customer service representative

analyst

senior analyst

intern

systems analyst

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan

There is no job opportunities for CSRs. You have to stay in the call center role for at least two years before they “consider” you for other internal positions. 

The work environment is a mess. Sure you get a personal desktop to make you feel special, but you aren’t valued. 

There is no clear leadership. “Team leaders” are supposed to be our supervisors, but they have no call handling knowledge, therefore unable to offer a helping hand. They are also useless in regards to contact information. Heaven forbid you need to ask where to obtain documentation. No one knows anything. There isn’t even a proper way for family members and children to reach their parents at work. 

We are told to use or break time to check our phones. I’m not sure how that would help in an emergency situation. 

The days where it is less busy, the day drags. When it’s not dragging, the calls are back to back, giving you no chance to get your gather your bearings. 

Maintaining quality is hard. You can have an awesome call, but if you fail to ask tons of unnecessary questions, you fail. They make it seem like you’ll loose your job if you fail a call. 

Lunch breaks are nice and long with a nice walk center to utilize. You have two additional small breaks, but honestly it’s not enough for the stress you go through. 

Training could have been better. It was rushed. We were test dummies for the new Medicare advantage department. 

Quality, who passes or fails your calls are portrayed as helpful mentors who want to coach you to be successful. However, they can be quite condescending. 

Getting time off is an absolute joke, as it is seniority based. Terrible system for parents. You get like 6 days off per year, in which, may or may not be able to be accommodated as planned. 

The help desk is cushion for CSRs to use when we don’t know the answer. They are portrayed as experts who are always happy and willing to educate you on how to assists customers with inquiries you struggle with. However, most are extremely rude and make you feel terrible for even calling.

I feel like an absolute robot at work. I don’t see how anyone enjoys the job. 

The co-workers were horrible. Of course there are a few awesome employees, but the rest were rude. Everyone was in secret competition with one another. The company basically puts us up against each other, as performance results are visible to your entire department. Awesome way to feel useless for the month you happened to have quality issues. 

The “manager” Laura H. was so snooty and rude. She walks around like she’s such a high individual, placing no value on the very employees helping meet company standards. Honestly, I’ve never seen her do much of anything. 

The call center demographics mostly were women. I hoped to see more diversity. 

If you are looking for advancement, respect, work-life balance, and security, this is not the job for you. 

If you need pretty decent pay with weekends and holidays off, this job is for you. 

	Over 12 years of IT experience in Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Testing and Support of Data Warehousing using Informatica Powercenter and Infosphere Datastage.
	8 years of experience in using Informatica PowerCenter(6.x/7.x/8.x/9.x).
	3 years of experience in using Infosphere Datastage (Parallel, Server and Mainframe).
	Have extensively worked in developing ETL program for supporting Data Extraction, transformations and loading using etl tools.
	Understand the business rules completely based on High Level document specifications and implements the data transformation methodologies.
	Hands on experience in Siebel EIM loading process using informatica.
	Worked on onsite and offshore model.
	Experience with dimensional modeling using star schema and snowflake models. 
	Extensively worked on slowly changing dimensions across the projects.
	Worked on informatica power exchange.
	Worked on databases Oracle and Sybase.
	Experience in Extraction, cleansing, integration, loading of data from/to data sources , IDQ.
	Involved in design and architecture of ETL development process, including data quality and testing.
	Extensively worked on performance tuning of both (Informatica and Datastage) tools.
	Expertise in developing and maintaining overall Test Methodology and Strategy, Documenting Test Plans, Test Cases and editing, executing Test Cases and Test Scripts.
	Involved in designing calls with source systems, clients and with other business partners. 
	Good experience is maintaining the versioning and deployment instruction documents while moving the code to various environments.
	Extensively worked with production support team to resolve issues and worked in extracting data from Oracle, Mainframe files and flat files.
	Performance tuning by using Explain Plan, queries optimization by using parallel hints in oracle.
	Hands on Experience in data extraction & validation in SQL and UNIX Shell Scripting.
	Good exposure to development, testing, debugging, implementation, documentation, user training & production support.
	Resolved data issues, completed unit testing and system documentation for ETL processes.
	Involved extensively in System and Regression Testing. 
	Knowledge on IBM Quality Stage using Investigate, Standardize, Match and Survive stages.
	Knowledge on the usage of tools such as IBM Cognos7.
	Ability to quickly analyze and develop an industry standard solution for a given problem.
	Excellent communication skills, problem solving skills, Leadership qualities and an attitude to learn the new cutting edge technologies.
	Knowledge on the usage of Informatica DVO.
	Knowledge on Big data.
	Knowledge on Informatica B2B and Meterdatamanagement.

