account representative

branch manager

loan specialist

sales representative

loan officer

Mariner Finance

I'm going to be as fair and balanced with this review as I possibly can. But, I'll come out the gate admitting my bias against Mariner and recommend you read as many reviews of this company as you might, so you can form a nuanced opinion and make a decision that is best for YOU. I am in the camp against working for this company, but you may have your reasons that justify taking a job with them.

All of this stems from the perspective of an employee working at the Corporate Headquarters in White Marsh, Maryland. It is HIGHLY opinionated. Take all of this with a grain of salt.

Pros:
- Competitive pay (depending upon your position and prior experience)
- A comprehensive suite of average benefits (minus profit-sharing) including health, vision, dental, life, AD&D, managed 401(k) with match (mediocre), EAP,  various third-party discount vendors, continuing education resources, and tuition reimbursement (following a minimum length-of-service threshold) that is capped at a flat amount
- The generous starting amount of PTO
- Scheduling flexibility and general flexibility when it comes to hours, life events, unplanned occurrences, reasonable accommodations
- Awesome coworkers
- Great location, one of the only major employers in the region that are positioned so you don't have to journey through the beltway or into the city (which, frankly, is what I imagine heck must be like)
- Sometimes self-aware ex. "It's the Mariner way."
- Catered lunch often

Cons:
- Some departments are locked out of lucrative incentive programs
- Other incentive programs are achievable by departments locked out of the aforementioned incentive programs, but the path for qualifying for those 'clubs' as an incentive are arbitrary, undefined, and under-communicated
- The Parking
- Obvious disparity in treatment between 'cost center departments' and departments that generate revenue
- Faux transparency from higher-ups (We know things aren't always sunshine and rainbows, stop perpetuating the idea that it is)
- ABYSMAL on-boarding and on-the-job training (Trial-by-fire culture)
- Virtually no documentation of policies and procedures
- Trash-talking everywhere propagates 'us versus them' culture (I think this is more due to the transparency issues than anything. If the leadership were honest about the unreasonable demands and lack of support, their direct reports would be more supportive of them and would have the ability to trust in the leadership)
- Some middle-managers talk worse of their superiors to their direct reports and that is just an all-around terrible idea when it comes to the want to foster a culture of respect
- Day-to-day operations of certain departments seem to be obscured behind a smokescreen for the company at-large wondering where all the money is going, why SLAs aren't being met, why the support for departmental and branch operations is so bad/inconsistent
- Knee-jerk implementation of technologies that affect the entirety of the company userbase without thorough testing, consideration, and cross-departmental discussion
- Promotes internally for the wrong reasons
- Sources talent externally and passes over qualified internal candidates because they can't afford to shift people due to what I can only guess is a lack of disseminated knowledge of duties, processes, procedures, etc.
- Minimizing costs is a thing that management frequently mentions, stresses in meetings, and can never execute properly, and is a best practice quickly forgotten about until they breach their budget a couple of months in and rally around the idea of not needlessly spending so much
- Some basic best practices do not exist here
- Scope Creep is a best practice here
- Set in their inefficient ways because of it 'working since they started doing x thing that way' (See: "It's the Mariner way")
- PARKING
- Seriously, someone is probably going to get struck crossing Town Center Drive one day, and it is going to be awful
- The HQ elevator is fueled by spite and malice and can sense when it is most needed, so it can break down at the worst possible moment
- Every floor in the building has a different climate
- It sometimes rains inside

In closing, it isn't the best place to be, but it isn't the worst either. Things are changing, slowly, and I think there are the beginnings of a movement in the right direction that will create a foundation for a great place of business, and Mariner may become an excellent place to work by the spirit of the people that do the dirty work day-in and day-out. 

Only time will tell.

Work-life balance
Monday 9am to 5pm
Tuesday 9am to 7pm
Wednesday 9 to 5pm 
Thursday 9 to 5pm
Friday 9am to 5:30pm
God forbid you are 1 minute late. Mandatory Saturday's often with little notice, often times you'll have to stay after with little to no notice but God forbid they pay you overtime. Work is all they care about they could care less if you have a sick child or if you yourself were sick work comes first to them. My AVP actually told me the job comes first... Like, i'm sorry, I have 2 very small children.

