Today I learned there is another risk formula. The factors of this new formula are the vendor from which maintenance is purchased and the technicians faced when a customer enters the repair zone. In this "case study", the vendor is Best Buy, the techs are the Geek Squad, and the customer, unfortunately, is me.
In April, I purchased an HP Pavilion laptop. I love it. However, from day one a noise emanated from it that sounded like a bad drive spindle or fan. So, I took it back to Best Buy. I had purchased an extended warranty plan, so I was confident I would have the problem resolved with little financial pain.
After about a day, the Geek Squad called to tell me there was nothing wrong with my laptop. (Obviously, the sound must have been imagined...) So, like a good little customer, I picked up my new computer and drove home. Later that day I powered it up, and within a few minutes the grinding noise returned.
I returned the computer to the Geek Squad. I told them I wanted it fixed. Since they had no idea what was wrong with it (sigh) they recommended replacing the hard drive. I was OK with this because the new drive they recommended was faster and didn't cost me anything but re-setup time. I was a little frustrated, but hey, things happen.
About three days later, I picked up my laptop. About an hour into the process of reinstalling my software, the grinding came back. So, resorting to something I should have done initially, I checked out the problem myself. The real problem was a bad fan. (I think I mentioned that to them on my first visit,,,).
I teach online classes with my laptop, so I decided to wait until my Christmas break to take it back. The computer just made it, periodically shutting down due to reaching its dangerous temperature threshold.
When I reached the service desk (yes, I made the tactical error of taking the laptop in on Black Friday), I firmly told them to replace the fan. I had to tell them twice to leave my drive alone. I was informed that the laptop had to be sent to the central repair facility because the repair involved a mother board component. Duh!! In a laptop, there isn't much that isn't a mother board component. No problem, though. I had a maintenance contract. Then I asked how long it would take.
Imagine my surprise when they told me it could take four to six weeks. I thought back to my purchase of the maintenance agreement when I had asked where repairs were done. I was assured that repairs were performed by the in-store Geek Squad. Since this is a system I use for business, I felt assured this was an acceptable business continuity situation. However, my assurance depended on being told the truth by the sales person. (sigh)
When I told the Geek behind the counter that this was unacceptable, he told me, "That's just the way it is." Marvellous. An excellent way to keep my rising anger in check.
I left the computer there for repair. After all, I had paid for maintenance, and I was going to get my money's worth. I do have another computer in my home office I can use with a little tweaking. But what if I didn't?
Now we get to the new business continuity formula: BC = Vendor * Technical Staff, or in this case BC = Best Buy * Geek Squad. BC (business continuity) is ranked on a scale from 0 to 25, with 25 being the highest level of BC protection. Vendor and Technical Staff are each ranked on a scale from 0 to 5, with five being the best.
In this case, I give Best Buy a zero. I was misinformed at time of purchase. In addition, the central repair policy is an anathema (bad news) for home office or small business customers. Further, the Geek Squad receives a zero for incompetence and general lack of customer service skills. Therefore, the BC ranking for my experience is ZERO.
I love my HP, but I will never buy another business system from Best Buy. I also learned a valuable lesson, one I hadn't needed when dealing directly with Compaq or Dell; never trust the salesperson to provide accurate information about maintenance agreements. Always check with the actual techs to make sure you are covered against four to six week business interruptions.