Apple Engineer who moved Mac to intel applied to work at Apple's genius bar and was rejected - Polidicks

[url]http://www.businessinsider.com/jk-scheinberg-apple-engineer-rejected-job-apple-store-genius-bar-2016-9[/url] [QUOTE]JK Scheinberg, the engineer who spent 21 years working at Apple and is most famous for persuading Steve Jobs to move the Mac from PowerPC to Intel in 2005, was rejected from a job at an Apple store. He had applied to work at a Genius Bar, according to The New York Times. The Times used it as an example of age discrimination in the workplace. The Times' Ashton Applewhite wrote: [QUOTE] I’m lucky enough to get my tech support from JK Scheinberg, the engineer at Apple who led the effort that moved the Mac to Intel processors. A little restless after retiring in 2008, at 54, he figured he’d be a great fit for a position at an Apple store Genius Bar, despite being twice as old as anyone else at the group interview. “On the way out, all three of the interviewers singled me out and said, ‘We’ll be in touch,’ ” he said. “I never heard back.”[/QUOTE][/QUOTE]

As bad as it is, Apple wants young and "hip" (god I'm old) people working in the stores as that's what the public identify as Apple's brand.

...or maybe he was overqualified? I've seen more than a handful of people that look 60+ working at Genius Bars.

[QUOTE=Supacasey;51007696]...or maybe he was overqualified? I've seen more than a handful of people that look 60+ working at Genius Bars.[/QUOTE] Overqualification is such bullshit. It's like they want you to lie in your CV by removing stuff.

I wish people would stop using the term overqualified, it's a shitty excuse to avoid hiring people.

I think this article is less about age discrimination and more about overqualification. Both are bs, but overqualification doesn't get nearly as much time in the spotlight despite being just as stupid.

i am going to preface this by saying i am no way knowledgeable about economic things but why wouldn't you want to hire someone that is overqualified? you get someone who you know damn well can do the job well and you get to pay them the same shitty pay that some entry level schmuck would get

[QUOTE=Pernoccuous;51007783]i am going to preface this by saying i am no way knowledgeable about economic things but why wouldn't you want to hire someone that is overqualified? you get someone who you know damn well can do the job well and you get to pay them the same shitty pay that some entry level schmuck would get[/QUOTE] Because employers are thinking they'll be bored, they'll think their work isn't important, they'll expect more money than someone less qualified, and you'll leave after something else comes along quickly. Not saying these will actually happen, but employers are somewhat right in thinking these are possibilities.

[QUOTE=Pernoccuous;51007783]i am going to preface this by saying i am no way knowledgeable about economic things but why wouldn't you want to hire someone that is overqualified? you get someone who you know damn well can do the job well and you get to pay them the same shitty pay that some entry level schmuck would get[/QUOTE] Overqualified employees are risky to hire because they tend to think work is beneath them and jump ship as soon as something better comes along.

Brilliant move on his part, persuading Jobs. The MacBook wouldn't exist if he hadn't switched Apple to intel

[QUOTE=Vodkavia;51007947]Because an overqualified person doesn't fit into a steep power dynamic an employer would prefer as other people have said. You can't milk a person as hard if you lack the power of them being dependant on you, ie being extortabe.[/QUOTE] This, pretty much They need young, desperate for money people, not old qualified specialists who probably know everything better than their superiors do and who would quit the very moment any argument happens

[QUOTE=mcgrath618;51007937]Brilliant move on his part, persuading Jobs. The MacBook wouldn't exist if he hadn't switched Apple to intel[/QUOTE] I mean I think it's good that he was smart about it, but I think even without him they would've made the jump, it was only logical. The G5 was extremely hungry for power (the quad G5 came with an absolutely enormous water cooler), and didn't perform like the intel core architecture.

[QUOTE=rndgenerator;51007701]Overqualification is such bullshit. It's like they want you to lie in your CV by removing stuff.[/QUOTE] Frequently it's because they can't live up to the salary demands of someone highly qualified. They want someone they can low-ball. If they want to fill a cookie-cutter position they're not gonna bother risking having to pay someone extra because they happen to be an engineer or such.