Pay & benefits
10 hours of paid personal time per month. No sick days. Its the end of to world if you have to use days. Benefits are expensive and health insurance isn't very good.

Job security and advancement
They do train but not enough. There are tons of opportunities if you're willing to move around the country. There is a very high turn over rate because of all the bullcrap and misguided directions.

Management
All management cares about is money. They let go hundreds of people because of covid19. Instead temporary layoffs or doing something to help the people, they just let everybody go. 

You can never get a straight answer out of them. Everything is strictly policy and procedure, which is fine, if anyone knew how to interpret said put policy and procedures. No one seems to know anything. Its like chasing your tail in a circle.

Culture
I was let go due to covid-19 , back in June hundreds of people at Mariner lost their jobs. Instead of offering a part time position, a temporary layoff, or anything else to help, they just eliminated people, and now those offices are struggling to stay afloat because there is so much busy work to do, you just cant possibly get it done in one day. 

If you work in a call center or a very large office, the option to work remotely is there. I worked in a small office in a small town and there is 0 option for remote work.

 The culture is very much fend for yourself, if you don't make your sales you're trash. If the office doesn't make their goals you're trash. If you have to ask management for help to try to get a sale, they question every decision you've made. There is 0 trust. My manager would literally stand over my shoulder while I was on the phone with people. There is no opportunity for growth unless you're willing to move, atleast here, that is the case. There is no trust, they don't trust you to make decisions on your own and that's very frustrating as well.  You have to make at least 80 calls a day, especially if you don't have your number of loans, or your sales goals completed. They will check your call logs to see who and how many people you call and that's very frustrating. They don't take your word at face value ever. Management will also check your emails and computer keys strokes, which is fine but frustrating. Overall, if i knew what I know now, I would have stayed at my previous job.

Overall
I work for Mariner Finance for 2 years. It's a finance company, they rob customers in interest. 36% and 24% is pretty insane. The pay is decent, but the payoff isn't worth it. You have to do your own collections, which is difficult at times, but my manager was pretty good about helping in those situations. Bonuses are hard to get and if you're in a small town in a small office it's hard to reach sales goals. Upper Management doesn't care about anything but sales and money. You as a person don't matter, it's all about the numbers. Your family life doesn't matter either, the job is supposed to come first. It's a frustrating place to work because nobody seems to know any answers to anything. It's like a dog chasing its tail to try to get an answer out of management

I started at Mariner finance two 1/2 years ago. From the start it was complete chaos. Everyone in the office had walked out or quit, it was only me and the DM at the time and she was awesome but very overwhelmed and over worked. Because we had nobody to help and so under staffed, I was responsible for starting calls, collections etc. immediately while doing extensive training and taking tests etc. as time went on they finally hired a new manager and co workers who I loved, they were truly great to work with for the most part. As time went on, things got more and more stressful and the high demand for goals that were nearly impossible to meet, fighting to get loans and if you didn’t you were looked down upon and wrote up for lack of performance all though you were working as hard as you could to solicit and meet goals. They would write you up for missing work for being sick or snow days. Constantly had to work late nights with a very short break of 30 minutes which was never enough time to take a breather from the stress or enjoy your lunch. Then new management came in eventually after the first crew were let go or quit and it became 10xs more stressful and overwhelming. The new manager truly made me feel like I did everything wrong and no matter what I did, nothing was good enough. when in reality I was doing the absolute best I could as far as answering a extreme high call volume, keeping up with many applications at once being as professional as I could be and trying to make new loans, getting all of my other work done and working hard to get as many collections calls as I could done all in a very short work day. This place truly required SO much and it was absolutely overwhelming most days. The pay is decent I would say and probably one of the highest paying in the areas surrounding, but for the amount of stress and requirements there are for every little thing was just exhausting and not worth it. And to say the least I just was an AR so I couldn’t imagine the stress and work load a assistant/manager had to deal with. Not to mention I never had trainers come in to train me, I just had to wing it and learn what I could as I went, which mostly everything that was physically taught to me was not the proper way of training so when a new manager came in, she looked very down upon me that I had been there so long but didn’t know as much as she did. Mariner finance may be awesome to some but it truly effected my mental health. 

