Should I join MD1 program ? Advice Wanted.

PossibleNew · Member

Should I join MD1 program ? Advice Wanted.

BagBoy · Guru

50-60hr sounds about right

Date: May 16, 2012

Run- don't walk- from this phoney baloney offer! You spend 5 yrs gettin a degree and now u wanna sign on as a glorified bag boy! If u've worked retail then u should know it's a non-rewarding job where u work a lot of hours mostly nights, weekends, and holidays while the rest of the world is out enjoying a normal life. Sure they've got immediate openings and a well developed training program and promise lots and lots of chances for quick advancement---- THERE"S A SIMPLE REASON FOR THAT! Co-manager is the highest turnover position in the entire company- naive, young people that have enjoyed 4-5 yrs of laid back, party time at some state university now must enter the real world and make a living for theirselves along with the cruel fate of paying back education loans.

At any job fair u'll find little to no waiting at the Kroger booth, some smooth talking HR person that has been trained in the technique of selling ice cubes to an Eskimo, and like I said u can enlist that day!The average career span of a co-manager is approx 18 months after the 6 month training program. After about one year most take a good look at where they are, where they are headed, and what a unrewarding future they have and then use that training and experience to move on to a job where u actually are a professional with a use for ur degree and a future that you don't dread.

Go talk to an older co-manager or two at one of their less than high profile, upscale areas and ask them off record what they think, how they feel about their future, and if they had it to do over again would they go that route. Then u'll have the rest of the story- the true, real side!

PossibleNew · Member

What youve said is what Ive heard the majority of the time. But honestly, the job market is so tough right now I might have to go with it. I dont plan on working as a co-manager for many years. Id either move on to another position or find something else.

PossibleNew · Member

Does anyone have any experiences about the training program itself? Any idea how much you work during this? Is the salary the same as when you are comanager?

Date: May 16, 2012

buddy if ur worried about pay and hours then u really are not gonna like KR. they have committees and councils out the wazoo they supposedly talk to the upper and middle mgmt about the work/life balance as a policy thruout the company. BUT here's the deal... just about every upper mgr. delegates the lion's share of the actual work to his/her subordinates. it's not any different in the stores u will be the newbie that has to prove him/her self and those that don't work the Kroger Half Days(aka 12 hr shifts) either do not get all their regular duties done correctly or spend some of their off days working on them and bs md projects. the old way was to always work 6 days a week but when the exit interviews kept hearing about only one day a week off and burnout as main reasons for quitting then the word was put out to make a 5 day workweek for the newbies to keep them from leaving. but remember most of the higher ups are married to their jobs and they expect their underlings to be intense workaholics just like them.

as far as mgmt. pay kr is average among the industry but one thing they are notorious for is to have someone fill a position "temporarily"- that way they don't hafta pay u more or officially give u the promotion. and since all mgmt is on salary with no overtime pay/bonus u may very well end up working for much less per hour than the dept. heads in the store who are hourly and get paid for any overtime.

thedude · Guru

hey man - if you're desparate for a job at this point of time then go for it. i can tell you one thing, you will learn so much in the first year - way more than you paid for by going to school. just remember to always try to parley yourself to better jobs (don't be like me and go down the ladder of success / instead try to go up it LOL).

PossibleNew · Member

THanks for the advice guys.

thedude- anything else you can fill me in on? advice? recs? Im actually heading into a 2nd interview next week, got my own questions for them and all but kinda want to know straight from people like on here. thanks!

PossibleNew · Member

Do comangers work 12hr shifts usually?

barada · Guru

ours worked 10

nocturnia · Guru

We've had a Co Manager at my Wal-Mart store for four years who came from Kroger as a store manager. He started off low on the totem, went to a co before becoming head honcho. He put in 20 years altogether. He told me about some of his experiences, the culmination of which I will pass on to you, PossibleNew.

Bottom line: If you are willing to do much of what the above posters described----and if you have, or develop a personality that will not allow you to become over run, even by your superiors---you'll be fine. Again, this guy put in twenty years: not an accident, and there is much he says he misses about the company. Ultimately tho, there were draw backs.

He says the worst, final straw for him was when Kroger was trying to make him and his family move across the country......as another store manager. A unilateral promotion that would have equaled a huge loss with all the stress, cost-of-living difference, school changes for his kids, his wife losing her job, etc., etc.

