The Merl Group - Cydcor I have been apart of the scam for too long! Don't make the same mistake I did!!Indianapolis Indiana

I used to work for one of the Cydcor "Independent Corporate Licensees" and would like to shed some light on a few things...

1.  Disclosing a former employee's name and employment info is a HUGE no-no, as any legitimate corporation would know.  If The Merl Group/J9/TMG Solutions, or whatever name you are going by today has not already been sued for this, they should be.

2.  I've noticed a number of retractions from former employees, including one who said that they were threatened with a harassing phone call.  Don't take this!  You have the right to Freedom of Speech and as long as what you are saying is true, don't allow them to force a retraction from you.  In fact, since your real name was not disclosed, THEY are the ones who are technically harassing you, since they do not have proof of who wrote the comments.  The cost of suing you would far outweigh any benefits, especially since the burden of proof rests with them to prove that what you said is not only untrue, but that your comment alone had a negative impact on their business.  Having worked for one of these ICL's, I can assure you that they are damaging their own reputations.

3. Has any employee or interviewee ever asked about how the company goes about insuring your personal vehicle for work?  Or what would happen if you got into an accident while taking out a "Day of Observation"?  What about Workers Compensation if you were to be injured while working?  In my current, executive position, I rent automobiles frequently and even though I have insurance with a company that requires membership and is consistently rated #1 for customer service, I was warned that my personal insurance will not cover all costs associated with an accident if I am using a vehicle for business purposes.

4.  Stephen claims that the offices are privately owned.  If this is the case, then the two offices he claims to have "promoted" would all have the same owner, would they not?  Because if they are all privately owned and operated, then how can they be part of his organization?

5.  Stephen talks about people not being able to "complete the management program"?  That's a great one!  In order to complete the management program, you have to be able to convince enough people to stay around long enough to make the minimum amount of money required to be "promoted".  Oh, wait.  That's to be able to show that you can train people to make enough money to stay in business, right?  I think it's funny that over half the offices that open will close in their first year and before you accuse me of libel, I can name 2 offices that closed within 6 months of opening.

I worked for one of these organizations for a year and I can say without a doubt, that these ICL's are under the thumb of their "promoting manager" and Cydcor on an almost daily basis.  They cannot move their business out of their territory without consulting Cydcor.  Oh, you want to sell your business?  What is there to sell?  You can't sell your contract with Cydcor to anyone you please- they have to complete the "management training program".  I'll say this much- one of the things I did learn while working for them was how NOT to fall for their sales tactics. 

Oh, and before you say that I'm a bitter ex-employee that couldn't hack it through the "training program", keep in mind that I have health insurance covered 100% by my employer, a fully vested 401K, a corporate credit card with a limit that is higher that what I'm sure Stephen makes in a year, all work travel expenses paid, a company car to use while conducting business, cell phone expenses paid for by the company, a six-figure salary and a 40 (sometimes 45-50) hour workweek.  Please tell me which one of your offices does that?

I hope that this can help some of you and for the current employees who I'm sure will want to respond- if this is such a GREAT opportunity and you are a legit business, then why have you spent so much time trying to defend it?

 

I actually applied for this job back in the summer of 09. I was "fortunate" enough to be one of the 12% called back for a 2nd shadowing interview.

This was really my first job interview since graduating college so I was actually pretty excited. Then I got to the office... I was still optimistic about the potential opportunity though. I shadowed a fairly nice guy. The VERY FIRST business we went to was a liquor store and the guy who worked there knew exactly who my shadow trainee was and who he was with and immediately he said "Get out please...I am tired of you people coming in here." My shadow trainer then procedes to go back and forth you someone who clearly wasn't gonna buy whatever it was my trainer was selling. I pretty much knew that I was in for a very long day...walking up and down the sidewalks...in a suit and tie...on a hot summer day. Not to mention we traveled to an area that was almost 45 min from the office...which I then asked my trainer if employees are compensated for gas and he beat around the bush until I was finally able to get him to tell me "no." The day was literally full of door to door cold calling on businesses. 90% of the businesses we went to wanted no part of us and many said that they were constantly getting unwanted visits from reps of AT&T. We even went to a church and my trainer was literally told by the poor pregnant lady working in the church multiple times that her supervisor wasn't available and he just wouldn't leave her alone until I actually stepped in and said perhaps it would be best if we moved on. I pretty much knew after 2 hours that I didn't really want any part of the job I was applying for. Maybe I just don't have it in me to harass and be a pest to people. Maybe I was really bugged by the fact that I was told by the office that my lunch would be provided during my all day shadow and I ended up paying for it myself. My day finally came to an end after we drove close to an hour through rush hour traffic to get back to the office.

