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What Do Geek Squad Technicians Actually Do?
Zenitram asks: "I am a lead technician at a company that repairs computers for various vendors. Many of our systems are from Best Buy's Geek Squad. Based on the systems Geek Squad sends us, it makes me wonder what, if anything, do they actually do? We get systems that have issues that we simply shouldn't have to work on, like: installing device drivers, OS reloads, and reseting CRUs (Customer Removable Units). Additionally, we get systems that are misdiagnosed such as: bad hard drive when a system has faulty RAM; no POST when it simply won't boot into Windows; or no boot when it won't power on at all. So, what is the scope of technical repair that Geek Squad techs do?"
Some people need that kind of support.
How we know is more important than what we know.
They are paying you, right? Who gives a leap about what they do and don't do.
Conformity is the jailer of freedom and enemy of growth. -JFK
We know they use Winternals software. :)
people more clueless than themselves. Maybe they should go to Apple's Genius Bar to get actual help with their PC:)
Actually, I suspect, based on your summary, that they find it cheaper to contract out to you guys than having knowleable people on their staff. Best Buy just charges the customer anyway (a premium) so it's not like it's coming out of their pocket. If they knew what was wrong with it in the first place, like a faulty harddrive, wouldn't they just replace it themselves? It's not like they don't have the parts.
Haven't you seen their ads? They wear ties. You know, 'cause all geeks wear ties! (Just look in the mirror, fellow /. readers!) And if they wear ties they have to be computer experts!
'nuff said.
I havn't started training yet but from the managers explanation of the work, it seems pretty ridiculous. Ie: returned products must be tested, and when we say it simply wont boot up, it will get back we have to be more specific and say what wont boot up like windows or the hard drive. I guess it just goes to show you gotta do what you gotta do, at least when you have to pay rent.
Honestly, I think they're a step up from "I roll my poo into balls".
God help you if they ever make you speak to one to explain what's wrong with something purchased there.
I can't help it - I'm a 19D.
i used to work for nerds on site, the original tech group in beatles, anyways one of our guys decided to call the geek squad one day to see what they were like. he showed up and had to reformat a drive and install windows. seemed simple enough, however they never installed any drivers or updates for windows, that was extra per driver/update, and so was resetting up the basic networking features of the computer, not share drives just the basics, yup it cost extra, any extra software, yup more money.
now comes the time for the bill, now being a "geek" you figure they would do it via the internet with auto-adjusting price based on the services ordered, something nerds on site has had for a while, no they did not have this. since our man was paying by credit card, the geek squad guy had to pull out one of those old credit card slider things. now in order to calculate price he had to use a calculator.
now i don't know if they've improved recently but you would think a large tech based company would use some basic stuff that a geek friendly company should already be using, personally why go with an imitation, go with the original nerd in a bug, http://www.nerdsonsite.com/ and yes they are world wide and constantly growing
my question is what the 'repair' centers do. i had to send a laptop out to have the power jack replaced. laptop came back with scratches and superglue and a 'new DVD drive that didnt work and was covered in glue (my previous drive worked). i then sent it out to have a fan replaced. i used geek squad again because they said thye would replace the DVD with one that works and wasnt covered in glue. computer came back with new drive, scratches and note that says 'unit overheats and shuts down after two minutes. needs fan.' (that took 2 weeks) i sent it back out to have the fan replaced (again). laptop came back after another two weeks with more scratches and missing rubber feet. fan works.
during this time i wrote a few letters. it only took 2.5 months to get back my working, yet cosmetically damaged, laptop back. the only good thing is that all 'repairs' were free, a stack of DVD-R's and a 200$ refund on my only big purchase at best buy.
apparantly geek squad is building their own repair center.
lastly the guy there stated that when it comes to notebooks, geek squad is a glorified shipping center. they also just write down the symptoms that the customer tells them. so the customer could be wrong
always mosh clockwise
I took this awful management class and they talked about Geek Squad like its some sort of Business miracle. We even had to watch a video where they talk about the company and its structure. Aside from their marketing they are really nothing special and time will tell on that as well. Geek Squad is just one of many essentially empty shell IT service organizations that charge a high rate to the end users who go to them because they have established a recognizable brand and then contract most if not all of the actual work out to others.
If you want to see even more disturbing examples of this trend sign up as a provider at onforce.com where a so-called free market for IT services is little more than a way for these empty shell providers to route low paying service calls to "independent contractors" except that marketplace is deliberately skewed so that the providers don't get to enforce their own rates but rather find themselves racing to accept low paying work orders from companies that are nothing more than a catchy name and a 800 number. One of the lowest paying of these companies suspiciously operates out of the same building as Onforce.com (formerly ComputerRepair.com) while routinely violating even the weak rules Onforce setup to guard against abuses, such as requiring that clients pay contractors at least 1 hours time and paying a fee for customer no-shows.
They hired nerds, not geeks - stupid, stupid, stupid!
They're kinda like buying milk for your restaurant from 7-11. You get no selection for an exceptionally high price. What the geeksquad does is advertise to the ignorant and rake in the unproductive profits. Note: I am a technical consultant who does everything geeksquad claims to do and much more for reasonable prices so this is just their competitions opinion. Seriously though, using them is like buying an iplod because you think it's the only portable media device in existance.
-Tim Louden
I really depends on the store and it's staff. There are some that are filled with very bright and knowledgable people. Then there are some filled with idiots. I think it depends a lot on the IT industry in your area. If your area has a booming IT trade there are less of the smart, just out of college, but smart people to work a low rung job like Geek Squad. However, if you work in an IT deadzone, what you will find a lot of times in those Geek Squads is very talented *geeks* who are working there as their first IT job because there aren't that many opportunites for IT in their area. Just my 2 cents --Former GeekSquad'er
Really, we do. They bring us soooo much business it's funny.
We have determined that the Geek Squad geeks are people hired off the street the day before, and are instructed to look at the computer, and recommend that they buy a new computer. (from Best Buy, of course!)
Every attempt that we are aware of that they have actually tried to fix something, we see it a week later to fix what was wrong, and to fix what the geek broke while trying to fix it.
Some of the latest episodes:
- geek browsed customer's computer to a nasty web site and got it infected with spyware and viruses (two weeks ago)
- geek took laptop apart and failed to reconnect cardbus slot connector (that one was today)
- geek told customer he needed a new computer when he needed a new power supply (this happens somewhat frequently)
- geek told customer he needed a new computer because this one is slow, was actually rampant with spyware and viruses (happens all the time)
- geek sold customer another copy of XP because this one was showing it was no longer registerd
The list just goes on and on... funny thing too, we are quite expensive for on-site service compared to others in our area, (we're expensive, but we're good) but the Geek Squad actually is more expensive than we are. I don't see how they get any business, they must have a killer marketing campaign.
I work for the Department of Redundancy Department.
I think it's pretty obvious they're here to repair our poor fashion sense! Remember, dressing like an extra from Revenge of the Nerds is the first step towards mastering your computer!
Geek Squad: Well, look, I already told you. I deal with the goddamn customers so the engineers don't have to!! I have people skills!! I am good at dealing with people!!! Can't you understand that?!? WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!!!!!!!
Clearly state in proper English "Do you have an A+ certification from Comptia?"
If they answer "Yes"
Make them show it to you - if they won't, presume they don't have it and skip to below. Otherwise, congratulations, you've found a reputable maintinence tech.
If they answer "No"
1. Walk away without saying anything more.
If they boisterously laughed or asked you what A+ certification is, pelt them in the abdomen with your right knee, then proceed to step one above.
Skilled computer techs who will do residential site visits are hard to find, so instead people default to a choice that they believe will insulate them from the worst-case scenarios. Most non-geek users have trouble assessing whether or not a computer consultant is capable or will muck up their machine even worse. Rather than taking the risk that they'll hire some dimwit or crook, they go to Best Buy (or CompUSA) and pay extra for their service in the belief that this gives them options if the repair goes badly. The crooked consultant can disappear with their money before the "fixed" computer blows up. It's not that easy to move the Best Buy store, so the guy is likely to return and demand satisfaction.
RichM
Data Center Knowledge
They tell the customer it will take two weeks no matter what the problem, and charge them a (high) minimum fee. After that, the data is typically erased and Windows is reloaded using whatever recovery CD the system needs. Thats one thing I personally think is nice about Geek Squad, they seem to have access to every system recovery CD for all manufacturers and are able to install fully legal copies. Most customers of mine lose their CDs, or their HDD went back & lost the recovery partition. A lot of customers come to me simply because they can't wait two weeks or don't want their data lost.
