Interview

I'm actually really impressed by the honest and thorough answers I see here. It's a bit more negative over in the specific group section of our board.

After working at ERAC almost 10 years and leaving as an Area Manager of 700 sleighs I can tell you with certainty you should not take the job and plan on being there 2-3 years.

You simply have to go in with a long-term approach or don't start at ERAC at all. Otherwise, you'll find yourself looking for a way out in about 90 days, which won't provide anything more than a gap on your resume that you won't be able to explain away in your next interview.

If you decide to go in with the long-term approach, you'll probably be more likely to last a couple years, but only if you really sell like a champ.

Based on the slowed growth, you won't find many opportunities for advancement outside of turnover, which will be considerable.

Honestly, there are other sales opportunities out there that could be a precursor to pharma, you just have to look for them. Definitely try for a business-to-business sales position - much more flexible with hours, and you can keep a semblance of a life away from your job.

Hey take it from me. If you're in a frat/greek organization, like to drink heavy, sleep around, spend no time with your family, gain 15 pounds, become high risk for a heart attack due to all the fast food consumption, flip hamburgers..I mean rent cars, willing to wash cars in suits in the rain and snow, be looked down upon from anyone who walks into an office, get payed as good as a Mcdonald's shift manager(GED required), and eventually get an Upper Decker from one of your new employees.
Then sure! Take that interview and join a top 100 employer (circa 1995) and "live the dream"

I left ERAC 3 1/2 years ago and have never been happier since I left. I was a L3 that put in 7 hard years. I made a great deal of friends while I was there and most of them are out of ERAC. The few that are still there are making very good money but still have to deal with the ridiculous hours including several after hour events a month. I realized that no matter how good the money was the lifestyle was wearing thin on me and I would be missing a lot of things aslong as I stayed there.
When I left I took a job as the National Sales Manager of mid-sized company in NY and they named me Executive VP last year. I have to say that I really don't think I would have acheived this without the experience I had at ERAC. I now work 40 hours a week and have a life outside of work. I have time for my family as well as myself. Even after 3-4 years out, when I leave my office @ 4:30pm I often think about how crazy it would be if I was still at ERAC and had to work until 6:00pm.
When I was at ERAC it was my first real job and the hours was all I knew. I thought everywhere was like that. With that said, I am happy that I stayed at ERAC and honestly had a lot of good times and bad times. If you are young and can handle a little pain, it is a good place to start. The longer you can stay the better off you will be. I couldn't imagine only putting in a year or two, I think that would be a waste. The first 1-2 years are the hardest and if you have high aspirations try and make it to L3 then leave. At that point you can pretty much take your pick at where you go from there. That's easier said than done but nothing is easy, you have to work hard to be successful in life. I think a lot of people that trash ERAC on this site that left after .5-1.5 years are just looking for the easy way in life and want things handed to them.

I won't deny that some people seem to like Enterprise. Otherwise absolutely no one would stay and they wouldn't be able to stay in business. I think people have varying job expectations and varying tolerance for pain. One must also acknolwedge that a lot of people are not going to like Enterprise and a lot of people do not agree with the way they portray the job or conduct their business. I think it is grossly oversimplifying the issue when you say that some people want a job handed to them. If people really felt that then they would have not taken the job in the first place because they do warn you about a lot of the negative aspects of the job (washing cards, driving, selling waiver, etc) but many ERAC candidates underestimate how those negatives will feel in practice. I certainly do not advocate sticking it out on a job when you are miserable.

Regarding "wanting a job handed to them"
What I was trying to say was that you know there is a certain type of person out there that thinks they are "entitled" and wants the money, success, etc. but doesn't think they have to put in the effort to get it.
There are a lot of people out there (ERAC'ers or not) that fit that mold and I was trying to say that I bet a lot of people posting on this site in the .5-1.5 years served range) fit that profile.

The "Enterprise is not for Everyone" line is one I had to use several times. I think I was trained to use it. Now while that line is true to some extent there are people out there that will talk all the game but when it comes time to "bust your ass" they come up lame. I think that about half the people I managed while at ERAC fit that category.

[FreefromGreen]

I have to tell you I resent the insinuation that people who only worked at ERAC from 6-18 months are underqualified to gripe and are "wanting a job handed to them."

I started out with ERAC right out of college and made it a personal goal to stay for at least one year...that was before day 1 on the job. I quit one year and six days later. It was the worst year I have ever lived. First of all, the initial year our of college is startling and life changing as it is...no more lazy college hours, no more coeds everywhere, no more intramural sports...real responsibilities await. It is a lot to take.

Add to this culture shock with the realization that every one of your friends work less hours than you, make more money than you, and have careers that they feel some semblance of pride in doing.