Funny thing is... I didn't even work for the company and everything I noticed during my 2nd interview/shadow was pretty much confirmed by all the "ex" employees who have posted. By the grace of God I currently have a nice day job that I am happy with. 

Ok, so the offices are legally incorporated under different names so that the parent company can't get sued. Nonetheless, all the offices are the same, operate under the same guidelines and sit on conferences together every day talking about how to recruit more people. They aren't a scam just shady, unethical, misleading and very poorly managed.

Top ten signs you are involved with Cydcor, Granton Marketing, Innovage, or The Smart Circle:

#10: You've been employed by your company for four months . . . and the company has changed it's name three times

# 9: You tell relatives and new acquaintances you are working on an 'advertising campaign' . . . but you really sell stuff door-to-door

# 8: You produce over $200 worth of sales . . . but only get about $70 of that for yourself because the pyramid gods yank the rest before it gets to your check.

# 7: Your 'management training' involves buying lunch for interviews that you'll never see again out of your own pocket . . . and you're not actually a manager, or doing any management training.

# 6: You look down on '9 to 5 schmucks' . . . who have secretaries that make more than you and your boss combined.

# 5: You espouse the principles & theories of the most successful people on Earth . . . who would be absolutely repulsed by the business you're in.

# 4: You work 75 hours a week . . . but still quietly bum money from your 16 year-old neighbor that works at McDonalds

# 3: You eat fast food more than 10 times / week . . . or cant afford to eat

# 2: You live in a one-bedroom apartment with 10 other co-workers . . . and your boss is one of them. and the number one sign you are involved with Cydcor, Granton, Innovage, The Smart Circle . . .

# 1: You work for a company that has in just 26 years employed 3 million people . . . and only the original employees are able to support themselves with money they make there.

That was a pretty feeble attempt Blogs, blogs, blogs.  It is obvious you are currently an employee of the Merl Group, I don't know why you are trying to make it seem like you're this outside objective person.  To start there is no base salary, your friend is making $700 commission if anything and chances are that's not even the case.  And $700 is garbage for an entry level sales job, at any entry-level sales job you're looking at a salary of $700 and then commission on top of that.  Secondly, have you deducted his work expenses yet that are not covered by the Merl Group?  i.e. gas, wear and tear on the car, lunch for interviews and trainees?  Also we can low ball the hours he works and say 60, at $700 that is 11.67 an hour and we still haven't deducted the personal expenses involved so it actually comes out to less.

BTW most of the people that write on here are employed and the ones who are unemployed probably just got burned by a Cydcor company and are just starting their new job hunt.  Sorry, but the people who make actual money at Cydcor are few and far between, just take a look at the office rankings one week and then you'll see what i mean.  For example, overhead on a Cydcor office is around $3000 a week, out of the 50 or so offices on the campaign only about 10 of them exceed this number which means that 80% of the owners on the campaign are merely breaking even or more than likely losing money.  Now maybe Merl Group is one of the few making money but those are not odds that I would bank on if I was going to be a recruit of these companies nowadays.

I interviewed with The Merl Group, Inc. (Stephen Kordella-manager) and he did not promise the world. He was very straighforward, honest, and actually told me it is a challenging firm and most poeple are not cut out for this type of work. It is outside commercial sales. My friend started with the company and they do offer a base salary and all of the reps are W2 employees and are paid every single week. This is not passive income or a job. Everyone that works for the firm is very professional, honest and hard working. They are creating revenue for AT&T and a division of Staples called Quill. It is a management development program and they have already promoted and opened 2 offices in 2009! It is pathetic that in this economy they are growing yet people put them down. GET A LIFE PEOPLE!! IF YOU HAVE WRITTEN ON HERE I GUARANTEE YOU ARE UNEMPLOYED!!

