said it depends on the specific individual recruiter and their knowledge or experience with erac. Sure, valuable experience exists at Erac, but it also exists elsewhere. Erac is not the end all be all of experience.

In my group marketing was a way for them to give you a shorter day and thus negate the 3 hours overtime you did the night before cos you no longer hit 50 hours for the week (esp after lunch breaks have been taken off)