I worked for Geek Squad prior to it being called Geek Squad and after the name change.
Ermm.... Geek Squad was ALWAYS called Geek Squad. Perhaps you mean you worked for Best Buy prior to the name changes?
Before Best Buy picked 'em up, they were their own company. Started by Robert Stephens, a guy tooling around the University of Minnesota campus on his bicycle. The Squad was a bit bigger than that by the time I joined them, and we LOVED seeing computers with Best Buy stickers. Great source of revenue; we could be almost 100% certain they were messed up since Best Buy techs generally did not have a good reputation around the Minneapolis / St. Paul area. Sure, there were a couple of good ones, but they were far outnumbered by the clowns who didn't give a rat's... well, you get the picture.
Geek Squad had an excellent reputation in those days. Best Buy picked 'em up to improve their own rep, and hopefully get some quality back in their support. Unfortunately, they ended up slapping a good name on the same old (generally) bad techs... dragged a good name down. Doesn't sound like there's been much improvement over time, unfortunately.
Sure we'd joke from time to time when we ran across machines where the Windows desktop was risque, and we'd make backups of customer data whenever they requested it. However, you didn't touch those backups unless your name was on the ticket, and you never went digging through a customer's files on a whim. That was the game the "other guys" played - we considered it beneath us. It wasn't professional, and there were always more machines to repair.
It boiled down simply: Back then, for most at the Geek Squad it was a profession. For most at Best Buy, it was a summer job.
- (Formerly) Agent 45