It comes down to the individual, and their priorities. As young as you are these things are hard to define just now....I will say, salaried management in retail is VERY hard to transfer to other fields. You didn't specify what your college major is in; I presume business. In any case, be sure to look over all your options before committing to any thing long-term. My short-term advice, tho, concerning these interviews?

Sure, go for it. At the very worst it will be good learning and resume' material. Best of luck~~~

thedude · Guru

PossibleNew wrote:
THanks for the advice guys.

thedude- anything else you can fill me in on? advice? recs? Im actually heading into a 2nd interview next week, got my own questions for them and all but kinda want to know straight from people like on here. thanks!

yea i will give you more details once my hangover wears off. just saw Men At Work last night (well at least the main dude) & its too early now for me to think.

nocturnia · Guru

Colin Hayes' decrepit, playing bars in ghettos when he used to head line stadiums in 1984 should bear no part in your ultimate decision, PossibleNew.

Date: May 18, 2012

taking job as co-mgr with Kr brings to mind a great song by Freddy Fender from the 70's- WASTED DAYS AND WASTED NIGHTS. Newbie u already sound like u really have almost no interest in the job but like u say job market and economy is bad so u might put up with it until something better comes along.

the interviewer will most likely sense this doubt but depending on how badly the division needs co-mgrs(most need many of em asap) they may go ahead and take you in. one thing about kroger office and division mgmt bosses- on their yearly evaluation they are all given the goal of hiring, training, and re-taining new hires. so sorta like ur local military recruiter- they need bodies and will worry about the fallout later. so bottom line- it's no so much about hiring u as an individual but meeting goals/quotas for their own good.

so sure u can get in and fly under the radar but why do it? assuming ur young, single, and not one step ahead of the repo man- Why waste ur time in the retail trenches? like one poster said u prolly have a business degree (which basically just means u enrolled and stayed at a college for 4-5 yrs enjoyin a relaxed, party oriented life). U really seem suited to a govt. job where time off, holidays, and short hours are standard practice. Sure it may not start off as anything much or pay as much at the beginning but in the long run it keeps u out of the real life rat race and gives u a solid future!

Produce Man · Veteran Member

Personally with all the stresses of Key Retailing, ELMS, Que vision, and too many Chiefs in this company, I wouldn't be a co or even a store manager right now. The pay is not enough for all the stress you go through.

thedude · Guru

nocturnia wrote:
Colin Hayes' decrepit, playing bars in ghettos when he used to head line stadiums in 1984 should bear no part in your ultimate decision, PossibleNew.

So nocternia - you know of Colin Hay. Then I don't have to tell you he is a damn good guitar player / singer songwriter regardless of how big the house is.

PossibleNew · Member

thedude wrote:
PossibleNew wrote:
THanks for the advice guys.

thedude- anything else you can fill me in on? advice? recs? Im actually heading into a 2nd interview next week, got my own questions for them and all but kinda want to know straight from people like on here. thanks!
yea i will give you more details once my hangover wears off. just saw Men At Work last night (well at least the main dude) & its too early now for me to think.

Thanks Ill appreciate it

management_drone · Senior Member

Here's my take, but as always, YMMV and all that. Mind you also, this was in the Central Division. Out of the original 8 that started my MD1 class, there are now 2 left, not including me. I fled about 7 months ago. Normal schedules were 50 hours. I actually averaged 55 hours a week non holiday, 60 holiday weeks. Oh yeah, count on working every holiday. Over 6 years in management, I worked every 4th of July, Memorial Day, Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve and on and on and on. Also count on working at least 3 weekends a month, and 5-10 weeks out of the years there's only two managers in store with the toll of vacations. Prepared to be called at 3am with problems, sometimes requiring you to go in and fix it. Don't ever count on getting that time back, ever. Be prepared to work extra because "So and so from corporate will be in town." Be prepared to be talked down to, condescended to, lied to, berated, abused and used. The MD2 program? A joke. I had all 14 projects done, never got the raise because they changed it so you had to be ready for your own store within 6 months. My DM hated me, so that was NEVER going to happen. The company is a good ole boys club to the max. Not what you know or do, but who you know, whose a__ you've kissed or whose d_ck you've sucked. Key Retailing is a giant waste of time, but don't dare criticize it lest you be labeled difficult or not a team player. ELMS is a joke. Bottom line: run, do not walk, away from this company. Unless you have sadomasochistic tendencies, you will hate yourself down the road. I too, like others began having mood and health issues over that job. Stomach aches on the way to work, anger issues, high blood pressure, weight gain from stress. After two months of leaving Kroger, I had lost a little weight, my blood pressure is good, and my wife said I acted like a well-adjusted human being again. I still have stressful days at the new job, but NOWHERE near as bad as Kroger.

tl;dr - Kroger sucks, run away.

