Where Did You Go Post-Enterprise?

[Laurawg]

My husband has worked for Enterprise since we graduated from college in 2003. He's been a MA for a year and a half now and hasn't budged. We've relocated a few times, just to accommodate the financial restrictions an Enterprise salary imposes. The most recent (and final) relocation was to NY, and this is the third group he's worked in. He's bringing home under $500 a week right now, and it's just not cutting it. There are no opportunities for overtime anywhere... They even force him to flex if he works a Saturday to make up for the whopping 4 hours, and make their employees punch out for an hour lunch regardless of whether they actually get one. Of course, the insurance sucks too. I have a stack of medical bills from basic care that just wasn't covered... But I'll digress, let go of the bitterness and get to the point.

He's been looking everywhere for a new job, and I have been trying to help. After all, when you have to work 7:30 AM - 6:30 PM every day, job searching, returning calls, and setting up interviews becomes damn near impossible. I seldom see erac employees over the age of, say, 30. It seems like everyone either moves on or gets fired before this point. So here's my question: Where the hell did you all go? Did you finally find a job with a REAL salary (not some wage that "could add up to x-dollars a year"), and were you able to apply your experience from Enterprise to have some pull at a new position somewhere? I guess I just need to be pointed in the right direction, because at this point I don't think he even knows where he can go. He's got a BS in Business Administration... I refuse to believe that's worthless, lol.

I'm new to this forum, so please be polite. :)

[slave no more]

No worries people are always polite on this website.

What did your husband go to school for? He may not have enough sales experience if he has only worked for ERAC for 3 years but he could always try Pharm sales or staffing/recruiting. If he chooses staffing then he should look into IT or Computer fields. I was an MA for 2 years after being an MT for a year and a half and believe me I understand the frustration but I learned more out of waiting and not getting promoted and it helped me to be successful as a BM. I stayed with ERAC though for almost 7 years and the only reason I left was because I moved and was not going to take the demotion. He needs to establish himself in an area as well. Moving 3 times in 3 years does not allow for that to happen. You are probably in GP24 which is a large group and I would think that if his sales numbers are good and he knows the Asst Manager position ass far as the duties go that he should be looking to be promoted soon but he also needs to be aggressive in that search to get promoted. No job is perfect but you also shouldn't let your current salary be a decision to quit especially if he sees any light in the future. As far as the benefits yes they do suck I will agree with that. Tell him to seek the help of a recruiter (Manpower, Spherion and Randstad are good ones). They are free and will look for jobs for him. Good luck.

Tell him to sign up with a temp agency. That's better than working for ERAC!

Good advice from slave no more. There are some jobs that recruiters have on their plate that you cant find on the job boards like monster, career builder etc... Also the headhunters get paid by placing candidates. So they have a vested interest in finding something that you want to do, and their job is to sell you to that company. Pretty much they do the work for you. All you have to do is impress them on the interview

The hard part is pulling off an interview while you work a 60 hour week...

good luck and F-ERAC

Does your husband enjoy sales? If he doesn't, then I'd have him steer clear of those positions (which are ironically the ones his erac experience gives him the most chance at). If he dislikes sales, then he may be more unhappy in a true sales position. Erac pigeon-holes it's employees into those positions often.

Your husband may need to find a job that pays just a little better than erac, that actually offers good opportunites. Don't let him get caught up in the overwhealming desire to make a ton of money after erac. Erac puts that large paycheck into your mind from day one, and unless sales is his niche, he'll get caught up in the need to make a bunch of money and could end up accepting a job that sucks.

As for the headhunters, most temp agencies or recruiters aren't working for the applicant that sends his resume in. They are working for the companies that pay their recruiting firms to find them quality employees for specific jobs. If you want the headhunter to truly work for you, you probably have to go to one where the applicant has to pay the recruiting firm to market them to available companies. At least that is what I saw from my experience.

[I WAS THERE]

I took my sales experience and knowledge of fleet sales to become the commercial fleet manager at a local Dodge dealership.

[markpark]

i'm using my 7-8 years of ERAC administrative/supervisory experience in an operations department for a university. pay is lower than ERAC but benefits, time off, working enviroment, co-workers, etc. are wwwwwaaaaaaaaayyyyyy better than ERAC. could take pay cut because i never lived outside of my means. it's almost like i have not taken a pay cut.........

[John Galt]

I hear you on that. I work as a teen librarian and am much happier. It gives me plenty of time to pursue advanced degrees and I do not have any stress. I more or less play Xbox and buy graphic novels (for the collection) for a living and make twice as much as I did at ERAC.

[Chris99]

I'm in grad school now but most of co-workers that left went to big box retailers. The ones that seem the happiest are at Target. Target seems to be a good fit for those with experience at Enterprise. Share your enterprise thoughts: www.JobBite.com

[betteroffnow]

Try your local McDonalds. They might not pay the same hourly rate but I am sure after overtime he may make more than he does at ERAC?