Member Services Representative | Pensacola, FL | Nov 29, 2020
Rough work atmosphere. Your supervisor means everything about your advancement.
I've worked for Navy Federal for about 4 years in the Contact Center. Most of this was in Account Services which is the most common department Navy Federal hires for within Contact Center Operations. Although my score is low, I would like to say that I believe for the most part I have been pretty lucky and a good bit of my time with Navy Federal was fairly pleasant. My goal is to explain what I experienced and saw so that whoever reads this understands better what they are getting into by working here and how to best utilize it. First and for most, I hope my explanation is personally useful to you.
When you are hired the biggest contributing factor to your success is your supervisor. Doesn't matter your personal merrit or capability. Who your supervisor is and the influence they project is the biggest factor to moving up and out of the contact center switfly (which is what anyone applying for Account Services does if they are wise, I will elaborate on this later). Supervisors vary incredibly widely in competency. Some have worked on the phones for years and can effectively empathize with their team members. But an equal amount or possibly more have only done phone work for a year or less and will often times not even know the subject matter well for the department they are promoted to. Many of them only became supervisors to escape the phones which I will explain in more detail below.
When I was hired we went through a 6 week training course. I don't have much to complain a
ProsBenefits Overtime, no degree needed, School reimbursement program, Large Yearly Bonuses, option to work from home, Good Financial Institution
ConsPoor work environment, supervisor-focused promotions, High Stress, poor and outdated 3rd party software, constantly changing work environment
Mortgage Processor - Worst job I ever had in my life. Unrealistic expectations are set from day one on the floor. Then you get in trouble for not meeting expectations. They threaten to take away your end of year bonus every time they talk to you about your performance, which is every week. They say 10 of OT per week is mandatory, but to actually get the job done as expected you will worked 20-25 hours of OT each week. Yeah those paychecks were awesome but my work/life balance was non existent. No matter how much I asked for help I never received it. They told me to keep trying and it would get easier. They told me to seek out help from members of the team, but never actually helped me themselves. They will say all the right things to you when you voice your concerns but in the end they won't turn off the loan factory. That's the one thing that would help the struggling processor, and its the one thing they refuse to do. This job is insane. Really. My first week on the floor my Supervisor and MPS (another lower supervisor) took me and another new person into a conference room to speak with us about the job and expectations. During that meeting they told us that we would fail at this job, but it's ok because everyone fails at this job at first. They said we could use them as sound boards when we needed to vent. Then they told us that during the previous summer entire processor teams walked out on the job. I asked if they were kidding and they said it was true.
ProsCampus Amenities, Benefits
ConsEverything Else
2.0
Member Services Representative | Virginia | Nov 2, 2021
Benefits, That's About It
When it comes to 401k's, medical coverage, and the overall benefits of being an employee, Navy Federal does a stellar job.
(Compensation) The downside however, everything else is quite bleak. We can all agree that the pay offered by NFCU is definitely higher than a majority of others jobs and careers especially at the entry level. The flipside of that coin though is the massive amounts of stress that simply is more than enough to make the pay not worth it when it comes to mental health. On top of that, other financial institutions have recently come to almost matching levels when it comes to salaries. So in all honesty I would have to recommend any other financial institution first due to endless amounts of stress.
(Benefits) On top of that, another major issue is the actual USE of your medical coverage with NFCU. The coverage itself is amazing and I have no complaints, but actually trying to take a day off for medical reasons or go on extended leave is an extreme hassle. If you try to call out sick and report it to your management it's almost as though they try and guilt trip you to come in even though you may potentially put others at risk. In addition when you go through the process they treat you as though you're just trying to skip work. They don't give a moments thought, it's always, "when are you coming back?" "do you actually have any symptoms?" "we need you today, are you sure?", I'm sure you get the picture. So like I said, great benefits, practically impossible
Overall mismanaged with focus on company and not the employee
Human resources does not handle employee issues, instead employee relations does. They pretend to be a confidential and supportive group but they aren't. They are there to protect NFCU from litigation for breaking employment and labor laws. They do not completely investigation employee complaints from both sides but deal punishment without speaking too the employee being punished. They hurry up and implement disciplinary action right before bonus time just to take it from employees. If you run the ER department your boyfriend is allowed to act inappropriately to other employees and its not considered harassment because it didn't happen at work.
Lies and slander are allowed because if the person didn't say it to your face, you're making it up. Management does not support supervisors, instead they are blamed for things like attrition and not "coaching to success". We are under our managements direction and have to follow orders but once that direction doesn't suit them they blame everyone else instead of taking ownership. Management does not "walk the walk" and is under so much stress from the VP management that they are only looking out for themselves. They have favorites and pit employees against each other.
Assistant mangers are allowed to act inappropriately and without any recourse, instead they move them to another department where they cause more discourse when they should be demoted or fired (like they do to other employees who are without a title for less).
Prom
ProsHealth benefits
ConsNo work/life balance, abusive management, employee relations, and hr is a joke.
