In August, the Skidmore Bookstore (Skidmore Shop) brought in a new member to their team as the Technology Buyer and Certified Macintosh Technician, Mark Bogossian. Bogossian is a certified Apple Macintosh specialist, and bringing him aboard has allowed the bookstore to increase their ability to provide in-house training and service to customers--something they have always felt was lacking.
Bogossian’s job in the Skidmore Shop entails, “overseeing, ordering and selling technology products, I also provide many free and fee-based Apple technical repair and support services to students, staff and faculty,” said Bogossian. In addition to his work at Skidmore, he is the owner of Castle Mac in Latham, New York, and has many years of Apple repair experience. Because of this experience the Skidmore Store is now able to offer in-house repairs to Apple products.
Bogossian has an extensive knowledge of Apple hardware and software. He should be able to resolve or provide guidance on whatever problems may be effecting your Apple devices. “We now have the complete package, from informed sales, to teaching you how to use your device, to fixing it if something goes wrong. We have the resources to help keep you on-track and online” said Jon Neil, Associate Director and Business Services Director, Skidmore Shop.
In addition to the shop’s news technical and repair services, they have started adding training sessions. These sessions are small group classes on topics such as backup and security, new product overviews and iCloud. The sessions last 30-45 minutes and will be offered free of charge to the Skidmore community. “We currently are offering a backup and security seminar to faculty and staff and it has been very well received. It is a timely topic, one that everyone needs to address, and we will be announcing additional sessions specifically for students shortly,” said Neil.
Though Bogossian only officially started working at Skidmore full time in August, he is not entirely new to the Skidmore community. For the last 15 years his company has served as a subcontractor to Skidmore. They provided warranty and non-warranty Apple repairs, as well as tech support services to the Skidmore community.
One of the things Bogossian finds most exciting and appealing about his new job “is the simple distinction between what I have been doing for the last 33 years and what I do now: in my previous life, I would have to “charge people to help them,” as is the case in the private sector, and now, I get paid to help people.”
Photo by Rebecca Fawcett/Photo Editor