Run an established route either as a relief driver or a dedicated driver(most start in relief). You bring product to the store, and to start you have to down stack each case into what is referred to as stacks, which then get transported onto a two wheeler.
Customers check you in, and make sure what is on the invoice matches up with what is brought in. After check-in, you will in most cases stock all the product in the customer cooler and bring any extra to a designated area for storage.
On average you will have between 12-20 stops, with 20 being in more urban and developed areas that require less driving from stop to stop. Your entire load for the day is based on volume, service time, and drive miles which they have all listed on a route manifest for you to look over the day prior, typically by the time you get back the next days manifest is available for you to look at.
In all honesty, the work is easy and physical, but there is constant pressure with making sure you do the stocking part of the job. I personally came to dislike that aspect of the job, but some people don't mind it. It is the bottleneck of the entire day.
You'll begin each day between 4-7AM, if you have a route you can choose when to come in but you should be in by 6AM the latest. If you're in relief you have to be in at 6AM because that is when you select the route you'll be covering. Drivers in relief who have seniority will get the first pick. Some times you will be helping other drivers inst
ProsGreat benefits, Holiday Pay, Management doesn't mind you using sick days, very supportive and non-combative.
ConsLittle work-life balance on some days, Check-in
It's a decent paying blue collar job but also very stressful. You have been warned.
You go into a grocery store and often see people filling shelves that don't work for the supermarkets, they are vendors. On the outside surface, it might sound like a chill, laid back job where you get to work by yourself, not have to have a manager constantly over your shoulder, and you can work at your own pace. If you think that is the job description of a merchandiser, you couldn't possibly be more wrong.
Merchandising is a job that is very difficult and stressful, especially for the soda companies. You usually have to start at 3 to 4 in the morning and have to service an average of 4-6 stores a day (if it's 4 stores, chances are one of them are huge). The difficult part is managing your time because one store could take you 4-6 hours if the salesmen orders 8 pallets that you have to work by yourself with no help. By the time you get to the later stores, you'll be screamed at that you took too long but little did they know you just serviced many stores already and only have two hands.
For Pepsi, management is also a problem and there's a pretty simple answer on why there's such a problem. Most of your managers are young, 20 somethings, who may have a college degree but basically no idea on what your job entails because they never had to do the job themselves and they have almost no managing experience. This company thinks they can give someone an internship and then instantly give them a management title such as Territory Sales Manager. You got these TSMs managing
ProsPays well for retail., Full-time opportunities for those who want it., Benefits for full-timers., A job that pays well for people with no schooling.
ConsLack of communication., Young, out of touch management., Physically demanding schedule., Poor treatment by in store managers.
I care about you all, and because I care I tell you to absolutely never work for Pepsi!
From a viewpoint of all honesty, and compassion for my fellow humans, do not ever work for Pepsi. I worked for Pepsi for a while in Joplin, Missouri and finally couldn't take it anymore. Let's get this straight, I am no stranger to hard work. I expected the job to be physically demanding, but never in my wildest dreams could I have expected it to kill me like it did. I am physically in shape, and love fast paced work environments. I have had no trouble with working hard in the past. This place is a whole different story altogether. You have to be at your first location at 6 am, which my location was an hour away so I had to leave in my car at 5 am, meaning I had to wake up at 4-4:15 am. You have about 4-6 locations to merchandise a day, most of them being big box stores like Walmart or Target or large supermarkets. You receive a daily schedule everyday that estimates how much time it should take you to complete your tasks at each store. The whole schedule is a lie. At stores that usually took me 6 hours to merchandise, the schedule would estimate that it would take an hour and a half. Yeah, maybe it would have taken an hour and a half with 5 people doing the job. By the time you are finished with your first store, you are completely exhausted and ready to go home for the day. But, here it is, only 11 am and you have 4-5 stores around the same size left, all with 6-12 pallets full of Pepsi stuff left to completely stock on the shelves. On top of frantically trying to fill the
ProsHonestly, nothing
ConsRead my review and you'll understand, EVERYTHING
Typical conglomerate - you don't matter, just a number
I spent pretty much the start of the Covid-19 pandemic until May of 2021 with PepsiCo in East Hanover. We received 1 mask, literally brought to me folded in a Dunkin Donuts napkin and 1 small bottle of hand sanitizer. There was ZERO SUPPORT. They overloaded every store with deliveries, inventory was always overwhelming too much to the point that every store would have to consistently complain to me about the level of ordering. Management doesn't care. It's all about numbers. The order taker makes commission on the orders, so they're chasing numbers. They don't care if you need it or not....they just bombard the stores and expect you to be available 14 hours a day to take care of it. When I began complaining about the excessive hours, having had a newborn and a terminally ill dog to deal with outside the work place, what was their solution? COME IN EARLIER! So, instead of starting at 6, start at 5 because this gets me home quicker...how? This is the nature of the company. Demand demand demand demand demand....the second you need to cut back hours, you start getting written up for "not completing your route".