[QUOTE=GordonZombie;51007742]I wish people would stop using the term overqualified, it's a shitty excuse to avoid hiring people.[/QUOTE] There are genuine reasons for it, but I don't think they apply here. The concern with overqualified applicants is that they will continue looking for work after being hired, and will quit after the hiring entity has already invested time and money into the applicant

[QUOTE=damnatus;51007959]This, pretty much They need young, desperate for money people, not old qualified specialists who probably know everything better than their superiors do and who would quit the very moment any argument happens[/QUOTE] why dont you actually take a break from these stupid kneejerk responses and actually think about it? people have posted the reasoning behind overqualification already, so you have no excuse it isnt an issue of the big bad capitalists preying on less qualified workers to enslave and work for less rather than those who know better; people with more qualifications are, as already stated, way more likely to leave as soon as they get another offer, and believe it or not hiring on an employee is a huge investment so they're obviously going to want to choose someone who plans on sticking around.

[QUOTE=Seerus;51008113]why dont you actually take a break from these stupid kneejerk responses and actually think about it? people have posted the reasoning behind overqualification already, so you have no excuse it isnt an issue of the big bad capitalists preying on less qualified workers to enslave and work for less rather than those who know better; people with more qualifications are, as already stated, way more likely to leave as soon as they get another offer, and believe it or not hiring on an employee is a huge investment so they're obviously going to want to choose someone who plans on sticking around.[/QUOTE] I'm not seeing the kneejerk response; even if it does come down to money in the end it's not necessarily due to capitalist greed, it may be that the position needs to be filled within the budget. Retention is of course another important factor though.

[QUOTE=Seerus;51008113]why dont you actually take a break from these stupid kneejerk responses and actually think about it? people have posted the reasoning behind overqualification already, so you have no excuse it isnt an issue of the big bad capitalists preying on less qualified workers to enslave and work for less rather than those who know better; people with more qualifications are, as already stated, way more likely to leave as soon as they get another offer, and believe it or not hiring on an employee is a huge investment so they're obviously going to want to choose someone who plans on sticking around.[/QUOTE] It is an issue of the economy as a whole, the main reason overqualified people work at shit jobs (here at least) is because either there are no jobs for them in their field or they have a lack of experience and their field won't hire them without any experience.

[QUOTE=Seerus;51008113]why dont you actually take a break from these stupid kneejerk responses and actually think about it? people have posted the reasoning behind overqualification already, so you have no excuse it isnt an issue of the big bad capitalists preying on less qualified workers to enslave and work for less rather than those who know better; people with more qualifications are, as already stated, way more likely to leave as soon as they get another offer, and believe it or not hiring on an employee is a huge investment so they're obviously going to want to choose someone who plans on sticking around.[/QUOTE] uh excuse me? kneejerk responses? are you talking about the fact that I agreed to the poster above? if yes then lmao that's because we posted our opinions at the same time so I edited mine [QUOTE] people with more qualifications are, as already stated, way more likely to leave as soon as they get another offer[/QUOTE] not even talking about that the bottom line is the same (they're more likely to leave), why in the fuck would anyone search for that kind of entry level job, if their qualification allows to apply for high-ish positions from the start? there are temporary jobs where people come and go and it's normal, just apply there and unload cargo or mow lawns or something while you're looking for the real thing

Over qualification must be the most ridiculous concept. What are they afraid of? An over qualified employee asking for a raise? Some people spend their entire lives building their resume, though sometimes people just want to unload responsibility, or find joy in easy entry level work. Especially in their old age.

I really can't see the logic in so many people thinking basically all employers are slave drivers crossed with nazis who hate overqualified people because they'll likely break into the secret basement. [QUOTE=Downsider;51007911]Overqualified employees are risky to hire because they tend to think work is beneath them and jump ship as soon as something better comes along.[/QUOTE] That's pretty much it. When you hire someone (for a permanent position that is), you want them to stay in that position, because finding and training new people requires people to do the finding and the interviews and the training and that costs money. You know what's cheaper? Hiring people that are likely to keep the job. This of course ignores being promoted, but if a company is looking for a manager and they can't find someone fitting within the company or under the current manager, they will specifically look to hire a manager.

