I was very excited to work for HEB for 2 years. Overall, it's a decent job with great pay and a very flexible schedule. Full time positions and benefits are nearly non-existant & getting decent hours is almost always an issue. My main concern is with the management of this company. Hard to get hired, very easy to get fired.
Interview process:
Let me just start by saying that It is very hard to get hired with the company, as they are very picky with their interview process. You will first be called by a store admin (HR rep) who will ask you basic questions such as your availability, a brief background of your customer service history, etc. If they like you, you will be invited to participate in a group interview. In the group interview, you will sit at a round table with about 20 other people and the store manager usually conducts the interview. He will go around the room, asking various questions on customer service situations, etc. The best advice I can give you is to be super energetic and all about customer service. Smile a-lot, it can be hard to stand out in a group of 20 or so.
If you pass the group interview round, you will be called 2-3 days later by the manager of whichever department you applied for. Their interview is more in-depth to get to know you as an employee and a person. Be sure to be talkative and energetic is this round as well.
If the department manager likes you, you will be asked to sign a consent form to submit your background check immedia
ProsWeekly Pay
ConsEasy to get fired, lack of benefits, no Full Time advancement oppurtunites
3.0
Business Development Center Representative | The Woodlands, TX | Nov 2, 2017
A workplace that starts out great but slowly fades to confusion and stress.
As an H-E-B Business Center Representative, my day typically started with helping on the front end (e.g. bagging, cashiering, giving coworkers breaks).
Once behind the customer service desk, I would answer phone calls, resolve customer issues, and process payments such as bills and Western Union money transfers. Most of my time was spent staring at a wall, which is unfortunate due to the fact I desire to stay busy at work. With absolutely no tasks to complete unless a customer was present or the phone was ringing, I had managers I'd never dealt with before breathing down my neck thinking I wasn't doing my job correctly.
Perhaps it was the particular store I worked at, but the managers I dealt with on a daily basis were a strange mix of pushovers and unforgiving in the way they handled their authority. I understand that they oversee dozens of employees, but they didn't seem to pay much attention to employee strong suits unless the said employee was doing something wrong. This isn't to say I dislike the managers (most of them are very gentle), but I wish I'd felt welcome to give my own feedback or receive more insight on their dilemmas without feeling like I was going to be punished, reprimanded, or frowned upon.
For what the job entails, the pay is fair; However, even with open availability, scheduled hours are all over the place, unpredictable, and downright confusing. Assistant Service Managers were great people, but usually had no communication/feedback from their highe
ProsConsistent breaks, small rewards for job performance, great place to learn Customer Service.
ConsPoor management, stressful environment, management not paying attention to their staff's mannerisms.
1.0
Customer Support Representative | Texas | Jun 10, 2015
Not what it's cracked up to be
First of all, everyone is hired as a "part time partner". Meaning that you can work as many hours as possible (for me, it was 40-45 per week) & STILL not be eligible for benefits. No vacation time, no sick time, no health insurance, no vision insurance, no dental insurance, no guarantee of hours, etc. You have to work 1500 hours before you are eligible to be considered to become a full time partner!!! Which calculates out to approximately nine months of employment before you can even request to become a full time partner. Once you hit the required hours, there is still no guarantee that you will be approved to become a full time partner!!! If you are approved to become a full time partner, you have to wait another 90 days to be eligible for benefits. That's roughly one year of employment (IF all goes in your favor) before you will be able to apply for health insurance, vision insurance or dental insurance!!! From there, you have to earn your vacation time & sick time still. Meaning that you will not have any time accumulated until you are there another year. So, that's TWO WHOLE YEARS before you are fully eligible for any type of benefits! You are promised the moon when you start. They hide this fact from you unless you specifically ask. When you ask, you are treated as if you should have known when you took the job.
If you get sick during the first 90 days of employment, you are basically SOL. They "counsel" you when you return, saying your attendance is poor. They do not
It's more than just a retail job, it's a learning experience
It's hard to make an opinion about the whole company because every store is different, and inside every store, all the departments have different working styles/cultures and better supervisors than others.
I worked at a Central Market and I worked there for about five years while in college until I got my first "real adult" job. But saying that does not discount the many people who make the company their career. Like any retail job, some of my co-workers had been there for years, and some only last a few months. Retail is not for everyone, but you learn so much that can be applied to any other career.
It's a great opportunity for some people, great pay above the industry standard, well nice benefits, good products you can stand behind, COVA twice a year, and a recognized company on your resume anywhere in Texas.
But, the flip side is that if you aren't in the good graces of your immediate supervisors, your work life will be terrible...I've seen it happen a million times, even in my department. To get raises outside the COVA, or to advance, or to get good shifts, good days off, vacation approvals...your supervisor essentially has ultimate say, so always be on their good side even if they personally make you want to push them in front of a bus.
