I encountered another reason for Apple’s wildly successful organization this week. It was a case of true servant leadership versus self-serving leadership. I hope by sharing this I can save you some of the trouble and stress that I encountered.
When I opened my web browser one time this week, I received a pop-up message that looked very official. It said that my computer had been compromised, and that I needed to call this number right away. It provided an error code that I needed to give the technician when I called. This pop-up would not shut down, so it felt like I had to deal with this before I could do anything else on my computer.
Being naive on this subject, I took this official looking message to heart and called the number. To make a long story short after giving computer access to the technician, and him informing me that I had serious problems, he indicated that my service warranty was expired and I needed to pay them some money to fix the issue they had found. Once he asked for a credit card #, I became suspicious and told him that I was going to call Apple direct, and I shut down my computer.
That was the self-serving example. Come to find out this is something called “Scareware”, where these computer experts have figured out a way to have these messages pop up on your computer and scare you into thinking that you have issues. It all looks very official, and they are extremely knowledgeable about your computer. But they are nothing more than professional scam artists.
Once I called my Apple Care Representative, I encountered an amazing example of servant leadership. Garret basically outlined to the tee everything that had just happened to me, and put me at ease that this is now happening all the time. He also gave me the impression that he was as upset about this as I was, and he wanted to help me to insure that these thieves had not compromised my computer.
He was able to go into my computer and determine all was fine, and then walked through ways to deal with this in the future. It was phenomenal how friendly, knowledgeable and helpful he was. It was another testament to why Apple is so successful as an organization. The people that are on the front lines, helping customers through issues have one thing on their mind – and that is to provide you with all the comfort and help that you need.
I have had positive experiences with Apple Service before. I will never buy any other computer than an Apple due to this servant focus that they have. Apple clearly makes great products, which leads to their market leadership, but I feel what sets them apart is their servant attitude towards their customers.
We can all name organizations that have this extraordinary focus of servant leadership. Companies like Southwest Airlines, Chick-fil-A, Marriott, Starbucks, Paul’s Small Engine, etc. A culture of servant leadership will endear you to your customers. What examples have you seen lately of great service, which has led to your loyalty as a consumer?
Mark Deterding
Whoever pursues righteousness and love, finds life, prosperity and honor. Proverbs 21:21
1st – I’m thankful that you had the right mindset to shut down your computer at the right time. It’s sad that there are people whose careers are advanced by nefarious practices and intentionally harming other people. I’ve stopped answering my home phone due to the increased volume of caller whose mission is to make me squirm. Thank you for sharing your story of triumph over what could have been tragedy for your finances and your life.
Jane, thanks for your thoughts! It is amazing to me that there are people like this in the world that are just out to illegally prey on others for their individual benefit. All the more reason that we continue to be relentless in getting out the message of servant leadership. This is what can change the world!