I worked in the Geek Squad at Best Buy for a little while back when they first took up the name. A few fun things I noticed while working there.
-In changing over from being a computer sales person to a tech, absolutely no form of test was administered to assess my proficiency before putting me to work formatting people's computers (I could have literally not known how to do this before being assigned to this job.)
-The only training that was administered to me upon transfer to the department was an abysmal program that failed to teach me the ins and outs of the database I would be using (and there were gaps in my knowledge about computer tech work that needed addressing at the time).
-Almost without exception the only thing done by Geek Squad members to computers which were brought in was a reformat and reinstall of the OS. If that didn't work the computer was almost always sent out of the store for weeks on end for repair.
-My boss spent over half of his time at work in various hiding places yakking on his cell phone. He was never held accountable for this.
Eventually my complete disgust with our lack of service, outright hatred of all levels of management and just general dislike of being forced to con people into buying things they don't need drove me to leave. I now work quite happily (at a dollar less an hour) at a locally owned supermarket while I finish me degree. Of every part time job I've ever had (high school included) this was by far the worst.
I could go on about all kinds of other things about Best Buy outside of the context of the Geek Squad but I'll stay on topic. Also, it should be noted that these are only my own experiences working in one store.
I ignore Anonymous Coward posts. If you want to discuss something, that's awesome. Log in.
...I'd guess that they post to Slashdot.
Sheesh, evil *and* a jerk. -- Jade
Does the name "Geek Squad" kind of offend anyone besides me, even just a little bit?
Username taken, please choose another one.
I remember a now-defunct white box computer shop some years back (think K6 era), where I overheard a tech talk about "warezing" (he pronounced it like the English rendition of "Juarez") software.
:) when there's Linux?"
Meanwhile I was thinking, "why go to Mexico for software
Oh, no! You have walked into the slavering fangs of a lurking grue!
While it is true that any technician who doesn't know what the A+ cert is should probabally be laughed at, that does not mean that it is worth anything. Sure, it's all nice that I know that the little black thing in a floppy disk is called a mylar, but that has nothing to do with actually making a computer work.
The only way to really know what you're getting in a tech is to talk to his (or occastionally her) previous customers and find out:
1. Is he willing to be patient with explaining what he is doing before, during, and after the job?
2. Does he charge a fair price for his skill level?
3. Is he a nice person in general?
4. Does he actually know what he is doing?
Which gets me on another topic entirely. Even the most basic of newbies can do well in the support world if they are willing to treat their customers right. Back when I was a 7th grade hot shot who knew how to replace a stick of RAM in under 2 hours, people would still hire me, and even pay me more than my asking price because I fit categories 1,2, and 3, even if I still had to grown in number 4.
They get to drive around in this way-cool VW Beetle with the words "Geek Squad" on the side. That's soooo l33t.
#naabhaprzrag, #sverubfr-000, #agi-fcbafberq, negvpyr[pynff*=' negvpyr-ary-'] { qvfcynl: abar !vzcbegnag; }
Here is the heirarchy of social imptitude and intelligence Nerds,Geeks,Dweebs. In College. we refered to Physics/math majors as Nerds, Chemistry majors as Geeks, and Biology majors as dweebs. It was very true, in the physics dept, not a single one of us had a girlfriend. Chemistry majors dated occasionaly, and Biolgy majors were ... well lets just say they were well versed in human anatomy.
Worked for best buy last year. And geek squad is essentially there to install SpySweeper, Norton, etc. Generally they're supposed to be A+ certified, but they tend to have a lot of computers come in. The guys in our store were generally pretty knowledgable. They tended to have to wipe a lot of HDs. That's essentially their job. I was kinda like the subsititue geek whenever Macs came in. It's stand back and tell them what to do because they recognized I knew far more than they did about them, but of course it was their job and I was a sales guy.
There is nothing with Geek Squad, in the same way there is nothing wrong with Taco Bell. Both provide a low quality product for a low cost. If you want excellent service, you have to pay a premium... just like if you want excellent food, you have to pay a premium (or learn how to cook). For many cheap computer systems, paying a premium for a highly skilled technician just doesn't make a lot of sense... especially when, in many cases, the problem can be solved by any marginally computer literate person.
Now, there are some people who might say that Geek Squad is overpriced. I don't know what the going rate for tech support is, but it seems to me that Geek Squad is far from a monopoly on tech support, and that people are either happy with the service, or prefer the one-stop Best Buy concept than to open a phone book and look for a place themselves.
So, what is the scope of technical repair that Geek Squad techs do?
:)
Here's my guess:
- Look good.
- Dress nice.
- Talk nice.
- Send computer to someone who won't break it.
Stop-Prism.org: Opt Out of Surveillance
It all is a matter of who is working, some of my coworkers at the time really knew what they were doing, and some didn't. For instance if there was no post on the screen at boot time some employees would immediately send it out as a bad unit, whereas me and a few other employee's would cover all the grounds, video card, video cable, test power supply voltages, check for distended capacitors, check the current through the capacitors, make sure cpu, memory, etc was seated properly. Truth of the matter I worked with people who would send computers out for overheating problems, when they failed to notice that the fan was so full of dust it was barely spinning and there was 90%+ CPU utilization because of adware. For Best Buy they don't care who they hire as long as they can train the person to go through computer, and they can get through the computer fast so they have a quick turnover for the customer. Just my two cents from being on the other side of the counter. It is definately a Buyer beware situation though.
It's never to late to start the day over...
First, I agree that many Geek Squad Agents aren't too bright. However, many are. Where do you think some of the future whatever-you-are's work in high school and college? Yeah, these types of jobs.
I'm lucky that I can say at my store I was surrounded by several other smart guys, and some not so smart guys. Now, occasionally a dumb guy would try to fix something, call it fixed, and mess things up. However, that was an exception rather than the norm. Often the dumb guys would leave stuff in the back with notes on them to have someone smarter look at it :)
You have to really understand the situation these guys are in. On the one hand they've got a stream of customers who (rightly) want their computers fixed. On the other hand they've got managers who don't know anything about fixing computers, and would rather have the Geek Squad guys sell more add-on products than fix things. The managers only care about the bottom line. And only in the short-term.
So often they either have to hurry though something because they're not being "productive" (e.g. not selling enough Norton to people), or don't have the tools / replacement parts to fix things that are broken.
The way replacing parts works is this: If the best buy store sells a comparable part, and the repair is covered under warranty or service plan, then the Geek Squad Agent can pull the part off the shelf, install it, and send the customer home. This only works in a very few cases, unfortunately. Anything else has to go to a vendor for repair. The Agent just diagnoses which part is bad, boxes it up, and sends it out. Again, this isn't because the Agent is incompetant, it's because he's not allowed to fix it.
Now, all software-related problems (drivers, spyware, etc.) are done in-store. They don't ship that stuff out to vendors.
Oh, a note about fixing stuff. It's a common joke to say all that they do is just reinstall windows. In my experience, that's just not the case. However, if you really think about it, often it really is the fastest way to do something. If you're on a tight budget for time, would you rather spend a few hours or days carefully researching and repairing some asinine spyware infestation that's so embedded that no spyware cleaners will remove it, or just spend a couple hours backing up, installing windows, and restoring personal data? It just makes good sense in some cases.
In summary: Geek Squad agents, the smart ones, at least, realize the situation they're in, and try to do the best job they can despite the obstacles thrown in their way by Best Buy and their managers. Before I'm flamed by some Geek Squad employees: I admit that my info is a bit dated. I'm sure some things are done differently now. This is my own experience.
Before I'm flamed by some Best Buy haters: I'm not saying Geek Squad is great, or it's the right thing for everybody. In fact, if you're reading /. and actually reading the comments, then Geek Squad is not a product aimed at you. Bitching about Geek Squad (and services like it) on Slashdot is like a Formula 1 pit crew lead telling an 85 year old lady to change her own oil because Jiffy Lube is a rip off. You entirely miss the point.
I recently had a fix a laptop for a friend that had initially taken it to Best Buy for the Geek Squad to fix. The problem was simply the center pin on the power connecter had broken off and fell into the laptop. After waiting two weeks she got the laptop back and was told it couldn't be fixed. When she told me that I told her no problem just give it to me I'll have it fixed tomorrow.
After opening the laptop I was not surprised to find they had never opened it. This was obvious since all the screws were still secured with their factor thread lock. Also the pin that broke loose was still inside the laptop! 5 minutes worth of soldering and a few screws being put back and the laptop was a good as new.