Beyond that, its like any retail or CS job. You will work weekends and holidays, work odd shifts and they keep changing week to week, not knowing days off until the Friday before the next week, having to ask months ahead o
Prosgood pay, product discounts, COVA raises, 50 cent drink refills on the clock, lunch discounts, great benefits, great PTO (on the rare chance you can use it), great co-workers, good work culture
Consworking holidays and weekends, differing shifts and days off, bad supervisors, oblivious store/corporate management, personality cult of the Butt Family
While HEB is an amazing company their Bakery department is extremely mismanaged from the corporate level. Conflicting directives and a situation where the level of product needed to be made daily (it is mainly scratch in the Houston division) is not supported by the allocated labor budget.
Bakery managers are put into a situation where the Company directives are at direct odds with what Top Store Leaders and top Bakery Department Managers expect. So, with no labor budget available to speak of Bakery managers are often forced to work upwards of 12 -15 hours daily, five or six days a week in order to satisfy the demands of the business or face documentation for not being "sales ready".
It is typical for a Bakery Manager to arrive at 2 AM, Fry Donuts, Make/Bake Bread, package all baked products, run the customer service counter and assist with cake decorating until about noon. This is not as "pressure point relief" or as a result of being understaffed or an upcoming holiday - this is the normal expectations under new labor budget directives. Once done with working positions, the manager is still responsible for all the management duties: Daily SOP walk, Daily Sanitation Walk, Sales Deep Dive Review, Shrink Review, Time and Attendance review for partners, Warehouse Orders, Direct Vendor Orders, Manager Meetings, scheduling, inventory, coaching, monthly e-learning to facilitate to the crew, the list goes on. Add to this the fires that you have to handle every day as
Prosgreat benefits, great pto, great discounts, great overall culture
My typical day began by running my custom numbers analysis. I would see how my department preformed compared to the store and other like stores as well. I would run these numbers also to compare to see how much I improved versus the previous year. I would dig down into any strange phenomena regarding returns, breakage, shrink and then research to find the answer. Depending on the time of year and which day during the week it was, I would custom tailor a strategy that would best keep inventory levels as low as possible, but and the same time making sure we did not have any out of stocks. After running my numbers, I would then front my department. Pulling up product, cleaning any trash and stocking any product that needed it. The majority of my job duties kept me out on the floor educating customers on products, answering their questions, finding the best product for them, and then up-sell when I could. During this time I also had several sales reps that make calls and try to sell me certain products. One of my most important jobs was to listen to what they had to say, ask appropriate questions, and make the best business decision for my store and my customers.
The most important lessons I learned was that customer service is by far the best way to earn trust with top leadership and with my customers. Building those relationships through customer service is essential in growing business and establishing myself as an expert. Also, learning to be flexible. Flexi
ProsFreedom to do what I thought was best for my department and the store.
ConsHaving sales reps take advantage of you, and then I would have to take the blame for it.
It was fine considering it was a retail/production position
Worked for two summers and had an alright experience, mostly because I knew my role was temporary. Loved most of the people who were more permanent fixtures in the store. Most managers were fine like mine, but some were not. Your experience here will depend on your manager and coworkers.
Pay was fine for what the job actually was, but I would not have been able to live off of it long-term. The company does match inflation through bi-annual raise reviews, which I've heard is more than what other employers care to do. "Partners" receive extra benefits but there are a limited number of these positions.
I would say there's a healthy camaraderie between most of the part-time workers and their immediate manager(s), but it's ridiculously easy to tell who doesn't work in the store everyday. Basically, you'll have a good time in daily operations with those in the local departments, but will have to have a nose for when to be on "good behavior."
An interesting aspect about working in their stores is that they allow you to transfer departments locally. What this means is that if you get tired of smelling fish everyday in fish market, you can talk to the manager of bakery about transferring. Additionally, since the company is rather high growth, there is the realistic opportunity of getting a job in a new store if you get tired of the one you start in. Essentially, you will have many different opportunities to change what monotonous task you do for the next year or so.
A le
A typical day at work is extremely busy, and of course you're not allowed to sit down. Even after my surgery when I was anemic, I was not allowed to sit down. Customers are extremely rude and it ruins your whole day. I may just be a sensitive person but things customers said to me made me very upset for the whole day. Yelling at me for things that are not my fault or that they do not understand about the job.
The management treats you okay, but they most definitely pick favorites. Whoever they liked most would be the ones to do more fun tasks and whoever they didn't like would work register all day, and never be rewarded for going above and beyond the position. One of my managers made me walk a blind woman around the store for hours and help her get her groceries, which I was happy to do. But after which it was never spoken of again. While a (new) coworker of mine got a $5 gift card for simply taking care of a large order not even 2 weeks later. The management is very well-structured though.
The hardest part of the job is the customers, and putting on that happy face every day. Even if you're sick or you got in a fight with your s/o, you're expected to smile and be friendly and kind to every customer that walks through the door. No questions asked. If a customer complains that you weren't friendly/hospitable, even when the customer was rude to you, you risk losing your job.