So let me break this down for you. Your day is an 8 hour day. But, you HAVE to complete your route. Most days you get 4-5 stores. Each day, 1 or 2 of the stores (sometimes more) will get multiple pallet deliveries. NO COORDINATION WITH DELIVERIES. So, if you show up to store # 1 and the shelves are empty, you better HOPE the store is one of the first on the delivery rout
Pepsi is one of the worst companies I have ever worked for.
My first month or so the person assigned to "train" me was late, incredibly rude and unprofessional, and barely taught me anything about my position.
I started off with no supervisor, so trying to get information involving the job was impossible. And when an assignment was incomplete, they'd all say "welcome to Pepsi"
You cannot trust ANYONE in the building. They'll use whatever information you give them and turn it around against you. People in different departments will throw your name under the bus so fast just to get ahead themselves. You'll be back stabbed before you even know it.
Once the Admin department finally got a new manager, she decided to change everything about policies, procedures (which is the one thing you don't do when you're new). She assigned us all a lunch schedule (the only department who couldn't just take a lunch when they wanted, and couldn't talk to any other Admin team). She would text and call you after work hours harassing you about reports and assignments - all the way up to 10PM at night. When you open up your email - imagine 20-30 emails a day, talking down to you, disrespecting you, and being obnoxiously condescending to you.
Oh yeah, she would hide in the camera room SPYING on you, time stamping your every move and then later question you about where you we're, watch what you we're doing and why you were doing it. Then, let's not forget her questioning your collea
Be ready for long days and hard work if you are a delivery driver.
Being a delivery driver isn't a job for everyone. The job requires long hours an being at work between 4 am to 6 am everyday. Working for Pepsi, most of there routes are setup for 12 to 14 hour days because they are so short handed.
For my time there, I heard of roughly 15 quitting. Most because of the long hours and the pay. Pepsi pays there delivery drivers like they are sales reps. After training, you are paid $570 a week base and .10 1/2 per case you deliver. During training you will ride with an experienced driver for maybe 5 days then you will work what they call a Geo route which is mainly 7/11's and On Que's. You will be on these routes until they have all of your access for the handheld ready to run on your own. I felt sorry for one the delivery driver managers Chris because he was always having to deal with people calling in or not showing up.
Pepsi has a lot of product they deliver so be ready. They deliver Sobe, Lipton, Starbucks. Rockstar Energy and Gatorade outside of the regular Pepsi products. The invoices for products are abbreviated so it will be rough figuring out what is what. Also you have to check your truck before noon daily and call in any shortages. If you do not, Pepsi will charge you for the missing product.
Advancement opportunities will not happen until you have been there for at least 6 months. At that point you can apply for anything within Pepsico. Locally, there isn't room to advance unless someone quits are gets fired and hope tha
ProsDay 1 Benefits, Free Drinks. Working on your own.
ConsPay, Long Work hours, Training. No advancement opportunity
5.0
Customer Representative | Saginaw, MI | Oct 24, 2013
Fast-paced, continuously evolving business with great opportunities
My work day is compacted with product sales, merchandising requirements, conference calls, face-to-face interactions with multiple customers, and timely deadlines. In addition to gaining a great deal of experience working in a fast-paced environment, I was given the opportunity to meet customers face-to-face and to develop those relationships through a number of avenues, such as: trustworthy sales deals, profitable margin opportunities, daily visits, sales plans, and data reviews. It was great to build trusting relationships with people based on ethical practices and good, honest feedback about sales. At the end of the day, I am looking to make my company profitable, as well as increase the profits of the customers in which I am servicing.
Management at Pepsi Beverages Company is constantly evolving. If there is a way to make a process(es) more efficient and profitable, Pepsi will do its best to make the necessary changes, in an ethical, moralistic fashion. I have always had great relationships with my supervisory staff, and I owe much of that credit to the fact that they are continuously spending time in the trade. They want to see, first hand, what we are dealing with on the front lines. All-in-all, my co-workers are helpful and team-oriented. Many times, we have to cover each other's backs, in order to make sure that the company succeeds. Although it may be a bit inconvenient at the time, it is what is necessary in order to make the business successful.
