Just Landed a Gig at Geek Squad as an Operations Agent

100k

Do it. The ARAs are the top Techs in the store. They dont deal with customers as much and the pay is good. You will get some very useful experience from that position.

WafflesAndRootbeer

stryder144 wrote: »

I work at both Geek Squad and a large Telco. At least at the store I work for, we are supposed to only offer what is needed. No upselling. Our GM wants our customers to know that we are honest and above board with them. That transparency goes a long way in building a long, trusting relationship. Unfortunately, not every store is run like that.

My store manager only cared about selling as much as they could get away with and we were written up if we failed to meet his expectations. It was pretty nasty. None of the managers I worked with are in the company any more so far as I know.

stryder144

Tremie24...go for it. You will get a lot of experience. They don't interact as much with customers, but you will still gain valuable customer support experience.

WafflesAndRootbeer...I have heard a lot of those types of stories. Heck, we have customers come from, literally, miles around, bypassing many other, closer BB stores. The biggest reason is that we try very hard to provide the correct type of service for the correct price. Unfortunately, many, many stories abound about how people get taken for needless services. I wish it weren't so, but it is. I'm just glad my store does things differently.

MagnumOpus

Another Update:
Life at Geek Squad is great. Since my arrival, I have two opportunities to advance my position from a Operations Agent ---> Consultant or Advanced Repair Agent. I took the position as a Consultant though I really wanted the ARA position. Turns out it was a good bet. Interacting with clients and fixing issues on the fly has given me a firmer understanding of Murphy's Law. I really like mowing over the details and nipping things in the bud before they arise, but I've found that the inevitable will happen and its best to keep a cool head when others are losing their religion. It's definitely been a great learning experience. As a consultant, I find my self tying up loose ends from the repairs, troubleshooting, and educating Clients. Honestly I love it, and from these interaction have led to great job leads. It's amazing how many small business owners I deal with on a daily basis. What also remains amazing is how many agents are petrified to speak to these clients. Overall, Geek Squad is a excellent way to prep yourself for the world of IT, and with a great attitude you can easily maneuver to any position on the floor (Thanks to a high TT). If this is paying your dues, I'm all for it.

About7Narwhal

Glad to hear something good has come from the job. The people and tech skills will pay dividends in the future. I think you will find that there are a fair amount of tech people who don't like interaction with end users. Generally they are socially awkward but others think they are wasting there time. DON'T BE LIKE THEM!

Being technically skilled and a proficient speaker is an art form that non-technical users appreciate. When they know they can talk to you and that you will give them answers in a way they will understand, it opens a lot of doors.

MagnumOpus

About7Narwhal wrote: »

Glad to hear something good has come from the job. The people and tech skills will pay dividends in the future. I think you will find that there are a fair amount of tech people who don't like interaction with end users. Generally they are socially awkward but others think they are wasting there time. DON'T BE LIKE THEM!

Being technically skilled and a proficient speaker is an art form that non-technical users appreciate. When they know they can talk to you and that you will give them answers in a way they will understand, it opens a lot of doors.

Thanks for the advice! I will be sure to keep it in motion.

ledywhite

Congratulations everybody has to start somewhere.

MagnumOpus

*Update*

Life is still good at GS! Five months strong and I'm beginning to get some solid job offers from other companies and as of recently a call from Verizon (Level 1 Technician position). Unfortunately, I wasn't able to meet their schedule interview time/deadlines due to my current schedule, so I'm pretty sure I will have to pass the position up. It sucks, and I hate it, but the scheduled interview time(s) were immediate (same day). I love the idea of working for Verizon, but it's pretty tough to drop everything for an interview within the next hour or two. But all in all, the experience and certs are paying dividends and the advice from the tech-exams community has been spot on.

Thanks again:D

P.S. Was recently accepted into the WGU program for IT Security. Again, couldn't have done it without you guys!

bull313

Congrats Magnum! I used to work for Best Buy and can vouch that you can get some excellent hands on experience from working in Geek Squad. This forum has also provided valuable resources and encouragement for me as well. LOTS of good people here

Danielm7

1-2 hours notice for an interview? I don't know how they'd get anyone that is currently employed to be able to interview with a schedule like that.

beaucaldwell

congrats on the gig! great stepping stone, and personally i think i would have rather worked for geek squad getting exposed to tons of different hardware types than being in a call center never putting the phone down for more than 15 seconds before getting that next call...

MagnumOpus

bull313 wrote: »

Congrats Magnum! I used to work for Best Buy and can vouch that you can get some excellent hands on experience from working in Geek Squad. This forum has also provided valuable resources and encouragement for me as well. LOTS of good people here

Thanks bull! And I couldn't agree more. Best of luck in your endeavors!

