Apple: Cyril has seen it all in 15 years at company HQ

Hollyhill is home to Apple’s technical support teams, known as AppleCare, for the entirety of Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.

Mon, 01 Jun, 2015 - 01:00

Peter O’Dwyer

It’s a role that involves helping customers over the phone or via webchat, and within which some have carved out a very satisfying career.

One such employee is AppleCare support operations manager Cyril, who landed on Irish soil from France 17 years ago and worked his way through a number of roles during 15 years at Apple.

With a wife born and bred in Cork and three children, his roots are firmly in place in the Rebel County even if it means the younger members of the family don’t get to speak quite as much French as he’d like.

Leaving has never been an option. Put simply, he says, he’s never had reason to: His work is interesting and rewarding, the benefits are good, the atmosphere is fun, and there’s an openness and inclusivity among the staff that makes it the ideal place to work.

While AppleCare is essentially the same as it when Cyril was starting out years ago, insofar as the aim is to help the person at the other end of the line, in reality it’s a department that is in a constant state of flux. New technology that further enhances the customer experience is something the team is always on the lookout for, while keeping up with the raft of product launches is a constant battle.

Helping fight that battle are students from a number of Irish universities who, at the weekend, have the chance to earn a few extra euro manning the AppleCare station from the comfort of their own home.

Counting those in the Cork headquarters along with the lone rangers from NUI Galway, University of Limerick, and University College Cork, the combined cohort of advisers stretches to more than 500.

The students are paid in full, according to Cyril, and demand for the programme is strong given the opportunities available.

Furthermore, cities with “strong technical backgrounds” were chosen for the student partnership to ensure the same level of service is delivered to customers.

Whereas those guys are setting foot on the bottom rung of the AppleCare ladder, Cyril’s progression has brought him to a role in which, rather than facing customer issues, he deals with problems his advisers have in tackling those issues. From top to bottom, the goal is to strive for excellence and, with the Frenchman at the helm, it’s a target rarely missed.