retail assistant manager

beauty advisor

cosmetics sales associate

assistant store manager

store manager

The Estée Lauder Companies

I’ve been with Estee Lauder for over 10 years now.  I started and served as a Temporary full time employee in the Information Systems department, for 2 six month periods beginning from July 2003 to July 2004.  I then remained in the same position, but was paid under a consulting agency (Randstad) for approximately another year and a ½.  It wasn’t until January of 2006 that I was hired as a permanent employee of Estee Lauder, here in the Payroll department, in which I still currently work.  Since 2006 I have excelled in my work performance year after year, and was inevitably promoted from a non-exempt coordinators position to an Exempt Administrators position.   From July 2003 to approximately 2010, has been and amazing experience working for Estee Lauder.  We have a strong corporate culture base, as well as excellent benefits and perquisites.  The atmosphere on an organizational level has been remarkable.  Estee Lauder continues to strive for excellence when I comes to becoming a more family oriented organization, i.e. the newly instated parental leave policies, enhanced dental benefits, etc.  In addition, Estee Lauder continues to sustain its philanthropic reputation by maintaining its consistent charitable donations to various organizations and fundraisers for worthy causes. 

I understand that every corporations’ management teams differ from one department to the next.  However, in my experience with my department, as well as being informed by my colleagues in other departments, that management tends to promote individuals, not on the basis of performance and or educational accomplishments/ skill level, but rather on seniority.  In my situation, for example, I feel I have reached a structural plateau, where I feel that with my extensive work experience and rapid advancement, along with my educational accomplishments (attained both my under grad finance degree, as well as my Masters in Business Administration) while working full time in this department, I am at a standstill, when it comes to a promotion.  In addition, many individuals tend to not cross train effectively, simply on the basis of job security reasons.  The moment an individual senses a slight bit of intimidation (whether it be education, age, or skill level), they tend to cross train their colleagues with just the bare minimum, and refrain from helping the department as a whole and work as a team; all simply because of job security reasons.

 Given the size of my department, 8 employees, I still feel that my superior is maintained in her position, solely because of her almost 20 plus years with the company, regardless of her lack of management, interpersonal skills, and communication ability.  I feel that management, as a whole, should entice promoting their educated, young, and well skilled employees, rather than hold them back.  I’ve heard from certain colleagues that even upper management tends to sustain particular individuals in their positions, even when they try to apply for other positions to advance their career.  I am grateful for the new Performance Development Program that has just launched, and am hoping this program will prevent other individuals that are just beginning their careers with Estee Lauder from situations such as mine.   On a more positive note, I am looking to advance my career within the company, because I do love their corporate strategies as a whole organization, however I am not refraining from looking outside Estee Lauder for other job opportunities as well.

I certainly learned a lot, and I am grateful for having worked at ELC. This is a GREAT starting company for your career. You will learn a ton, and there are a lot of talented people in the company. Great place to be in your early 20's. I'm conflicted, because I like the company, but I feel stuck with my team with no prospect. The problem is, there are very limited opportunities to move up within. Unless someone moves out, you won't get that promotion you've been told you deserve for years. And even if you move up internally, you have a limit on how much you can negotiate your salary, and the % is SO tiny it's laughable. I've often seen where an internal hire with a higher position gets paid much less than an outside hire at a lower position... Also, your work hour will vary greatly depending on what department you are in -- even within the department, it will differ per team. Seriously poor resource allocation. You have some people coming in after 9 and leaving before 5 taking the full lunch hour, and you see some people working way over 60 hr per week with no lunch break throughout the entire year and still drowning with work. I do not recommend going into an executional role (ex. supply chain, creative ops, supplier relations, planning, etc.) - you will have very very limited mobility and will not be properly compensated to your responsibilities and hours, and your team will always be shorthanded but never get more budget to hire more people. You will be told there is no budget to hire more people, but you will see the non-executional teams easily getting more headcount on their teams. Go to marketing, strategy, consumer insights, etc. Also, go for corporate roles - you will get much more exposures there than in a brand role and a higher chance to move around internally. If you can come in as a director or above and are happy to stay in that role, then this is a great place to work. If this is your first job, that's also great and I definitely recommend working here -- you will learn so much and people here are genuinely nice and are eager to help and teach you. If you're in a more mid-level role, I would still recommend it, but just be prepared to start job searching outside the company after your first year so that you don't get stuck. It's a recognized issue within the company; you will hear people say this is not a place you stay for more than 5 years. It's recommended to go out to a different company and then come back at a higher position. And this strategy works. I've seen where two people started at the same level (mid-level). One left after two years and came back after two years in a much more senior role that was 2 levels up; the other one stayed and finally got his promotion after over 5 years... I know boomerang is what you have to do in a corporate world, but it's extreme here. Most people you see will be either be: 1. they've been with the company for a long time (easily over 15-20 yrs); or 2. they have been with the company for less than 5 years and are planning to leave. People coming from other corporations are always shocked at the lack of career planning / structure. Yearly reviews are not treated seriously at all. Your review doesn't even matter when you are applying to internal positions - they are not taken into consideration as long as you are not below certain rate. So all in all, good company, but very poor retention of their employees.

