Hostess Brands Reviews

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – no one watching over you all day

Cons – ceo's that dont know nothing about the business

Advice to Senior Management – learn the cake and bread business before you try to make changes path to market a big waste of money

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – pay - customers are wonderful

Cons – no job security
unfair labor practice - if your not a friend of the dm
management needs walk our walk befor they pass judgement
the fact that they are no longer paying our pention and no one is forcing them to
that was part of our contract, it was a raise we were saving for our future where is that money the union told me if i want it i would have to get a attorney

Advice to Senior Management – if i was doing your job i would of already been fired for not making my numbers
now its your turn step down you don't know how to meet your numbers

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – The pay is somewhat driven by performance. However, there is room for improvement. Putting District Managers on a set salary I feel was a mistake. It made people lazy.

Cons – There isnt enough room to list them all. District managers are like people who are being drawn and quartered. They are pulled from 4 directions. Upper Management, Route Sales, Customers, & Their Families.It's become a basic rule that DSM's are considered at the end of their management career now. Upper Management has little respect for them and doesn't want to give them the training or the opportunities to succeed. The old IBC was an excellent place to work. You worked HARD, but you were respected and compensated well for your work. The New IBC (ran by a rag tag collection of Continental people and Ripplewood picks who know nothing about the baking business) Shows no respect, offers no advancement opportunities, and does not compensate based on performance.

Advice to Senior Management – #1 - Get rid of the Union. #2 invest in training. Not just a 1 day seminar and then they go back to running routes everyday so they forget what they've learned. Give them the manpower to effectivly manage their own operation. A good DSM can generate more than enough growth through his people if he is left to manage instead of on a route every week. #3 Respect your people. Good people will work hard and have pride in their work if you respect them. Ask any successful senior manager and he will tell you the same.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – Salary and benefits are better than most comparable positions with other companies.

Cons – The company has hired so many people from the outside for upper management that we are top heavy. The new people do not understand the business and they have made one bad decision after another. They have held meetings asking the employees what needs to be done to turn the company around and they end up doing the opposite. In an effort to justify the cost of hiring more upper management they have been laying off the people on the front lines doing all the work which squeezes middle management to pick up the slack. They have eliminated positions without thinking of who was to do the work so the few of us who once cared, had to scramble to cover the workload even though it wasn't related to our job. The company is so inefficient now, It takes weeks to get things done that used to be done in just a few minutes. Now they are going to close most of the offices and outsource the work overseas. The morale is very low with most expecting impending doom for the company.

Advice to Senior Management – The company needs to eliminate the current inefficient structure and go back to the same structure it had when it made money. The routes will have to be sold.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – retirement,and if this was not in the next 5 years I might just shoot myself.But I wouldn't give them the sadisfaction!

Cons – management is made up of lazy people screwing people just to make there jobs easier and to get there friends in jobs that they dont deserve.Working splite days off, odd hours even working the alot of the holidays and always working the weekends unless you are part of the good ol'boy system that management has created.Never being able to go to speical events,take part in school fuctions with your kids because you either have to go to work or get up so early,and friends for get doing anything with them because they have normal jobs. Not one that makes there life so messed up beause every week your days are split and your days off change unless your are part of the good OL'boy club and its only because management can do it and laugh about it for the most part.

Advice to Senior Management – you need to come in to the emporia plant and don't just take there word about what they do or don't do, but spend time there find out what they actually do over time then save some money by cutting there payroll and stop cutting jobs or combineing jobs for us the ones that make them look good but keep gettting screwed.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – Good pay, good benefits compared to most jobs

Cons – long, thankless hours and a very outdated and lazy management unless you call sitting at your desk all day reading and sending e-mails work. Get out a help an rsr with a display once in awhile

Advice to Senior Management – The RSR's can't save the company alone. Take part in our effort and we can do this together. You may be able to con Mr. Driscoll but you can't con me. I've been at this over 32 years and know more than most of you, so "rise above the fray" and do something to help.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – Anyone willing to put in the time and take pride in the job they do can earn quite a good living as well as have a decent benefits package.

Cons – As with most companies every level of employment here has some downside, Route Sales have to deal with aging equipment poor weather on occasion and a fair share of misinformation. DSM's have to weather through a seriously oversized work load and do not have the time to give all the employees the attention required to build and maintain a happy high producing team, also the good employees suffer because a good deal of time is spent dealing with dead weight RSR's that are protected by a union, sadly any credibility we may have as DSM's is lost due to the poor information we're supplied with regarding upcoming promotions, new item launches and ever changing company policies all of which we end up passing to our sales force, when any of these things fall through it's a direct reflection on us as management. As for any position above a DSM I cannot speak to as I have not been in their shoes, I will say that due to the highly reactionary nature of the Senior management at this company I'm sure most positions above mine have similar issues.

Advice to Senior Management – Sales training for RSR's and lower level management would be a great start, Upper management may want to take some time to work out on the sales routes for more then one day to get a true feel for the business they oversee, this company could also use more front line employees where the most impact would be made, other than that everyone at this company knows its flaws, its just a matter of getting people up top willing to make some waves.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – Good place to work...you control your own income by how hard you work... Great job for a "people person"

Cons – Upper Management has a serious disconnect

Advice to Senior Management – Seek advice and listen to street level employees

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – Provides union wages and protection.

Cons – No work life balance. Physically demanding and dirty. Poor equipment and impossible customer service requirements considering they cater to government assistance clientele.

Advice to Senior Management – Look at the over all picture instead of your departments numbers. Seriously listen to employee input and stand up to your own bosses. Invest in modern equipment and start thinking forward in a realistic way i.e., listen to the people in the trenches; meaning on the line, your rsr, clerks, etc. Too much paperwork and not enought time or reason.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Hostess Brands

Pros – Dedicated sales force, good products, vacation and benefits are good. 401k plan. National brands makes it easier to sell displays

Cons – Aging fleet trucks, ordering system is outdated, rail system is ancient need to go to baskets. Unwillingness to spend money