customer service representative

developer

claims adjuster

actuary

senior driver

Insurance Corporation of British Columbia

The work itself is easy. Once you get an understanding of how to use the claims software and the types of coverages
offered by ICBC, the day-to-day work requires practically zero critical thinking. Everything is black or white for the
most part.

Ever since COVID, ICBC implemented WFH for most of its employees. This role is permitted to WFH every 5/10 days,on a one-week-on one-week-off rotation. Working remotely reduces the day-to-day suffering (more on this
below) drastically and makes the job just bearable. I would've quit a long time ago if COVID didn't force ICBC into implementing remote work as the in-office experience
is beyond horrid. 

ICBC's organizational culture and overall working environment is shockingly horrid, undoubtedly the worst I've ever experienced in my life. Management micromanages to such an extent that every single break is
timed. If you go over your scheduled breaks by even a single second more than three times per month, you will receive an email from your manager. If you do this continually, you can be suspended.

Your manager also conducts after call work reviews. Basically your manager will watch what you did after taking a call to ensure you were actively working on the
claim. If your screen is idle for more than 60 seconds, you receive a fail. That means from the moment you end the call, you cannot even let your eyes leave the screen. If you
continually fail in your after call work reviews, you can be suspended. ICBC wants and expects you to work like a robot and has policies to ensure you comply. Everyday,
you're in fear that you'll be pulled into an investigative meeting to answer questions related to after call work. To management, you truly are a # and are treated as such.

Some other thoughts to consider:

Zero positive reinforcement: you will never receive any form of recognition or positive reinforcement, only
reprimands and threats of suspension and/or termination

- Poor training: ICBC will randomly, and without warning, implement significant procedural changes that affect your
day-to-day job duties without even sending an email to advise you. As a result, you are forced into having to repeatedly review the procedures applicable to any given
scenario to ensure you don't make a mistake.

Depressing atmosphere: Due to the constant,
overwhelming micromanagement, all the employees are miserable, and thus the office atmosphere has a permanent
black cloud over it. It's akin to working inside a prison. It's not uncommon to hear adjusters yelling at customers. I don't blame them; misery loves company.

No meritocracy: Advancement has nothing to do with you as a person: your personality, how you treat others, your potential, your drive/ambition, your intelligence, etc. The
only thing that matters is whether or not you've been meeting the ridiculous metrics they employ to gauge your performance. 

•	Analyzed business requirements, system requirements, data mapping requirement specifications, and responsible for documenting functional requirements and supplementary requirements. 
•	Created Test Cases and scenarios for Regression, Integration as well as Backend and System    testing.
•	Created Use Case for complex system interfaces; Wrote and executed test cases.
•	Analyzing and understanding the software Requirement Specifications and development of Test Scenarios.
•	Involved in Test Case Preparation and Test Case Execution Manually.
•	Analyzed application to find out which part can be automated and which can be manually tested.
•	Maintained Progress Report of team members for update on individual work during test execution cycle in Quality Center.
•	Identified & recorded defects with required information for issue to be reproduced by development team using Quality Center.
•	Conducted Bug Review meetings for update on defects from development team and retesting of bug fix. Worked with developers to fix faults found in the structure and functionality of the application using Quality Center.
•	Prepared daily/weekly bug status reports highlighting bug fix metrics and tracked the progress of test cycles in Quality Center.
•	Prepared of various test documents for ETL process in Quality Center.
•	Involved in writing complex PL/SQL quires for backend data base testing. 
•	Created Automated Test Scripts for Functional and Regression Testing of the application using QTP.
•	Enhanced the QTP scripts by inserting VBScript functions and Checkpoints to check for Broken Links, Text, Table, XML and Images, and Synchronization Point to capture upload time. 
•	Handled known exceptions in the test scripts using QTP Recovery Scenario Manager.
•	Performed Data-Driven Testing, Text Output values by using Global and Local spreadsheets in QTP for testing multiple data.
•	Involved in testing data mapping and conversion in a server based data warehouse.
•	Involved in testing the XML files and checked whether data is parsed and loaded to staging tables. 
•	Created and executed test scripts, cases, and scenarios that will determine optimal system performance according to specifications using LoadRunner.
•	Provided support to client with assessing how many virtual user licenses would be needed for performance testing, specifically load testing using LoadRunner.