THE job title should be sales and collections rep because that is what you will be prompted with great urgency to do is close loans, close loans, close loans and then upsell them on collateral loans. But wait there's more...while you do that you have to get a certain amount of phone calls from clients who have been 30 and 60 days or more delinquent on their accounts to make payments, most of which are hardly home or have your number blocked already because they have no intention of making payments. You won't get a significant pay raise or compensated for being a collection specialist or a LOAN sales rep which are the other 2 roles you will be doing. They still use the old systems besides using salesforce because they are too impatient to make the new software work so you are stuck using both new and old systems back and forth the whole time. 

Management is not the best depending on who you have, my manager was great but others managers not so much when my manager was out, they cut for who they like when it comes to favoritism in the workplace. People complain on you anonymously if they dont like you or dont like what you said and they will believe whatever that person said versus who were addressing, thats the politics and toxic culture and inconsistent information from Management to the upper management alike, always getting mixed info or not the correct info or the wrong info or NO info at all when it comes to need to know info. I would avoid this positiion if you want a healthy working environment and compensation is realistic to the job requirements and you dont want to walk around on egg shells all day.

As a Branch Manager at Mariner Finance, I have had the opportunity to grow both professionally and personally. The role has been challenging yet rewarding, providing me with a platform to enhance my leadership skills and financial acumen.
The company culture at Mariner Finance is one of its strongest assets. The environment is collaborative and supportive, fostering a sense of camaraderie among the team. This has not only made the workplace enjoyable but also facilitated effective problem-solving and innovation.
In my role as Branch Manager, I have been responsible for overseeing the branch's operations, ensuring compliance with company policies, and driving sales targets. This has allowed me to develop a comprehensive understanding of the financial industry and hone my strategic planning skills.

One of the highlights of my tenure has been the opportunity to mentor and develop my team. Seeing them grow and succeed has been incredibly fulfilling. The management at Mariner Finance values employee development, and I am grateful for the trust and autonomy I have been given in this regard.
However, like any job, the role has had its challenges. The financial industry can be fast-paced and demanding, requiring adaptability and resilience. But these challenges have been opportunities for learning and growth, pushing me to continuously improve and adapt.
Overall, my experience as a Branch Manager at Mariner Finance has been positive. I am proud to be part of a company that values its employees and is committed to providing excellent service to its customers.

My journey at Mariner Finance began with a promising start during the training phase. The training program was well-structured and provided a solid foundation for the role. I felt supported and valued during this period, which left me with high hopes for the job ahead.

However, as soon as I stepped out of training and assumed my responsibilities, things took a frustrating turn. The workload increased significantly, and I found myself juggling multiple tasks with little guidance or assistance. It felt like the company's focus shifted from nurturing new employees to merely expecting results without adequate support.

The lack of appreciation for the efforts put in was particularly disheartening. Despite the increased workload and growing responsibilities, there was hardly any acknowledgment or recognition for the hard work and dedication. It became apparent that the company's appreciation was confined to the training phase, and beyond that, it was as if our contributions went unnoticed.

As time went on, the mounting pressure and diminishing appreciation took a toll on my motivation and overall job satisfaction. It was difficult to stay enthusiastic and committed to a job that didn't value its employees beyond the initial training period.

While Mariner Finance did provide an excellent training experience, the lack of ongoing support and appreciation post-training significantly impacted the work environment. I hope the company addresses these issues and reevaluates its approach to employee recognition and support to create a more positive and fulfilling work culture.