MagnumOpus

Danielm7 wrote: »

1-2 hours notice for an interview? I don't know how they'd get anyone that is currently employed to be able to interview with a schedule like that.

Yeah I really don't want to Trash talk the company, because I think it's a great company to work for. But management was pretty much strong- arming me to appearing to an interview within the next couple hours. Of course I was just leaving work, and there was no way I could make it through traffic and arrive at a decent time. I asked if I could schedule a 4pm interview and I got a call back a few moments later from the hiring manager stating the "IT staff wouldn't be too happy with sticking around" and he couldn't schedule a later date during the week because he wanted the position filled immediately. I don't know how anyone is suppose to respond to that??? So if I were to show-up, I would have a slim chance of landing the job because people are ancy about leaving at 5pm. And somehow the fault lies with me? I've always wanted to work for Verizon, but my god that left a bad taste in my mouth.

MagnumOpus

beaucaldwell wrote: »

congrats on the gig! great stepping stone, and personally i think i would have rather worked for geek squad getting exposed to tons of different hardware types than being in a call center never putting the phone down for more than 15 seconds before getting that next call...

Thanks, and your absolutely correct. We get a nice mix of computers flying in and it's an enjoyable challenge to troubleshoot them all.

SweenMachine

MagnumOpus wrote: »

Yeah I really don't want to Trash talk the company, because I think it's a great company to work for. But management was pretty much strong- arming me to appearing to an interview within the next couple hours. Of course I was just leaving work, and there was no way I could make it through traffic and arrive at a decent time. I asked if I could schedule a 4pm interview and I got a call back a few moments later from the hiring manager stating the "IT staff wouldn't be too happy with sticking around" and he couldn't schedule a later date during the week because he wanted the position filled immediately. I don't know how anyone is suppose to respond to that??? So if I were to show-up, I would have a slim chance of landing the job because people are ancy about leaving at 5pm. And somehow the fault lies with me? I've always wanted to work for Verizon, but my god that left a bad taste in my mouth.

Wow.. That is crazy. Although I had a similar experience early in my IT career where they convinced me to leave work early to do an 'immediate' interview.. yeah, what a joke that was. OF course I had to lie to my employer at the time, did the interview and it was not worth my time....

You will continue to get offers, maybe even from Verizon again

-scott

MagnumOpus

*Update*

Just landed my new gig as a Hepdesk Technician with tons of room for growth, including my current area of study: IT security. It appears they are expanding their IT operations and there isn't a better time to join! Geek Squad has turned out to be the ultimate stepping stone in allowing me to fix/repair multiple PC's and devices. Ultimately, I believe effective client communication experience landed me the job.

Interesting/Helpful Tidbits:


* I wore a tailored suit to the interview (It was very well received and I was complimented several times on the first round of interviews. It was also mentioned many in IT have become to comfortable in the field and lack proper interview attire.) Interesting fact, I purchased the suit w/ shoes for a $100 from a good friend who's friend had passed away. Turned out that guy was a successful businessman. I've literally walked a mile in his shoes and suit, and both jobs I've interviewed for, I landed.

*Client interaction with Geek Squad was a huge +. Most of the questions posed were customer service related, not repair and maintenance.

* Resume was printed on taupe resume paper. This makes an huge difference in terms of presentation.

*My enrollment/certifications from WGU was well received. (The interviewer actually knew someone who taught there.)

*I arrived 7 minutes late!!!! (Thanks to traffic and a unfriendly GPS location. But confidence rules, stay calm, recover the fumble and run it in for a touchdown!)

Thank you for all the advice and guidance, it has certainly been a tremendous help! From small talk to advice and WGU recommendations, the Tech Exam's community has been more than awesome!

Thanks a million guys!

****PS Geek Squad turnover was exceptionally high, but that actually worked in my favor. I was able to learn new roles and gained experience in a matter of weeks/months! For those of you joining the IT realm, embrace high turnover rates and use them to your career advantage.

datacomboss

Who's the new gig with?

tjb122982

Can you work Full Time at Geek Squad and or Staples?

MagnumOpus

datacomboss wrote: »

Who's the new gig with?

PM sent

MagnumOpus

tjb122982 wrote: »

Can you work Full Time at Geek Squad and or Staples?

Its definitely possible to land a full time gig at GS. However I would not recommend Staples. We constantly fix what they screw up.

tjb122982

MagnumOpus wrote: »

Its definitely possible to land a full time gig at GS. However I would not recommend Staples. We constantly fix what they screw up.

Thanks. Also, I forgot to ask how much either of them pay to being with?