Everyone that writes on here never even worked for The Merl Group, Inc. I unfortunately did not get offered a position (yes i have a college degree) because I was not what they were looking for. I respect the firm because they work hard, and are ethical. It is sad that people are so Pathetic to write Blogs about a growing company!

Why not congratulate them on the success instead of hating on the company for being lazy! Anyone that works hard can be succesful through The Merl Group, Inc. They are successful, but yet everyone writes mean blogs because they do not know the company or what the firm really does. So, if you are reading this I hope you are not so incompetent that you believe a blog, not a credible source. Good Luck in the unemployment line! I wish I was hired because my friend is doing great and taking home $700 checks entry level weekly. I am jealous.

I don't work for the Merl Group and nor do I plan to do so in the near future. Usually anything that ends up on the Ripoff report is generally true. Being a Veteran Executive I did notice a few things with the structure of how to get to the paying level. If you are not truly a W-2 employee you are not required by law to work according to expectations put on a W-2 employee. If you are not getting paid and are required to report to the office at certain times and make so many calls or any of that. It is illegal. A lot of companies are trying to convert to 1099 and still expect people to work as a W-2 employee. I am not saying that Merl Group hires 1099. But if you are expected to go through a process that requires you to be in office and do all the same things without getting paid, it is very illegal. That's why most legitimate companies will have paid training even if it's a 1099 position. If a company does not offer either 1099 or W-2 upon hiring, do not work with them. There are very strick guidelines and some companies that have done this have gone under from having to pay back so much money. If you are doubtful of a company and how they work. Just come straight out and ask what their turnover ratio is?? Or investigate a little further. If there is massive turnover or if you are constantly seeing them hiring online or whever, it's usually a good sign of a place not to go. If they promise you the world and it's too good to be true. Don't go there. It's common business sense.

thank you all (ex/former employee's),
I have just gotten off the phone with theresa from the merl group. from which i saw an add for on craigs list. I called them because they had posted the following add.

The Merl Group, Inc. is a privately owned marketing firm located in Indianapolis, IN. Since opening our doors in 2006 we have expanded into multiple markets in the Midwest and the East Coast. We will open more offices by the end of 2009. We work with and represent 2 Fortune 500 clients. The Merl Group, Inc. offers a fun, energetic, and creative environment. Currently we are hiring for a Client Manager that can grow into a management role within 12 months. We promote 100% from within so there is no seniority.

We look for:
Character
Work Ethic
Competitiveness
Ambition

Responsibilities:
Presentations
Interviewing & Training
Team Management
Event Planning

We offer:
Excellent Pay
Benefits
Full Training
Advancement


What we DO NOT do:
Deal in cash or ask for money to start
Stand outside retail locations selling products for charity
Sell vacuums
We do not walk Business to Business selling tickets
We do not do RESIDENTIAL SALES

What we actually do:
We represent Fortune 500 and 100 clients and handle their commercial accounts.
Face to Face sales and customer retention.

WE ARE LOOKING FOR AVERAGE PEOPLE WITH ABOVE AVERAGE GOALS.

To schedule an interview or to learn more about our company
Call Theresa at 317-569-6433 or submit resumes to hr@themerlgroup.com

www.themerlgroup.com

• Location: Indianapolis
  
• Compensation: 32k-42k
  
• Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
  
• Phone calls about this job are ok.
  
• Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.                                                         
  
• after i had gotten off the phone with theresa from the H.R. dept. i felt something was wrong with that picture so i did some research and found you guys setting the world straight.  i am so greatful to all the former employees for your consideration of others. thank you again                               

After having wasted my time interviewing with Advanced Advertising Concepts several years ago, I was determined never to again be pulled into a "second interview" where I basically shadowed someone all day driving around Indiana bothering business owners (even when there were signs stating "NO SOLICITATIONS").

Fast forward to October 2009 and I'm still unemployed after being laid off in April. Having noticed numerous jobs posted by "The Merl Group" and advertising a "Recession-Proof Industry," I could only assume these jobs to be the same BS. However, I later applied to a job at Leitz Out Concepts, Inc. The next day I got a voice mail about the job opportunity. Having applied to a lot of jobs in the past few days I figured I should wait until I got home to read up on which company this was before responding. Within 40 minutes I received another call about the same job. Talking to the woman I already thought it odd working 11 am to 8 pm M-F and 11 am to 5 pm S. Nonetheless I figured I'd interview with them, if nothing else, just for the practice. I'm already remembering how I wasted my time two years ago.

