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Microsoft bribes Apple retail managers and staff

By Amarendra Bhushan for CEOWORLD Magazine Updated:September 22, 2009

Microsoft, which is preparing to open the first of its retail stores, has been contacting Apple retail store managers and attempting to lure them away with increased salaries to run its own stores.

How it’s working is that Microsoft offers a job to an Apple Store manager, who then takes the position and contacts the employees he or she once reigned over, hoping to get them to jump ship as well; to help persuade them, it is said that Microsoft has even offered to cover moving costs in some circumstances.

Jim Dalrymple broke the story, Microsoft is beginning looking to Apple for more than just inspiration for its retail stores. … Microsoft has contacted a number of Apple’s retail store managers to work in their stores. In addition to “significant raises,” the managers have also been offered moving expenses.
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Once hired, the ex-Apple employees are then contacting some of the top sales people in the Apple retail organization offering them positions at Microsoft retail. They have also been offered more money than what they made at Apple. … A smart move. Whether it will work or not remains to be seen.

According to Ars Technica, the Vole has contacted a number of Apple’s retail store managers to work in its stores.

Not only will they get more cash but they also will be offered moving expenses and we assume rigorous religious deprogramming.

Once the ex-Apple managers have jumped ship, they are asked to contact their top sales employees at their old workplaces and offer them similar positions at Microsoft’s retail stores, also with higher pay.

It is not clear if the bribe approach is working. The Apple Store employees we spoke too would rather gouge out their own eyes with forks than work for the Vole.

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