3.0
Member Services Representative | Hampton, VA | Sep 1, 2019
Far different from any other credit union
My experience with Navy Federal Credit Union has been quite a journey. In the beginning, I was extremely excited to work for a place that really seemed and felt as though they had it all together. It's rated such a great place to work for and the offering pay was amazing. It was far more than I had ever made in my entire life. I was interviewed by an assistant manager and manager at the time and the interview was slightly intimidating but nothing I felt like I couldn't handle. Navy Federal has a really strict policy on what you are and are not allowed to wear. Tattoos need not be visible. If you have any facial piercings aside from earrings, you do need to take those out. Nails need not be a "distracting" color or length. Blazers/suits are HIGHLY recommended. Some branches vary on what they make you wear but to be on the safe side, assume business attire at all times. Once I actually got hired and started working there, the training courses were pretty great. I really felt like I learned a lot of vital information as a result of the training process. As an employee of Navy Federal, you are expected to know almost everything (bank teller side, loans, credit cards, etc). You are expected to be a universal employee and the one major downfall that I have found working with Navy Federal is that it isn't always black and white. There's room for a lot of gray areas depending on members situations and circumstances which can in turn lead you to have to make rather difficult situation
ProsMember satisfaction, benefits, pay, training courses are very informative
ConsNot a lot of support, gossip, favoritism, disrespectful people, consistently feeling like you don't have time outside of work if you're working full time
1.0
Member Services Representative | North Carolina | Oct 25, 2019
Poor Employee VALUE System--- I don't want a star sticker- I want to be PAID
The whole environment fosters false hope of advancement. An extreme push for more rolls with responsibilities and increased work load. No advancement or promotions unless your in a click. The pay is not good all and the terminology about the employment in the company is feed to you and not real. Prior experience and education is not valued in anyway that benefits the employee AT ALL. You are micro managed unless you have been there over 10 years and can get away with anything including not working at all. Veterans are not valued as employees including experience in the military. I have seen veterans with degrees and experience including staying in the company for years and doing an amazing job and be passed up for promotions and discouraged to advance into leadership.
These positions are hourly and your micro managed heavenly on your time. The stress is not worth what your being paid. They saying "oh this job pays well" hahha NO you have NO opportunity to grow above a Senior Member Service Representative and still do the same Job at a pay rate of non educated, experience- terrible job title extreme work load and never getting the opportunity you deserve. They have mastered the art of holding you down and preventing you from advancing, getting higher pay working less to reduce the cost of work on you and continue to feed you and everyone lies along with expecting you to complete surveys and expecting you to value the job and leadership like they are doing you a favor.
Proshopeful coworkers
ConsLow pay, No advancement, Over worked, Underpaid
I enjoyed learning new skillsets in my role as an MSRll with this company Excellent benefits, higher pay than most credit unions.
Now for the negative, when i got back from living in oregon i received a call to come in to an interview for this position. I was told it was laid back and was made to feel as if this would be a great plae to work for me, however after a week into the role i slowly started to realize i made a mistake. I believe i asked about the volume of the branch and staffing in the interview but i might not have in this case i cannot say however i let them know what i was looking for which basically wasnt high volume with low staff which ive dealt with and left with a prior institution. Everyday became a nightmare lines out the door, only me and one other person on the teller side or by myself. And commonly the lobby on platform is also full and understaffed. Did about a combined total of 2 weeks (1 week cash training ) 1 week platform basically both computer modules...cash i picked up very quickly because its second nature coming from a teller background already, they knew hiring me i had no loan experience ect and then had expected me to know and handle all of the grey area regarding loans clients have in a high volume independently with minimal help and if you ask for help your reprimanded. I was told i was going to be let go or have my bonus taken away for my par because my rating was too low and i told them i was planning on finding other work anyways,
Working at NFCU was the first real job where I had healthcare, access to other wide benefits, a yearly salary, and a steady Monday through Friday kind of job. Being a assistant supervisor in consumer loan collections a typical day at work would be running reports in the morning checking over employee progress the day before, setting goals for that day along with continued goals for the week, then moving on to observing employees while motivating them to do their best and working on side projects.
What I learned in my position was what the expectations of front line management wanted, how to coach employees, experience what it was like running a section of 8-12 employees working towards a common goal. I also learned what mistakes of managing employees to avoid how to effectively counsel and track employee performance, giving recognition & rewards when justified along with handling difficult employees and enforcing corrective actions. I learned that as a supervisor there are many different types of people, each with a different world view and personality that you must lead effectively and that as a supervisor you will take 90% of the blame & 10% of the praise.