Walking into the office I see the listing for Leitz Out Concepts...sharing the same office as The Merl Group, which I've already decided would be a waste of my time. Having driven 25 minutes, I proceed, annoyed. I walk into the office (suite 260) and much to my surprise...or lack thereof...the same generic pictures on the walls, same furniture, etc., as Advanced Advertising Concept. Next, the same exact application form. And then the interview questions. They were also exactly the same.

I walked out annoyed, having asked if it was a commission-only job. There was no way I was going to come back for a second interview so I could waste an entire day.

Apparently The Merl Group and Leitz Out Concepts share the same office, staff, receptionist, etc. So for those avoiding applying or interviewing with The Merl Group based on past experiences or other rip-off reports here, be warned that Leitz Out Concepts appears to be the same company.

J9 Executives is not affiliated with The Merl Group, Inc. They are two seperate Corporations that use to share office space because its is more cost effective. The persons complaints are about J9 Executives, Inc. The person complaining never worked with me and does not know my ethics. If the worse thing they can say about me is that I did the field on crutches then it makes me smile.

Those that have complained about not getting paid with ATT/The Merl Group, Inc. quit within two weeks and wrote the article before their pay period. The company uses ADP payroll and it takes two weeks to get a paycheck. They wrote their complaints before the payroll was processed. They are not educated on payroll. No one is educated on the company after 2 weeks in the company :)

Lastly, those who gripe on this negative blog are only those who have not made it through the program. This past January of 2009 The Merl Group, Inc. promoted its first manager who runs an office in Columbus, Ohio and in May opened a second office in Cherry HIll, NJ! Obviously the company is growing and the clients (ATT, QUILL, VERIZON) are happy with the Revenue we are producing.

If someone is turned off by the defamation and lible on this site about the company, then they are allowing negative people to win. I ask you where is the positive site?? Where is the site allowing those have succeeded in the program to relay the success to others? Either way, The Merl Group, Inc. will continue to grow and expand and be ethical. We will grow whether your part of the company or not.

As the title of the feedback suggests: Don't Sell Your Soul.. I worked in the office for five months when it was J9/Merl Group last year.. Just a young college grad in search of a job in this failing economy.. Upon beginning the job I had a loaded bank account full of savings but exiting in debt.. in which I'm still trying to recover from.. Believe those previous responses stating the corruption of these companies.. You will work from 7am to 6pm.. well those who don't go home for the half of the day before returning to the office filled with fake smiles and high fives.. And after considering the hours you work and what you make.. You're basically making minimum wage but with all of the money you pay for gas driving all over the state or cabbing those successful reps who can't even afford to maintain their own stable vehicle 9does that say enough).. anyway you could make more working at a restaurant or retail.. Or those who show up like they have just woken up.. which they most likely did..

Anyone who can make it to work daily will be hired.. Sadly I was promoted after the first week and had to interview/train new recruits in which I was supposed to provide a promising future full of capitalistic dreams.. including a woman trying to support her two kids and a disabled husband (note: she worked for three weeks, quit her other job after false promises of pay, then was released after not meeting sales quotas, and had to witness her in tears multiple times).. then a kid who may have or have not graduated high school (note: was seriously considered for hiring after the first interview with DAN SEVILLA, spent the day texting or on his phone while I was trying to make sales on the second shadow interview, explained to me his financial situation and how he had to make money for his mother's medical bills, so I decided to help him out and NOT have him hired so he could actually make money).. Then you have the over-qualified individuals with extensive resumes who I just could not allow to work there.. rather they had real dreams and I didn't want them to experience what I was going through..

OH YEAH.. Once you're called back for a second interview, you shadow a fellow account exec.. HERE'S SOME IMPORTANT INFO: they choose reps who have for sure sales set up that day to make it seem as if the work is a cake-walk.. Oh them salesmen.. Just heartless aren't they?..

Anyway.. You work territories that have been worked countless times throughout the past few years (so it's almost impossible to make sales).. UNLESS: There is one trick to it to escape that issue.. Just create a false account/address/dept/phone number in order to create a new account so you can get paid and they can maybe receive a discount.. BUT ONLY IF THE SALE IN THE END IS SUCCESSFUL.. That is, sometimes you will just never receive commission for some odd reason or they cancel the transaction upon departure.. WOULD YOU CALL THAT ETHICAL SALESMANSHIP.. and that is not BS..

