field service technician

dispatcher

shift manager

parts specialist

order picker

Associated

The management in Milwaukee were pretty good. 
The problem is how the techs are run and managed in their area, at least in Madison. The lead tech hogged all the work or picked jobs him and his favorite tech could go do together. The amount of times other techs would lie and say they didn't have work or they'd take work off my tablet for themselves. 

More often than not I had no clue where I was going in the morning or told to go sit at a customer site (so gps thought I was at a customer) and wait for a break down call was ridiculous. I spent countless days just sitting there doing nothing. Then having to make an excuse on why I couldn't bill a customer. There's a no work option, but "you can't use that"
The way these guys operate is pathetic. They all do their timesheets at the end of the day so they can adjust how much their billing the customer for time so they look like they were working all day. Look in the maintenance records and the pm time is always the same.... They then go to the shop that they rent off a customer and sit there till it's time to go home, or unplug their gps.
 Most of them are rude, bitter, and unprofessional. One of the guys never wore a uniform, wore tennis shoes, and greeted customer with a mouth full of chew.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Good benefits, pay is OK. Had a hybrid work schedule which was great

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Improper training of actual job. They have a lot if training but doesn’t always apply to what you do. Criticize for doing things wrong that you weren’t actually trained to do. The department was “clicky” and they have their favorites.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Good in other departments, depending on the managers. The AR managers were friends for a long time from another company and were not friendly with others.

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Worked on your own portfolio, making calls and sending emails. Following up with managers for issues on accounts. Micromanaged a lot.

Not the most exciting industry but the benefits are great since it’s part of a huge corporation. Post-pandemic especially, departments feel disconnected from each other, but that’s probably pretty normal in the corporate world. Their HR department has been working harder at developing a better culture/community in recent years- as opposed to the typical “we are all family” cold cut corporate jargon that many companies have. It’s a slow climb; HR has got their work cut out for them. More communication and feedback between departments on projects would be nice, but a solid process and good rapport needs to be in place to do that in a transparent and honest way. 

Overall, great benefits, and they are at least trying to change. Not the place to find value or fulfillment in work, but that’s why hobbies and life outside of work are important. 

I worked at Associated for 5 years.  When I found a better opportunity and resigned by giving the customary 2-week notice, I was let go so they wouldn’t have to provide pay or benefits for that period.  I only found this out after contacting HR several days after the notice.  HR claimed that they didn’t have a phone number on file.  

Overall, I found my manager to be disrespectful, argumentative, and rude.

Work environment:  The engineering team is subject to endless and undocumented new processes and procedures with little support from other departments located in IL.  The result is that even the most remedial tasks end up taking long hours to complete.

I liked the autonomy of the job.  I liked the benefits.

The Supply Chain industry in general is fairly behind the times in most business practices and technology. Associated is at least trying to take a step into the modern world, though for some groups the transition is slow and difficult. In general, Employee Relations and HR have vastly improved in the last few years. However there is still some archaic structure and ineffective "been there forever" people mucking up the works.

Stoffel is a well established materials handling equipment dealership that has a history of long term stability.  While this sounds like a good thing, it leaves you with a workplace where stagnation due to a lack of advancement ability is the norm.  The owner wants to sell the company and the upper management are riding their positions as long as they can get away with it.  If you want a steady job and don't mind being paid a decent wage but not expecting more, this is your place.

I have worked for Associated for the last five years. Like any growing company, it has had its challenges. What I have enjoyed the most are the people I work with, not only within my department but throughout corporate headquarter and our six sister locations. The organization has all the benefits of a major corporation, such as promotional opportunities, benefits, and compensation, but for me it still maintains is a warm and friendly family atmosphere.

Everyone at Associated works hard as a team and is driven to make the company successful.  Highly professional atmosphere mixed in with great personalities to create a strong workplace culture.  Management is not only concerned with pleasing customers and maximizing profits, but also focuses on continuous improvement with employee satisfaction and retention. Rarely do people leave Associated.

I loved my time working as a Field Service Technician for Associated Solutions, but the raises are only 3% a year and it doesn't matter how much you improve or learn or how much training you complete. You will still only get 3% every year at best. Moving up in to other positions is a slow process that will take years, maybe more than 10, if it happens at all for you. 

Working for this company in the corporate office varies widely from the employees who are hired as technicians in the field and the shop.  Overall the work life balance is great for most - there is not a lot of expectation for even their salaried professionals to put in over 40 hours a week.  

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Field service technician 3 salaries reported	$28.00 per hour
Dispatcher 2 salaries reported	$21.00 per hour
Shift manager 2 salaries reported	$55,000 per year
Parts specialist 1 salary reported	$21.50 per hour
Order picker 2 salaries reported	$18.50 per hour

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