PossibleNew · Member

Damn what am I getting myself into.. Its tough - Ive got myself a degree and all and have applied for what seems hundreds of jobs and the only place looking to hire someone with a degree and minimal experience is Kroger. So im stuck. Thanks for this advice, much appreciated.

Date: May 19, 2012

newbie, if the drone's story doesn't get the point across to u then nothing will!

like I said before there's a reason why KR is always hiring co's and why their turnover rate in that position is at least 90%. the ones that stay on usually meet one of their almighty diversity quotas and are given 6 strikes instead of 3. some are just plain unmotivated to better theirselves and fall into the rut of kr blue depression and just roll with all the butt chewins during the year but especially their sadistic yearly evaluations where they cut u off at the knees because u didn't perform perfectly on all their impossible missions aka elms, key retailing, Que vision. however there is an occasional one that actually is sucessful - but like drone said- they have severe chapped lips from all the kissin. and of course the proverbial big chested blonde gals that majored in flirtin and partyin that know how to tease/excite the district and office mgmt which like drone said is mostly a bunch of old workaholics with big egos and no concept of life on this planet except to hold power over and delegate to the store mgmt the perfect policies that none of them ever had to meet nor could meet if suddenly demoted to store mgmt.

newbie wake up and smell the Starbux! how many 2 x 4's to the head will it take to avoid a life of un rewarding glorified bagboy work?

thedude · Guru

well newbie - u got alot of reasons from alot of people on why NOT to take it. I'm not gonnna buck the ship and go the opposite way on it. But I don't personally think its all that bad.

Date: May 19, 2012

dude obviously u have for whatever reason settled into a nowhere, no future, no respect, no reward hourly job and either ur really a slacker with no family to support or u have a couple dwi's on ur record. that being said forget about the 'misery loves company" train of thought u obviously have when advising some one like Newbie with a freshly printed college degree and optimistic plans.

kr is just gonna continue to dumb down all the store positions via elms, que, and the infamous key refailing so the tremendous burden of motivating a store full of part time min wage dimwits will be directly on the shoulders of store mgmt with the nights, weekends, and holidays all on the co-managers. just imagine in 5 years when the 70% part-time is achieved what the morale and work environment will be. u saying it's not all that bad is either a bold face lie or denial of ur own road to nowhere.

almost 30 yrs ago no one told me to go work in the grocery business but I did and at the time was making as much as my fellow factory/plant workers, teachers, college grads, etc. BUT as the years went on my pay froze while their's rose. today at top rate dept hd pay i'm just a notch above poverty. i don't expect nor deserve to be overpaid but I do deserve continuous cost of living and inflationary raises just to stay even. u and i both know that it ain't gonna happen.

so talk about ur 25cent raises and hour reductions and decreased benefits to fellow employees all u want but don't ever try to persuade an outsider to come aboard ship. there's no way it could turn out good.. even short term its bad for ur health and well being. It's too late for me and maybe for u but no sense in sugar coating the kr turd- it still smells like crap!

Date: May 20, 2012

yes and entry level associate mgrs are nothing more than overnight stockers but you go for it youll be working holiday for sure hardly no one gets off holidays

So happy managing.

Date: May 20, 2012

but of course you would your a kroger lap dog

don't take a genious to see that.

Date: May 20, 2012

YES YES YES... as the last poster stated "the Dude" is a Kroger 2 legged rat that is why none of u should be registered and givin him/her ur email. he portrays himself as a slackin deli lifer from Cincinnati division- he's even been so bold as to say he's Dave Dillon.. then he'll post a note complaining about the ceo's raise to throw u off.

one thing for sure it's no wonder he thinks things aren't so bad... for those of u that don't know the Cincinnati division has always been the company's "Sweetheart division" so all the employeees, mgrs, etc all receive better benefits, higher pay, and upscale status. YES u can make $14 per hr as a deli clerk and dept. hds make almost $20 per hr. So while all u other folks are making ten something an hr just remember down in the Queen City your counterparts are making on the average of $5 per hour more! SO HELL YEAH those people would think it's not all that bad!