I could probably write a book in regards to my experiences and all of the shenanigans I witnessed while working for this company..

AND FOR THE FINALE! ... After waking up one Sunday morning I decided this just wasn't the job for me.. By that I mean, I take pride in myself and what I do with my life.. Or maybe I could say I'd rather be washing dishes because from that I could actually witness an end product (which is not my current occupation).. SOOOO I call this man, Dan Sevilla, my boss, my apparent friend, and tell him the time has come to move on with my life.. He explains the need for me to stay for three to four more weeks in order for him to promote someone to take over his office.. so he can open a new office where his family is.. Being the generous guy I am, I say yes but demand a weekly salary of $400 to dig myself out of the debt I encountered from working there.. Which he agrees to.. So the first week he pays me $300 and something.. the second week I work a few days b/c I couldn't afford the gas to work and take less pay.. and the third and fourth week I see no paycheck.. INTERESTING!

.. I continue to call almost on a daily basis asking when he planned on paying me.. His response was either he was busy at the moment or his accountants in Cincinnati were taking care of it.. I call for a month or two and finally receive a paycheck for $13.. yes.. THIRTEEN!.. I guess a slap in the face would of been more fitting..

All of the negative responses to these companies are legitimate.. Although I worked for J9, the Merl Group practices similar ethics and you're likely to be rewarded with little or no return.. DO NOT TAKE THE CHANCE.. You might be able to make a little money but it will not be worth all of the BS you put with on a daily basis..

Someone will probably post a response exclaiming my inability to succeed in the business.. I was more than qualified considered those I worked with.. They create false hope for many and are heartless once that individual is weaved out (this is from observation over five months of the hundreds of potential recruits in and out).. Save yourself the time and money and find something you enjoy doing..

This story should be enough when considering.. If you don't believe me.. Just go in and listen to Stephen's BS story about working on crutches for months as a account exec to make it to where he is now.. Tear!.. And you'll hear it almost every other day.. Well, that was fun.. Best of luck in continuing your job search beyond this company!

My experience was similar to Brittany's.
Merl Group is a complete joke...it's basically a pushy/cult like atmosphere where they try to brain wash you into 'updating' clients accounts. In reality you are selling them services they probably don't need. In fact, you were pushed to sell businesses new phone lines when they didn't need them, just so you could get a sale. The reps are pushy pushy pushy and in all the days I was out making sales calls withrep I saw unethical behavior.

The reps are somewhat uneducated and I have to say that even though some attended a university most were not in a business related field and some did not even have a degree. But then again, that is what the Merl Group preys on and those are the reps that 'make it'....the ones that are easily brainwashed and don't have a mind of their own.

I worked there for just under 2 weeks, wasted plenty of time in the office playing games and chanting (which is unpaid), put plenty of miles and wasted tons of gas, and wore down a perfectly good pair of heels walking my a*s off to all these businesses. AND I NEVER SAW A PENNY! I thought they were going to forward my check plus the training pay, but nope..never happened.

This place is a complete waste of time. If you have to put more than 20 posts on careerbuilder for the same position then something is up.

Don't waste your time!

I retract the previous statements.

Ultimately I think there are some good people involved. Its just a young company that needs a little extra attention given to training, developing contractual agreements with their commission sales employees, and providing proper introductory documentation for sales (i.e. an intro letter from att, info on who the merl group is, and why it is they can actually help customers on their AT&T phone bill). There are just too many scams out there to have salespeople feeling psuedo-comfortable about who they represent and why it is they can offer the deals they can. Not that they will need it every time, but it did seem to come up often enough. This becomes increasingly important in an increasingly saturated market! And when you have customers familiar with the pitch and annoyed by AT&T generally badgering them with phone calls and salesman; extreme honesty and transparency are important.

I think many of the previous misunderstandings would have been avoided. And perhaps the scaffolding used for questioning the ethics of this company may have foundered early on, had things been more clear.

I'm confident that the Merl Group will get these minor glitches worked out and remove all doubt of their credibility. It just wasn't the right fit for me.

Best of luck to you guys!


