Apple to Eliminate Several Business and Event-Related Retail Positions

[itsmikeo]

Businesses exist to make profits. If they can't make a profit then they won't exist. Then the company won't be employing any people.

Maybe if they focused on making the products work seamlessly together again, simplified the product lineup (you don’t need 4 generations of a phone available in 15 colors), and refocused on making it a place of community again, the brand would be the "caviar" it once was.

As it stands now, as a former employee there of almost a decade that was around for her hire, she had been promoting her vision as diving better into the community involvement but everything she has been implementing has been a complete 180 from that.

 

[haskell five]

Anyone who actually had to work with the business retail team knows this is probably a good move and a long time coming. What is the point of having a business position if that person is unable to do anything for businesses? With Apple's no-negotiation policies and their by the books attitude this position was set up for failure:


Want 1 backorder iPhone for that big demo coming up? "I'll talk to my folks, you guys are awesome and thanks for the million dollars of sales every year... but I'll need you to actually come in at 4am on shipment day and wait like everyone else."

How about activation locks removed from those corporate iOS devices? "We definately understand your concern - thanks for spending over a week compiling all the purchasing records for the devices like we asked, unfortunately the receipts aren't the exact format corporate demands so you're SOL. Again, thanks for the millions of dollars of sales."

What about all those iPhone 6's you bought that are getting touch disease barely a year after deployment? "We definately understand, thanks for the millions of dollars of sales. But those employees need to move to a less humid place so not our problem. We will definately take your money to repair them though."

And then the follow up phone calls - "Why aren't you guys answering our phone calls? I thought we where partners!?

Good riddance, unfortunately

 

[itsmikeo]

Anyone who actually had to work with the business retail team knows this is probably a good move and a long time coming. What is the point of having a business position if that person is unable to do anything for businesses? With Apple's no-negotiation policies and their by the books attitude this position was set up for failure:


Want 1 backorder iPhone for that big demo coming up? "I'll talk to my folks, you guys are awesome and thanks for the million dollars of sales every year... but I'll need you to actually come in at 4am on shipment day and wait like everyone else."

How about activation locks removed from those corporate iOS devices? "We definately understand your concern - thanks for spending over a week compiling all the purchasing records for the devices like we asked, unfortunately the receipts aren't the exact format corporate demands so you're SOL. Again, thanks for the millions of dollars of sales."

What about all those iPhone 6's you bought that are getting touch disease barely a year after deployment? "We definately understand, thanks for the millions of dollars of sales. But those employees need to move to a less humid place so not our problem. We will definately take your money to repair them though."

And then the follow up phone calls - "Why aren't you guys answering our phone calls? I thought we where partners!?

Good riddance, unfortunately

1) Definitely*

2) You're absolutely right about the business team part. But losing the Community Events thing I think is a terrible move. They should be finding ways to invite MORE people into the stores, not keeping people away.

 

[Mac Spec]

1) Definitely*

2) You're absolutely right about the business team part. But losing the Community Events thing I think is a terrible move. They should be finding ways to invite MORE people into the stores, not keeping people away.

Watch for "Today at Apple" events coming soon.

 

[Deuce on the Clock]

That's what I remember hearing before I left. iMacs were being piloted for depot as well as others. It's just a matter of time before even the Genius role itself is replaced by "Technical Expert," which is sad considering the title Genius is one of the first job titles a person thinks of with Apple.

I left after 14 years. Lead roles are soon to go away and youre spot on about the other roles.
[doublepost=1490988546][/doublepost]

Watch for "Today at Apple" events coming soon.

That will be a generic promo they will use soon
[doublepost=1490988603][/doublepost]

1) Definitely*

2) You're absolutely right about the business team part. But losing the Community Events thing I think is a terrible move. They should be finding ways to invite MORE people into the stores, not keeping people away.

The goal is to have less employees at retail stores and push online strategy. So they really want less traffic.

 

[Bryan Bowler]

Why did Apple go from great to suck in 3-4 years? I think we all know why.

Way to go Timmy.

 

[britboyj]

This is in NYC at a flag

The fact that you don't immediately acknowledge that your experience isn't the norm (you're pretty wishy-washy about it later on) speaks volumes.

I also left out the other detail - I went from the retail business team to AOS SMB sales for three years. I know both sides of it.

 

[joshuaadunn]

Mac Rumors sucks donkey ballz

 

[ackmondual]

"This comes as a rude awakening to employees who have always felt Apple has had their best interest," said the source.

