Complaint Review: Geek Squad - Carmel Indiana
- Geek Squad http://www.geeksquad.com/ Carmel, Indiana U.S.A.
- Phone: 317-334-1896
- Web:
- Category: Computer Service & Repair
Geek Squad AKA Best Buy Previous employee thinks Geek Squad are crooks. Unsafe data practices and lying to customers! Carmel Indiana
*UPDATE Employee: It depends on where the Geek Work
*REBUTTAL Individual responds: Geek Squad is a JOKE!
*Consumer Comment: Cookie Cutter maintenance.
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I have worked for Geek Squad for over 6 months and I have been a computer technician for over 7 years. I thought the interview would be easy since I am a certified technician and from what they advertise they are the best of the best of computer repair. Instead, the interview was honed in on my sales experience. They did not seem to care much about my computer knowledge and stated that most of their employees didn't even hold a A+ certification (A+ is a very basic computer certification, you can't be hired for just about any IT job without one).
Training was computer based and after the usual safety training and the like it shifted into selling strategies. We learned how to label every customer based on 5 groups from "Empty Nesters" to "Middle America". In each group they broke it down into gender giving the gender a name based on which group their in. Jill would be the "Middle America" woman who managed the finances of the family and so on.
We were trained to use social engineering to probe prospective buyers, to be able to classify them into a "customer segment" and to deploy selling tactics which were predetermined to their group. This whole time we had meetings every morning which I can only describe as brainwashing in which the store management would pound into our heads the company values and how our manipulation of customers was for the good of everyone. Because after all, the customer has all these "unknown needs" meaning we need to try to sell them all the accessories and add ons we can. Examples would be us suggesting buying the $200 6 ft. cable because they NEED it when they don't really need the cable at all or it can be bought somewhere else for $10.
Suggesting evidence is that the retailer barely makes any profit on the electronics they sell such as computers because the price is predetermined by the manufacturer. The store makes its money on accessories and services such as Geek Squad which is about trying to fix computers, right?
Well no, not really. Technicians aren't allowed to do any sort of actual repair themselves. We have this CD which contains the only tools we are allowed to use. Just about everything on this CD is programs and fixes which anyone can do themselves at home (and even for free). They have mastered the art of automation to a point where many $199 computer repairs and new computer installs are done with one click and if the computer can't "fix itself" we will suggest a new computer or say it can't be fixed.
Most of the computer work is outsourced to India. How? We have a area where we hook up computers and install this remote desktop software. We let it sit and one of the many hundreds of overseas computer technicians that Best Buy contracts through a company "repairs" your PC with no supervision of us at all. This means any data that is on your computer can be taken by a anonymous person overseas without any knowledge of Geek Squad which from my personal inspection, has happened before at least to one customer.
Added to the data security, when we do a backup it is placed on a computer in back that is unsecured and we keep your data until we can get around to deleting it which may be years later. I can only imagine how simple it would be for someone to burn of a few dvds of customers financial information and take it home.
Any sort of hardware repair (the actual computer) gets shipped to a place in Minnesota. We can't do any sort of repair to hardware ourselves other than power supplies, RAM, and very rarely hard drives. This makes us, the people the customers trust, not able to guarantee anything relating to their computer when it gets shipped off because we can't oversee their computer getting fixed correctly. This makes the repair process take at least 3 weeks and in some cases, months when I know that if I was allowed to do the repair, would take 30 minutes in most cases.
All in all, Geek Squad isn't about fixing much of anything. Our job is to move product at Best Buy, even at customer cost.
Rockerrock
Frankfort, Indiana
U.S.A.