[QUOTE=DiBBs27;51008476]Over qualification must be the most ridiculous concept. What are they afraid of? An over qualified employee asking for a raise? Some people spend their entire lives building their resume, though sometimes people just want to unload responsibility, or find joy in easy entry level work. Especially in their old age.[/QUOTE] I'd be willing to say that an ex-Apple engineer of this caliber would probably have more job prospects than the Genius Bar. Who's to say he won't jump ship a month after getting hired? Plus, why hire an old overqualified guy when they probably get plenty of other younger, less qualified people applying daily?

[QUOTE=DiBBs27;51008476]Over qualification must be the most ridiculous concept. What are they afraid of? An over qualified employee asking for a raise? Some people spend their entire lives building their resume, though sometimes people just want to unload responsibility, or find joy in easy entry level work. Especially in their old age.[/QUOTE] No they're worried about them leaving quickly for a better opportunity which then wastes all the time and money the business put into them

Let's not also forget that most of Apple's repair policy is throwaway/replace instead of fixing the core problem. Well atleast for hardware. I feel like this guy, being as knowledgeable as he is, would have more of a ball of repairing machines than just throwing them out back and swapping hard drives. I.e. He'd channel a little bit of Louis Rossmann into the business.

[QUOTE=Code3Response;51008737]No they're worried about them leaving quickly for a better opportunity which then wastes all the time and money the business put into them[/QUOTE] Maybe they just didn't know exactly who he was? The guy basically dedicated his working career to the company. No doubt he could score much higher positions. No doubt he would[I] if he wanted to[/I].

[QUOTE=eirexe;51008167]It is an issue of the economy as a whole, the main reason overqualified people work at shit jobs (here at least) is because either there are no jobs for them in their field or they have a lack of experience and their field won't hire them without any experience.[/QUOTE] This is basically why for the past 4 months I've basically been applying to minimum wage jobs and stuff that only requires a high school diploma. There are plenty of jobs out there I know I can do, but none will hire me without related experience as if I'm somehow supposed to have anywhere from two to ten years of related experience at the age of 22 when the average person my age has only been working part time jobs to put themselves through college up to this point, or had even straight up not worked during college and only worked during the summers because they had hectic school schedules.

[QUOTE=Downsider;51007911]Overqualified employees are risky to hire because they tend to think work is beneath them and jump ship as soon as something better comes along.[/QUOTE] Someone who's regularly qualified'll jump at the chance of a promotion, too.

I remember being rejected a pizza delivery job because I was "overqualified." I guess they were afraid of hiring someone who might just be there temporarily, even though the position in general is temporary. I mean, who's going to work a pizza delivery job for the rest of their life? Or even for a couple of years? As for this case though, I doubt it's so much that, and it's probably more to do with the preferred age range that Apple stores want. I'm sure there are older guys working at Genius Bars, but they may have actually been with the store for years beforehand.

They denied him simply because he was "old" He was twice as old as anybody else interviewing, and they singled him out to say "we'll call you" There was no risk of jumping ship, he was [I]retired.[/I] He wanted a hobby. Something to do. They didn't like him because he wasn't a hip 20-somthing person with "tech" knowledge.

[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;51009667]They denied him simply because he was "old" He was twice as old as anybody else interviewing, and they singled him out to say "we'll call you" There was no risk of jumping ship, he was [I]retired.[/I] He wanted a hobby. Something to do. They didn't like him because he wasn't a hip 20-somthing person with "tech" knowledge.[/QUOTE] How do you know for sure? Are you privy to the thought process of the interviewers?

[QUOTE=Protocol7;51009675]How do you know for sure? Are you privy to the thought process of the interviewers?[/QUOTE] After walking into an Apple store with my family, I would 100% say that's why. Nothing but 21-29 year olds working there.