I see some positivity about Humana and it throws me off because my experience has been rough. For those who like it here, what makes it work for you? Is it your specific role, your team, or something else? Trying to understand if I should stick it out or just move on.
8 replies (most recent on top)
I’m one of the positive folks. Been around a long time, seen some stuff.
Humana’s been good to me overall. I’ve been on some good teams, made friends, had some great direct leaders (some bad ones too) - just have been given a lot of opportunities. Made a lot of money along the way.
Yes, the company has done some sh*tty things over the years. Plent of hamfisted strategy executions. And there’s plenty of bad leaders and associates. But one of my main points of pride is that so far I’ve managed to outlast the really bad ones. Don’t get mad, don’t get even, just outlast the ba----ds.
Mindset is a choice. The grass is green where you water it.
@ac he can go eat a bag of ducks and I say that in a positive tone with a smile on my face :)
@ew Or maybe positive on the outside to not attract attention.
This is the correct take. There are 1000s of teams in Humana, 1000s of leaders. There are more than 100,000 employees + contractors.
For anyone looking for a one size fit all “review” for working at Humana just aren’t gonna find it in an organization this size.
A LOT of people who are overwhelmingly positive are just corporate bootlickers or they are just optimistic to a fault. They are truly 'pie in the sky' people who somehow fail to be aware of how leadership or corporate decisions might impact them. Sadly, the bootlickers who walk over others to get ahead actually seem to get ahead. I have never understood that.
I've been w/Humana for a long time now and have seen complete leadership overhauls happen multiple times. Have seen multiple CEOs, CFOs, Humana resource officers, etc. Life here is basically survival. To any corporation our size, you are a number. Even if you are an actual asset to the company and have saved or earned it millions of $$, it won't matter. My advice is keep your head down, do your job well, and hope for the best. Being positive is the only real option to prevent a death-spiral into hopelessness. Apply for new roles to advance, as others have noted. I've long hoped that GOOD leadership will emerge, but the 'grass is greener' is not true. If you think senior leadership can't get worse, just buckle up for the ride...
@a9 super great response! I agree with switching roles. Just waiting to hear from my leader about whether or not we will get any sort of raises this year(not counting on it). Then may be looking for a lateral move. Scary because my direct leader is a big part of the reason I’ve had a great experience with Humana. The last year has been rough for all of us though, with Mouser over there telling us how nurses should feel and expect to work…..smh
Been here over two decades with a mix of outstanding teams and toxic teams. The most important thing is to find a team with a good culture. I suggest any team you are considering, reach out to the hiring manager ahead of time to meet (even if just for 30 minutes) to ask some questions. For me, it hasn’t been so much about the responses themselves as much as the reaction to them. You can gauge a ton from their reactions. I would also suggest reaching out to one or more people already reporting to the hiring manager for a similar discussion. Usually, discomfort or unwillingness (or even a lack of time) are red flags.
Next…money. Three CFOs ago, she participated in a town hall and was asked how to advance financially in the company. She very candidly said you should be changing roles on average every two years. I can tell you that is ENTIRELY true. If you want to continue to increase your pay, then you do it by switching roles, whether it’s a lateral move or a promotion. And I’ve had more than one person tell me first hand that the biggest raise they ever got was leaving Humana and then returning several months later. It is the corporate game and it su-ks, but you can thrive if you push yourself to always keep looking and realize you should never get too comfortable in a role.
Since we’re on a layoffs forum, I will just say they happen every year here, some waves are larger than others. The executives and board have been trying to sell Humana for the entire time I’ve been here. McCallister couldn’t do it, Broussard failed to do it, so now we have Rechtin, who came from a company that filed for bankruptcy 6 months BEFORE he got there. So, like Broussard, Rechtin has a history of leading through large transitions, so expect the board to continue to push for a sale, merger, or acquisition of considerable size. For that reason and many others, there is no ‘safe’ role here. In the end, we all are just numbers on a ledger. Today, you’re an asset, tomorrow a liability.
There are some outstanding people here. There are also some absolute a--holes who will step on everyone to get ahead. The politics is always toxic when and where it happens, though it thankfully isn’t prominent on all teams. The numbers are all that matter, and the only ones that truly control anything are the ones at the very top.
If you can stomach that near constant uncertainty and know that the longer you remain in a role, the lower your salary will be relative to your experience, value, and to inflation, then stick around for a while. If not, be brave (which I have not) and find something else.