territory manager

senior manager

shift leader

director

senior territory manager

Reynolds American

I am going to be 100% honest with you because when I read reviews about potential employers that interest me, I expect to read truthful reviews as well

Pros

Great culture.  Upper management (Winston Salem folk) truly cares for the little guy and it shows.

Great health benefits and 401K structure

70% of RJRT employees are solid people

Company car.  Gas card.  Flexible schedule.

The honest truth is that you can wake up at 11am and be home by 2pm if you wanted. If you get your work done then there is no way for mgmt to tell how you spend your time as long as you document that you hit retail that day.

Cons

Your overall peace of mind and enjoyment with this position relies so heavily on who your manager is.  Unfortunately, Bowling Green, KY has the worst manager out of the entire company.  He puts forth zero effort in your progression.  He makes every question you ask him feel like the biggest burden he has ever experienced.  If you slip up one time you will have a target on your back and more than likely be set up for immediate termination as soon as he can find a valid reason to submit his request to HR.

You will be managing over 80+ stores.  Many of these are independents where Mr. Patel can call or email you at anytime with any number of request or usually just complaints.  The pay is far too low for the amount of work you will have on your plate and the stress that comes with it.

Promotions usually require you to relocate.  This company thinks its a walk in the park to sell your house, uproot your family to an unfamiliar location and start anew in the middle of Kansas or some other location nobody wants to be.

A lot of this job requires you to sit at home on your laptop and crunch out numbers, create presentations and most importantly, keep up with the mass amounts of updates every day...all day.

Price changes happen about once every other month and it is absolute misery.

I loved the flexibility this job provided.  I accumulated a decent chunk of change in my 401k.  I met a few good people, most of which you start to notice are fake and mainly stick to their clique and leave you out.

If this position was for a TM in a territory where I knew you had a helpful manager that strives to get the best out of their team members then my review would look a lot different but in BG you get my former manager.  

His main flaw is his lack of emotional intelligence which results in him not understanding the emotions of others.  He is 100% a sociopath.  When a very close relative of mine passed away he never once even said he was sorry for my loss.  He immediately directed me to the bereavement section of our handbook and that was that.  If you do approach him with a personal dilemma he will give you the phone number to the companies anonymous hotline to discuss personal matters.  He wants nothing to do with it, nor does he want anything to do with you.

Social work functions he will get absolutely blasted on coors light because he is about 4 ft tall and weighs maybe 100lb.  He will have a beer in each hand at all times and will turn in to the nicest guy who actually seems to like you as a person.  Don't be fooled, it's the booze talking.

Avoid Bowling Green, KY if you are wanting to work for RJRT.  Low pay, poor management.  Solid culture.  I wish you luck in your search for new employment!

Not a bad job overall. You spend all of your day in and out of gas stations.  There have been some major changes since BAT took over, some other reviews have it in more detail and it’s accurate—3rd party merchandising was cut, there has been a major focus on financial stewardship. 4Q19 earnings call for RAI was very good, our company score—which bonuses are based off of, not so good.  Division meetings are not as fun. The biggest problem with this company is they announce things very ambiguously, like salary increases for example—really talk it up, and then when it comes out in writing it’s not great at all can get dishearting, and disappointing.  Everything is priority #1, everything!!! New products launching all the time, with no space/no where to go.  It’s your job to fight that battle with disengaged gas station store managers who don’t even want to bring the product in. You’ll have 2 maybe 3 weeks to get all your stores ready for said product, if you’re lucky. Company has been very slow to ship materials you need to merchandise properly so by the time you get what you need to get going, you’ll have two weeks to get it done. Can be easy, but most of the year you’re running around getting something ready and the second you’re finished there’s something else that’s incredibly important to complete that needs to be started or you’ll get behind. Manage this while accomplishing all the other company objectives like consumer engagements. CE’s as they’re called is interrupting a consumer who runs into Wawa for their smokes, tell them all about some cigs they’ve heard of but don’t like—and e-cigs that they don’t want either, offer them a coupon to buy. Company wants 1000 of these per year.  It all would be an acceptable job if they stopped saying their making pay adjustments and then when it actually comes out there are so many qualifiers in order to receive it, I don’t think anyone actually got a raise!