This is a repair that in my opinion ANY repair service should be able to repair. But since they seem to only hire mouth breathers Best Buy just took her money and when the Idiot Squad couldn't fix it they tried to sell her a new laptop.
I would never shop there based on past customer service (or lack there of) but now they lost of few more customers due to their money grab "repair service"
I killed 3 men and 2 cats to get this sig?
I work on the Geek Squad, and I'm gonna tell you like it is. 1. You don't need any certs to work on the Geek Squad (except for the higher positions such as supervisor or in-home tech) 2. Most "agents" are more than capable of doing (and do) all the things mentioned in the original post. We do OS Restores/Installs, We diagnose CORRECTLY, etc. Any thing that is misdagnosed, speak to the coders of GS's software. 3. We deal with REALLY, REALLY, REALLY stupid people all day long. Many of them barely know how to turn a computer on. So if we mess up, we're sorry. 4. Many "agents" are actually quite bright, contrary to opinions mentioned earlier. You can't base you're opinion of a group of people on your opinions about a few. Besides, opinions are just that: opinions. 5. Most Geek Squad employees are college students, trying to make a buck (close to what they pay us) and learn more about computers at the same time. 6. We are so bogged down by corporate BS that half of the time were not allowed to fix certain problems, even if we know how. 7. And finally, the software that we are allowed to use is CRAP. No, we don't use winternals anymore, we're not allowed to. But the GS "branded" software, is just terrible. I am speaking of the diagnostic software in particular. And as for the software we use to catalouge customer incidences, well, lets just say that I've seen better software written. In HTML. It might be more efficient to use a chisel and stone slab. But most of all...before you get insulted that we're giving "geeks" a bad name, remember that we work in retail, and we provide services geared to those with IQs of 90 and under. So anyone who associates "geeks" with crappy service is probably an ignorant technophobe. After all, being called a "geek" has never been a compliment out side of teh technologically inclined subculture. Cheers. If the spelling in this post is inccorect or the english doesn't flow, my apologies. I just spent 10hrs at best buy, and I'm not feeling overly intelligent right now.
(Random quote from some sci-fi movie or TV show)
i know i'll probably get flamed for this, but w/e.
i am a member of the geeksquad; I've worked there for a little less than a year, and from my experience, here's what we do.
Essentially, the in-store people do low level work. I'm constantly bored because I'm doing virus removal after virus removal from people who have messed up their computers and no longer know how to get on the internet. The job is redundant and menial and it gets old pretty quickly.
We actually do have a data backup that we try to convince people to do, but generally speaking, they opt out because, yes, our prices are too high. If i could change them, i would, so don't bitch at me.
The main brunt of work that we do though is basic setup (i.e. av install and antispyware install). it's menial dull and boring, and more than half of my time during the day is spent sitting watching little trackbars scrolling across a screen despite the fact that i have an 8 port KVM running full of machines.
From my experience, there are two types of "agents" who work in store as we're forced by SOP to call each other. there are the fairly smart ones, who know what's going on for the most part and can figure out just about anything wrong with a system. then there are the ones who are good with customers. they know nothing about computers, but often they think that they can fix problems. i don't trust them. most of the good agents that i work with also don't trust them, and as such they don't work on computers very often. in the stores which are understaffed, however, there is not this luxury. This is why the geeksquad has such a bad reputation among the ivory tower of computer intellectuals.
In-home and in-office technicians are a bit of a different case; they're at least required to have A+ cert for in-home working, and i'm fairly certain (but don't quote me on this) that the in-office are required to be MCSE. It may not be the same as having a masters or just being an all around badass, but they're at least generally qualified. Some people slide through the cracks in the system, though, and still give the organization a bad name.
I wish the geek squad would have more openings for people like me, though. I'm not certified, but i definately know my way around a system better than anyone I work with. I'm also the youngest at my store by far; I'm just now going to college next year. Basically the deal is that the people I work with are older and don't care as much about making an impression, which I believe is a fatal flaw. They don't want to ensure that management likes them as much because they have become disillusioned with the way the world works.
That's my 2 cents, sorry for the long comment.
As stated here. geek squad job advertisment
Do you have the skills?
DOS, Windows 9x/ME/2000/XP or Apple MacOS
Troubleshooting of Operating Systems and Internet connection issues
Knowledge of computer hardware diagnostic and troubleshooting
Software installations and upgrading
Can install / troubleshoot all computer-related devices (video, sound, modem, printer, scanner, camera, etcetera.)
Have the ability to research online and work through problems
Explain computer-related sales and service options to people shopping Best Buy and over the phone
Geek Squad Agents will work in a fast paced retail environment performing computer-related installations and technical support. Although sales will not be your primary function, let's just face it, when our customers spot a sharp technical mind dressed like an Agent, they can't help but ask a few technology questions. Geek Squad Agents should have the ability to interact with customers while showing respect, courtesy and professionalism. A+ Certification is a plus.
Agent opportunities: Agent must develop customers as they perform on-site repairs, setups and networking, both in homes and businesses, and will assist customers in Best Buy when not on-site. This very responsible person is provided a "Geekmobile" and a parts inventory. Excellent driving record required.
-William
God is everything science has yet to explain.
I've been in many support organizations, and you'd be amazed at the level of incompetence that FLOWS into the call center, and the repair team. Some who can spell "PC" are given the job. As head of a support group that billed $120/hr I can say that there are a fair number of very talented and capable technicians. The problem is that the organizations don't value the knowledge of those employees and they're often frustrated to the point of quitting to find employment that appreciates their talent. I'm speaking for myself and several talented programmers/technicians that I know. You won't find good techs working at Best Buy, or Frys, or CompUSA......
I know a few who will gladly bill $120 - $175 / hour to fix your systems. How much is your data worth? It's certainly not worth $12.50/hr to me or anyone I know.
"Lame" - Galaxar
I agree with you completely. Although, I used to work for a company where a tie was mandatory. People would always buy me computer ties as gifts and I had about 100 of them. So, one day I am doing some service work at a company I had never visited when one of the owners strolled in. He gestured at me and I introduced myself. He then stated that he thought for the money paid he would have a more conservative, business-minded computer person building out his network and told me to never wear the tie I had on or even one like it in his building. So, I left. I told my boss about it and he told me I had to return and where a non-geeky computer tie (I think I had on a tie with a 3-D computer mouse). So, on the way over, I stopped at a thrift shop and bought a god-awful, really wide, nasty-colored tie. Needless to say, I always made sure I wore a crummy tie while at his office from then on out.
Click here or here.
The Geek Squad, as far as I can tell, is an advertising gimick. Take a lot of pretty pictures of guys in thin black ties. Requisition a series of cars that look really cool but are probably bottom of the line cheap under all that paint. Pay a bunch of teenagers just above minimum wage to wear those ties and drive those cars, and throw a few technical manuals at them hoping that your "Geek Squad" catches on to that incomprehensible tech thing that, despite the marketer's inability to understand it, couldn't possibly be that complicated.
Or at least that they catch on before the customers catch on that the whole thing is a big gimick.
Wake up - the future is arriving faster than you think.
I do have to agree with what some of the other people have said on here that have previously worked for Geek Squad. It depends on the location. I'm sure there are stores with freaking morons working behind the counter just like there are stores that are staffed with people who know what the hell they are doing.
To respond to the original question posted, does it honestly surprise you that there are morons filling out those service orders sometimes? You have to understand our side of the picture too. The same service centers that you work for fsck up just as much as some of the stores you receive product from. Our service centers screw up at least five to six things a week at our store. Things get sent out for obvious problems (i.e. lcd backlights not working) and get sent back "no fault found", however when we turn the LCD on when it comes back from shipping...it is still hosed. Half the time I'm standing there thinking...did you guys really even freaking look at this thing?
As for the pricing, hell yes it is way overpriced. I think everyone that works at Geek Squad would agree also. Our pricing scale went up last week and some of the prices we charge for some services now is f'ing crazy. There are very very few services that we provide that are priced at what I would see as fair if I was someone running my own business. Unfortunately for some customers, places like the Geek Squad are the only pc repair places worth trusting. Some are more willing to pay the extra money than to take their pc to Mr. Shady McShaderton down the block, or the emo kid with painted fingernails who lives next door.