Being hired was straightforward for an entry level position and the offer was extended at the interview. The interview was behavioral, similar to BC Public Service structure, keep STAR in mind.

Training was extensive, 12 weeks full time in a classroom setting. I appreciated their investment in the training for the position which was challenging to say the least, let alone in a pandemic. 

The work culture at 910 Government St in Victoria was one of the most concerningly immature environments I have had the misfortune of working in. Management across most departments were childish, gossipy, inexperienced outside of the ICBC and lack real world skills to support their staff. In my experience, one of the largest unaddressed problems is the lack of people with diverse experiences in leadership positions. If you stick it out and work here in a bargaining unit position for 8 years, tow the corporate line, meet the bare minimum of acceptable work level, don't question the status quo and then demand a leadership role, they will essentially hand it to you. If you are uninspired, don't want to be accountable to a changing world and workforce and don't want to make improvements to the services the citizens of British Columbia rely on then by all means apply here.

Diversity and Inclusion should be rebranded as Virtue Signaling and Inaction. If you are a BIPOC or LGBTQ2S+ employee they will exploit your lived experience to their benefit without adequate compensation or supports.

The pros include above average employee benefits, great downtown location and fair wages. There are some genuinely kind, thoughtful and hardworking folks who work here though sadly not in leadership positions or being compensated for what they bring to the workplace.

I would not personally recommend working here to anyone, but I attempted to be diplomatic in my review and also share the pros of working at ICBC. We all have to pay our bills so by all means, if you can hack it, good luck. I sincerely hope that they consider to invest in employee development at a bargaining unit level and to be accountable to both the public who rely on their services and to their employees. 


Let's start with the job itself. Basically, you work as a human robot who takes inbound calls and sets up claims. This doesn't seem terrible until you realize that virtually everything you do is monitored and micromanaged. And I mean everything. The tiniest mistakes can and will be identified and brought to your attention. Management provides ZERO encouragement or daily support. 

The job is repetitive, monotonous, and tedious beyond belief. You are required to follow a rigid structure which involves asking the same questions over and over again to each customer who calls in. If you fail to provide a piece of information to the customer which is required you will be docked. If you have an idle screen for more than 15 seconds you will be docked. The expectation is that you take the claim and complete the after call work promptly before moving on to the next call. And now, with new procedures in place which increase your workload each call, you can be seated at your desk staring at your screen for 2+ hours before having a break. I don't need to tell you how disastrous that is for your health.

Moving on to the organization's culture. I have never worked for a company with a culture which is as depressing and regressive. Management makes no effort to connect to their employees on a human/personal level. You are a number and nothing more. Colleagues are told to send 'feedback' about others' mistakes. There's no camaraderie amongst employees; in fact, people walk around the office without making eye contact.

In short: AVOID AVOID AVOID. If you choose to work here you will be servicing an organization that doesn't have the slightest idea how to treat its employees. 

Pay is very low in comparison to similar jobs available. It is hard to recruit talent when the pay is not there. Complaints are endless re being overworked, favouritism, lack of integrity by managers and their is an ongoing joke of 'where will the pendulum swing this year'. Decisions are made by upper management without considering the ramifications to the ones doing the job. Micro-managing is high and training is HORRIBLE. Staff do not get training before they commence actual work - they are 'thrown to the wolves' to fend for themselves - not to mention not laid out properly. Communication also lacks greatly in this organization. It is hard to believe for a Crown Corporation that they still have not gotten their act straight. Work culture is very important and it severely lacks here. Unfortunately many see colleagues fired/let go due to downsizing and "new pendulum swing" and many loyal and dedicated staff have been walked out like criminals - not even able to clean up their desks or say goodbye. So sad when there are so many good people that work there. They need to put competent and more knowledgeable managers in place to be inspirational leaders to guide and mentor staff. Now, from what was observed, it is the opposite.

I've been working at ICBC around two years now. It is my first role in the public sector, so I wasn't sure what to expect.
ICBC is an extremely well run organization, particularly when having to operate within the constraints of government direction. Independent audits by big 4 firms have confirmed this on two occasions in recent years. 
Flexibility, culture and management style varies greatly by role and division. Within HR it's excellent. More than half the roles are filled internally, so there are always opportunities to grow and develop. The organization is genuinely committed to a diverse and inclusive and respectful workplace - all managers undergo annual training and pass this along to their teams every year. Similarly there is a large focus on sustainability, and the organization operates carbon neutral - some achievement for this industry.