I have enjoyed working in my different capacities for 13 years for Estee Lauder in Orlando Florida.  I have worked with the best Account Executives, Account Coordinators, counter Beauty Advisors and especially, our fabulous MUA team in Orlando.  I have learned a lot during this time.  I have enjoyed meeting and working with the many talented women and men who have been members of our Freelance Make Up Artistry team.

A typical day at a store event would involve meeting customers and introducing Estee Lauder products, whether it be at a National MUA event or just in store for any event the counter may have.  I enjoyed meeting many wonderful and passionate women during my days in store.  It was always a pleasure to do a consultation and know that my undivided attention was being given to someone who needed to feel special or wanted to learn more about taking care of her specific needs while sitting in my chair.  I have made many lifelong friends during my tenure as a freelance MUA.  The Beauty Advisors at the various stores work very hard to make these events a success on all levels.

I believe the most enjoyable part of my job is that I made a difference in someone's life for less than an hour in my chair.  We all need to feel special at times and how better than to have someone pamper you and truly listen to what you would wish for?  

The hardest part of the job, at least for me, was standing for 5-7 hours per day at each event.  It does get tiresome and difficult.  However, I wouldn't change this experience for anything.  This is all part of the job.  You take the good with the not so easy.

I also had the priviledge of helping with coordinating and scheduling our MUA team in Orlando, FL for 13 years.  I learned a lot of the business/administrative end of coordinating our team with events, trainings, new hires and anything else related to our MUA team and administrative.

My typical day when coordinating/scheduling MUA's for events/promotions would be sending emails out with the available dates at stores.  Updating the schedule with added dates/hours.  Processing new hire paperwork.  Coordinator Job Fairs as planned at different times of year.  Coordinating training for new hires and Education Executive.  Ordering breakfast/lunch as needed for meetings.  Helping with any specific needs or questions on a daily basis.

I feel very blessed to have worked with this company for 13 years.  I have learned a lot, met many wonderful people and friends, and it's given me the opportunity to grow, both professionally and personally.  I believe I have worked with the best!

A typical day at work starts with checking my email to look for any updates or changes sent from corporate Then I call all customers that I have helped at the counter the day before and thank them for stopping in. After that I update my paperwork for the counter after the sales numbers are updated from the day before. I check my coworkers daily tracking sheet from the day before and type up my critiques and send them off to the Account Coordinator. I then go out into the store and walk around trying to recruit women to come to the counter by telling them about special offers to help drive sales and recruit new Estee Lauder customers. I have a conference call with the other managers and Account Executives and Coordinators. Throughout the day I continue to recruit and spend time with my coworker and coaching her. Coaching implies that I have to explain upcoming events, how we are going to prepare and execute, help her with her selling techniques and how to drive sales, and talk with her about her work performance. I also help customers and give them knowledge about our products. I give demonstrations with skincare and makeup. 