If one feels their employer (any employer) has their best interests at the forefront of every decision the company makes, they are sorely mistaken. No company will continue to spend money where it’s not receiving a return of some sort. And for reasons that are beyond most all of our knowledge, Apple believes these positions are not providing an adequate return.

QFT. I don't know if eliminating these positions will prove to be good or bad (given arguments I've seen from both sides in this thread), but this is something that employees should never believe in.
[doublepost=1490997444][/doublepost]

Is 2 months severance pay normal? I thought it was based on length of employment at the organisation and not necessarily in the same position as companies change those too often

That's what I've been hearing. For office jobs, 1 week per year worked. For utility companies like Verizon, 1 month per year worked, as a couple of examples.

 

[Mac Spec]

I left after 14 years. Lead roles are soon to go away and youre spot on about the other roles.
[doublepost=1490988546][/doublepost]
That will be a generic promo they will use soon
[doublepost=1490988603][/doublepost]
The goal is to have less employees at retail stores and push online strategy. So they really want less traffic.

Hi, you write as if you have some inside knowledge. I disagree that the goal is to have less employees. I think Apple feels that the experience of the store being a great communal experience is ruined by crowds waiting for service at the Genius Bar and crowds waiting for new products. Seems like the newest changes (and those to come) will aim to lighten the service traffic at the store and raise the fun, friendly community feel.
[doublepost=1490999232][/doublepost]Insider Here
If people heard how much managers discuss customer satisfaction, their journey through the store, and their acknowledgment of a great experience, they would think about Apple Retail in a different way. If anyone recalls that "Reinventing Retail" was the first motto of the stores, they would understand that that reinvention is ongoing today, with adjustments in big and small ways coming constantly, sometimes with little consideration of current staff, but with laser beam focus on not letting things stagnate.

 

[petsounds]

I'm not a big corporate customer, but the Business team has been helpful to me in the past. I don't know what Angela's strategy is with this, but I can only assume that supporting small businesses are no longer a priority for her or Apple and they wish to reduce costs.

 

[Deuce on the Clock]

Hi, you write as if you have some inside knowledge. I disagree that the goal is to have less employees. I think Apple feels that the experience of the store being a great communal experience is ruined by crowds waiting for service at the Genius Bar and crowds waiting for new products. Seems like the newest changes (and those to come) will aim to lighten the service traffic at the store and raise the fun, friendly community feel.
[doublepost=1490999232][/doublepost]Insider Here
If people heard how much managers discuss customer satisfaction, their journey through the store, and their acknowledgment of a great experience, they would think about Apple Retail in a different way. If anyone recalls that "Reinventing Retail" was the first motto of the stores, they would understand that that reinvention is ongoing today, with adjustments in big and small ways coming constantly, sometimes with little consideration of current staff, but with laser beam focus on not letting things stagnate.

Less genius traffic, less lines for launches will equal the need for less employees. It makes business sense. They are in the process of consolidating roles and have been cross training all specialist on all roles for quite a long time now. It makes business sense. You're right, they are reinventing retail because consumer shopping is going online more and more. Apple isn't the only company doing this strategy. I can see how goal could sound contrite. Maybe I should have said that will be one of the results from the new strategy. I haven't agreed with many Angela moves but this is a good move and its been in the works since she came on and got settled. It will be interesting to see the final result and see how its evolved since retail opened in 2001. The employees being consolidated might not like it but its a good move for Apple retail. And yes, i worked there for 14 years and saw the changes and still have many friends and contacts at all levels there.

 

[SpinThis!]

If anyone recalls that "Reinventing Retail" was the first motto of the stores, they would understand that that reinvention is ongoing today… with laser beam focus on not letting things stagnate.

Stagnate you say? Kind of like the Mac Pro eh?

 

[AlLee]

More evidence of Apple exiting the pro and business arena.

Groundless statement.

 

[960design]

A rewarding work environment and culture along with a bottom line oriented mindset are not mutually exclusive.

Agreed.

Giving back by wasting money with unnecessary hires is not a viable long term strategy.

Here, we disagree on operationalization of new hires and concept of 'wasting money'. Possibly due to edge case scenarios, where I would agree with you. But most understood that keeping a few hundred business managers is far from edge case for Apple ( ~$47B in profit - 2016 ).

My case was within a corporation's means, give back vital experience to grow a larger group with income to spend on its products.

 

[ocifersven]

Mac Rumors sucks donkey ballz

Nice try Timmy boy. ...Nice try!