Management at NFCU was reachable but sometimes felt that the open door policy was not always too open. Having said that, they were supportive of general discussion on employee empowerment and did encourage supervisors to create projects/presentations on how we as a consumer loan collections branch could better ourselves
Prosbenefits, federal holidays, workshops
Conswork related stress, workplace 'siloing, ' or compartmentalizing, some management decisions
3.0
Member Services Representative | Virginia | Mar 23, 2020
Not a Progressive Organization
One of the things you hear get thrown around a lot at Navy Federal is that we make the “Forbes Best Places To Work” list quite frequently. After some time, you come to wonder why that is, and who’s being paid to write that list. Navy Federal is a decent place to work, and executives pride themselves on the competitive benefits package and culture of the credit union. The culture is toxic and only benefits certain employees; and not the vast majority. The benefits are great, the pay however is not a living wage, and the culture is toxic. I’ve worked at different branches and let me start by saying that the recruitment process is very stressful. They treat you as if you are an external hire if you are wanting to transfer within the company. If you are not a military spouse they make little, if any effort to accommodate you no matter how excellent your PAR is. I was overlooked for positions and told so because a military spouse, not necessarily better suited for the position, was moving and had preference (and some are transparent about this). There are little opportunities for growth and clear office politics. The branches function completely different, and several things in the policy and procedure are left to “manager’s interpretation and discretion”, which is the reason why there is so much inconsistency (this is a major complaint amongst members). It is such a disorganized organization. Members know that the culture is if they whine and complain enough they can virtually ge
2.0
Member Services Representative | Pensacola, FL | Jun 21, 2021
Exciting at first hard to move up -Strain on mental health
When you start out everything is very exciting from training to the awesome facilities and the pay and benefits. You are told in training that after 6 months if you do great there will be opportunities to grow. Which is true but only within your department (moving from MSR1 to MSR2). If you work in the contact center you will have to put in over time and and be there for at least a year in order to be considered for other departments. I have a Bachelors Degree (Business) which I thought would give me some weight when being considered for other departments but it does not. I received exceeds expectations on my PAR reviews and had to call out two days due being sick during COVID (I was working in the office still). Applied for several positions within a three year period to try and move out of account services but was never offered anything and I was never given a legitimate answer, not even from the hiring managers who me and my supervisor started reaching out to because my supervisor didn't understand why I wasn't being offered anything. I even did mock interviews with different supervisors to insure I was giving good answers.What I learned is they will hire someone who doesn't work with NFCU and doesn't have any experience instead of training someone who works with the company and has the same qualifications. I know this because I had a friend who was not working at NFCU apply for the same positions as me. We have the same degree and similar work experience and they offered
ProsBenefits, facilities
ConsCall center, No opportunity for growth, Favoritism
Questions And Answers about Navy Federal Credit Union
Do you have to have a certain credit rating, or have good credit to be hired at Navy Federal?
Asked Sep 9, 2016
They do check your credit but I have awful credit from being out of work due to health issues, surgery and other unexpected stuff come up. They still offered me a position and I'm pretty sure I have over $6000 in debt. They haven't told me I need to make arrangements with them or even brought it up. I was more worried about it than them! It may be different in different states or different recruiters but don't give up! I didn't think I stood a chance with my credit even though they picked me for the job.
Answered May 25, 2018
We do not check credit score. If you have over $6,000 in accounts in bad standing, we will work with you on payment arrangements. Keep in mind that your job offer is contingent and based off your ability to pass this check.
Answered Feb 15, 2018
If you were in charge, what would you do to make Navy Federal Credit Union a better place to work?
Asked Feb 10, 2018
Change the mortgage payscale, revamp management and educate employees on their roll to give them better training and the ability to do their job
Answered Nov 11, 2020
More of an open door policy and come out of the office and work in different locations for a week or 2 every year so you remember the front lines.
Answered May 7, 2020
What are some tips for doing well in the interview?
Asked Jun 30, 2017
When asked what you know about Navy Federal don’t only know it’s a great place to work (everyone knows that). DO YOUR RESEARCH! You should know at least one fact about the company you say you want to work for. That goes for the position too. You are interviewing for a position and opportunity to work there. Give an idea you have a clue on what you are trying out for.
Answered Jul 6, 2019
The interview was frighteningly easy, two people one from Account Services and one from Credit Cards. Asked basic interview questions and then they assessed my computer skills which was super basic. Got the job.
Answered Mar 6, 2019
Is there paid time off/vacation days?
Asked Jan 25, 2017
Yes but it is earned per paycheck and if you are an MSR it is harder to take off you have to plan months in advance and race to get it in as soon as workforce management opens it up. If you work certain hours, days, in a certain branch, or if you take on more skills that you won’t get compensated for it makes your pool smaller even though they claim it doesn’t. All you have to do is compare your time off calendar availability to someone else on your team at the same time and you can clearly see it. They try to work with you for trade with business or switching days with another MSR but it’s not vacation time it’s just you jumping through hoops to get time off to live your life or and don’t count on being able to respond to family emergencies without being it being counted as an unscheduled absence....it’s most important to the company that a call is answered.
Answered Mar 6, 2019
Oh yeah they offer s good amount of time off earned but good luck getting approved for it. You must schedule sick days 2 weeks in advance...hmmm who knows 2 weeks ahead of time if they are going to be sick
Answered Feb 27, 2018
Are nose piercings allowed?
Asked Aug 18, 2016
Only ear piercings are allowed for branch member service representatives.
Answered Aug 27, 2018
Yes anything is really allowed as long as it does not become a distraction in the work place