Working as a counter manager at Estee Lauder has taught me how to functionally run a counter. It has strengthened my organization, teaching, and management skills. 

I work partly for Belk, Inc. and Estee Lauder so I have several different managers. At Belk my management includes the department manager and the store manager. They are both very supportive and respect me in the way that they trust me and how I manage the counter. With Estee Lauder I answer to my Account Coordinator and the Account Executive. The Account Coordinator works with my team three times a month. She also communicates with me several times a day for a sale reading at certain hours and helps me with any questions I have. The Account Executive I see about six times a year. She has the overall say about each counter in the market and what should happen every month. 

My co-workers respect me and my teachings. We are able to work as a team. They have no hesitation asking me questions regarding knowledge about an event, product, or even their daily required paperwork. I give my team praise and also teach them how to better the work that they are doing to get more clientele and produce more sales. 

The hardest part of my job is making sure that my team stays focused when I am not there. 

The most enjoyable part of my job is making women look and feel beautiful.

Long time managment position in manufacturing, used to be a great family friendly company. Really took care of their people and you really felt like it was family and you were part of a solid team. Those days are long gone, its every person for themselves which has caused the culture to go way down hill over the last 10 years or so, they sell a work life balance and progressive approach, but if you're in manufacturing or distribution, throw that out the window, raises don't even hit cost of living, like not even close. Advancement is just about non existent, they preach it, but like 80% of hires are from the outside. You have paid time off throughout the year, but if you use it you're gonna hear about it. They love you to work 12 hours day and don't think about putting in comp pay sheets! Just be happy with your salary. Support groups like HR and Benefits are now off shore at an 800 numbers, don't hold your breath waiting for an answer, and when you get an answer, chances are it's wrong. Seniority and loyalty aren't  rewarded at all, you're better off quitting and going back to get a decent raise, or better yet, come back as a contractor!! The good employees just wind up stagnated and doing the jobs of 2 or 3 and the below average employees get shuffled off from department to department until they either get the hint and leave, or they decide to stay till retirement. The only thing this company is good for anymore is cutting your teeth in a major company and adding it to your resume, not sure how long that will last!! But it does still carry some clout out there. Mediocre benefits, Not sure its sustainable, but hopefully they correct course and start taking care of employees again. Until then it's just a company to pass through. Even the Director/VP levels are revolving doors now. Count on having a new boss about every 12 months or so. 

Carrying a bright smile and clean presentation through my friendly nature helps form an amiable atmosphere most everywhere I go. Being a sales representative consisted of creating the most pleasurable experience for her through immediate assistance, creating a conversation, and having ample product knowledgeable. Estee Lauder is such a prestigious line and offered powerful results to customers through the power of engagement with the customer through conversation about either her outfit, simply the weather, or the latest on fashion news. A typical day consisted of greeting and asserting the needs of each immediate customer, clerical duties, clientele chart keeping, answering the phone, emailing clients and my Regional Cosmetic Merchandisers, reporting to store manager Mondays on sales, promotional events, 3 to 4 facials and makeovers, opening credit cards, setting up innovative merchandising displays, and ultimately executing sales goals.

What I find to have been the hardest part of my job was being able to overlook the fact that everything I did had to be executed so perfectly or it was considered as a bad flawed job done on my behalf. Creating a relationship and recruiting customers via email or us postal was one of the most enjoyable and essential of my job! With my flexible personality, and genuine caring personality helps me to enjoy and love my job the most. I believe when I can present myself with enough love and respect others around me will in turn respect themselves and me, and in turn this makes my job most enjoyable.

I was hired in as a business manager with zero brand experience. In previous management positions, expectations were made clear, I completed software training within a day or two of hire so I could pull monthly/daily numbers and goals, and product training was provided so I could actually sell my brand while having the product knowledge to do so appropriately. 