And if you want an honest answer to the original answer posted, the people working at Geek Squad aren't always the best and brightest because of liability reasons. There are times when we are not even allowed to change RAM in a computer...yes RAM...due to liability reasons. Someone, at some point in time, brought had a computer fried and sued Best Buy or Geek Squad over the issue and now we're not allowed to do it. A lot of the Geek Squad agents aren't given normal "geek" knowledge by the company just because they don't need it to do their job. If you start taking all the interesting and challenging problems out of the stores and putting it into the hands of the service centers, you're obviously not going to train the people in the stores on how to fix it. It would be a waste of time and money. There are times when I can't even use a program, even though I know it works better than something I'm currently using, for the simple fact that the said company could file a lawsuit on our store.
I dunno, I don't agree with the pricing and I for damned sure know there are idiots out there. But every company like us has their idiots...not just Geek Squad. And maybe I'm just lucky to be surrounded by a ton of people who happen to know alot about pc repair...but remember not every store is full idiots, some actually have the knowledge to help take care of you.
Also for those that have said it earlier in the posts, Geek Squad is NOT part of Best Buy. We are not Best Buy's Geek Squad...we merely have a partnership with Best Buy. Think about the coffee shops and fast food places inside stores like Target and Walmart.
I once declined to charge a customer my diagnosis fee after a geek of said squad had attepted to replace a broken Socket A retainer clip with three tubes of Arctic Silver. After my shop was closed, his manager did not hire me because I was overqualified. Somewhere around here, I have the pictures of the mounds of compound on the poor little Socket A chip.
FairTax baby!
... most technical support folks don't know a lot the technical stuff. It is no surprise that GeekSquad is the same. They just follow instructions (like scripts), run tools that they learned from trainings (e.g., use a CD to run an antivirus to scan and clean; not run registry editors to find out keys to remove, analyze, etc.), etc.
If people really want serious fixing with good jobs, then they need to look for the correct people. I have seen and met teenagers who know decently on computers even at a fair cost.
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
I work at a Best Buy precinct in Geek Squad. I am not an Agent though, I am a Counter Ops. I do, however, deal with a lot of units that come in from our repair center, so I guess I might have a pretty good idea of what we send down and what happens to it.
As far as competency, it all depends on where you're getting it from, it seems to me. Depending on who works at the store, the Agents could be amazingly good at fixing computers or, well, not so experienced. My own store is in many ways a good store(and improving because of some new management we have gotten), but I have heard some rather nasty reports about other stores. So it does unfortunately vary.
I don't know what company you work for, as at the moment I can't recall any repair center we send computers to that is not Best Buy only. But that's a moot point.
As for the scope of our work, as far as I know we are supposed to fully diagnose every computer we think we can fix with certain software. This software is being improved but is NOT always accurate and actually has many issues and false positives with certain brands of notebooks.
Now, we do not do many hardware repairs for notebooks. My own precinct typically only works with a notebook's RAM and harddrive. Thus, if we suspect that the problem doesn't have anything to do with those things and that it is hardware related, we typically send the unit straight to a repair center to save the customer type(our own repair center takes about 2-4 weeks to repair units).
As for CPUs, we can do everything except motherboard replacements. I don't see many CPUs we send down having anything else done to them, although it does happen rarely(most likely due to a problematic diag).
As far as having to repair software, we are definitely supposed to do that. You guys having to do it instead may actually be a result of pressure from a customer. Because of certain policies we have reguarding our Performance Service Plan, an Agent may agree to send down a unit without diag even if he suspects a software issue because of insistence from the customer. This may or may not be a good thing, but not all our Agents are experts in customer service as well as computer repair; in addition, in most cases we must honor what the customers wishes us to, even if we don't think it's a good idea.
Of course there are also clerical mistakes, communication problems and inexperience on part of individual Agents that contributes to this kind of thing.
That should explain all the computers you get that probably could have been repaired in store. Hopefully I covered everything. But, try to remember next time you get a computer that only needed a restore or was misdiagnosed, that it goes both ways. Many times we have to send computers back to the repair center right after a repair was performed there, sometimes multiple times. I have sent a computer down specifically noting that a restore would not work(because current internal hardware did not match the original) and got them back with the technician writing that I should do a restore. Many times it feels as if they don't even read our notes at all, and although we may misdiagnose some machines, we have had more interaction with the owner of the product and thus possibly more information. And, well, having to tell a customer that we have to send their computer back down for another 2 to 4 weeks is no walk in the park.
Hope I answered your question, although I'm sure many other people have already!
PS: Because of branding, some of the terms I used might be confusing. Just to make sure things are clear, when I say Agents I mean technicians, when I say Counter Ops I mean.. administrative assistants(secretaries?), and when I say precinct I mean the Geek Squad part of any Best Buy store.
But there aren't many industries that are completely disintermediated, with absolutely no middlemen between the ultimate producer and the ultimate consumer. True, when too many layers exist, or when a particular layer takes too much of the value chain, opportunities arise for newer, more efficient business models (disintermediation or other forms of reorganization).
Yes, theoretically, you could market directly to Geek Squad's customers. Got ad budget? There's a big value in successful brand strategy, and Geek Squad's got it right now in this niche. For every genius who knows the guy who only charges $75, there are a dozen "idiots" who know guys who charge $300 for the same "service" and don't know any better. It's not a commodity business, by any means, so it's not surprising that prices (and quality) vary more for this than for 5-pound bags of refined sugar.
Whether or not it's good or bad at repair, Geek Squad is successful because it
- lowers consumer search costs
- provides a (perceived) uniformity of quality, much like McDonald's
- at (perceived) reasonable/low prices
Almost nobody thinks McDonald's burgers are the best in the world, or anything close. Likewise, most of us know a "better" place even for cheap, fast food. But most of us eat at McDonald's at least on occasion for one of the above reasons.You want a two-year warranty or fries with that new hard drive?
I currently work as a Geek Squad agent part-time and I agree with you that there are bright people at Geek Squad.
I don't know about other stores, but a whole lot more than 'reinstall windows' goes on at the tech-bench, like the parent suggests. We have some pretty neat utilities (fully licensed or freeware from all that I've seen, by the way) that do take some of the tediousness out of cleaning a windows box, but i've never seen a reinstallation of windows done unless the hard-drive itself was completely toast. If a problem and solution does not present itself through any of our utilities, we do research the issue and try to manually care for it. As for hardware issues, we have a series of diagnostics we run to confirm issues, and we go from there. I don't see how a Geek Squad agent would determine a faulty hard-drive if the ram was bad instead, unless this was a case of grand error or incompetence. The issues with misdiagnosing POST and boot problems was probably made in a rush.
There are some sticky issues with laptop hardware where we are required to send back to vendor, but real work is done on the machines that we can work on, usually collectively by multiple 'agents' over a span of days.
I don't understand all the rampant hostility towards Geek Squad. The services they provide are not geared towards the power users, but to the average person who is not used to maintaining and repairing their computer. Geek Squad simply fills a niche. Most of the attacks here against the store and its employees seem rather off base and simply ignorant.
Many companies that hire computer technicians merely require an A+ Certification in order for an applicant to be considered competent and eligible for the job. The problems with that is A+ Certification by itself isn't enough because
1) It doesn't take much to pass. The A+ test consists of two sections (Core hardware and OS technologies), and you really only need a score of 500 to pass for each section to become A+ Certified (which really amounts to getting roughly 50-60 percent of the whole exam correct, a pitiful score). Whether or not you score the bare minimum or got above an 800 on each section, companies only see your certificate, so really you don't know whether the A+ monkey you've hired actually knows much. Hell, I even got A+ certified when I was 15 (I'm 17 now) and managed to get a job as a salesman at Micro Center, and I didn't even get any hands-on practice (bought a 60-dollar Sybex book and crammed). The concepts are way too basic, and the objectives are messed up. A+ requires you to have knowledge of rarely-implemented concepts such as old motherbboard sockets and the features of really old CPU's (I'm talking 386 here). What the test should concentrate more on is detail on newer material instead of trying to create a catch-all for everything that has happened in IT in the past 20 years.
2) The test is only updated about every 3 years. Since newer computer hardware comes out about every 2 months, people usually have to resort to extra homework-research in order to catch up. Stores like Frys and Best Buy don't really give much training to new material. Only this year did COMPTIA update the certification objectives to cover new topics such as dual-core processors, which were released 2 years ago.
3) The test has no hands-on material whatsoever. I didn't even know how to use brass standoffs in order to mount a motherboard into a case when I passed this test. When I really got into computers and started doing hands-on stuff by myself (i.e repairing PC's for friends and building PC's), I realized how much I missed out even with the certification. Many certifications today (especially the ones by COMPTIA such as Network+, Linux+, and Security+) don't have much, if any, hands-on objectives during testing. I don't care if you have memorized how many transistors each processor that has been developed in the past two decades have, but if you don't know how to correctly mount a motherboard/ground yourself/RAID multiple hard drives by hand, then you don't know jack shit.