-A typical day for an RJReynolds Tobacco Territory Manager begins with planning for the week which accounts in Territory to visit. I discuss any discount rate changes that may take place, pricing, promotions, new products and product availability, presence which includes merchandising and signage and of coarse personal selling to Adult Tobacco Consumers 21 and above  about  RJRT brands for awareness and trial. I also educate my accounts about our products and how they benefit their business. We go over volume and share of market reports and compare with the area. Discuss business opportunities that I see. I also make sure we are being treated fairly with our competition and accounts are held accountable and  in compliance with the RJRT contract they have signed. I try to visit 8 account per day.
- I have learned how to build relationships with new and existing customers, learn how to deal with different personalities and people from different cultures. I have learned how to do business in a fast paced highly competitive industry. Learn how to adapt to change and adversity.
- My Division Manager is there to coach assist me when needed. I have excellent communication with him. He is not a micro-manager which works well with me.
-My co-workers are great, we communicate with each other about what is happening in the market in regards to competitive activity and discuss solutions to overcome obstacles
-Dealing with a customer that is non compliance with the contract and who becomes confrontational.
-Having success influencing a customer to advocate for RJRT and see the benefits we as accompany bring to their business. I enjoy educating a ATC (Adult Tobacco Consumer) about our products and getting them to try.

It seems like this company has lost sight of what makes it great, the people. Every day it seems like we're focused more and more on Activation and less and less on what it takes to succeed in the field. Ever since BAT took over it's been all about doing what works in international markets through activation. it's fair to say that you have to evolve as a company to continue to succeed. I don't think anyone realistically doesn't expect us to have to evolve, but the way bat has gone about it has made people feel like they have no value to the organization.
The company loves to set unrealistic goals that no one in their right mind thinks we stand a chance at achieving without doing things that are borderline unethical to our trade partners. if the organization was truly concerned with taking care of its employees, they'd look in the mirror and realize their goals do not align with what's realistic. Because BAT are market leaders in so many countries they expect Reynolds to be the same way . What they refuse to understand is that the US market doesn't function like the rest of the world.

1.  Worst Technology I have seen.  We were given new Pads to record our visits, did not work properly for 3 months.  After two years we are getting laptops.  They sometimes just stop working, delete everything on them, lose ability to connect to internet.   IT is in India 

2.  Work load has increased with Newport, Natural American Spirits, Vuse, Ciro, Solo, Alto and yet the job boards say I'm underpaid for my position in the city I live in.  The company just increase our cost of our company car from $150 to $175 in July 2018.  

3.  When we were acquired by BAT, they started cutting items:  first was 3rd party work orders for resets.  They just recently consolidated storage facilities.  The division meetings with an event for team building do not happen anymore.     


4.  Secrecy is the norm at this company.  Bonuses are never tracked openly, information is never shared, until the company decides what the number is in February.  The review panel systems are a secret process one is for promotions, and the other is for raises and ratings.  You will never hear the full extent of what is said about you or who said what.   

5.  Management by catching you in your mistakes.  No credit is given for effort.  People fight for credit on team projects and only one person gets credit.  No Team concept of work or projects.  Managers play favorites and upper management looks down on TMs.   Management documents even the smallest errors or mistakes, so that you can't complain about your rating.  Your work with reports will look so bad you'll be thrilled getting an achieves rating.   

6  Have to move if you are promoted!  After 5 years, I have seen only about 10% of all TM's promoted.

Not a real sales position: you basically ride around and make customer calls at gas stations and tobacco stores to ensure that they have product on the shelves and current marketing signage. You also GIVE coupons to retail customers, which is about all the "sales" that you will conduct as a Territory Manager with this company. 

I learned how to perform basic job functions: pricing schemes and how to climb a ladder to change out advertising signage.

Horrible Divison Manager. If you land in Arkansas hopefully the current DM has been terminated from her position. One Divison in particular has the reputation of being disfunctional, and the reputation is true. It's not the Territory Managers but the Division Manger that has caused the disfunction. The Division Manager's incompetence, lack of passion for the job, disrespect for the team and blatent condescending behavior are the reasons for the disfunction. There has been a revolving door in this division for the past several years. Over 13 Territory Mangers have come and gone!