here's the thing all u people should think about- if the Cinci division can pay that rate and still be very successful and thrive then why are all the other divisions settling for couple bux above min wage avg, decreased benefits, and mandated part time coming, etc. ????? and like the last poster stated-It don't take a GENIUS to figure out ur bein screwed over!

thedude · Guru

lmfao. your paranoid bro. i work a stinking deli position at a kroger store by my house. don't try to read more into things then what is so plain and simple.

as for me - i just work. trust me i don't want to. i gotta go in and do my 8 hours in a few minutes and i particularly dont care to do so. but i have to and will go in to earn my $110. i dont get worked up over stupid trivial stuff. it isnt worth my trouble. people all around me freak out over crap and i'm just a bystander listening in on their drama. some things effect me however that i will vigilently fight for. i have stuck my head up so fricken' high in the pact to make a point that i am surprised it hasnt been chopped off yet.

listen - you can think what u want about me or anything. its America and I am fine with that. Yes I do work in the Cincinnati division. I got lucky when I was hired on with Kroger to get a good starting wage with experience pay. Crap - I'm 45 years old, I deserve a decent wage. I don't have much sympathy for people who get paid way less when they knowingly knew their pay rate and took it. Who the hell held a gun up to their head? You took the job so suck it up or leave! I've seen alot of bullsh*t at Kroger over my 3 years there trust me. I agree with 98.5% of the posts on this site. I havnt walked in all your shoes of course so yea i might/do have a different perspective on some things. That's f'ing normal right? But one thing is for sure - I am no corporate mole. I am one of you. I sweat my ass off 40 hours a week slicing hot souse and pepper jack cheese to pompous ******* customers. Lastly, you are not annoying me with your accusations rather I am enjoying them. They are so far off it is hillarious. Come to the Maderia store and visit me there. Hot souse samples will be on me.

Date: May 20, 2012

In the off chance you happen to still be reading this, newbie, I suggest that you go into a Kroger and poke around to see what the management does for themselves. They will be the ones in button up shirts and sometimes ties. Unfortunate as it may be, at least my store they are glorified stockmen and cleaners. I see what my management have to deal with and I cannot say I would care to work their job, to deal with the coperate nonsense and impossible directives.

Will it be unfufilling, probably. Will it pay money, yes. That said, if you can read the rest of the forum you can get an idea what Kroger is like. You might get an idea of how toxic it can be for a lot of people. Management is not exempt from this.

All I can tell you is that my management are not healthy people. One has almost become paranoid that we are out to get her, one sits on a pile of dreams deferred, and the head of them seems to be constantly out of breath from having to run around the store at all times of day. Honestly, I feel kinda bad for them at times.

Whatever you do, good luck with that.

Date: May 20, 2012

HMMM seems like a struck a nerve again their deli queen aka dude. u should go back and reread some of ur posts ... u need to make a decision as to which side ur on- none of this fence sittin bs. in this fight there is no gray area... ur either for the bargaining unit or ur for the greedy company.

if u r who u really say u r then u not too bright for exposing who u r , where u work, and ur occasional subtle slams against the company. i guarantee u at this point ur being monitored ... in one of the hundreds of read and sign documents there are policies against any form of disloyalty whether it be libel, slander, or malicious gossip ... that's their ace up their sleeve and they can and will play it at their discretion. the greedy company is fixing to go thru some very tumultuous times when they start implementing the 70% part-time mandate and have already had some bad press concerning that issue.

U being there in Kroger heaven in the queen city are totally unaware of the morale and turmoil in all the lesser divisions that will be used as the guinea pigs first on this 70% plan. in case u never noticed all the unpopular programs/policies are tried first in lesser divisions while the popular/ employee and customer friendly moves are all began in Cinci.

Sorry if I ruffled ur feathers but i've seen many dirty deeds done in my division and just because some vip visits ur store and shakes ur hand doesn't mean that they care about ur future, ur financial well-being, or ur work environment. they care about pleasing their bosses who in turn care about pleasin their bosses- u and i are just a number to them not a family member. in 30 years i can count on one hand how many really truly nice, caring decent vips i have worked for and still have the middle finger left to salute the kroger flag with. Forearmed is forewarned!

PossibleNew · Member

Well i guess the only good thing I can pull from this is I'd be in the Cincy division..

thedude · Guru

Why are you calling me the deli queen? Are you trying to disrespect me? I am a guy. I'd appreciate it if you would not attempt to use name calling to get under my skin. It is rather rude and well lets call it as it is - attempting to be a bully.