Brittany

The Original Ripoff Report:
A Job with the Merl Group...please see other complaints...this is an add-on!


Maybe I should feel grateful this company only wasted a week and a half of my life, but being duped SUCKS. So oddly enough...I don't really feel gratitude (although thanks for confirming suspicions, all ex-employees).


Most of the complaints written about above, I experienced in a mere week and some change.

1. On the first day in my 'new' territory I was yelled at and kicked out of numerous places--yes, quite literally! I heard the response--"someone was just here this morning, on Friday, or there have been people in our store 4X's in the last two weeks, not to mention the relentless phone calls from all you AT&T guys". These being 7-8 out of 10 responses we got in the business we entered. My manager tried to explain that it was a girl--whom like me only stuck around for a few days--three months ago. Right...and what of the stories from customers that described the cars these salespeople were driving, or the hair-do of the woman that was just in THAT morning?

So yes, (you the 'account manager/door-to-door phon-ie salesman) are soliciting harassing, and abusing AT&T customers. And yes, you probably do deserve their wrath!!! Merl Group, the least you could do is be honest about the fact that you are NOT actually AT&T employees, merely a marketing company hired by the same 'corporate world' you so begrudgingly attack in your pep rally's. You might actually save AT&T some customers!


2. The whole bit about managers stealing the sales peoples' sales. Sold! I believe it. On a friday out training with a manager we made $8 on 1 application. I'm still a trainee, I'm not supposed to fully understand how everything works right? We return at 20-25 after 5pm. All sales, to be reported in time for the morning meetings/and for the announcements of 'high rollers' the following morning, have to be in by 5:30. Monday morning, oddly enough we (manager and I) were high rollers. We supposedly made a couple hundred dollars in sales. Weird, because I'm pretty sure i was there and that was not the case. I questioned said manager and his response 'i went out after you dropped me off'.


Really? Cause I'm pretty sure YOU DON'T have a car and I've been driving you to all of your sales for the last two days. And I thought bells and the evening meeting started at 5:30. So right, maybe you did borrow someone else's car, drive to a business (not in your territory, because that's muncie and that would be a little far fetched hun!), pitched the business, wait on the phone with Edge for the minimal 15 minutes you're put on hold, filled out the 8 pages of paper work and made it back for bells to report the sales. And all in 10 minutes...very believable indeed! At the time, I asked how he made that happen without a car. He then said "don't worry about it" followed by his charismatic salesman smile.


So where did this $200 in sales come from. Perhaps the ridiculously high turn-over rate means all the sales and revenue from the two weeks prior to an employee quitting is pocketed by the managers?! Maybe all those supposedly 'failed' applications reported to the sales staff, really didn't fail. And maybe the buck fifty promised to you for training for three days is pocketed for all of those employees that don't make it a full two weeks. Wow management that must feel good!


NOTE to sales staff: I strongly suggest you pay a friendly visit to those you've duped into purchase unnecessary services to be certain whether or not they did actually go through, in order to see whether or not YOU are being cheated on your pay for duping AT&T customers! Hmmm...lets think about that one for a minute.


3. You know the very clever concept of 'SLAMMING' the company educates you about? The condition were illegitimate companies (i.e., non-AT&T companies) get a business' phone information and make dubious charges on the account? Well I ask you to consider exactly what it is you salespeople are doing...and who actually pays your bills. Just to recap, in most cases you're adding unnecessary charges to phone customers bills AND you're not being paid by AT&T. So what's the difference?!?! Do you know? Or do you only know what you've been told?


Here's why I ask: In a store a customer decides to call up AT&T, she isn't quite clear on the concept of pro-ration. I encourage her to call services and ask them about it. Why not right? It's only far that she understand and feel comfortable with the year+ contract she's about to sign her name to (which of course she is not notified about at the time of signing). My manager attempts 'very awkwardly' to convince her otherwise. "I wouldn't call mam, they're going to tell you that we don't work for AT&T and then they'll tell you that this is not legitimate because they want to sell you services instead."


What? Wait....I wanted to kick us out after that too! So what happens? Yep, the woman calls and goes irate. I finally get the phone to talk to the agent...'Who are you he demands/who do you work for'. What's your number...etc. Now all of a sudden some AT&T dude has the last 6 digits of my soc (my supposed h-code) and is going to potentially report me for fraud when I have no idea what's going on. The AT&T guy is yelling, the customers yelling. And I'm really confused about what it is I'm doing.