Even with other certifications that broaden their knowledge like Network+ and maybe CCNA, the most important thing is hands-on experience, something that takes a lot more background than cramming a couple of books.
Easy: People Can't Memorize Computer Industry Acronyms.
I've never really picked up on some of the US slang - it wasn't that long ago that I found out that gimp isn't just a graphics program and that a pastie is not just a tasty folded pie.
I haven't been a Geek Squad agent for very long (approx. four months) but I may be able to shed some light on the situation.
As a previous member posted, and as a general principle of life, in any group of individuals you will inevitably encounter the lazy, incompetent or otherwise inept, and Geek Squad is no exception. Many GS agents are attracted to the job because of the generous discount at Best Buy, and/or have little or no passion for computers and information technology. Many agents are lazy and would simply rather ship the unit off to service and have you guys deal with it.
But just as the same previous member posted, most--if not the majority--of GS agents are very passionate about IT, are very knowledgeable about computer diagnosis and repair, and deal with problems as per SOP and don't pass off petty issues to service. You also have to consider that when we're dealing face-to-face with oftentimes clueless customers, time is a huge factor. When a customer is sitting there at the counter in front of a long line of other customers asking me why sound isn't coming out of his laptop's speakers, I'll probably check the device manager, volume control, and run a few audio apps to generate sound. If I play with it for 5 or 10 minutes (10 minutes is an eternity when there is a huge line) and still can't figure it out, then I'll probably send it to service. You guys get the laptop at the service center and it turns out there was a hardware volume control I didn't notice that was turned all the way down. You turn it up, it works, you call me a moron, the cycle continues.
It may also amuse you to know, Zenitram, that many Geek Squad Agents are quick to blame the service center for similar incompetence. I'm always sending back units to service because the original problem was not solved properly, or the service tech did not read/understand my notes. It's also very frustrating for the customer, and thus myself, when a unit goes out for an issue utterly unrelated to the hard drive (such as no audio) and it comes back with a formatted HDD with a nice little note saying basically "your audio works but oh, by the way, you lost all your shit. sorry. reinstall windows with your OEM discs. thanks for using best buy service!" It goes both ways.
-austinActually, before Best Buy sunk its venomous teeth into it, Geek Squad really was. It was started in Minneapolis almost 15 years ago by a guy (Robert Stephens) on a bike. The cars, the image, the attitude of the company was all Robert's ideas. They were doing flat-rate pricing before practically everyone and they had Agents whose technical skills would eat the lunches of everyone on Slashdot. The main Minneapolis newspaper retired the "Best Computer Support" category from their annual "Best Of" issue because Geek Squad destroyed the competition every single year. They were supporting the Rolling Stones, Ice Cube, and scores of Hollywood stars because of the phenomenal service they provided and the general counter-cultural "cool" they oozed (this was before Geeks were vogue). They really were a fine lesson in branding and customer service back then.
I had the great fortune of being one of the first Agents hired after Best Buy purchased the company. My badge number gets awed looks from other Agents as the latest hires are in the 3600s and mine is in the mid 100s. We only had about 70 Agents nationwide at that point (Agent badge numbers are never reused) and the 800-number was still staffed by technically compentent people who actually knew computer repair. I had to go through a difficult technical interview and three personal interviews before I got the job. So did everyone else at that time. No one knew who we were and we had to work fucking hard to prove ourselves to the customers. I worked with brilliant and dedicated people and only answered to the higher-ups in Geek Squad.
Fast forward 4 years to the present. Best Buy had done what every soulless corporation does with a great idea. They commodomized the shit out of it, dilluted the quality with shoddy hiring practices, and drove away the best talent by only looking at the bottom line.
They gave all the jag-offs in the store the Geek Squad uniform and made the old Tech Benches into Geek Squad precincts, even though they were staffed with the same underpaid, uneducated, and lazy "techs" that gave Best Buy such a horrible reputation for computer repair. Us old-schoolers screamed bloody murder we they made this decision 2 years ago because we knew what would happen - our great reputation would be pulled into the mud by these knuckle-draggers. Guess what? IT WAS.
I can fix just about anything, set-up any consumer electronic device to work with any computer, and expertly train anyone on about two dozen diffent software titles. Instead of doing that, I spend most of my time fixing other Agent's fuck-ups and soothing angry customers for "Customer Loyalty". Why? Because I can fix shit properly and I'm good with people. Nowadays, Best Buy store managers hire the on-site Agents and generally look for people who will do their bidding, rather than those who know computers or have demonstrable customer service skills. Most of these new guys won't spend the time to improve their skills or learn new technologies. They either restore or have me do the "hard jobs". And God forbid they should download demo software to learn so they can provide trainings.
Best Buy management has had the worst affect on Agent morale and employee retention. They focus only on scorecards, holding Agents responsible for missed budgets even though the in-store sales team is expected to generate 70% of the revenue, rewarding Agents who unnecessarily rape their customers with preposterous upselling, and generally ignore technically skilled Agents or those who provide outstanding customer service. At the corporate level, overhiring has led to hour slashing that has wiped out my last three pay raises. I'
We want some answers and all that we get
Some kind of shit about a terrorist threat
- Ministry
1) A customer brought an IBM tower to Best Buy to have viruses/spyware removed. The customer was charged $200, had all of his personal data erased, and the system was still infected. He brought it to us (we're a resonably large, long-standing independent shop), I took pity on him, and then fixed it for free (it was a slow day, and his parents bought me a coffee from next door afterwards :) ).
2) A customer brought in a Compaq desktop that had been repaired at Future Shop (Canadian equivalent of Best Buy, actually burchased by Best Buy a few years ago), complaining that it still wasn't working right. We opened-up the case to find a stack of rubber bands and a very large screwdriver lying across the motherboard (this was a flat desktop system)... Yeah, good times.
You'd be surprised where else you won't find good techs.
E.g., for the last 4 years I've been sorta a permanent consultant/contractor at a big corporation. You'd think that they could afford competent people, right? I mean, when you have tens of thousands of PCs (quite literally), it pays to have them well set up at least, right?
Well, wrong. PCs always routinely came with some stupidly wrong image installed.
E.g., the batch mine was in came with the wrong IDE drivers. Thank goodness Windows didn't use those, but performance was _abysmal_. You wouldn't believe how slow a fairly modern HDD is with NT 4.0's default drivers in PIO mode. Even stuff like switching between applications took seconds. (I assume that NT swapped some of the old app out, or something.)
E.g., they came with Matrox drivers installed... even though they had Nvidia cards.
Now being crazy enough to do the non-standard thing, I did download the right drivers off the internet and got our boss to give us the admin password to install them. But, you know, (A) I shouldn't have to. Wtf is the IT department for, if I have to do that. And (B) I wonder how many peons in other departments just gnash their teeth and put up with a system that performs like a lobotomized 486.
But let's delve a bit further into this madness...
So at some point it was decided to finally upgrade our RAM. So they send two IT drones to open the PCs and replace the RAM sticks. Easy job, right? I mean, right? Well, you wouldn't believe the uphill struggle that it was on every single PC. The problem? The RAM timings on the new sticks were different. So on every single PC, out of a batch of identical PCs, it was starting again from scratch digging into the BIOS and randomly changing stuff until it worked. You'd think they'd at least be able to remember what they did to the first half a dozen PCs by the time they get to the next one.
One coleague was left with a PC which was proclaimed to work after passing POST. Except it froze when trying to load Windows.
It gets better. They couldn't make one PC work at all, so they took it with them. It came back without the extra RAM, but freshly formatted and reinstalled. They fucking deleted that guy's 2 years worth of work instead of installing the RAM, and didn't even do a backup first. (Well, at least the sources were in CVS, but everything else, e.g., emails, documents he's downloaded, etc, wasn't.) How _does_ one end up formatting the hard drive instead of replacing the RAM? I mean, seriously, at which point are they similar or related enough to accidentally do one instead of the other?
And if you thought that the PC drones are the only ones without half a brain, let's just say that we actually have the whole flying circus. We have DBAs who don't know how to admin a database, and have to be told exactly what commands to run on it. (And occasionally do stupid stuff on their own, like disabling XA transactions on a productive Oracle database, because they thought it just takes up memory and doesn't do anything.) We have Unix admins who don't actually know jack about Unix. And I don't mean as in "not experts." I mean they probably haven't even _seen_ a Unix prompt before, and aren't going to start learning now. Etc.
