Pros
pretty lobby and free coffee
Cons
I'm honestly not sure where to begin with this one. I've worked in sales my entire life, and never experienced anything like what I experienced at Mitchell Volvo. I was working as a manager in another sales position, when I saw the job posted at Volvo. It interested me so I shot over an application out of curiosity. I wasn't desperate to leave my current position, but the possibility of higher pay was a nice thought. A day later I was called for an interview. The interview was normal, good even. They told me on the spot that it was likely I would be hired, and asked me when I could start. I did find that a bit odd, since usually large, high end companies require at least two interviews, and even a trial. But I thought maybe they were just very keen to hire someone, and since I have so much experience in sales, that they somehow knew I would be okay. However, I at least expected that they would call me back to go over the details of the job and show me the full contract, (pay scale, hours, etc) since they only briefly mentioned it in the first interview, and I wasn't entirely sure of what the job would be. I spent a few days thinking about it, didn't hear anything in the meantime, and then called them to find a time to go over these things. The manager seemed surprised that I needed to go over anything. I told him I hadn't been given anything in the first interview, and would like to see details on paper. So I went over, and he jotted down a few things on a scrap of paper, to show me....something? And then threw the paper away. I asked if I could have something in writing - an official job offer - ANYTHING. He said to call him after I quit my other job. That seemed VERY odd to me. Why would I quit a good job without any assurance that this new one would be better? Or that I would even have it? Up till this point there was no documentation that I had any communication with this company, except for words exchanged. I had also asked him how much I would be paid for training, and how long the training would be. He told me that it was a week, and I would be paid $1000.00. Which seemed good to me - on the high side even. But again, it was Volvo and I know how known and high end they are. After thinking about it a bit more and talking with my wife, we decided that maybe we were just missing something, and that we should take a risk and go for it. Volvo is a large, well-reputable brand, and Mitchell is an icon in the community, so we figured they must just be bad at communication, and everything would be clarified once I would start. So I gave my notice at my current job, and called Mitchell. They were happy, and told me my start date. I still had nothing on paper - no email, nothing. I asked again if I could have some kind of official offer, now that I had quit the job. The manager told me everything would be done the day I would start, two and a half weeks later. It still seemed very suspicious to me, but I just kind of put it in the back of my mind. Two and a half weeks later, I was getting ready to show up at the job. No one had communicated with me in that time - I had no idea when I was supposed to even arrive on my start date, or if I needed to bring any documents etc. So I text the manager (he only communicated through text - he never replied to phone calls left at the store) and ask him if I needed to bring anything - if my green card, driver's license, etc were enough, and when to show up. He said yes, and that he would see me the next day. So I show up, and despite "starting" work there, there was still no contract given to me. Nothing on paper. I sat with a manager and he gave me basic info about the company, and had me sign that I read them. It wasn't a contract or anything binding. They gave me an employee handbook with some basic details about insurance etc. I was uneasy that there had been no official job contract - nothing detailing my specific role, and nothing signed. Then they gave me a small desk, and had me watch videos the first two/three days. Seemed normal - I didn't know much about cars, and they were informational. Then, once I watched all the videos, I told them I was done. They told me there were more videos to watch, but the portal wasn't working. So I went and did some research myself into the car industry, and taught myself about the competitors, Volvo cars themselves, and other related subjects. I was largely ignored for this period, which was fine - I was learning and needed to know these things before moving on. After a few more days, I began to shadow other salesmen as they did test drives, and the sales process. During the whole process I had minimal communication with anyone - never once was I told anything was amiss, and I was even told that soon I would start selling. I still had no contract. Five days in, they handed me a check for $270 dollars. I was confused, since I had been told that a week of training would be $1000. I expressed this confusion, and was told that I was wrong, it was $100/day. However the check he had just given me didn't even reflect that. I told him I needed things on paper, since this couldn't be a guessing game for me - that I had been told one thing, and now was being told another. And that doesn't inspire confidence. I had also been told other things, and now was beginning to question all of it, since again, NOTHING was in writing, despite asking multiple times. I had not even been given a login for the system to clock in/out, and prove that I had even been there. At my previous job, the DAY I arrived, I was given an employe number and was able to clock in/out. Sure I had training to do, but I still was an employee. Not Volvo. There is literally nothing on paper to prove I even was there five minutes. Day 8: I meet with the head manager, and he tells me that I will be starting to sell soon, and went over basic dress code etc, which was also odd, since it was day 8, and should have been discussed day 1. It wasn't a problem, since I'm European and dress well anyway. Day 9: I show up, shadow a couple more people, and then at the end of the day, the manager calls me in and says that it's better to part ways, and that I should see if I can get my old job back. What. After everything, they did what my gut was fearing, and pull the rug out from under my feet. I asked them if there was a problem with something I was doing (although I'm not sure how you can have problems with someone watching videos all day), and they repeated that it was better to part ways, and that they would mail me a check. No answer to my questions. I have no way to prove any of this, except for a few text messages. I was left without a job, on either end. I had been asked to quit a good position....for nothing. I have a family to provide for, and I am the sole provider. There was no explanation, no consideration .... nothing. Like there had been the whole time. I still can't understand why they bothered with all of it, it doesn't make sense to me on any level. All I can say is that this is a disgusting company, who has no care for the welfare of anyone, and that to avoid this place like the plague is still too close for comfort. Save yourself some trouble (and money) and stay FAR away. (They do have good cars though....so go buy one from a different dealer)