Turns out what we were attempt to sell to this woman--the supposed package we're quoting doesn't exist. We're about to inflate the phone bill of a tiny family-owned quiznos in a deserted strip mall, to nearly 300 dollars while adding a phone line. They didn't need 4 phone lines--it only rang once in the 1.5 hours we were there! They were already overdue on there account...meaning within less than a month they would have a phone bill for over $500, should they not pay the over due balance beforehand.


Ok well that about sums up the week at Merl Group. I'm not really angry...mostly I keep waiting for an obnoxious tv host to pop out and say I'm on some stupid reality tv show where people are tricked into doing REALLY stupid things. So don't waste your ammunition or rebuttal on suggestion I'm disgruntled, angry, crazy, etc. I'm not. I'm also not a fool, a quitter, or a morally base individual. So nice try.


I wish you all the best...but seriously consider the following: Grow-up, get a real job, stop deluding yourselves, and suspending your moral judgment for paychecks that don't amount to much. You will wake up with the miserable realization that you've forgotten what a 'good person' really is! And probably won't have much of a career to boot! Oh and stop wearing those hideous suits...all of you. You look exceptionally cheesy and you're merely reaffirming the slimy salesman stereotype. Honestly! I'm sorry you were not admitted into the corporate world, but 'attempting' to dressing for it isn't really helping you get there when you're still a door-to-door phone salesman!

Cheers! Brittany

Oddly Enough Indianapolis, Indiana
U.S.A.

First off, thanks to those of you who posted negative things about this company. They are a pyramid scheming scam company at its best. They are directly linked with Cydcor, and if anyone there tries to tell you different I went to the National Conference, I know. They dont like to tell you about that affiliation though b/c if you look up Cydcor you'll find loads of bad feedback on them. These companies such as the Merl Group are all across the country scamming young adults and college grads daily. Its really sad to see that people like Steve do this to people. Yes these pyramid scheming Cydcor companies do work for a SMALL portion of people ever hired. If I had to throw a number out there it'd be much smaller than the 1 out of 100 number that was already given. They go threw about 100 empoyees a month atleast. If you count all the offices that are shoved into that one office it's probably even higher. I was a witness to one of these offices failing. J9 Executives used to be in the same office as the Merl Group. They were the brother company to the Merl Group at one time. Dan the ex owner has since quite entirely. He was in the business over two years and was convinced to move to Indianapolis where he'd make 100K plus. Hah....We see that he obviously didnt. Another office was recently closed in Columbus. It gets better just wait. Soooo A group of people out of the Indy office that Steve trained moved there to take the place of that office that failed. Just to run through the same d**n places that had been run through and failed the last 2 years. Also, some girl who I dont know the name started a new office to take the place of J9 and run through the same d**n territories that had been run through for the last who knows long???? Doesnt this all seem ridiculous? I hope that someday these d**n people get shut down. For now we can only post stuff on here and hope the excited people who are about to go to an interview or have already went and got suspicious read this!!!!

i love that name. they can put a positive spin on anything. should be called the "manipulation training program", since that's what you're learning is how to manipulate people. how to make them fall for the false dreams and promises you're trying to get them to buy into. so it's not a "pyramid", cuz pyramid's are illegal, right? but it is multi-level marketing, can any of you people who work there deny that? look up multi-level marketing--all reasearch shows that mlm's are an unsustainable business model. they close as many operations as they open every year. they over-saturate markets. only the ones at the top actually make decent money. "A study by the Direct Selling Association found that 90 percent of MLM sales representatives made less than $5,000 per year."--and that's the average. so yes, there are some people involved who will make more, but the average is $5000 a year, which means there are many that make less than that amount. they have a "burn em and churn em" mentality--hire as many people as possible and make as much money off of them as you can, because they won't last long. that is their whole business model. it's all a numbers game--law of averages, anyone in the business knows about that. it's one of the things they teach you, isn't it? although they don't teach you all of the averages that it refers to.

