First, and most obvious, the uniforms are horrible. Luckily we can wear our own black pants but the shirt is not comfortable. It's nylon and feels like an athletic suit from the '90s. I'd much prefer a 100% cotton polo without the weird lines that run down the sides (I'm still not sure why those are there). The worst part is that we have to pay twenty dollars for each one, though you're supposed to get two when you first start. They're not always available, though, so you could be stuck with a super-oversized shirt for many months.
It's no mystery that the company has shifted its strategy in favour of services and accessories. Prices on core products are usually barely above cost so that they can compete with online retailers. A mark-up on cables is not a dumb strategy since waiting to have one shipped to you is often nonsensical. Pushing service plans, though, is a strategy that few customers are comfortable with. Many of the ones that have the decency not to turn your pitch into a shouting match will at least not even bother to listen to you.
Lots of these customers are jaded by such sales and, from a consumer point of view, this is understandable. I just worry that when certain types of customers are no longer around, the company will lose market share or maybe even cease to exist. I'm not saying that these products shouldn't be available or even that salespeople shouldn't tell customers about them, but technology-savvy in touch customers have heard it all before and will buy into it if they see a need for it. Pressuring them can drive them away until they make their next big electronics purchase through Amazon.
Best Buy likes to pass around certain gospel truths, such as the benefits of their salespeople not being commissioned. In reality, managers drive us to sell because they make bonuses. The only reason that we're not is so the company pockets some more money and so we can tell customers this to ease some pressure. Most employees will pressure customers just as hard to buy services, though, because all of his or her higher-ups depend on it. When it comes to performance reviews, sales aren't officially taken into account, but they still matter.
For the amount we put in, we get very little out of it. Pay is close to minimum. I'd suggest that we look to a forward-thinking retail company like Costco, which employees and customers alike love, rather than the Wal-Mart model of exploiting their own workers and their vendors, just so customers can save a little bit of money. No one loves Wal-Mart anymore, they just shop there when they have to. I would argue it's the same with Best Buy. Change with the times and pay us more. They occasionally have prizes and giveaways for us, but the vast majority of this is stuff that can't be sold or it comes out of a fund that we pay into.
Managers, while great for the most part, are often out of touch with the sales floor. After my first six months, I found I'm teaching them much more than vice versa. I get that management has a completely different set of responsibilities, but it seems like they depend on me to have specific knowledge of regular store procedures. For example, I ask them to assist me with something in our system and they tell me it can't be done, when I know for a fact that it can. I would do it myself if I had permission.
That brings me to my final point. I've learned quite a bit about the company and daily operations at a store level, both within my role in sales and outside and above it. Yet management is often condescending and talks to me as if I'm a new hire. My strong work ethic is almost never noticed except when my sales are also excellent. Opportunities to move up in the company are hardly talked about and when they are, it's just the position directly up from it, such as from part-time to full-time or full-time to supervisor. Sometimes it's a change in department.
Management never mentions corporate opportunities for retail employees. In fact, several higher ups talk about my position as if it's obviously dead end and when someone leaves the company then they speak of it as if they're leaving to actually begin a career. With the nature of retail, there will almost always be high turnover, but paying employees more and giving them actual opportunities to do better in life will go a long way for the company. Managers may know that an employee is well-educated and is looking for better-paying work elsewhere, but instead of presenting internal opportunities, they keep their mouths shut, as if they don't care either way.
I don't know if I can say that Best Buy fails as an employer. They're delivering exactly what they want to deliver, which is a fun, transient, and inconsistent work opportunity for young people that need some extra cash. If you continue to work there after you're done school, though, they'll be the first to look at you funny.