Everything I was told at interview was not followed through. My cubicle was next to another department's managers who talked loudly all day long about their person lives. I knew more about their wives than my clients. I was unable to hear my clients on my headset over their constant conversations that were not job related. The managers there think they are better than other people. When manager asked me to go on staff because i was a contractor. I declined due to a meeting with the team leader who said the contractors were not getting hired on for a long time. I did not feel like I was really part of the team and felt that at anytime, my job could be terminated. Due to being the family bread winner, I decided to accept a full time job with benefits that felt more secure. When my agency informed the manager that i did not want to work for them full time. They terminated my contract. I was their top phone caller and had high quality scores. I felt very disrespected. They would not let me come collect my personal belongings. When I did receive my belongings, they removed resources that belonged to me, not BCBSM. I have thought a lot about trying to go back to work there with different managers, but feel it probably will be the same way. They do not trust their employees. I was told that if I went back to work the two week notice i could steal information. The managers are rude and very unprofessional. I should have pursued a lawsuit against them to make them pay me for the whole contract and for slander. Think twice about working as a contractor at BCBSM. I would consider working at a different BCBS in another state. BCBSM would be my last resort to put food on the table for my family. Desperate times would qualify for desperate measures. Anyone who tells you they love their job there is misleading you.

Work as a contractor. Someone else mentioned in a review that all of the staff seemed sick - I had the same thought! They are all ill or extremely overweight - so many young women that are overweight- so sad! You just want to pull them aside and try to get them a life coach - a yoga class - something! Not a healthy group of people on many levels. The background noise in my cube is usually other people talking about how sick they are or yelling/getting testy with someone. If they aren't overweight then they smoke a ton. Everything is so complicated and the systems for everything are so convoluted - it's as though entire departments are encased in a spider web and can't do a darn thing- sometimes through no fault of their own or any lack in a person's abilities - just due to the way a seemingly simple process is broken down into a million different departments that don't really understand how they all need to work together like a Rivera mural in order to do one thing correctly. Many people don't seem to understand what it is they are doing or how people in other departments who have work that they touch and/or are dependent on function - I see tons of confusion, wasted effort, messed up processes. Meeting after meeting going over the same thing over and over again, with so many people invited that don't have anything to contribute or anything to glean from sitting in hours worth of meetings all day! The same people asking the same questions over and over - as though nothing ever sinks in for them, they never gain a deeper understanding. Are they all overworked? I just don't get it. Some bad attitudes, lots of people not respectful of other people's time or workloads or even that they might need to use the bathroom or eat once and a while, and so much waste. Some good people here and there, many more that are frustrated beyond comprehension. Company desperately needs to take a giant step back and look at the bigger picture on so many levels - because it's just not a healthy, functioning place.

A typical day at work is making sure I answer and see all my emails so I don't get in trouble for that. Management belittles employees and no one does anything about it. We had one employee who took how management talked to her, to the HR/ employee labor relations. At first they would do nothing and she said that wasn't ok or good enough so they escalated it to the senior person on the team and they started interviewing several others including myself. We all backed up what our employee made the complaint about... But at the end of the day they said there was nothing they could do. So this girl just got it even more from my boss... And more work and making more issues for her and she finally couldn't take it and walked out and quit. We have a 4 person team and in the last year we have lost 4-5 people... It's very sad.

There is no work life balance . In some organizations there. But just be aware of the ones that don't . I felt tricked when I accepted my position as HR told me something totally different in what's okay and what's not compared to what I am experiencing. You some teams in our organization that are allowed to work from home one day a week or when sick or bad wether, then you have the other that says 2 days a month plus If your sick or weather is pore, whereas in our team there is absolutely no work from home unless you want to take pto. It's ridiculous and they need more policy's in place so that management doesn't have so much power. I had my manager go in and put my pto time for me once. Also. We are behind the times with our benefits in regards to days off and how sick is with them. It seems to me the norm is something like 15 vacation 1 floating holiday(I pick when to use) and then unlimited sick/personal time. Blue cross does not have that. There are many things I would love to say or to talk with someone to make suggestions too.

Typical Day at work: 
Leading a team of Bargaining Unit employees, managing and monitoring production, quality inventory, machine maintenance, and scheduling implementations in a fast-paced operations environment.
Working with internal partners, coworkers, leaders and the team to meet deadlines and deliver a quality product to our customers and ensuring that we are following government mandates, association guidelines, CMS guidelines, meeting MTM standards, performance guarantees, ensuring the integrity of data and security of our members' protected health information.

