Have you ever ignored something you thought was ‘too good to be true’? Carrie tried to, but apparently God had other plans.
Time for a Change
About a year before COVID-19 hit the states, Carrie’s husband lost his job of 18 years. She needed something full-time to compensate for the missing income, so Carrie went onto Indeed.com—and almost immediately started receiving recruiting emails for a place called America’s Preferred Home Warranty (APHW). Concerned about the immediate attention, she deleted several emails from the company. “But one day I was having a really awful day, and I remember sitting and going through my messages again. I had another email, and finally said, ‘Fine, God, I will apply,’ and I did; and I heard back from them the next day, requesting an interview.”
First Steps
Carrie’s uncertainty continued into her first meeting, which was held in a building in DeWitt that looked nothing like an office—just some folding tables and chairs. APHW was in the middle of expanding into the additional space, and wasn’t quite finished yet. “I went in and sat down for a video—where Randy’s face came on the screen.”
Randy Caltrider, the president and owner of the company, had actually been in Carrie’s life 40 years earlier. “I asked if that was him, and they said yes and asked if I knew him,” Carrie said. “I told them he was a friend of my dad’s when I was a little girl.”
After a few more interviews, they invited Carrie to attend ‘A Day in the Life’ at their corporate headquarters in Jackson, Michigan. “I loved it, because we got to see a real office, real people, and a real company; it made quite a difference,” she said. “I honestly kept thinking this was all too good to be true. Even when I interviewed, it was just a different kind of conversation; they were looking at your skill level, but they were also looking at you as a person, and how you would fit in with the company. It was just a whole different culture than any place I had worked before.”
She Stayed, and Added to the Family
All of this took place in March of 2019, “And I’m still here,” Carrie enthused, noting how she has since recruited her son and daughter into the APHW family as well, both thriving in different departments. During a company event the following Fall, Carrie went to shake Randy’s hand when he stopped—giving her a funny look. “I told him who I was, that my maiden name had been Vogan, and his face lit up,” she said, noting how Randy exclaimed her father’s name in recognition. “He remembered me from clear back at 9 or 10 years old.”
“Lots of places will tell you they care about their employees—but they really do here. I love how we are so open, how everything is there for us to see, what projects are in the works, COVID updates, etc. They always keep us in the loop, and the times I have reached out to leadership, they’ve always gotten back to me very quickly.”
Carrie firmly believes that God brought her to APHW. “Had I been working at my previous employer when the pandemic hit, I would not have a job. This has been His path for me,” she said. “It’s like a big family here, so if you want a place where you can feel like you are valued, you can be such a blessing to people here.”
Call 800.648.5006 Ext. 188 or visit APHW.COM today to learn more about job opportunities at APHW.
Visit us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter or Instagram to tell us your thoughts!