Literally none of the above happened for weeks when j started with Lauder. I figured out the software on my own. A store manager eventually informed me that I was working against impossible YTD numbers due to diversion sales which is why the previous manager was “reassigned.” My advisors were very loyal to their previous manager, didn’t want to change anything about how our counter approached sales, and sometimes flat out refused to do what I asked. The store management gave some support, but that really isn’t their job. My support should be coming from Lauder. Instead it was Crickets. I didn’t see my account executive until my fourth week- we never did product training- and it was finally scheduled. She just swung by the counter to drop off a product book. 

I repeatedly asked her for clear expectations on goals considering the bloated numbers from the previous year, I asked for advice regarding staffing issues (if she had any insight), asked for more formal training so I could do my job. She flat out refused. It was a no win situation for me. I know other people who’ve loved their positions with Lauder, but had a different AE. Do your research on upper management before taking a position. 

What is the best part of working at the company?
the physical environment and benefits

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
FOR TECHNICIANS- Lack of upward mobility as a lab technician (specifically permanent, not temp- temps have more mobility freedom from level to level). If you have a Bachelor's in chemistry/biology/etc, do not accept a permanent lab tech role just to get your foot in the door and expect to move into an associate scientist position quickly- the company will require you move from tech --> sr. tech --> either principal tech or occasionally associate scientist --> scientist over a course of promotions, which can take several years. This contrasts with temps, who can move from  a technician role directly to an associate scientist role (assuming you have at least a related Bachelor's). Be wary of this! There was no mention of this required path when I accepted a permanent role, and I was stuck working in a position while possessing qualifications that far exceeded the role's requirements for years- all while new hires with the same credentials as myself were continually hired into more senior roles. The disparity in roles was my greatest source of grief and stress.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
there are plenty of opportunities to socialize and get involved in initiatives. The culture greatly depends by department- I've seen ranges. It's easy to find nice people at the company- there are also plenty of people in their 20's and 30's.

When I first started this position I was unaware of everything it entailed.  I new very little about the beauty, cosmetic, skincare industry.  The store manager at the time talked me into the position because I was looking for full time work.  This position created a self confidence I would not have had.  I learned everything in a very quick time.  I learned how to do makeovers, the art of applying make-up.  I had to keep inventory levels so we never ran out of products.  I scheduled the breaks for my people and kept track of productivity.  I set everyone's daily goals.  I created events to attract customers.  My team and I enjoyed wonderful productivity.  We all worked retail hours, closing some nights and having to open the next day.  I was in charge of balancing the register and signing in the days proceeds.  I lead my team to becoming the first team to reach 1 million dollars (at our location) in sales for a given year, while being the second highest in productivity.  I would travel to Pittsburgh monthly for management meetings.  And I also went to meetings for new products and continuing education.  I was able to help women feel good about themselves, helped men find that perfect gift for their lady.  I also helped young girls learn how to apply their own make-up.  I taught people the need for skincare and trained all new beauty reps. We had a wonderful camaraderie at work.

A typical day consisted of receiving a call to come in earlier or stay later due to the departments small staff. Most of the day consisted of matching customers for their perfect shade of foundation and treating them to a ten day sample. On rare occasions a novice makeup user would ask to be done up. If time allowed I would match them for their perfect day and night skincare routine as well as a possible natural, everyday or glam look depending on their preference. Time spent with customer didn't result in a huge sale and caused the one counter attendee to miss out on other sales to repeat customers. Management berated the department staff constantly due to customer wait, missed sales, and the minuscule overall total of credit card applications. The hardest part of the job would be the weeks leading up to gift and the start of gift with purchase. Pre-sales are mandatory, a goal is set depending on individuals part time or full time position. Convincing customers to pre-sale is extremely difficult as everyone believes they can come in on the first day and receive a gift failing to comprehend that it is while supplies last. A lot of people leave empty handed because our loyal clientele purchases enough to receive multiple gifts. Sometimes we receive back up gifts later down the road but really it is up in the air.

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