Company: Apple
Date: 2014-01-10
Overall rating: 3/5
Employment status: current
Experience level: Junior

Squeezing the most productivity out of every employee is fine.  Just pay them for the work they do.
Pros: Great people.  Great development systems that are poorly executed.  Great discounts.  Great benefits.  Open communication with leaders if you can get them to slow down for a second.

Some of the best things I have learned in my life have been talking to an Apple Retail Manager when they are available.
Cons: Managers are overworked and underpaid in retail stores.  Usually there are only 2 managers to supervise a staff of 70-100 people.  They can barely manage to talk to all 70 people in a shift let alone support them and think strategically about the work that they are doing

Managers are pushed to be on the floor at all hours which then means they can't meet with me for development, or hire people, or plan strategically, or even just do something fun with us.

By default managers then run from fire to fire and then they quit after a few years realizing this is what Apple Retail is going to continue to be.

Apple has three levels of in store leadership the store leader, the senior manager, and the manager.  Frankly I don't see a lot of difference between the three and I would think that you would.  In fact I have a manager that I think would do a better job of being a store leader than our store leader.  At the very minimum he is better than both of the senior managers.

I am sure there is a difference in pay at each level but because he wasn't part of Gap brands before he came to Apple or some other retailer they put him into entry-level leadership.

Come on every one knows that retail isn't known for it's professionalism so bringing people from other retailers just serves to perpetuate that.