employer cover photo
employer logo
employer logo

ProfessionalChats

Is this your company?

ProfessionalChats Reviews

3.2

56% would recommend to a friend

(34 total reviews)

Scott Hansen

82% approve of CEO

46% positive business outlook

ProfessionalChats has an employee rating of 3.2 out of 5 stars, based on 34 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The ProfessionalChats employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Media and communication industry (3.7 stars).

Reviews by job title

34 reviews
1.0
3 Apr 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The environment was great at first. Great coworkers, fun and lively atmosphere, and great managers. Unfortunately, the poor leadership on behalf of Trevor Flannigan makes everything good about this job not worth it.

Cons

There's lots to put here, so I'll just start with the most obvious reasons I left, along with many others. As I'm writing this, 4 people left this week alone ( I had to come back and change it to 4, because shortly after posting 3 another employee quit) with many others communicating to me that their looking for other jobs as well. There is no HR here, which I find extremely unprofessional for a place called "professional chats". It may have been fine at first with only 12 people, but they are now at 50+. Ownership has been approached about this issue and have adamantly stated this is not a priority of theirs at this time. This means if you have any work related problems or concerns, often times with ownership and management practices, you have to talk to the people you have concerns with themselves and there is never any conclusion. For instance, many coworkers of mine have approached Scott Hansen, the CEO, with complaints about Trevor, the COO. But Scott tells you there is nothing he can do and to talk to Trevor himself, which is pointless since Trevor ultimately comes off to his employees like he can do no wrong. Scott doesn't have influence on any day-to-day operations and has ultimately given Trevor full reign on business decisions, which is disappointing to say the least. Trevor's leadership style is simple: he treats you as a child, a subordinate, and replaceable paid labor. One of the core values of Prochats is to "be an innovator", but if you approach Trevor with an idea or question he almost always implies your innovative idea is pointless. Trevor often times sneaks around from room to room to catch people doing something he can chastise them for, or waits until someone shows up a minute late so he can write them up. He creates an environment similar to a prison than a workplace. I once read that good leadership is uplifting those who work for you and pointing out those strengths, but again Trevor fails on every metric. He constantly puts people down and is quick to publicly chastise someone, rather than invest in their professional growth. Trevor has recommended on several occasions implementing a process of checking in your cell phones at the beginning of a shift, almost as if we are in grade school, despite the fact in our handbook and first 2 weeks of training Scott informed us that it was okay as long as we aren't abusing those privileges. This hasn't been implemented yet, but I won't be surprised if it is sooner rather than later. Trevor berated a coworker of mine for being on FB (as they monitor where you go) while she had 4 chats at once. Not only was he mistaken, but he found it appropriate to do this in front of the entire room. Kudos to Scott for finally holding Trevor accountable and having him apologize. Which leads me to the handbook: you might has well throw this away when you're given it because they change it at free will, without notice. Certain employees when approaching Trevor about said changes, specifically with vacation days, were berated and put down to the point of tears before then being bribed with the day in question off, just so they wouldn't tell others. The favoritism here is off the charts. If I had a quarter for everytime an employee was given special privileges others were not, I would be so rich that I could buy professionalchats and fire Trevor myself. Some employees can be late or are given promotions right off the bat, while others who do 2x as much work as others do not have their hardwork recognized and are often scrutinized for any wrong doing. Trevor also likes to ask you who you are texting and will even look over your shoulder to see who you are texting. I was offended that he felt he had the right to treat me as a child, rather than an asset to his company. One quite humorous thing about prochats is how they market their openings. Any indeed ad will imply that call connectors can make $13-17 an hour, but upon hiring you they ONLY pay you $13 an hour. I was told pay increases are based off performance, but despite the fact I did any position then asked and took 4 chats for upwards of 10 hours a day during the early growth periods of prochats, I was never given a pay increase and as far as other employees have mentioned, no one besides those promoted have been given those. If you put in your 2 weeks, which is a COURTESY for your employer, they let you go right then and there regardless which in my opinion is extremely unprofessional and ridiculous. My advice if you plan to quit, just don't show back up rather than giving your 2 week because although you may care about their needs in finding your replacement, they don't care about yours of having 2 weeks pay before a new job.