Co-workers were great overall, with exception of the one or two gossip brewing old heads.

Hardest part of the job was nothing really. Pretty much the easiest job I've ever had...too easy actually. Brainless work.

Most enjoyable part of the job was interacting with the outlet managers and building rapport so I could ensure that our sign weren't taken down after I left.

I am a current employee and so I can say a lot about my experiences working here for almost 9 years. When I first started, I loved my job! Most everyone did. Then a few years back, BAT bought the rest of the company out and the company started going down hill fast. The company went from being fun and laid back to extremely corporate, terrible communication because no one hardly knows what’s going on anymore, and they are constantly changing the rules and the employees have no say so anymore. The employees went from being happy, to a lot of the best employees finding other jobs. The only good thing I can say about the company is that we do have good benefits. A month of PTO which is uncommon, and pay is decent, not old reynolds money, but decent. Cons are poor management, the company reminds me of a communist culture, employees have no say so, there is a PTO employee limit so if 3 people already have off but you also need off, yours will be unscheduled and after so many unscheduled, you can get wrote up. It also doesn’t matter if you are sick, it will still go against you. So basically in order for it to be approved, you have to schedule off when you will be sick. Overall, it’s not what it used to be. It’s very corporate now. You won’t get paid old reynolds money (if you know you know) and employees who have been here 30-40 years are no longer happy and want out. This used to be a place where it was hard to get into to. Now they can’t keep employees. 

I would say that it is luck of the draw depending on the territory you receive, manager you have and relationship with your coworkers. If you want to advance be ready to move at a moments notice.  A lot of on the job training is done via collaboration with your coworkers  and alot of it you have to learn on your own while balancing 10-14 hour days. This is a job that will talk alot of work life balance, but be prepared to put in heavy hours learning and working trying to make sure that you can keep up with the work load. If you have a family this is where it can get difficult. This position is heavy into maintenance and by that I mean you can spend 2 to 3 hours in a store and two weeks later when you come back and anything that you achieved can be undone by retailers and other reps from competitive companies. This means alot of reworking stores while trying to sell more and more products to retailers who do not know you from the last 5 reps for all the products they sell at their retail location.  If this is something you are willing to do and you are in a good territory with a good team and manager then the benefits are many.  Good pay and ability to advance, a work vehicle that can be used for personal use, medical benefits. If any of these don't match up then it is high stress and faced paced non-stop job that may include factors that are outside your control.

A typical day included prioritizing sales calls to maximize sales and reduce expenses, such as fuel and overnights.  Each sales call consisted of presenting customers with a business plan to maximize their sales as well as merchandising sets and maintaining contract compliance with customers.  RJR has a large amount of online sales courses directed at selling to businesses in the retail marketplace.  Between the sales calls and online resources I learned the most about time management and persuasive techniques regarding contract compliance.  
  The management and co-workers created a team atmosphere where learning from others was encouraged.  For an independent job where you only worked with others once a month, it was astonishing to see such a tight knit team.  
  The hardest part of the job cancelling contracts for customers that were not in compliance with the programs.  This was something that was not done often but was challenging to explain to some customers.   
 The best part of the job was working with the customers.  To develop an individualized marketing plan, implement it, and show the customer the results was very rewarding.  We worked together as partners to increase overall sales.

Enjoyed working with the employees and the supervisors, drawing lab work, educating them on health, assisting PA with sutures and answering general health questions. Interesting seeing the process of the cigarettes being made. The supervisors for RJR where nice, pleasant and helpful. The contract supervisor was not a nice person in medical. The old nurses where a bit of a challenge and resistant to change and growth but eventually started to come around before my departure. The hardest part of the job was the mice running around the medical unit at night. I came to the facility and assisted with cleaning out old storage and food, that help cut down on the number of mice present. The maintenance crew was very helpful with putting down traps to catch the mice and coming to get them when caught. I really enjoyed this level of nursing because of the education that was given to the employees and providing good care to each person that entered the doors of the medical unit. The employees were pleasant and made this job enjoyable and the cafeteria food was good and offered choices and reasonable prices for the amount received.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Territory manager 18 salaries reported	$68,717 per year
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