You havnt struck any nerve. I am merely responding to your post. I won't if that is what you wish for me to do. Just let me know b/c I for one am confused with whatever point you are trying to make here. All I know is that I work for Kroger, I come to this forum and discuss various topics presented.

You wouldn't believe if you met me how much I fight for "the barganing unit". I presume you mean the union here. Just today I fought hard for a fellow employee who I felt was being mistreated by management. I am willing to and will stick my fricken neck up over all the scared pussies over a point. I do it freely and with notion that if you give them an inch they will try to take a mile. I am well aware of employer / employee mistreatment. I see it constantly and yea it upsets me. That is why I personally can not partake in that conduct and have decided to be where I am at.

Now as far as exposing myself - thank you for your concern but I do know what I am doing and am certain of myself. There is no need for you to worry about me. The information I shared today isnt anything that they can tag a person with. And if they want to try to dissect all my posts to figure out who I am - go for it. Once somebody walks up to me from Kroger and asks if I am part of the Kroger Employee Forum, I will deal with it then. No one comes here. Its use 30 or so regulars - thats all.

For example - this post now had 300 "readings" right? Thats because Bagboy read it 15 times. Nocternia read it 15 times. Thedude read it 15 times. Possiblynew read it 15 times. You read it 30 times. Barada, grumpy, cathy, produceman, 8hour, atlantadiv and several others come back to reread the damn thread when a new reply is added. So the count goes up. Its that simple. Dont try to complicate it. Kroger brass isnt here. The FBI isnt here. The illuminati isnt here. Its just us dawg. Thrust me.

This 70% part time mandate. Now that interests me. You mention about it. Can you please give some support to your arguement. I believe you but would love to see some solid proof. Hell, I was one of the 1st to run back to my department and make mention of your assurtion to this.

I make $13.50/hr. I am in Cincinnati. I work with numerous people who make way less. They work in Cincinnati. Yet I AM ON YOUR SIDE. I get everything you are saying man. I know. I understand. What do you want from me however? So yea - maybe I flip a little like a flapjack at times. Debate wasnt my strongsuit - Sorry. I will tell you whatever you wanna know and I will always shoot from the hip. What more can I say

styles · Guru

thedude wrote:
Thrust me.

well i guess freud was right after all biggrin biggrin biggrin

nocturnia · Guru

thedude wrote:
nocturnia wrote:
Colin Hayes' decrepit, playing bars in ghettos when he used to head line stadiums in 1984 should bear no part in your ultimate decision, PossibleNew.
So nocternia - you know of Colin Hay. Then I don't have to tell you he is a damn good guitar player / singer songwriter regardless of how big the house is.

You're absolutely correct, Dude. 'Business as Usual' was one of the biggest hit albums of 1983---perhaps second only to DuranDuran's 'Rio'----I saw them in Chicago in '83 and '85 and they performed AWEsome shows.

Mostly, I was using my ever sarcastic way to see if any one was paying attention to who you were talking about....:)

Date: Jul 26, 2013

What ever happened?

Date: Mar 21, 2014

I see its been a few years and was wondering if you took the position and how it worked out as I am now in the same boat. I have a degree in Human Resource Management and yet I can not seem to find a job. I also am a single parent so I feel like I have to take it.

Date: Apr 23, 2014

Oh Dude you are funny and good for morale. I like your free speech!

Date: Oct 9, 2014

I interviewed for MD1 program and one of the interviewers was actually falling asleep during the interview. He had already let me know that I was the last interview of the day and he was ready to go home. Needless to say, that, along w/ him laughing at one answer I gave, which was a valid answer, made me want to get up and leave in the middle of the interview. Furthermore, he asked a question that another interviewer had already asked. So, he wasn't paying that much attention.

In Kroger, they like to promote from within but, I've noticed, they promote people who can't do tasks they are already assigned. Due to the fact that Kroger is pretty much union controlled, it is difficult to fire people without giving them about 15 chances, whether they are deserved or not. Management in Kroger is kind of like babysitting. You just get paid

better. There are places that pay better, though. I'd say, if you need a job right away and don't mind babysitting adults, then go ahead and go for it. You could work for a few years,

put it on your resume and apply somewhere else. The benefits are good if you get in on the savings plans. You also get to build up vacation time.

It's better than teaching in public school but less exciting/less challenging than brain surgeon.

If you still can't decide, just flip a coin.

Best wishes