avatar
ProfessionalChats Response
8y
Since I read this review first a few weeks ago, I've been considering how to respond. I'm not sure quite how to address the personal attacks and hurtful language. So, I'll leave it at this: I'm glad you enjoyed some of your time with our team. I hope that some of the skills you learned here benefit you tenfold in the future and we wish you nothing but the best of luck. Sincerely, Scott Hansen ProfessionalChats CEO
1.0
25 Apr 2018
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

The huddles and saying what you are thankful for is wonderful. I liked the core values inspired by scriptures in the Bible because I am a Pastor's kid. Too bad that nobody follows them. People do have an intense attention to detail but for all negative things. People do more with less because the Internet never works. People are innovator of lies. People do not cultivate a positive team spirit. If you are not in the cliques, you do not matter. It is high school. People do not exhibit professionalism. Orange hair, piercings, tattoos out, short, tight dresses. Everyone drives your bus instead of their own. Fires everywhere but everybody will be focused on your tiny fender bender. There are no pros here.

Cons

EVERYTHING. First of all, this place is very racist. I witnessed people using the N-word and felt very uncomfortable. People do not dress professionally. If you are older, this is not a place for you. It is a kiddie daycare. I believe that managers and team coaches should have to have a degree. Because if you are older like myself and college educated, you do not want 19-21 year olds talking down to you. I was told that I was not personable enough in my chats and to supervise Veterans. But the Veterans were personable and professionalism went out the window. They did not build value or follow the correct order to ask question. So, either you want people to improvise or follow the script. Pick one. You will work 8hrs straight without a break. Is that legal? You will be micromanaged using the bathroom.

avatar
ProfessionalChats Response
8y
I am glad that you enjoyed the morning huddles and that you are aligned with our core values. However, It's truly unfortunate that you had such a negative experience with our team. There are a few things that I would like to address: -Discrimination is categorically unacceptable at ProfessionalChats. We have robust policies and procedures to address alleged accounts of discrimination. It's impossible to be a company known for innovation without a diverse set of perspectives. We greatly, greatly value diversity on our team. -We do have a dress code that is enforced. The dress code does not include provisions about hair color, tattoos, or piercings. We encourage our team members to express their personallities while still maintaining a professional environment. -Because of the nature of our business, we must always remain live for our clients. That's why we have a specificly structured schedule for breaks. We would never ask a team member to work for eight hours straight. The lunch and break schedule is posted in every room and we cover the importance of the schedule on the first day of training. I hope that you find a place that is a better fit, where you can grow personally and professionally. We wish you nothing but the very best. Sincerely, Scott Hansen ProfessionalChats CEO
1.0
4 Apr 2018

Bad.

Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

A steady schedule. Nothing else really. There’s really nothing I can think of that is a pro about this company. It sounds great until you start.

Cons

Cliques upon cliques. They monitor everything. The girls there are so hypocritical and if you’re new and they don’t like you, they close in on you and suddenly you’re fired. There’s no warnings. There’s no disputing. Scott always ignored every problem I had like it wasn’t his. They let me go to the Christmas party and then fired me. Why even bother? Trevor is a dictator. This place just sucks in general.

avatar
ProfessionalChats Response
8y
I'm really sorry that you had such a negative experience with ProfessionalChats. We have an outstanding team of mostly women. After reading this review I have spoken with several of our newer Chat Specialists and Chat Specialists in training. Fortunately, at least for now, they did not echo your concerns. All team members are invited to the Christmas party, even team members with documented performance issues. If someone is on our team, no matter the circumstance, they are always included. As the leader of this organization, I take full responsibility for our direction and for our performance. Even though it's uncomfortable to all parties, sometimes, discipline is the best way to keep our entire team headed in the correct direction. We wish you great luck in your career and that you find a workplace that brings you joy daily. Sincerely, Scott Hansen ProfessionalChats CEO
Viewing 1 - 3 of 34 Reviews

Glassdoor has 34 ProfessionalChats reviews submitted anonymously by ProfessionalChats employees. Read employee reviews and ratings on Glassdoor to decide if ProfessionalChats is right for you.