As an IT manager, I hated working on Apple products. Several of my colleagues felt the same way, and tickets for a Mac issue would hang out in the queue until someone got up the nerve to tackle them. Many companies, especially when I started out in my career, use mostly Windows-based machines. When all of your clients are using Windows computers, you get to know the issues that typically arise, and you become really good at resolving them. Then one day, someone at one of your clients purchases a Mac. Unfortunately, due to lack of experience on the machine, issues take much longer to resolve and can leave you and your customer incredibly frustrated. It's not that an Apple device is that much harder to understand, it's that many techs are inexperienced when it comes to supporting them.
Need for Better Support on Apple Devices
MSPs and VARs have been looking to resolve the issue of supporting Apple devices for a while, as more clients purchase them for their employees. Indeed, this year Atera added remote monitoring and management for macOS, and SolarWinds added remote control for macOS to their platform as well. Building on that trend, Ingram Micro is now looking to join those companies in helping MSPs better support Apple products by partnering up with LearnQuest to offer Apple Authorized Training.
Ingram Micro’s new Apple-authorized training from LearnQuest includes certified trainers using hands-on exercises and real-world scenarios. Enterprise-focused courses cover iOS, macOS, and Technician Training for students preparing for the Apple Certified Mac Technician (ACMT) and the Apple Certified iOS Technician (ACiT) Certification Exams. Final Cut Pro X and Logic Pro X for creative professionals are also part of the new training services offered by Ingram Micro.
This partnership with LearnQuest expands on Ingram Micro’s global training portfolio, which already includes authorized skills and certification training on many of the IT channel’s top vendors including Cisco, Citrix, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, IBM, Microsoft and VMware.
Apple Training Can Give Greater Value to Employees
Since many technicians don't spend a lot of time with Apple products, utilizing these training courses can improve the support they are able to give to clients. It can help them to learn the skills they need, without usurping clients' time to learn them during an issue. Time-to-resolution could be cut down significantly for an end user with a Mac. Being able to know your way around an Apple product can give your employees an extra edge over techs that have a hard time with the devices. As more companies include Mac computers and iPhones in their networks, being able to support those devices quickly and effectively will be necessary for an MSP.
Not understanding how to work a Mac computer is one of my main frustrations with the Apple. I know technology, and on a Mac I feel lost. I do not like that feeling at all, and therefore avoid supporting Apple devices at all costs. With a little training, this fear can be diminished for many techs who feel the same way.