What I Learned:
Experienced leader with a distinct combination of professional experience, positive influence, technical and analytical expertise; utilizing creativity and teamwork to execute solutions that create customer value.  Comfortable interacting with all levels of the organization and public.  Strong communication skills overall.  Flexible stance to take on additional/non-routine tasks when necessary.  Enjoys learning new programs and processes.  Team-oriented professional with the ability to focus on the overall scheme of things, and be attentive to detail.  Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment, research and problem solve quickly, accurately, and efficiently. Adept at multitasking to achieve team and individual goals.  Committed to quality and excellence.  

The hardest part of the job is having work/life balance in such a fast-paced, high stress department. However, it has gotten much better in the past year.

The most enjoyable part of the job is exceeding customer expectations, working with a diverse group of people and being graced with the privilege to lead a team of dedicated employees.

Working here during the start of the National Healthcare Reform is where the biggest amount of confusion comes from. Before we instituted the Affordable Care Act, it was rather simple to learn the infrastructure of BCBSM and how their policies worked. With the reform in place, it seemed like rules changed consistently. One of the biggest changes was the arrival of the Marketplace. It limited a lot of what we originally did. Members didn't understand and explaining it to them was more difficult than anything else.

Outside of the Marketplace, it seems like a lot of things changed constantly. Advising members of their policies became harder since whatever we would advise them of was more likely to change. A lot of employees became noticeably unsure of their own answers and, for time, the rate of supervisor calls would increase.

Nothing to really say about employees. Run-of-the-mill office. You have your good, dedicated employees and you have lazier, lax employees. Everyone does their job for the most part, no matter how they do it, exactly.

With all of that said, the process is about the best you can expect in a business. There's a department for nearly every problem. The turnaround time on things is a lot faster than any other company I've been with. There are complications when dealing with the Marketplace, but even those complications have a department that deals with them.

All in all, it's a good business. The business aspect is relatively professional and things get done. However, on the side of insurance handling and understanding, it's a bit bumpy. Eventually, it becomes manageable, but even then, it's worrisome.

Typical day at work: Every day was different. I collaborated across departments, supported employer groups, worked with vendors, and managed multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.

What you learned: I expanded my knowledge of healthcare benefits, Agent and Broker sales.  Internal sales, product strategy, client management, and cross-functional collaboration while strengthening my problem-solving and communication skills. Vendor integration with health savings accounts, employee assistance programs, reward programs that enhance healthcare for members. 

Management: Management was generally supportive, though decisions in a large organization could take time.

Workplace culture: The culture was collaborative, with dedicated colleagues focused on serving members and clients.

Hardest part: I enjoy change and new ideas, challenges faced can be solving IT gaps, and supporting sales teams with less face to face interactions.  

Most enjoyable part: Working with clients and internal teams to solve problems, improve solutions, and make a positive impact on members. The relationships I built and the meaningful work made it a rewarding place to grow professionally.

Top leadership with big salaries - seem unconcerned about the destruction of the workforce (the nurses). Sounds like the best place in the US to work, especially if you are not a nurse. Looks great on paper, but nurses are highly devalued and turned into non-thinking robots. An organization that knows all the right things to do and say. However, this does not translate to the real world. Every year gets worse.I often wonder if Executive Leadership knows the organization is being run in the ground by poor managers, directors, and team leaders. People obtain positions based on who they know, and how well they are liked, not their competencies. No respect for nurses by their leadership, bullying, bad mouthing, undermining, just evil spirited. I would hate to see BC become a United Health viewed business much in part because of poor leadership who make an agenda out of devaluing their employee and treating them unfairly.

Great place to work for non-nurses, if you have good leadership in your area. Great place for advancement if you know the right people.

I believe upper leadership tries to make a good organization but much is lost as the attempt moves down the command line. So unfortunate.

Coworkers were very personable and professional and worked as a team.  Learned many new skills in handling patient benefits and claims, great communication and rapport with patients and helped to facilitate their care and management post hospital.  Scheduled appointments with clients and family members and conducted team meetings to help provide them with the best available resources to meet their needs.  Wrote summaries and reports and met with vendors and DME specialists.  Attended project meetings with coworkers to improve policies and protocol and provide consistency within our department.  Helped to create forms and guidelines to ensure efficiency and measurement of outcomes.  Established good rapport via good communication skills on the phone and meetings in person with clients and family members.   Contacted physician offices and helped to get necessary doctor's orders, prescriptions and documentation to facilitate medical  care for home patients transitioning from hospital or rehab to home.  The hardest part of the job was learning benefit packages,  and completing  a great deal of paperwork.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Customer service representative 4 salaries reported	$19.17 per hour
Analyst 7 salaries reported	$75,143 per year
Senior analyst 20 salaries reported	$80,970 per year
Intern 3 salaries reported	$24.33 per hour
Systems analyst 3 salaries reported	$69,667 per year

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