*sigh* Methinks cost cutting is good and fine, but sometimes people should know when to stop. At the point where such clueless monkeys are hired just because they're very cheap... maybe it's already too much.
A polar bear is a cartesian bear after a coordinate transform.
Sure, there's no return call, but there's no repeat business.
No sig for you! Come back one year!
I'm having trouble figuring out why this topic made the main page...I guess it could be that this is a sincere question but it seems more like another bid for support in bashing the Geek Squad.
Scope of repairs for Geek Squad agents consists of all software issues and hard drive, RAM, Video Card, PSU, & CD/DVD drive replacement. Basically if it is available in the store it can be replaced or installed on paid services. For service plan repairs the majority of hardware can not be replaced in-store due to inventory limitations and in the event that a system restore is required; if a customer does not have their restore CD/DVD, the restore partition has been corrupted, or the HDD neededs replacement (obviously this leaves no restore partition) then the unit is shipped to the vendor in the event it is under mfg warranty or to DEX if under service plan warranty only.
On another note, I can tell you from the CONSTANT issues I dealt with on a day to day basis that the blame goes back and forth between 3rd party repair centers and store techs. I'm assuming that the original poster works for a company called DEX (Data Exchange Corporation) as they are the primary 3rd party center used for issues beyond the scope of in-store repairs. Literally 25% of the computers shipped to DEX returned unrepaired, misrepaired, misdiagnosed, and some didn't even return at all. Between 3 and 8 hours every single day I was sending emails, calling DEX, checking tracking numbers, and dealing with upset customers because of these problems. When you say that the Geek Squad sends you issues that you shouldn't have to work on I'd really like to know a percentage here. If you can honestly tell me that over 25% of the computers you receive have these minor issues, I'll lay down the flaming sword here. And if you want to talk about spelling, I've probably seen around six to seven THOUSAND service tags from DEX and around 500 of them had proper spelling...don't EVEN get me started there.
Unfortunately, however, all the anti-Geek Squad sentiment out there isn't all that unfounded any more. I have a pretty good idea of why (I did work there for quite some time) but don't go any further if you don't like to read.
One of the primary focuses of Best Buy training is sales. When 'agents' are hired they are expected to have a high level of technical knowledge and all other training focuses on processes and sales. Being that Best Buy is a non-comission sales environment the training is not nearly as viscious as some other comission sales jobs, but it actually works better. What the training actually encompasses is gaining the ability to relate the knowledge you have to the customer. During my entire time at Best Buy I was never once encouraged to do anything unethical or take advantage of customers' lack of knowledge. I was lucky to be at a decent store...the problem lies in the fact that a lot of the management staff at a lot of stores does not take this approach and typically force employees to sell more and most expensive or get out.
Another glaring problem is the fact that Best Buy's original service techs were largely incompetent and extremely underpaid. Before the Geek Squad was unleashed, Best Buy lost money from services every single year. Upon Geek Squad's roll-out, a lot of the original service techs were given immediate promotions or transferred directly across to supervisory positions because of the need to get/keep bodies behind the counter. The good came from the fact that more positions were available and largely at a higher pay rate. Because this was a new venture into the services sector, customers with previous experience with Best Buy services were largely suspicious and still retained a good amount of hatred for anything related to Best Buy and service. Business began to pick up, but was still rather slow in relation to the number of positions filled and available. During this time, qualifications and technical knowledge were fairly strict requirements because of the overflow of applicatio
...The Geek Squad was a respected, high end technical company, hiring only computer professionals with certifications to show it. I managed a small computer store that was part chain of franchises. When the franchisee went backrupt they were all looking for work (I had gotten a new job shortly before). I was writing a few letters of recommendation and such and was told that all these good technicians wouldn't even be talked to by the Geek Squad due to only a couple years experience and no certs. Then BestBuy bought them, needed to hire dozens, hell hundreds, of techs, and from reports I have heard, their name is kind of a joke now... That being said, it's been so many years since I have had to bring my computer to a tech I'd probably melt if I ever had to now...
dB Masters
This reminds me of a true story.
When I got married (early 1990s) my wife knew zilch about computers, even though I was a computer technician. (We figured it balanced out our relationship.) Over the years, I showed her a few things about fixing computers: simple stuff like running utilities, what to check in the OS files, etc. She finally got her own computer in the mid-90s and wanted to learn enough to keep her own computer running well.
During the dot-com collapse, we needed some extra cash. Almost as a joke, she applied for a tech support job at a big publishing firm nearby. She passed the entrance exam and was hired. There were four or five techs on the staff already, every one officially certified from Microsoft, A+, Apple or another relevant agency. My wife was not even remotely certified. Nonetheless, within six months they had fired (and replaced) the other techs, while retaining my wife and putting her in charge of two new techs. She was simply able to work faster than the others, and had a better rate of fixing things the first time around. She left the company when the IT director started making sexist (and sometimes lewd) comments.
Anyway, it was a shining example to me that certification is only worth the paper it's printed on, nothing more. A smart person with only self-administered knowledge (admittedly instructed by someone who had been repairing computers since the 1970s -- me) easily surpassed a small fleet of supposedly highly-trained, certified technicians. What the heck are people getting certified in???
$nice = $webHosting + $domainNames + $sslCerts
- Both can leak ink; squid does it for defense, geeks just have cheap pens.
- Ability to adapt to work in odd positions; geeks often work in cubicles or are found in odd places doing repairs, squids again do it for defense or to seek food.
- Execelent use of appendixes; squids can assume almost any form to do the work it needs to do, geeks have all the tools (and more) to do the work it need to do.
- Good camuflage; Squids can often change colour to become undetectable, geeks are undetectable by the cloth style, and in some cases their behaviour.
Amazing really, two completely different species, and yet so much in common.
Carbon based humanoid in training.
Doorstop? Paperweight?
The MacBook is clearly a space heater.
USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
There's really a simple distinction between nerds and geeks.
;-)
A nerd gets his degree through hard work - attending lotsa classes, studying the material and turning in nothing-less-than-stellar work.
A geek gets his degree by hacking into the school's mainframe and awarding himself credit for classes he never took.
Got more questions? Just ask
we see things not as as they are, but as we are.
-- anais nin
I also used to work for Best Buy geeksquad. The organization is what I would consider corrupt. Most of the 'software' we used to fix a system was shareware that anyone could download off the internet. We used programs like Spybot, Adaware, eWidow, Memtest x86, CCleaner, ect ... to clean/repair a system. I could never understand how a company like Geeksquad was going to profit off the unpaid shareware authors work.
Nor could I understand how Geeksquad got away with lying to its customers so often. Most of the people I worked with were High School students and many acted the part. Peoples property was always being mishandled and many times things were being lost. I was told to lie to people's faces as to where their system was at some points because we honestly couldn't find it. Power supplies for laptops were always being lost, as was software.
On top of the mistreatment of the systems, was the fact that many of the 'techs' had no right to have that title. This one person that I worked with was so bad a 'tech' that he managed to wipe an entire system harddrive that was only there to have some spyware removed and wanted the data on the drive backed up to DvD. Our manager insisted that we lie to the customer, telling her that we had sent out her system for service due to her warranty and that the service center had caused the loss of information. Of all the luck I was there when she came to pick up the system. The lady was in tears due to the fact that the PC had held important information that she required for her employment. She ended up losing her job over this incident and she couldn't do a damn thing about it because in that piece of paper you sign when you leave your system with geeksquad it says we aren't responsible for the loss of data. Even if the pimple faced High School student pretending to be a tech specifically told you that the data would be completely safe and backed up before doing anything dangerous.
I left the company soon after this incident.
Why did this even make it onto "Ask Slashdot"? Does this actually carry some importants somewhere? This sounds more like a water-cooler joke here at work. Not something I should be wasting work time reading when I could be wasting work time reading something more important like Groklaw bashing SCO...