Lots and lots of great people; many in our department would be able to earn far more in the private sector, but stay due to the variety of work, flexibility, stability, and positive work environment.

The biggest frustrations for me are:
1. The ridiculous salary freeze in place for non union employees since 2012, enforced by PSEC our governing body.
2. The dated technology used in some areas of the business - we use a version of SAP that may pre-date the internet...

I love working at ICBC mainly due to the interesting file load and the terrific coworkers. Everyone is willing to pitch in and help in a pinch and there is a lot of sharing of knowledge and resources. Prima donnas and queen bees will not last long in this environment. 

Wages are below market rate compared to outside firms but the work life balance and supportive colleagues are superior. 3 weeks holiday to start plus time off provisions that equal another 3 weeks (about 6 weeks total to start). Benefit plan is excellent and full STD, LTD and pension.

Training and onboarding of new hires could be improved. All the systems we use are internal databases and document management programs that no one will know before coming to ICBC. It takes a while to learn all these programs and coworkers do not have time to teach each other.

It can be challenging to move positions or advance due to management politics and seniority. Most positions are bargaining unit and seniority is a big factor in allocating time off and advancement. Management is either overbearing, invasive or abandons you.

Overall, a good place to work.

The work is extremely repetitive. You're basically doing the same thing for 10 hrs a day/4 days a week. Sometimes you're scheduled on the same task for weeks or even months, so it gets really boring and mind numbing. They train you for a couple weeks in the beginning on the main tasks, but then after that if you need to be trained on something, there is very little training. You get maybe a couple hours of training if you're lucky, then you're thrown to the wolves. The schedule is very unfair, and they don't rotate the employees through the tasks. One person is on one desk for weeks or months at a time. There is very little support from coworkers and Management. You go to Management about suggestions or ideas, only to be shut down or turned away. People are very hesitant to help you when you ask for it, which is the main way to get help since there's very little training. You do so much work for such little pay. The only things good about this job are the benefits/paid sick days, and the 4 on/4 off schedule can be nice. Having 4 days off is the nice part. Otherwise, a horrible place to work.

I was hired as a temporary contractor and worked full-time for 18 months.  During my time, I was warmly welcomed into the organization and was treated with a lot of respect and kindness. My peers were quick to introduce themselves to me and ensure I was included in all meetings and project updates.  

Over time, I noticed that some less than-ideal people were team leaders and managers and when I began to investigate why certain people were managers when they didn't seem to have the right qualifications, I was told it was because they were often promoted through the ranks rather than based on their relevant skills or qualifications.  Overall, I think it's awesome that they promote within, but the truth is I often felt that teams and projects were not run as smoothly as they could because the managers were not as skilled as I was used to seeing in other corporations.

However, all in all, I had a very positive experience and would recommend working there, particularly if work-life balance is important to you.  In my 18 months at ICBC, I was not overly stressed too much and felt like the workload and expectations were very reasonable given the pay. 

work loads are constantly being adjusted to higher and higher levels

management is more concerned with measuring goals and targets than supporting staff

little recognition that leaders are asking more from staff than is reasonable

if you manage to surviving your own drowning workload, your reward is having someone else's work added to pull you under

with the change over in insurance product, many departments are overwhelmed

the number of people working on the 'old' book of business is dropping faster than the number of files resolving

for unionized employees, there are strict rules on working over time so there's little option to get caught up on how far behind you are

for non-unionized employees, you are expected to keep up with your work load but you aren't going to get paid any more.  If you look at your per hour earnings, that number is dropping.

PROS

the people you work with are generally great.  management might not be able to help you much but it's not because the individual managers don't won't to -- they are hamstrung by those above them

more flexibility in work right now -- most positions are flex - roughly half in the office, half WFH

benefit package is good



Top Job Titles	Average salary
Customer service representative 10 salaries reported	$32.31 per hour
Developer 35 salaries reported	$89,727 per year
Claims adjuster 11 salaries reported	$64,727 per year
Actuary 18 salaries reported	$121,320 per year
Senior driver 9 salaries reported	$64,537 per year

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