Working at american merchandising specialists — Reviews by Employees

having a job right now is great. i lost my job and was rehired within two days. companies are looking for ways to save money and contracts were lost. AMS made good with their promise to find work for me and i've been working since then. The comments made in previous post are too polar for me to ever agree with. no one can hate a company that paid their salary that much. Also, to wish a company would fail is requesting more jobs to be lost. that's just selfish and ridiculous babble.

The pay is good for the job. I run my territory route and i build the schedule. there isnt a lot of growth right now because the economy stinks. business is consistent but business is small. just keep working hard and earning a paycheck until things pick back up.

the benefits stink. insurance is so high right now it makes it impossible to find cheap benefits and we have to help pay. not sure that's going to change in my lifetime.

WOW! First, I am not a manager! I have been with AMS since Jan 09. So not too long but I am still very happy with them. No there is not much room for advancement, No the pay is not huge still very good! No job security may not be there. Heres what I have to say. This company is a contracted merchandising company, meaning if a contract falls through we might loose our jobs. So everyone mad about job security, advancement, benefits, pay, oh and the company making all the money is retarded! AMS lost a huge account in June that they had for 7 years, pretty good if you ask me. It was a loss but not one we all liked anyways! So we all lost our jobs at end of June, then within 2 days we got another contract and back to work we went! AMS even paid me for the 2 days I was out of work, thats right they paid me I didnt have to use vacation or sick days! Now with new contract its a better job, better pay, better product to represent. More and better perks! Those who are complaining probably werent great workers! Or they were on the reset side and well that side is given work by project, so not very stable! Yes once again AMS is a contracted merchandising company so it can get hairy at times but in all I new what I was getting into when I started! They never told me all these great things when I started, they were upfront and honest! My managers dont really bother me, prolly because I do my job. Every extra project I have gotten was easy and I was given like over a week to get it done. Very easy to do! Yes sometimes things are last minute but once again this a sales\merchandising job, go work for a restuarant and expect no surprises-WHATEVER! Oh and training, well once again they are sending me to a training seminar next month!
I am not sure where all the negative comes from? There are a million other jobs out there that it is way worse! I think the negative remarks come from the half that believes us Americans should get paid big bucks for our jobs! The main reason our country is in the state its in. Just another reason so many companies are overseas or we get over half our products made overseas!
AMS is a sales\merchandising company that works on contract. They do offer a great jobs, just do your work! Those who do have negative comments I do understand but you new what you got into when you started! So go work for a fast food company and tell me its better! Yes half of the job is on the road, but I new that when I started and they pay for all gas, hotels, food and since I use my car I get a kick back each month that which covers my payment and any repairs or upkeep! Plus I am making some extra change off that!

Grow up!

I have worked for AMS for 6 years and have no complaints. The pay is good for what we do, its not rocket science. Respect must be earned, if you do the job in a timely fashion, don't have to have your manager calling you to see why your projects aren't done, be organized and follow through on your work, in other words, be a good employee, you get respect. Benefits, there again for what we do they are good. If you want more get a government job or union job. Job security, we are dependent on companies hiring us to provide services for them. If they decide not to use our services for whatever reason, adjustments must be made. Fortunately this doesn't happen often (twice in my 6 years). Work/life balance, I rarely put in more than 35-40 hours per week, so no complaints. Career growth, it is a small company, most employees are in the field, there are like 20-25 people in the office, so there are not alot of opportunities there. Location, I am fortunate that most of the stores I service are within 1-2 hours of my house, so no complaints. Co-worker competence, I work by myself and I love it!! If you do your job, you rarely hear from management. There have been times where I went weeks without talking to my manager. Most store employees we deal with are nice and very supportive, no problems there! Work environment, I like the fact that I can write my own schedule, go where I want, when I want, take a long lunch or run an errand if need be, no supervisor looking over your shoulder checking your timecard, as long as I do my work I don't get hassled. The only thing that keeps me from scoring this higher is the driving. Some days I spend half of my time in the car.
There are some people who have posted negative negative comments here and I wanted to say I have had a positive experience working for AMS. I am sorry some of these people are unhappy with AMS, but like another posted said, if you don't like your job, find another.

I create the enviroment i work in because i don't have a supervisor on a daily basis. Managing the workload is the biggest challenge with the job. If i organize my stores and the work sent from our headquarters it's easy to get by an eight hour day and go home in the afternoon. I don't have a working PDA right now. I'm spending some time at home entering in reports, but it's part of the job. I clean my clothes before i go to work and i don't log my time. I like the company. I've been working here for several years, but i've got one major complaint. The changes in managment happen too often. i've had three supervisors in 1 year because of changes that have occured from the top down.

The pay I receive from AMS I would say is good. This is a p/t position for me and that is what I like about it.
In the respect category I would say I have been treated very fair when meeting or talking with my supervisors.
Being a p/t employee I have health insurance from my previous career. Also p/t employees aren't eligible for paid
time off. So that's why I don't rate the benefits too high.
As for job security I don't feel I have a lot. But unless you're a union dues paying member who has much job security
these days? It is a sad sign of the times we are living in.
The work/life balance is good with me. Again this is a p/t job for me so I have time off to do things and enjoy
myself. Not looking for a full-time job at this time.
The career potential/growth category is an area that I like the job as it is right now. But I also understand that the
company needs growth and I am willing to grow with the company up to a point that it still remains a p/t job for me.
The location is great for me because I have lived in this area of the country all of my life.
I rate the co-worker competence lower because I generally work by myself, thus no co-worker.
Work environment is generally good. Nothing negative to speak of. Nice being inside when weather is extreme. Most of the
Lowes employees that I deal with are decent and easy to work with.
Overall this is a great p/t job that I enjoy doing. I hope the company continues operating for years to come.

Pay is comparable to the job in which we are doing.
Respect for employees is very comendable Employees are respected for their performance.
Benifits are second to none,safety items issued prior to start of job,shirts,vests,ink carts,etc.
Job security...depends on each DSS,if you do a good job you will be recommended by the chain you work in...if NOT u r gone.
work life ballance...depends on where you are in you're life,What do you expect?
Career,growth? how dedicated are you to the company that pays your earnings???
Earnings,how much time do you work at your job,to assure all requirements are satisfied?
LOcation..thinking about a move?Happy where you are at?your decision.
Co-worker competence???
Work environment...Excellent,people are open to change,If you listen to them they will tell you what their needs are and you can satisfy their requirements.

OK, Let's start off by saying everyone has their own opinion and experiences! As for my ratings: Job Security, No job has job security! Career Growth, Who knows it may or may not it all depends on the world that we are in right now! Co-worker Competence, I work alone and I love it!
With that being said I think those who offer negative things should just be happy with having a job. I currently took over a route that hadn't had a rep for 6 months or more. So yeah my work load is very high but it is not over bearing! I love it! AMS pays me very well and takes very good care of me. Sure things could change over night but that goes with every job. I have no idea where these people have come up their negative things to say?? All I can say is go get another job! The work is NOT hard, the job is NOT demanding!!! Every single one of my supervisors have been very helpful and are there every time I need them!
Yes, there are projects and dead lines we have to meet but they give you 30 days to complete them. Only a lazy, everything should be handed to me American can't meet the dead lines!
In closing if there are individuals that are unhappy with AMS they should go work for Wal-mart and let me have their stores!! Then I invite you back in 6 months to see just what a real sales rep can do with your stores and the people they work with in the Lowes stores. I am sure the stores will have forgotten your name and WILL say you didn't do a thing when you worked for AMS!