I am a former employee of this company. It was great at first when I started but the tables turned for the worst IMMEDIATELY. They want You to do this, that, and the third all in a short period of time, Which is impossible, along with cleaning up the mess of current employees. They want to force you to push sales, I didn't sign up for that. You have to harass customers daily until they make their payments. The goals that the company wants are absolutely absurd & make NO sense. How can a new employee that received little to NO training get all these tasks done with NO guidance? The interest rate is very high and a lot of people do not want to do it unless they don't have a choice because their credit is bad, or unless want to start a new slate I'm their life. The company is a Rip off and I just Also want to say that everyone is NOT your friend in that company. They say they got your back, but they don't. I wasn't there long enough to see any more foolishness be exposed. Let me also add that you will feel like a prisoner at your desk and can't catch a break, sometimes you dont even get to have lunch. If you're a teller as I was,  you get easily distracted and have to stop what you're doing and assist a customer. The work load is ridiculous. What they pay should be more. They are very cheap too. It's not a teamwork thing. It's an "EVERY MAN FOR THEMSELVES " company especially the office I was in... I hope this information will help someone THINK TWICE before applying for this job and Working for this particular company.

Half off the job is calling customers (whether it’s directly through their cell/home # or calling their work number or references to get ahold of them. A lot of you livelihood is based on making a customer pay their bill or convincing someone to get a loan with an extremely high interest rate.Will have to take customers to court relatively frequently in my opinion to not be a lawyer. Goal is usually for every employee in the office to get 1 loan per day and make 60+ outbound calls( they expect more loans during our busy season (Oct-dec) and calls if your delinquency is high. Some customers will be extremely nice to you and/or have the biggest sob story before getting approved for the loan and then turn nasty when you have to call to collect first pmt. As a manager you are expected to work over 40 hours a week because most likely you won’t be able to achieve everything that needs to be done and remain compliant within that time frame. Wish we had more options to help customers in their time of need. (We just started doing deferments earlier this year and renewing loans are really our only options. Not fond of having to get stern with customers that have been paying us great but are currently experiencing hardships (especially in a recession). Seems like the lower position can make an abundance of mistakes and still be employed while the manager gets very few chances even if they are new. (Could just be my experience and I understand managers Gould get held to a higher standard). I’m sure there are jobs that are worse and I’m sure they are many that are better for the same pay rate.

This is not a workplace that I would suggest for anyone to work in. The environment itself is stressful, you'll get a headache as soon as you walk through the door. There are little to no windows, everything's gray, or a different tone of beige and you guessed it, cubicles. Everywhere. A creatives worst nightmare.

Management is poor. Nobody knows anything, or they'll have an "it's not my job" attitude towards the situation. If you can't do it yourself it probably will not get done. 

HR is probably one of the most unprofessional departments in the entire building aside from the IT department. They speak at you and not to you, they demand answers, but don't make you comfortable enough to speak to them when put in those types of situations.
The IT department is your basic, bland, big boys club. There are a few people that are actually willing to help and don't speak at you, or to you like you're less than. There are also people in the IT department that will literally yell over you when engaging in one on one conversation.
Your typical day is supposed to be worked in a "team like" environment, but no one wants to help each other. Crabs in a barrel mentality.

The workplace culture here is vile. Just like most work environments there's a lot of gossip going on. A LOT. If you don't like to play office politics, or play games with children, this is not the place for you.
Internal communication? What's that? 
Team effort? A foreign concept.
Training? Every one knows everything, and if you don't know anything ..... SoS.
Empathetic engagement? Forget about it.

All in all, it's a fabulous place to work if you like working there.

I have been working at Mariner for a few years now; I like the people I work with and the location is wonderful. I have grown to dislike having irregular hours (Tuesdays are until 7 pm) as it interferes with home life. The pay is much lower than comparable positions with other companies, and there is NO incentive program--there is really little enticement for anyone to do better than mediocre. There is little to no room for advancement in many departments. As the company grows--and it has been growing a lot!--new branches are not being given full training on policy and procedure, and some of the support teams are not given all of the necessary information on state guidelines before being expected to assist new branches.

There is not enough parking at HQ in Maryland for all employees, leading to some people having to park at the shopping center across the street which can also be crowded.

The insurance options are not impressive. The computer systems we use are unreliable. Many of us simply do not feel heard or appreciated, particularly when so many company-wide emails go out telling us all how GREAT things are going. If we are all doing well, then we all should benefit. 

This hasn't been a *bad* job, necessarily, but there is a lot of room for improvement--starting with better pay for employees if they want to attract and retain the best possible people.

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