I had a customer yell at me to double-bag everything, point her finger in my face and tell me what
Prosbreak every 2 hours, good pay, nice coworkers, ok management
I loved this job so much when I first started. The manger who hired me, gave me a chance. After being a stay at home wife/mom for 2 years, of not working, she really helped. When I got hired on I was promised 6 months of a bagger position then a promotion to checker.
A couple months of working there that manager left the store to go to a bigger store. 6 months go by, and nothing. I asked my managers about it, but one told me they werent doing checker training due to Covid. And a week later, everyone I trained with got promoted. I was crushed. So then I applied for the next available opening, and still didnt get it. Mind you I've been working as a bagger for 10 months at this point. I work roughly 3-5 days a week, all 6 hour shifts. Not complaining, I love it in fact.
Now I have quite a few occurrences.. being a young mom, supporting myself is QUITE difficult. If my daughter gets sick I need to stay home and be with her.
HEB talks all this talk about "stay home if you dont feel good", but I dont feel like I can. Because I've called in quite a few times, I dont feel like I call in if I desperately need to anymore. I cant tell you how many times I've gone into work SICK because I'm too afraid to lose my job.
I love this job, and the people I work with. My managers are great, but they really make me feel like I'm walking on eggshells. It is SO hard balancing this job, and being a single family supporting ourselves.
I know I'm a hard worker, and I can bet my bosses would tell
I worked at the HEB located in Stephenville Texas for a time, and I was surprised at how stressful the job was, mostly due to the chaotic and incompetent management.
- Management was terrible at problem solving and conflict resolution, and imposed very strange unwritten rules. They seemed obsessed with the idea that HEB was "A family" and would not allow you to simply come to work and do your job. If you did not socialize with other workers, you were reprimanded, and eventually would be let go. They called it "Fostering disharmony in the HEB family". Also, they seemed to create the company identity as "being different from wal-mart", but nothing more and nothing less than this.
- Management did not communicate with each other, and scheduling mishaps were not just frequent, they were normal day to day events. They also did not pay attention to what was occurring in the community, and regularly scheduled either far too many or far too few employees during festivals or holiday events. They also regularly ordered too few supplies for all departments, resulting in constant shortages of gloves, cleaning supplies, bags and even cutlery and cooking grease for the diner.
- Actively hired mostly very young (16-21) and mostly female individuals, with less reliable schedules, and less than stellar work ethic. I once watched a fellow cashier (16 year old girl still in high school) who was eating while at a register, she drop a single cheeto on the ground and then called maintenan
Questions And Answers about HEB
What would you suggest HEB management do to prevent others from leaving?
Asked Mar 16, 2017
Departments need to be given the correct hours for the partners to be able to finish tasks without killing themselves. No overtime is fine. But when the work is more than is possible for one person to accomplish. That's when you burn out the worker and the work suffers.
Answered Aug 3, 2021
Lets talk about the warehouse side of things. In the Houston warehouse on the combo/ Produce side there are very few team leaders who I actually feel like i can trust to be open with. Injuries are very common. The most common injury for november 2020 wasn't from people hurting their backs but from people getting hit by forklifts or feet ran over by equipment. The so called veterans would do anything to get that incentive pay so they cut corners every way possible making the environment unsafe for other people. Also team leaders on the receiving team in combo/ produce need to lean how to talk to employees correctly without getting an attitude. Stop treating everyone on light duty like they have just committed a crime. We can apparently get in trouble for talking to each other even though the only thing we're doing is sweeping the floor or down stacking pallets for 8 hours.
Answered May 10, 2021
Does H.E.B drug test ?
Asked Jun 8, 2016
Yes, they do. If you get injured at work and need go to the med clinic they will drug test you and they will do their best to not take responsibility for your injury. Be very careful.
Answered Oct 1, 2021
I was a night stocker for a couple of months in Pearland and they never drug tested...
Answered Oct 9, 2019
What is the best part of working at HEB?
Asked Nov 23, 2019
In my area, I had to quit because of excessive hours. Loved the work I did but couldn't do the excessive hours. Scheduled for 6 but expected to work up to 12 until the work is completed, which was close to impossible.
Answered Feb 8, 2021
Partner discount on own brand products, although it’s 10%, not 30% as someone stated above. Benefits are amazing if you’re full time. The ability to cross train and move to other departments is nice. Raises twice a year although they’re generally small. Their partner assistance resources are wonderful.
Answered Dec 23, 2020
What is the interview process like at HEB?
Asked Jul 2, 2016
I just got back from a group interview at HEB and if you don't like public speaking or speaking in front of a group of people you may not do well. It seemed like they were judging you based on your ability to put on a show for them rather than your experience or ability to do the job. I applied for the in store shopper position and have experience doing that same thing at my previous job and I actually enjoyed it but apparently that's not good enough for HEB.