Pepsi Bever
If you want to lose 40 lbs in a week, the best job ever
Working at pepsi has been by far the worst experience I have ever had the displeasure of having. Your normal day starts at around 4 am when you drive 10+ miles to your first store, and then have to clean up the mess made by the previous merchandiser. During this time, you are then berated by loading dock workers and grocery managers for not ordering enough product (which is not your job in the first place). Then, when you attempt to explain the situation and how to reconcile for it, they threaten you with a "kick-out", which is basically where they ban you from the store and report you to your supervisor (which then leads into more issues). After cleaning up the mess made by the previous merch, you then receive your product load, where you receive upwards of 8 to 10 pallets worth of product, some product is snuck into order to increase the 'commission pay' sales reps receive for each product sold, newer products = more pay, great for the sales reps but not for the merchandiers. additionally, Newer products = no place to go = takes up space in backroom = client gets angry at you. once finished with your first store, and taking upwards of 4 hours to do so, you are then expected to go immediately to your next store. If you are expected to arrive at a certain time, not only will your supervisor contact you and tell you to drop everything you are doing, but every so often the actual client will call you and yell at you over the phone for "being late". Not leaving a whole lot
ProsWork phone that tracks your every movement
Consno breaks, no lunches, no personal life on work days
Would be a wonderful place to work if business was handled like business without personal grudges.
A typical day at work was dealing with customers, effectively troubleshooting issues, placing orders, emails, assisting union as well as management employees with different issues they may have. Reviewing and processing job applications. Checking manager's voice mails and emails following up and handling immediate service needs. When working with so many people on a daily basis (Customers and Co-Workers) I have learned to deal with many personalities. Some cases were very extreme, but in business you have to make sure that all types of customers are satisfied in order to ensure the business longevity and also to maintain a healthy work environment with Co-Workers. I learned different programs and procedures in order to be of better assistance to customers and co-workers in absence of upper management, hence making their office work lighter when they returned from the field. Management in my first 5 years there was great. Management was very fair in how the employees was treated. When the manager was transferred to another location and another manager from another location stepped in that is when everything changed. Everyone became insecure about their job status, always tension, many were getting fired. There were cliques being formed. Your voice was basically silenced as far as ideas, creativity, as well as suggestions. Co-Workers you have to find a way to deal with the many personalities in order to ensure a stable work environment. Though i have been highly effective in th
Pros401k, profit sharing, autonomy to some extent.
Conslow salary, on call even on lunch break, accountability
Great position to start off a sales career with but can use some improvement with changing market.
Pros:
You get to work on your own and manage a sales route by servicing accounts, executing sales plan, and pushing the Pepsi brands in your key accounts. You are in control of your own work for five days and you usually have the same merchandiser service your accounts on your days off weekly so communication is simple. Some routes have great commission rates in selected areas . Managers come and go every 1-2 years but most have had good attitudes, are hands on, and generally respect our position. There's a lot of freedom and perks in this trade that makes this position see little turnover for a reason.
Cons:
Routes are unfairly balanced and commission rates are declining yearly with dwindling ad activity from key accounts and hours are dropping from lack of work at times. The yearly pay for the BCR position is flat with little growth. It's the only position in front line where employees aren't making more every year (unlike Merchandisers, Warehouse, and Drivers who do). This position has the most risk because predicting yearly ad activity is nearly impossible so some route owners can have rough years. Year after year, senior peers have brought up this issue with HR but nothing is ever done about. You can have a store close down on a route or certain accounts with significantly less ads than what was predicted. Tough luck, you take the hit until the next re-bid.
Advice to management:
Putting together BCR routes should mean having them as evenly balanced as possible
ProsThe freedom of managing your own route. Decent pay.
ConsFlat/Declining pay in position.
1.0
Warehouse Technician | Brampton, ON | Jan 17, 2019
The absolute honest Pepsico Frito Lay Review
Oh Pepsico Fritolay, where do we begin? So at first working in this “finely established” “rich and fun” “professional” organization you tend to think, hmm this place isn’t have bad, getting good hours having good trainers, but then you slowly come to a realization that this place, this place is absolute garbage. They treat you like a robot over working you and not paying you a dime extra, constantly sizing you up against eachother like you’re in some type of competition, yet you dont get paid for extra by doing any extra work. Which YES at other companies if you do more then the average you get paid an extra bit of money at the end of the day, depending on how much more you do. Which brings me to this, if you go out of your way all the time and constantly do more then an average employee is supposed to do, like take leadership on the floor, pull out bulk trucks, plug them in, clean up the facility to a tee, train peers how to safely and effectively do the job properly ( BECAUSE YES THERE IS A PROPER WAY TO DO THE JOB example Picking up your boards, pulling porduct up, NOT clocking in and out of job codes to make your rates faster, actually doing the job how its meant to be done.) they dont care they just look at you like some idiot and may take shifts away from you just because they may not like you, well sorry your HR idiot may not like you. also picking more cases then Your supposed to, they just reward you with more cases the next day. This place also loves to choose favor
1. Review and track attendance system.
2. Follow-up monthly on the absence, vacations, overtime, intermittent absence, dismissals and warnings.
3. Follow-up of annual and sick leaves, review and deliver the vacation balance letters.
4. Receipt of penalties memos and ensure compliance with the regulations, as well as legal affairs investigations and regular application of administrative penalties (absence without permission / delay / non-departure and retain a printed record of each department separately)
5. Preparation of employees files, receipt of hiring documents and maintaining updates throughout the employee's service period.
