Best Buy-Geek Squad, Verizon Pursue Small Business Help Desks

help desk

According to a joint Geek Squad-Verizon statement:

Classic Managed Services

Verizon is also pushing into more traditional managed services — such as managing user rights and access; remote monitoring of routers, switches and firewalls; server management and monitoring; and, most up-to-date security protection.

The Verizon IT Help Desk service with Geek Squad surfaces during continued turbulence at Best Buy. The big box retailer has been laying off some Geek Squad team members while also replenishing the Geek Squad team with new talent. At the same time, Best Buy corporate has undergone executive transitions — and the company could ultimately face a power struggle with founder Richard Schultze. Plus, a compensation expert recently quit Best Buy because he did not agree with some of the company’s compensation strategies.

The Big Box Challenge

Overall, Best Buy is struggling to remain relevant as consumers increasingly use the big box retailer as a “showroom” for selecting and purchasing digital products from online rivals like Amazon.com.

To compensate, Best Buy has been launching smaller, more targeted stores with overhauled Geek Squad support desks (similar to Apple Genius Bars).

Also, Best Buy’s mindSHIFT division apparently remains on the acquisition trail. The large managed services provider recently purchased White Glove Technologies — one of Texas’s largest MSPs. Plus, mindSHIFT has approached several MSPmentor 100 companies to explore potential M&A opportunities in recent months, we have heard.