3 Ways Front-line Positions Lead to Career Growth at The Hartford

Here are three ways front-line employees can launch their careers at The Hartford

At The Hartford, becoming a team member on the front lines in Customer Service, Operations and Claims provides opportunities for career growth. Team members gain business experience and a solid knowledge of the world of insurance while also having the opportunity to directly impact customers and make a difference. And, team members can use their positions to launch their careers through exploration and job shadow programs, as well as continue their education with tuition reimbursement and student loan paydown assistance. 

With a variety of front-line roles at The Hartford, we’re always starting new training classes to help bring on team members ready to drive their success while making a difference.

1. Making an impact now

The Hartford’s team members on the front lines are dedicated to helping people with empathy and care. 

For two years as a Customer Care Team Representative, Alex Green answered customer calls and was the first point of contact they had with The Hartford after an accident. “It’s important to show empathy and that everything will be OK,” he says. “I would reassure them, this is the process and this is just step one.” In August 2021, Alex began a new role as an Auto Claims Adjuster and is now the one who guides customers step-by-step to the finish line, working with them to understand what happened in an accident, how much damage there was and how The Hartford could help the customer prevail through the unexpected challenge. 

Tracy Scott, who joined The Hartford as a Legal Assistant and moved to a Claims Analyst position in March 2021, investigates claims and works with The Hartford’s Group Benefits customers on treatment plans that will help get their lives back on track after an event or illness. She knows from personal experience that empathy is key to helping customers navigate a difficult time. “I want to be there every step of the way for my clients,” she promises.

Alyssa Fonseca worked as a Claim Tech providing administrative support behind-the-scenes to the Claims team for two years before taking a position as a Senior Ability Analyst in May 2021. “I enjoy building relationships with our customers in my new role,” Alyssa says, where she helps them return to work as soon as responsibly possible following a short-term leave of absence. 

While they are making a difference for customers, Alex, Alyssa and Tracy are also building valuable business experience that will be beneficial to their careers in the long run. 

“I wanted to go into a claims handling position that used critical thinking skills, which I could use for other positions down the line,” Alyssa says. 

Many of the managers and team leads Alex worked with as a Customer Care Team Representative had experience working in the Auto organization at The Hartford. “I was able to pull on their knowledge and knew that there were opportunities to continue to advance my career in Auto.”

2. Exploring next steps

The Hartford’s customers are both individuals and businesses who trust us to protect their homes, cars, buildings and employees when the unexpected happens. There are many different teams of people within the company that are needed to do that, and they are located across the country. Employees are encouraged to explore areas where they may be interested in growing their careers by job shadowing to observe what people do in different jobs. Tracy, Alyssa and Alex have all taken advantage of job shadow experiences to understand jobs they were interested in.

“One of the things I love about The Hartford is that there’s so much room for growth,” Tracy says. “In my job shadow experiences, I was surprised to learn about some of the jobs here and always found that people were willing to help me learn.” Tracy’s job shadow experience helped to prepare her for the Claims Analyst role she currently holds.

Alyssa closely observed people in a variety of positions, including an electronic data interchange analyst, workforce analyst, workers comp claim adjustor, property claim adjustor and long-term and short-term claims adjustor. “I didn’t initially realize that The Hartford had so many different opportunities,” she says. “Job shadowing allowed me to figure out what I liked and that I would find a good fit with the Short Term Disability team, where I ended up being hired. I love that these experiences are offered and people are promoted from within.” For Alyssa, finding her fit and being promoted didn’t depend on where she lives. In her new position, she works remotely with a team in a different state. 

“The Hartford is a large business, and you don’t know what’s really out there at first,” Alex agrees. The office where Alex works includes people who work in Claims, IT, Operations, Underwriting, Sales, Call Center and HR and offers a Career Exploration Program to match employees who are interested in careers in those areas with a mentor in the same building. The Career Exploration Program allowed Alex to see what was required to be an adjuster. He says the best advice he received was from an Auto Claims Adjuster he was shadowing: “He told me exactly what it would be like — that it would be overwhelming at first but that I would have a team to help me learn — and that helped me believe I could do it. I could see myself doing the job every day and excelling at it.”

Job shadowing programs like these are not only beneficial to employees. They are also important to the company. “These types of programs are valuable as it shows that an employee is committed to career growth,” says Larry Farber, Regional Vice President. “Through the Career Exploration Program, we’ve successfully placed employees in new roles.”

3. Providing education assistance for continued career success

For Tracy, furthering her education was an important way to prepare for future roles. “I am confident in the transferrable skills I have from my experience, and I’m continuing to pursue my education,” she says. “With assistance from The Hartford’s tuition reimbursement program, I completed my Associates degree, and now I’m enrolled in a bachelor's degree program — and I’ll know at the end of it that The Hartford helped me to complete my education.”

While most companies have a waiting period for new hires to qualify for tuition reimbursement, employees at The Hartford can apply for tuition reimbursement for undergraduate or master’s degrees immediately after joining the company. “I was already enrolled in an MBA program when I joined The Hartford,” Alex says. “But I sent in the paperwork and they approved the class right away.” 

Alyssa is also working on her MBA and paying for her classes through The Hartford’s tuition reimbursement program. “It’s a huge benefit,” Alyssa says. The university allows her to defer her tuition payment for $10 a credit, paying $30 for a class that would typically cost $1,700, Alyssa says. 

In addition to tuition reimbursement for programs employees are currently enrolled in, The Hartford offers its employees a lifetime total of $10,000 toward their undergraduate student loan debt. The company contributes funds to employees’ loan providers directly each month. “It takes years off the cost of my student loans, helping me to pay them down faster,” Alyssa says. 

Tuition reimbursement and the loan paydown program are just some of the benefits The Hartford offers its employees. “There are so many benefits and I am trying to take advantage of as much as possible,” Alyssa says. Some of Alyssa’s favorite benefits include a fitness reimbursement, wellness credits that lower her insurance premiums and eight hours of annual paid time off for volunteering.

“The Hartford appreciates employees and wants them to grow.” Alyssa says. 

Alex has also seen that support for employees’ career aspirations. “Leadership at The Hartford wants to make sure you’re moving in a career path that is comfortable for you but you do have to put in the work and sweat equity,” he says. 

With the resources and opportunities available to all employees, those aspirations are within reach. “The Hartford structure is built for employees to be their best,” Tracy says. “The sky is the limit.”

Learn more about an exciting career in insurance at The Hartford.

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