MagnumOpus

I can't speak for Staples, but I make $12.50 + monthly bonuses at Geek Squad. The steep discounts on Intel i7's are a bonus as well. I got a 4770k for 80 bucks last go around. =D Many many perks and a great company to work for. I will definitely miss working here.

Nemowolf

MagnumOpus wrote: »

I can't speak for Staples, but I make $12.50 + monthly bonuses at Geek Squad. The steep discounts on Intel i7's are a bonus as well. I got a 4770k for 80 bucks last go around. =D Many many perks and a great company to work for. I will definitely miss working here.

Pay will depend on your exact job title + your market cost of living + volume of your store. If you are a CIA, if thats what they are still called, and you live in an expensive market like SF or NY and your in a high volume store, you will make more money than someone living in ohio in a tiny store that does barely enough business to stay open.


The side perks REALLY help with the lower than expected pay though. Intel Retail Edge is AMAZING. You can go to some really fun events, score SUPER discounts on products, etc. There is a BIG lending hand from vendors to get you informed on products and reward you with discounts and freebies over time. The discount in store isn't bad either.

selenityhyperion

At Staples I was making 20 cents above minimum at the time as a Easy Resident Tech (so under $. The exact same I made when I was just Easy Tech selling stuff. I would recommend Best Buy over Staples any day. My store was one of the top in the state and I was constantly being pushed to sell more service plans and services even though I was already the top in the region. I recommended only what the customer needed and nothing more - Staples did not like that - even if it was more than most. Best Buy is a bigger branch, more geared towards technology, and will look much better on a resume, in my opinion. Plus, you usually have more than one tech per store so you would have the chance to learn from others. At Staples you are the only one besides maybe the head Easy Tech who might step in and help every now and then.

tkerber

Congrats!

I actually landed a job at Geek Squad a few years ago but didn't accept because something slightly better came about. Everyone needs to start somewhere and I don't understand why everyone always bashes Geek Squad. It's entry level help desk / service desk and is valuable experience.

Also $12.50 is pretty high for Geek Squad. They offered me $10 for the same position. I'm pretty sure $12.50 is getting close to what the senior techs make there.

MagnumOpus

Nemowolf wrote: »

Pay will depend on your exact job title + your market cost of living + volume of your store. If you are a CIA, if thats what they are still called, and you live in an expensive market like SF or NY and your in a high volume store, you will make more money than someone living in ohio in a tiny store that does barely enough business to stay open.


The side perks REALLY help with the lower than expected pay though. Intel Retail Edge is AMAZING. You can go to some really fun events, score SUPER discounts on products, etc. There is a BIG lending hand from vendors to get you informed on products and reward you with discounts and freebies over time. The discount in store isn't bad either.

I couldn't agree with you more! Intel Retail definitely made the stay worth while. I actually won a laptop out of the deal:D on top of the additional perks.

MagnumOpus

tkerber wrote: »

Congrats!

I actually landed a job at Geek Squad a few years ago but didn't accept because something slightly better came about. Everyone needs to start somewhere and I don't understand why everyone always bashes Geek Squad. It's entry level help desk / service desk and is valuable experience.

Also $12.50 is pretty high for Geek Squad. They offered me $10 for the same position. I'm pretty sure $12.50 is getting close to what the senior techs make there.

I agree, the ride wasn't all that bad. Geek Squad was the perfect entry level job.

ksijur

I'm gonna semi-hijack this thread... sorry about that...
I have 5 years of PC repair business under my bell but I had to sell it because of my wife's career.
I'm in the process of enrolling into WGU and I was wondering about ya'll opinions about the following:
Should I get a part time job w/ GS while working on WGU BSITS (I worrie I might get burned out if all I do is WGU) or would that be a step back?

MagnumOpus

ksijur wrote: »

I'm gonna semi-hijack this thread... sorry about that...
I have 5 years of PC repair business under my bell but I had to sell it because of my wife's career.
I'm in the process of enrolling into WGU and I was wondering about ya'll opinions about the following:
Should I get a part time job w/ GS while working on WGU BSITS (I worrie I might get burned out if all I do is WGU) or would that be a step back?

All good man! Thew route you are thinking about taking is the route I took. The retail hours were extremely flexible and allowed me knock out several classes in my first term. I'm sure you can accomplish the same with ease. I will say this, many people/companies think GS is a joke. Just make sure when you leave GS you know your stuff. It's so easy to become a AJU monkey and miss out on opportunities to learn new things. Lastly, once you've done your one year bid with GS, start sending out those resumes.

kurosaki00

Gratz on the gig. Two of the colleagues I respect the most here (NOC) came from geek squad.