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This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 05/15/2008 09:56 AM and is a permanent record located here: https://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/geek-squad/carmel-indiana-46041/geek-squad-aka-best-buy-previous-employee-thinks-geek-squad-are-crooks-unsafe-data-practi-332657. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year. Ripoff Report has an exclusive license to this report. It may not be copied without the written permission of Ripoff Report. READ: Foreign websites steal our content
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#3 UPDATE Employee
It depends on where the Geek Work
AUTHOR: Jocko - (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Wednesday, June 11, 2008
As a former employee of the Geek Sqd/Best Buy this is a one sided report, as many are. This is how the Geek Sqd works or used to work a year ago. Right after katrina I was hired as a Special Agent for the Geek Sqd and I was the only one in the State and I supported all South Ms, La and parts of Southern Ala. In my position you had to have verifiable Microsoft Certifications and A+ or a BS and also be certified in Misrosoft Small Business Server. Best Buy started a program called Best Buy for Business and they hired many (around 50) Special Agents nation wide to support this new program. But after 6 months they started getting rid of us because of the expense of high end techs in the low profitable areas. I alsways met my numbers but company wide they got rid of people. I was let go because of too many absences and I did file a claim with Workers Comp and Best Buy Settled out of Court to close my case. It is very true that the guys behind the counter can not do anything but install anti-virus, anti spyware, or assist in teaching the customer how to use their new computer. The Techs that run the the VW are supposed to be the certified techs and basically all they do is install simple networks and add a additional hard drive or ram. All warranty work in our area is done in Ky at the depot because the vender requires this, the vender being HP, Gateway etc.... I have been a Microsoft partner since 1998 and got my first industry certification prior to that. When I got my A+ I tested Windows 3.1 and have since then tested on every Microsoft OS. I am currently enrolled in college to finish my BS in Computer Science. For those who feel you do not need a certification to work in this industry, you are dead wrong. In the 90's it was OK but way too many people wasted too much time and warranty money trying to repair PC's when that simple test would have shown you exactly what you do not know. While I do agree that a test is not proof of what a person knows or does not know; it is something this industry requires and without a certification (even a simple A+ certification which by the way is two complete tests, software and hardware) that limits what you can do in this industry. No warranty work, and every vendor out there requires that you at the very least has A+ and pass their Warranty Verification Exams. I am warranty certified by Compaq, HP, Dell, Netgear, Sonicwall, and Quickbooks. One thing I did not agree with when I worked at Best Buy was that I was also required to sell anything the business owner might require to include furniture. I had many reasons to leave but I also enjoyed the fact that I was a member of the Geek Sqd on my level; too bad they had tied the hands of all techs to include mine and would rather I sell a chair than fix a server.... A job I was originally told was my primary responsibility...
#2 REBUTTAL Individual responds
Geek Squad is a JOKE!
AUTHOR: Chuan K - (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Saturday, June 07, 2008
Do want hear another joke!!!! I have got back ,From Best buy/Geek Squad, I am computer techincian, my self, for 10+ years, w/A+ certicate, I went in and bought, an demo computer, from the self, and the computer work great!,,,So the sales person, point out, this computer was the amoung the fastest computer this low cheap price of $550 buxcs. This good for Quad Dual Core, intel computer. So, everything was great, until, they said, I couldn't take the computer out, yet. Geek Squad has to delete their software off the hard drive, first, before the computer leaves the store.
This , was on Friday, I had explain, to them, I was going re-format the hard drive, and my own os software, and put ,my programs. So, problems esculated, that Best had their polices, etc.
Saturday afternoon,
So, Geek Squad, did not, do any of the work, on this system. They lost the paper work, on this system. So, they finally, got on my system, and so how, they broke it? My computer dosn't work anymore. So, the store manager, refunded me, the money back on credit card.
This Computer work! on the self, I was playing around with, for long time., This system was fast. this was intel quad core computer. Now, Geek Squad, got to it. This system just worthless big paper wieght, piece of junk.
C K
#1 Consumer Comment
Cookie Cutter maintenance.
AUTHOR: Robert - (U.S.A.)
SUBMITTED: Thursday, May 15, 2008
""most of their employees didn't even hold a A+ certification (A+ is a very basic computer certification, you can't be hired for just about any IT job without one).""
IMO, A+ certification isn't all that much or required-it's EXTREMELY BASIC computer orientation stuff and about the Windows OS. I've done just fine in the computer business since 1972 (started on main frames) without any such certification, but plenty of schooling. An AAS in computer repair is worth more than A+ certification. I've seen a textbook for A+ used locally (community college) and was surprised at the amount of ERRORS in the text. The book doesn't even address the proper use of a dc voltmeter.
IF you wish to be a true IT Manager, you'll need either vast experience as we old timers have or your going to need a BS degree in computer science.
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