Apple has built an empire selling fantasy, being cool and hip, this move simply continues the tradition.
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Apple Introduces Major Retail Changes, Including New Pro-Level Positions and Credo
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The real issue at hand here was that you originally thought that the newly created position had more responsibly that then Genius position, and therefore deserved the same pay.
When corrected on that, you then said that because the newly created position is doing "repairs", it therefore deserved the same pay that Geniuses get.
When it was pointed out that the newly created position only repairs a subset of what the Geniuses repair (and thus it didn't really make any sort of sense to pay the two positions the same, because who would want the Genius position when they could get the clearly easier newly created position for the same salary), you then said "make anyone who repairs anything a full Genius", as if the mix of customers coming to the Genius Bar with problems were there for 50% mobile issues, 50% Mac issues. Which they aren't.
The number of people visiting the Genius Bar for mobile repairs > Mac repairs. IMO, the newly created position speaks exactly to that.
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The whole "stage" thing isn't an Apple exclusive. Target uses the term "on stage" to refer to being out on the sales floor with the customers, and their empire isn't built on selling fantasy, etc.
This change in titles might be interesting to employees but probably not customers. Moreover, I would expect most customers to be either unaware of the titles or unable/unwilling to decode what skills correspond to a specific title.
No, the real issue here is Apple doesn't want to pay its Geniuses to do some types of repairs, so it has created a lower classification with lower pay for employers to do those repairs. It's taking work away from Geniuses and getting lower paid staff to do the work. It's very clear what is occurring here.
Exactly. We were enthusiasts when it came to the products and actual users when it came to the professional software. I was a professional video editor so I dealt with a lot of pro-level customers and would help them navigate their storage and workflow solutions. Our geniuses were the best and would never let the crap you dealt with fly. Now it's such a robotic, assembly-line atmosphere. I actually hate going into those stores now.
If Geniuses have been slow with Mac repairs because they've been overwhelmed by mobile repairs (something I don't think many who have had a Mac serviced at the Genius Bar lately will disagree with), it makes absolute sense to take the mobile repair work away for them, and give it to a less-technical position that only deals with that type of repair work. Then the Geniuses can focus on Mac repairs and reduce the turn-around times.
It'd probably boggle your mind to know that when most Apple Stores get too far behind in Mac repairs, the store sends the excess Macs to a third-party repair depot, where the repair is done by someone who undoubtedly makes less than what Apple pays the Genius.
So if Apple were looking to save money by reducing the quantity of Geniuses in-store (which seems to be your thesis), Apple could have done that years ago (by using the repair depot more), without having bothered to create a new in-store position that will offer an advancement opportunity (and more pay) that doesn't exist now for store employees.
After reading that corporate statement, my reaction was, as the British say, 'bless their cotton socks'.
Macs and iPhones are just as technical. Open them both up to reveal the shared complexity of each.
If more Geniuses are needed for mobile repairs, then hire more Geniuses. Simple. The only reason to split the positions up is to save on paying for Geniuses. Penny pinching Apple is at work here.
Are you seriously questioning it? If so, describe why my question is on point or completely absurd.
lol I love this so much.
Thanks! Hope everyone is having a great start to the week.
They're new positions, they're not assigning more work to existing employees unless they want it. It's not a chant, it's a filter through which every day problems can be solved and it's incredibly useful
This stinks of Angela Ahrendts. There will be a catwalk up the middle of the stores soon
One can only hope!
Customer: My iMessage keeps freeze up
Apple Greeter: Please stand right here, a Check-in Pro will assist you.
Apple Check-in Pro: I hear that you're having problems with iMessage. An iMessage Pro, technician will assist you, shortly if you sit right here.
Apple Greeter: Please stand right here, a Check-in Pro will assist you.
Apple Check-in Pro: I hear that you're having problems with iMessage. An iMessage Pro, technician will assist you, shortly if you sit right here.