Unfortunately for you, Best Buy still controls your mind. I am a former Geek Squad agent. I worked there for two and a half years and it paid great enough to get me through high school. It used to be good before it was switched over to the Geek Squad. You are taking a small service center in Best Buy, making a new advertisting campaign and feel, and tripiling your business in a matter of two years. When that happened Best Buy was in so need of Geeks that they hired many morons just to fill the spots. I am not saying every Geek Squad agent is bad, there are many talented people. However, at my old store, 50% of the current techs don't know enough to fix a computer and are more based on ripping off the consumer by charging them as high as $600 labor on a single repair. Integrity doesn't exist in many parts of the Geek Squad. Some of the things that our store used to do is amazing. Here is an example, a Dell that wouldn't boot, said something about PXE and cable not connected (don't remember exact message). So, of course this was too confusing for the techs who worked on it. The PC Area Manager tried sellign him a $1100 computer package. I checked the person in a few days prior and saw they were buying a new system. I didn't think it was necessary so I took a look myself. Change the boot priority off of network boot and the system worked fine. I save the guy $1100, he slipped me a $50 tip later and then I got bitched at by the manager for loosing the new computer package. Corporate XP keys, overcharging, not doing all the work... common things for the Geek Squad at my store. In fact, that $129 you are paying for a in home diagnostic, or any other service turns between 78% and 84% profit margin according to management. I understand companies need to make money, but you aren't paying for quality, you are paying for cars, ugly uniforms (they felt degrading to wear, I preferred the old black service polos), and gas for the Geeks that cruise in their car when there is nothing to do. The fact that the focus in our store was more on selling is partially why I quit. That and shitty management. Stay away if you can, if not... be ready.
I used to work in the computer repair department of Best Buy and I was on my way out as this Geek squad travesty was put in place. You see I like to think of myself as a competent tech, maybe even good. I know other at least competent techs that worked with me, and although the person who hired me was interested in my technical skill this is not what Best Buy wants. Best Buy wants to get you in for a 1 hour diagnostic $60. You dont fix the issue at this point you just find what is wrong. Then depending on what the issue is, most of the time it was spy or addware. You then sell the customer a $40 service to do a spyware scan and removal, using one of the shitty pieces of software that Best Buy carries. During this process you examine the machine for "upgrades" more memory, larger HD, new video card. Even though the issues the customer is having may be totally independent of the hardware they have, but you are still required to "advise" the customer that these upgrades are necesary. Then the poor customer shells out for over priced hardware and another $20 to $40 to install it. Best Buy doesnt want to fix problems they want to sell you services. I found this out as I noticed my hours being cut more and more, it wasnt because I had a slow turnaround time on the machines I took in but because I wasnt "recomending" services to the customer, even though I knew they didnt need more memory, or that they didnt need MSN dialup because they already had DSL, but we are always susposed to offer. This became readily apparent in two situations someone came in their computer would not boot, at that time Best Buy did allow for us to look at a machine for a few minutes at the counter before we tried to fleece the customer. I determined that a restore was needed on the system. I asked him if he had his recovery cd's he said yes and I told him he just needs to do a recovery. He asked me if he could do it himself and I told him he could, and proceded to tell him how. Put the cd in follow the prompts. The new manager for the computer department heard me helping this person and I was later dressed down for giving out technical information. Another time a woman cam in, in tears her laptop crashed and she had her doctoral thesis on it that was due in the morning. I would have just charged the $60 poped the drive in one of our machines and gotten it for her, but since one of the manager's lackey's was around I had to offer the data recovery service which is way expensive and takes a week. So if you like to buy useless services then Best Buy is for you but there are no Geeks there just greasey salesmen. The prices I quoted are from the time I worked there I am sure there has been significant markup since then.
Modded informative? pfffffffft.
I guess it's time for me to pull out my "Certs don't mean jack" story here once again.
Since my sister lives several hundred miles away, I'm saved from most "family tech support issues". Her Win98 computer wasn't running so fast a few years back, so she decided to add more ram to it to speed things up. Her husband took it to his "MCSE & A+ Certified buddy at work(TM)" to get the job done.
"MCSE & A+ Certified buddy at work(TM)" proceeded to drop a screwdriver onto the mobo when it was powered up, toasting it, of course. He had the nerve to charge them for a new motherboard, but at least the ram got installed.
I was visiting a couple of months later when my sister mentioned that she couldn't get any sound when she tried to play a CD. As I was already almost seething when she'd told me about the motherboard, I figured I knew exactly what the deal was. I peered in through the back to, sure enough, see that "MCSE & A+ Certified buddy at work(TM)" hadn't reconnected the CD audio cable and it was just dangling there. I then grabbed a screwdriver to open the case to connect the cable.
Seems "MCSE & A+ Certified buddy at work(TM)" lost the case screws, so "MCSE & A+ Certified buddy at work(TM)" POP-RIVETED THE GOD DAMN CASE SHUT.
Another half hour, a drill, and migraine later, she once again had CD audio working.
So, yes... certs might look good on paper, but they don't mean jack when it comes to knowledge.
...Rob
The American Dream isn't an SUV and a house in the suburbs; it's Don't Tread On Me.
... I am a grad student at a Big 10 (11, whatever) university. The woman in charge of computers in our whole building gets about $35k based on her job title. She came into a lab I work in to do some network stuff. She didn't know what RAM is. She "backed up" lab data that was being moved to a new machine (Mac 9 to Mac 10), and she only copied the crap laying around on the desktop and at the root of the HD, not all the stuff in the OS-provided documents folder--in which was everyone's real work. I am an English major. But I've learned to work on my own computer the same way learned to work on brakes after I took my car to a shop and it came back squirting DOT 3 like a geyser. No one really gives a shit about my life and my data the way I do.
Not really a lot of difference. I'm sure pretty much anything can be fixed without a reinstall if you put enough time into it, but since that's prohibitive, especially when you're doing it as a business, there's effectively no difference between "needing a reinstall" and "a reinstall is the most efficient way to fix the problem." Unless the customer is willing to pay for you to spend the hours necessary to find and repair all the problems, then you pretty much have to reinstall.
It's not enough to bash in heads, you've got to bash in minds. - Captain Hammer
Yup.
I think they do that because it's their way of screwing people who buy cheap USB peripherals. Example: those $30 printers they sell in some cases don't come with cables. Oh, it'll come with an AC adapter, but not a USB (or at least the salesperson will insist that it doesn't). Then they hand you the $30 "MonsterCable" USB cable, in the hopes of recouping their profit margin that they didn't get on the printer. I've seen them do this to people over and over, and it's just painful to watch.
The only reason I go into BestBuy is when there's something free, or at a ridiculously low price (their 'loss leaders'). And then I go into the store, get the one item, and leave.
I can go on PriceWatch and get 6' USB cables for around $1-3 a piece, with shipping, from a no-name Mom-n-Pop. I've yet to have one of them fail, but even if they're not the same quality as Monster's, I feel quite comfortable getting one and having nine backups on hand, for the same price.
"Ladies and gentlemen, my killbot features Lotus Notes and a machine gun. It is the finest available."
Personally, I've concluded that Best Buy has lost their focus on the customer and will soon go the way of dinosaurs. The only thing that is keeping them going is demand for high priced ticket items. With gas prices rising, and inflation on the rise, this could change and could very well dink BB.
My observations/thoughts:
a) I learned from a friend of mine that the secret shoppers they hire are instructed to "buy candy and get a receipt". How in the world does buying candy from BB evaluate a retail organization whose primary market is electronics? I realize buying a $2000 tv is expensive for mystery shoppers. However buying candy doesn't accurately measure them either.
b) At the BB closest to me, I cannot buy a tube TV anymore. They do not stock them. Everything is LCD/Plasma. Those are great items to have but not everyone can afford $1000 or more for a TV. Heck I wouldn't want to put that kinda TV in my kids rooms. So at that BB, people w/o the $ (or willingness to spend the $) for high item TV probably don't even shop there.
c) Sales of computer hardware and software, movies and music simply do not have the margins to sustain them. Music (and increasingly movies) are being bought via electronic channels (aka iTunes etc...).
d) downright aweful customer service included (especially) Geek Squad
These things just makes me think they (aka CEOs and BOD) have just lost touch with how to run a good electronics retailer. Patronizing BB isn't going to help them or hurt them IMO. They are already on the path of failure.
I had a job for about two months at a best buy. the only questions they asked me when they were interview me was: 1. If i hit print on a word doc and the printer isnt printing how would you solve this? and then the best buy question of the year: 2. Tell me how to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich step by step like i dont know how to make one... i think that is a reason why the people that work there are so bad.. all they know how to do is make PB&J sandwiches ;) lol
I ended up quiting to go back to web design :)
> if a tech can't fix the machine without reinstalling the OS [...] then the problem is with that tech's skill level
okay, genius, here's a scenario from you from last week at my work.
customer computer comes in, bluescreens on boot.
"The registry cannot load the hive (file):
or its log or alternate.