6. Annual renewal of contracts; sending the forms and follow-up on the signatures
7. Preparing performance development review forms (PDR's), captures absence, penalties, injuries etc., delivering the forms to the managers and collecting them for recording the ratings.
8. Registering and updating receipt of health certificates
9. Keeping record of disabled employees, update the data and make sure that the set percentage is met
10. Keeping and updating pension records, military status records and exemptions.
11. Carrying out the end of service and termination procedures and activities.
12. Tracking and follow up of the daily labor attendance and preparing attendance reports
13. Follow up the enrollment document in the labor office within the range of 30 working days of receipt.
14. Tracking of the 3 months probation period an
I loved working here. I was on a contact and they didn't need me at the end (end of summer/busy season). Pay is phenomenal for the amount of work you do. If you do Route Sales you're making at least 50 grand a year. Drivers make a flat rate of 200/day, my typical day as a driver - I started at 3AM to load my truck, normally finished around 11AM. Some days were 10 hours (which they base your pay on. 4 days a week working, 10/hours a day flat rate). I had maybe 3 11/12 hour days because of long wait times for other trucks to deliver and get out of the bay. I had about 5 days where I was done my delivers and back in shop heading back home and I only worked a total of 5-6 hours (still getting that full days pay feels great!).
As a Route Sales Rep you load your truck, drive to your stores, drop off the chips and merchandise them on to the shelves. Place your order, and go to the next store. You get a flat 8.5% commission on the product you deliver to the store. Typically I was taking home about 850/week on average. Working 8-11 hours a day, 5 days a week. When busy season really started, I got moved to delivery driver. If I was able to stay on as Route Sales Rep during the summer I would have been pulling in about 1400/week after taxes. Some Route Sales Rep guys make 75k a year... to deliver and merchandise chips... not bad. Some days you have to haul but, it's not heavy work, but you have to move fast if you don't want your day to be 14 hours long.
Co worker
ProsFull time get company pension, flex benefits and RRSP matching. Co Coworkers and management are great. Pay is great.
ConsThe occassional long day. Occassional computer programs are frustrating.
Questions And Answers about PepsiCo
How long will it take for PepsiCo to call you back in after a scheduled interview?
Asked Feb 28, 2016
Friday, 7/9 - in-person interview
Tuesday, 7/13 - received the call with an offer
Wednesday, 7/14 - job offer received on email.
2 business days to call you after the interview but I think it varies who is the hiring person handling your application.
I would recommend that a day after the interview, send a follow-up email.
Answered Jul 30, 2021
One week till e-mail to schedule assessment and interview. Completed assessment and interview at 5:00 p.m. on a Friday. Had formal offer the following business day. HR sent the background check link and appointment for drug screening the following day after I accepted the offer. But, this probably unique to my profession.
Answered Sep 10, 2020
If you were in charge, what would you do to make PepsiCo a better place to work?
Asked Jun 4, 2017
Hire people for specific job and after they are comfortable for their specific job, train them in new jobs.
Training employees on everything at one time is not a good job model. You will lose good employees and not see their potential.
Answered Oct 21, 2021
Create routes that can be completed in a 10 hour time frame or less. This would improve driver retention and morale.
Answered Jun 9, 2021
What tips or advice would you give to someone interviewing at PepsiCo?
Asked Aug 24, 2017
Go for it lifetime career. opportunities
24 yrs. Driver $24 hourly and lots of o/t tues-sat
Union/Corporate Unity Proud to be of service
Answered Oct 5, 2021
Be honest, stay calm, show your willingness to work.
Answered Aug 30, 2021
What is the best part of working at PepsiCo?
Asked Dec 6, 2019
One of the best parts of Pepsi -- Management & Supervisors
Heart driven - invested - engaged - supportive -
Behind the scenes Heroes
Answered Nov 6, 2021
Off Sunday Monday
Family/Work Balance
Answered Oct 18, 2021
Does PepsiCo pay weekly or bi weekly?
Asked Apr 5, 2016
Yes they offer OT. We do get paid time + a half after 40hours