As one who used to manage the so called Specialists and all the other overrated titles Apple made up to make the poorly treated employees feel special, I can tell you that when the store leader says, "I don't know this guy... put him on wall duty and have him come spend 15min in time out to learn and recite the credo in his break!"... reading this now, makes me sick. Apple looks incredible for most on the outside, but I swear, it is a special kind of hell to work at this overrated company. Anyone who's been working for Apple since Steve and a few years after his passed, can say exactly the same thing... Apple is sinking... It's seriously lost its way and this failed attempt to look important to the elite customers by applying Pro to everything is so pathetic. The Pro term at Apple is tossed around internally a little too loosely... Truth is, Pro isn't giving you more, it is just giving you a different form factor with visually different attributes. Does anyone remember who worked at Apple that when we were shown in house demos of iPhone 4S, Siri also worked fine on the iPhone 4. Then marketing realised they needed something new and exciting, since SPEED was already taken now S will stand for Siri, what a great way to lure people in and let's overclock the processors and do minor updates. Basically Apple is nothing more than smoke and mirrors, fancy marketing and overly weak products for their price range. I write this and I realise how I enjoyed my first two years at Apple, what a joy it was to work with people, to meet new and exciting creatives and building the history within the Retail history. It felt like we actually did something good, numbers weren't what was pushing the concept for us, it was the customer experience and we did it well. But then, things changed, and with Tim Cook, everything changed...
All of this is upper management trickery to keep the employees happy. You who haven't worked for Apple won't ever know how much the common employee would do and sacrifice for a title that means nothing at all. They are tossed around sometimes to keep the good workers quiet and content. They often take away their titles too to punish them and then give it back if they feel you are loyal to the cult. A lot of brain games were taught to us, neural linguistics and how to get what we want... "Does that make sense?"
I suppose this is more to those who were once on the inside, not so much to those who weren't... Not all had bad experiences, but those who were there in a higher positions throughout the years, moved from store to store for observation and management... yeah... we saw thins differently. It's a crime what they made us do to our employees.
All of this is upper management trickery to keep the employees happy. You who haven't worked for Apple won't ever know how much the common employee would do and sacrifice for a title that means nothing at all. They are tossed around sometimes to keep the good workers quiet and content. They often take away their titles too to punish them and then give it back if they feel you are loyal to the cult. A lot of brain games were taught to us, neural linguistics and how to get what we want... "Does that make sense?"
I suppose this is more to those who were once on the inside, not so much to those who weren't... Not all had bad experiences, but those who were there in a higher positions throughout the years, moved from store to store for observation and management... yeah... we saw thins differently. It's a crime what they made us do to our employees.
Somebody in the diversity department screwed up.
I can see two male Caucasians in the background of that photo.
I can see two male Caucasians in the background of that photo.
I for one want to believe that they believe in their credo. It's not their fault that not everyone can live up to those standards, or keep up the passion year after year. It's just natural. That doesn't mean aiming for big goals is a bad thing, though. Though I know idealism is unrealistic, I can't help but try to believe.
A true Genius position?????? You mean like the one that already exists??????
Spoiler Alert The Genius position is a retail job!
That's not true, where do you see a decline in demand for Mac technicians??? If anything, there should be an increase as of late. Many more big corporations are replacing old PCs with Macs.
This is very true. Apples goal is most likely to be able to do more same day Mac repairs like they do for iPhones. With the genius teams freed up they can easily accomplish this for simple repairs that do not require triage of the issue or longer diagnostics afterwards that verify the issues are resolved.
Liquid damage is not covered under warranty. They are trained to look for these glaring issues before giving options. There's no point in troubleshooting or repairing a liquid damaged phone. Liquid damage is catastrophic.
That is why you should have paid the service fee for your Applecare or an out of warranty replacement. Dont blame others for not being able to keep your phone from liquid.
You didn't ask a question. You made a statement about both iPhone and Macs being equally "technical", as if that opinion somehow made the repairability of both devices equal.
Apple Stores do limited mobile repairs in the store. iPhones can get the camera module swapped out. iPhones can get their screens replaced. I think about the only thing they'll do on an iPad is clean out the charging port. Just about everything else is accomplished by giving the customer a replacement unit. Probably spend more time generating the paperwork and getting the proper signatures than doing the actual swap. This is is wasted time for Geniuses, IMO.
If you bring in an Mac that needs a repair, you're 99% guaranteed that it's going to get repaired vs. you getting a service replacement. This is where a Genius can spend hours on a single Mac repair, from diagnosing it, taking it apart, making the fix, bench testing the repair, and putting it all back together again.
Just because the word "repair" can be used to describe what happens to both mobile devices and Macs doesn't mean the in-store experiences (or the skill sets to accomplish them) are anywhere near the same. Despite them all being "technical" devices.
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I would be, but sometimes, change is not an option, for various reasons.