I would agree that many people did not have the work ethic to be successful at ERAC, however there are exponentially more, like myself, who realized very quickly that I did not want to live to work, i want to work to live. I satisfied my personal goal of one year before quitting my job. When I quit I looked back at the previous year and realized that although I lived more fiscally responsible than any year in college (and everyone knows how poor college kids can be), I had no savings, could not contribute to a 401k, had no emergency fund, and no assets. You literally cannot live on a $780 check on a biweekly basis...no with $500 student loans!

Please don't judge those of us who wisened up more quickly and have set about to improving our lives. 9 months after quitting the green, I am now successful in another career and I make almost 3 times an MTs salary working 35-40 FLEXIBLE hrs per week (including golf and client lunches!).

I have to credit ERAC with one thing...I was an ERAC hire because I was lazy in my job search. Working for this company made me start caring about my career because the thought of one more day renting cars as a trained monkey made me nauseous.

Sometimes the guys who quit within 18 months arent merely "wanting a job handed to them" but realize that ERAC is what happens when you are arrogant and thinking a job will fall into your lap. Most of us were smart enough to get out and move on...

I argue that if you actually were able to get yourself promoted to at least BM or beyond and had some success at ERAC to add to your resume you might be more successful than "almost 3X MT pay"
Come on, that's not that much.

I think anyone that is successful at ERAC (promoted to BM or beyond) should be able to get a job and make 100K and up within 2 years of leaving the company. The more successful you are, the better the job that awaits you outside of ERAC. Most sales jobs are cake after you live the ERAC hell for at least a couple of years.
I think someone needs to come up with a formula for that.
1 year at ERAC = X$$ year 1, year 2, etc.
2 years at ERAC = X$$ year 1, year 2 and so on
??
The pay is so bad to start at ERAC that anyone can find a job for more $$ but how about long term. I have a firm belief that the more years of experience you have at ERAC, the more successful you will be. In my 7 years there I learned more than I could have anywhere else, including graduate school.
I blew 7 years there and left as a L3 but I have been living a dreamworld since I left. My new career seemed so easy after all I dealt with and I know that wouldn't be the case if I left after .5 - 1 year. It was all worth it. Not to mention that most of the time it was just a party anyways!

I agree for the most part.
It's pretty simple.
When I look for salespeople to work for me, I go after current ERAC people that are having success there.
Not the folks that quit after 6 months and spend all day posting on this site bitching and brag about how great you are doing!

Maybe that's a little narrow-minded, but it's a pretty good guarantee on the quality of the person you will get. Not all are bad that left and not all good that stayed but the odds are in my favor.

why would anyone want to stick at something they did not enjoy?

surely it is because of the end results. you stick to a diet you don't enjoy because the end result is a healthier person. you stick to your revision and homework to pass the exam. so you stick to erac..., why?

to make more money? well, if you're going to quit then you may as well quit earlier and go into another job and get up THAT career ladder rather than stay with one that you know yourself you're going to get off.

experience? do you really think 18 months as opposed to 12 months is going to make any difference to your cv? what did you learn in-between month 10 and month 11? nothing is the answer. after 6 months you can list accountancy (chasing ar's), business marketing (donuts), people management (telling the drivers what to do), sales (the obligatory damage waiver) and customer service (bending over backwards) on your cv. that (brackets excluded) sounds pretty good. why stay?

to anyone who hates erac and is staying on, ask yourself why. get out, get into a new job, and get your life back on track. erac grinds you down and it's just not worth it. some people love it, and that's fine. they're not thinking about leaving. but the moment you realise it's not for you, walk away.

As an employee of erac I have been with the company just over a year now I have found the training and the people great. I believe they instill a great sense of professionalism and have made me a better employee. I agree the pay isn't what it should be yes you do work your tail off and sometimes you feel its for nothing BUT they stand behind their employees and if you bother to open up your mouth and be aggressive and go for what you want they are more than happy to help you along the way. Take your grill and you will move faster pursue the opportunities ahead of you. Erac gives you the skills and knowledge to move yourself into a better position in the future. The fact is that MOST of our VP's are in their late 40's to 50 and ALL have been hired out of college. Please let me know where the statistics are somewhere else that look as good as that. Please tell me where at another company a person a year or two out of college is making 40K with their first REAL job. I say go for erac they will make you a better employee but its up to you if you pursue the things that they offer. Yes you will clean cars, yes you will get yelled at by customers there is a reason why it starts that way we learn to run a business literally from the ground up and that means cleaning a car. So you can appreciate sitting in that corner office when you are 45 years old and 10 years from retirement unlike some counterparts that will have to wait till they are 65 if not 70 to even think about it. I say go for it if you can make the first year your golden. Erac has a lot to offer and you wont be in rental forever you can move into many many different aspects of the company but you have to start somewhere.