 

[MacBH928]

For no reason, yes I believe it is however these positions are being eliminated thus this is a redundancy for which those employees are being offered 2 months salary (pathetic IMO) or the ability to switch roles (again pathetic as it's to lower paid roles).

well then if you want to fire someone you can just let him go because you are "downsizing" and two months down the line business is growing and you are expanding again...and hire someone else

 

[djjaes]

Businesses exist to make profits. If they can't make a profit then they won't exist. Then the company won't be employing any people.

True, but when a conservative company or person does this, it's fangs to bear as that person/company is somehow not inclined to think the same.

For one, I agree, changes often mean some jobs are cut while others are created. It's called Capitalism and although I love Apple products and they seem bend on socialism in some sort or another (see Venezuela to see how that works out), it's this flow to business that keeps them, or another business afloat.

 

[AsherN]

well then if you want to fire someone you can just let him go because you are "downsizing" and two months down the line business is growing and you are expanding again...and hire someone else

Not quite. Downsizing involves more than one employee. That's usually under eliminating the position. But also, if the position is then re-created, depending on the time frame, there is room to sue. At least in the employee friendly jurisdictions outside the US.

 

[Zandery]

well then if you want to fire someone you can just let him go because you are "downsizing" and two months down the line business is growing and you are expanding again...and hire someone else

I don't know how it works in the US but in the UK, if a company eliminates the position and then 2 months later rehires someone for the same title/role, the company can be sued by the ex-employee.

 

[TonyRS]

It is amazing that this comment has been largely ignored thus far. It is the only one that provides insight from someone with actual experience in the affected area and potentially explains some of the logic behind the changes.

It is fairly apparent that many commenting do not have direct leadership or business operations experience. Every time Apple makes a decision people fly off of the handle and immediately proclaim it the worst decision ever. The problem is that none of the commenters have access to any of the intel, facts, or data that lead to such decisions. If you think they're just swinging axes because they felt like it, you're extremely mistaken. Feel free to disagree with decisions, but lets not pretend that these aren't carefully considered and fact-driven.

The usefulness of the Business Team really depended on which store they were working out of. In some cities, the teams provided some real value to some larger and well-known companies. In suburban mall stores, paying someone $80K a year to pretend to do B2B sales doesn't make sense. The whole Retail Business strategy was never focused, so it makes sense that it's falling apart/being slimmed down right now.

Looking at the Mac product line in general does give the impression that Apple is not seriously interested in gaining more market share outside of the consumer space. One can only hope that Apple is working on another processor change or something else to justify the laughable delay in Mac updates. Once we see what finally comes out of Cupertino in the desktop line, the strategy will be clear.

If we don't get anything worthwhile, then Apple should just change their name to iPhone, Inc.

 

[jonnysods]

What a stupid move to kill off the Business Manager position.

Our organization has a great relationship with the business manager at the Apple Store in the city. Wonder if he's gone...

 

[Scrivener]

Article Link: Apple to Eliminate Several Business and Event-Related Retail Positions[/QUOTE]

"This comes as a rude awakening to employees who have always felt Apple has had their best interest."

You believe that, I've got this whacking great bridge across Sydney Harbour I'd like to sell you.

Ho! Ho! Ho!

 

[occluded]

The fact that you don't immediately acknowledge that your experience isn't the norm (you're pretty wishy-washy about it later on) speaks volumes.

Hey buddy, I did acknowledge that my experience was not the norm. Contrarily you presumed your experience qualified you to say we were all overpaid. You're going to make that kind of absolutist broad generalization, and then gig me for not putting my objectivity soon enough (by some secret standard) in my post? And if it speaks volumes, then speak it. Example: Your implication says to me you want to throw shade, but don't know how to make it stick. And I'm not wishy-washy about the work I and my team did. I was illustrating that this change was a long time coming. I think when I joined they were still making an earnest attempt to reimagine B2B sales the way they did retail electronics. Now they're not, or want to try another way.

 

[dysamoria]

I don't know how it works in the US but in the UK, if a company eliminates the position and then 2 months later rehires someone for the same title/role, the company can be sued by the ex-employee.

In the USA, they often call that "seasonal temp", or, for the academic people, "adjunct faculty". There are lots of ways around it and much of it is unethical. I was once laid off from a design job, hired on at the same facility in a tech support call center, and then asked to repeatedly do more design work, without the benefits of the exempt position (which were blown off when i complained about this... let's see how the HR people feel when they have to punch a clock). After a while, the head of the call centers told HR to stop doing this to me because it was unethical. HR left me alone. She left the company, and then a few months later HR trumped up a reason to fire me.