It is corrupt, absent, or not writable."
bluescreens on boot to safe mode.
boots fine to knoppix, all devices work, hard drive is readable.
chunks of the registry all over C:\found.000
repair install failed.
what would you do?
i could have run manufacturer's drive scan on it, made sure the hard drive was good, pulled off the data via knoppix and ftp, and reformat/reinstalled.
i could have pulled a new hard drive from inventory and rebuilt on that.
(either way, it cost her more than buying a new computer the INSTANT the old one broke and just having me do data transfer and reconfigure.)
do you have a third option for me?
if the answer isn't violence, neither is your silence / freedom of expression doesn't make it alright
Geek Squad is really a company that is run by people that know how to "market" an idea and form relationships with large companies, like Best Buy. It has yet to be proven if they can actually sustain the company and make money in the long term. So, don't lose any sleep over them.
Geek Squad's leaders know the biggest problem is where to find network engineers or computer guys that can actually do the work they are oferring and get it right most of the time without wiping out a customer's system. I've never seen or read their service agreement, but I'd be willing to bet that someplace in there it says, "Customer is responsible for making and keeping a backup of the contents of all information stored on the computer..." so that when the geek-tech wipes out your Quicken database with five years of history, they say, "...it's your own fault! and 'No Refund'"
The bottom line is, who do you think they are actually hiring? It's the guys who went to Dr. PC Professor's DVD-based Crash Course in computer technology, make $75K per year courses you hear about on the radio all the time. These are the guys, who in high school learned how to fdisk and format a hard-drive on their own, and were considered future "Bill Gates" or "Steve Wozniack" geniuses by their PC illerate parents and teachers. And, they are too lazy to get a college degree in IT, so they borrow $12,000 or so and sign on the dotted line to get A+, or Network+ certified or maybe even paper-MCSE certified. The reality is that they graduate from Dr. PC Professor's DVD class with nothing more than a sheet of paper and a new student loan payment of $350 per month for the next 10 years and some friends ready to cash in and make it big with their new-found cerification.
Then, they get a reality check/reconcilation with a person at the school they just "graduated" from who says, "...You are among a select group of 100,000 IT experts who just graudated today!!! And we are here today to help you get a job anywhere in this wonderful field of computers 'if you are willing to do what we say'".
Basically, they are telling them they qualify for the worst entry level positions out there for whatever minimum wage + 10% is in their respective states. So, Geek Squad comes along and partners with these schools and says, "how many [sheep] do you have for us today?". And they hire these guys without even meeting with them.
Then, Geek Squad sends out their "Master Geek" to train the new recruits on how to get a customer to sign an agreement, and process their credit card payment in such a way that they will never need to refund them their money. The last thing they try to do is teach them how to memorize a list of things you should never do on a customer's computer: fdisk, format, deltree, del, ren, xcopy, copy, never touch anything in c:\ and below, do not use regedit or regedt32, and no right-clicking anything, etc. And, when you answer the customer, always use the words "...it should...", "...I can try...", "...it is supposed to...", and lastly, "...the manufacturer says..." instead of anything else they might make the customer think they will be able to solve their problem.
Now their recruit is taught how to dress, shake hands, smile and get their geek mobile washed. Oh, and we can't forget how to put gas in it either. And, "don't break any traffic rules too."
So, if you wonder why us guys at $125 per hour network engineers (take home pay) are booked for five days in advance, with multiple college degrees, with more than 15 years of experience on at least two platforms, live in million dollar gated communities, can work anywhere in the world on any project, own four cars and don't mind paying our $900 Mobil Gas Credit card bills with the cash we carry or keep in the vault at home, then you'll know why we laugh when the "Geek Mobil" is next to us at the traffic light.
Long story short, they teach you nothing. As a guy just out of college it was a great 14$/hr job when I could not get my foot in any software company's door. I know I helped out a lot of people and there were two other guys who knew what they were doing and what needed to be done to systems. I was only there for 3 months but in that time the two other smart guys who had been there a while quickly became the onsite techs. If you were new or knew nothing you were left in the store. The onsite guys never worked inside the store at all. So people who know what is up quickly become the guys that cost $150+ just to get them out to your house.
I do a lot of computer repair in my spare time - four days a week in addition to my regular job - and every time I encounter a computer that was "repaired" by the Geek Squad, their work never ceases to underwhelm me. As far as I can tell, Best Buy bought the Geeks on Call franchise and turned it into their own personal commercial army; all I've ever seen the Geek Squad do is overcharge, sell Norton Internet Security (which doesn't even work very well) to home users who didn't need it, and give out incorrect information to clients who don't know better. Someone at a Best Buy store even tried to convince one of my clients that a computer with 256 MB of RAM wouldn't be able to handle DSL; whether he was deliberately lying or just horribly trained, I don't know.
I run a similar style company called Dial-A-Geek (Shut up, when I made the name I thought I was being original...) based in British Columbia Canada. We provide in home and on site computer support. What do my techs do? Exactly the same sort of stuff the normal /.er does in the course of their day. I'm not hired by /.'ers I hire them, assuming they can check their ego at the door.
Honestly, as was already pointed out, basic troubleshooting is necessary for a large segment of the population. Could most people do the reinstalls, upgrades, repairs, virus scans and other tasks that we perform? Sure, but they'd prefer to have a professional do it we have the experience and the tools to ensure backups are performed can find things like drivers quickly. It's not rocket science, but experience makes it quicker and less painful. Just like (oh god incoming car analogy) I could spend my Saturday changing the fluids in my car I'd rather let a mechanic do it.
The reality is that a lot of people are still not very computer savvy and (here's the important point) not interested in becoming savvy. They find our job boring and would rather never think about computer repair and maintenance. They'd rather do the things they enjoy in life. I'm overhearing the conversations of a couple of our frontline people right now. Want to know what they're saying?
"Yes ma'am a reinstall is like resetting your computer back to the day you bought it. Well we save your data, but applications would have to be reinstalled. Like Office. Like Word. Like that blue W you press when you want to type. No it doesn't come with Windows. Yes I'm sure, unless there was a restore CD. A disk that came with your computer, or it would've ask you to burn one when you bought it. You don't remember? Not a problem our technician can look for it when he arrives."
and on and on.
Ok...
Slashdot has completely distorted your perception of reality. I'm 22 years old. I can round up 10 early-20-somethings and 10 early-60-somethings. Their knowledge of UNIX will be roughly the same. I promise you; kids/students my age have no idea what the fuck's UNIX. It's impressive when they've heard of Linux.
I got rid of Windows on my sister's computer and replaced it with Linux. She is happily chugging along and I no longer have to make Geek Squad like repairs (i.e. spend 2 hours running Ad-Aware and Spybot, because scheduling them to run never quite works right...). Linux simply works for her, not becuase it's Linux but a proper solution for her. Over half of her friends actively question why she would use Firefox. And her family friends... they don't have a fucking clue how to use her computer, because it's "Linux"... they're just to stupid to realize it's the same point and click interface (well, KDE's running) and it would take them 10 minutes to pick up the different interface. My sister learned KDE without any training from me. She just got it. Only questions she's asked me is "How do I sync my iPod?" but nothing along the lines of "How do I type a paper...". These are 18 year olds...
Yeah, no fucking way 20-somethings "know" UNIX.
Boycott Sony
I used to work for Best Buy years ago for about 2 months. The truth.
1.) BestBuy does not care about the main system sales. Printers, Computers, etc don't make Best Buy big profits. The numbers they cared about and crammed down the sales people's throats was add-ons. The printers don't come with printer cables. So ofcourse it's our job to sell them the biggest baddest usb cable possible. While your add it, remember the ink cartridge doesn't come 100% full when you buy a printer, they come 50 - 75% full. Paper, remember to take home a box of printer paper. Don't forget about the extended warrenty. I was filling in for a sales guy (i was not typically sales) in the computer section and got chewed out for not selling them an upgrade in RAM, the computer was a top of the line box there already maxed out by the motherboard specs that I looked up before making any suggestions. They wouldn't listen, all they know is they are to sell upgrades, even if it technically isn't possible.
2.) Sales people at Best Buy know 0% about what they are talking about, they recieve no training. It's just a matter of what they put down on their resume. If computers is mentioned they sell computer, if listening to music is a hobby, their in the media section. Watch TV, well you know where they go.
3.) GeekSquad, although is a new thing, is marketting, only marketting, nothing backing it up, other then the same A+ cert guy able to stick in a card in a motherboard and hope windows detects it. Remember Geek is Chic now, and BestBuy wants to look chic.
Jeesh, I had no idea.
Sounds like I'm raising my fees for PC repair.
-------- -------- Support Wesley Clark for president!!!