i also love the current employees- who sign on as "ex-employees", yet write not to listen to what the "ex-employees" have to say, since they're just bitter or couldn't handle it. but wait, it says you're an "ex-employee" also, so does that mean people shouldn't listen to you?? the people who have negative things to say, are the ones who have seen what the business does, the one's who have come to their senses. they are the ones who see the reality of the business--they are the ones who aren't drinking the kool-aid anymore, the ones who are actually thinking for themselves. it doesn't mean, they can't handle it. the only people ever defending these companies are the ones still in them. because that is what you're trained to do--to believe it is the greatest thing ever, that it is gonna make you rich and successful, that it will lead you to freedom and financial independence. all lies. read some stories from those who were owners, who were in the business for years--they will tell you the real truth. that the higher up you get, the less freedom you actually have. you are never actually running your own business, you are only following the plans that are laid out for you.

i'm not angry at you current employees for defending it--that's what you're trained to do. i do feel bad for you, because you are throwing so much of your life away, chasing a dream that will never be. i just hope that you see the truth, and can get out, before you lose to much.

i love that name. they can put a positive spin on anything. should be called the "manipulation training program", since that's what you're learning is how to manipulate people. how to make them fall for the false dreams and promises you're trying to get them to buy into. so it's not a "pyramid", cuz pyramid's are illegal, right? but it is multi-level marketing, can any of you people who work there deny that? look up multi-level marketing--all reasearch shows that mlm's are an unsustainable business model. they close as many operations as they open every year. they over-saturate markets. only the ones at the top actually make decent money. "A study by the Direct Selling Association found that 90 percent of MLM sales representatives made less than $5,000 per year."--and that's the average. so yes, there are some people involved who will make more, but the average is $5000 a year, which means there are many that make less than that amount. they have a "burn em and churn em" mentality--hire as many people as possible and make as much money off of them as you can, because they won't last long. that is their whole business model. it's all a numbers game--law of averages, anyone in the business knows about that. it's one of the things they teach you, isn't it? although they don't teach you all of the averages that it refers to.

i also love the current employees- who sign on as "ex-employees", yet write not to listen to what the "ex-employees" have to say, since they're just bitter or couldn't handle it. but wait, it says you're an "ex-employee" also, so does that mean people shouldn't listen to you?? the people who have negative things to say, are the ones who have seen what the business does, the one's who have come to their senses. they are the ones who see the reality of the business--they are the ones who aren't drinking the kool-aid anymore, the ones who are actually thinking for themselves. it doesn't mean, they can't handle it. the only people ever defending these companies are the ones still in them. because that is what you're trained to do--to believe it is the greatest thing ever, that it is gonna make you rich and successful, that it will lead you to freedom and financial independence. all lies. read some stories from those who were owners, who were in the business for years--they will tell you the real truth. that the higher up you get, the less freedom you actually have. you are never actually running your own business, you are only following the plans that are laid out for you.

i'm not angry at you current employees for defending it--that's what you're trained to do. i do feel bad for you, because you are throwing so much of your life away, chasing a dream that will never be. i just hope that you see the truth, and can get out, before you lose to much.

i love that name. they can put a positive spin on anything. should be called the "manipulation training program", since that's what you're learning is how to manipulate people. how to make them fall for the false dreams and promises you're trying to get them to buy into. so it's not a "pyramid", cuz pyramid's are illegal, right? but it is multi-level marketing, can any of you people who work there deny that? look up multi-level marketing--all reasearch shows that mlm's are an unsustainable business model. they close as many operations as they open every year. they over-saturate markets. only the ones at the top actually make decent money. "A study by the Direct Selling Association found that 90 percent of MLM sales representatives made less than $5,000 per year."--and that's the average. so yes, there are some people involved who will make more, but the average is $5000 a year, which means there are many that make less than that amount. they have a "burn em and churn em" mentality--hire as many people as possible and make as much money off of them as you can, because they won't last long. that is their whole business model. it's all a numbers game--law of averages, anyone in the business knows about that. it's one of the things they teach you, isn't it? although they don't teach you all of the averages that it refers to.

i also love the current employees- who sign on as "ex-employees", yet write not to listen to what the "ex-employees" have to say, since they're just bitter or couldn't handle it. but wait, it says you're an "ex-employee" also, so does that mean people shouldn't listen to you?? the people who have negative things to say, are the ones who have seen what the business does, the one's who have come to their senses. they are the ones who see the reality of the business--they are the ones who aren't drinking the kool-aid anymore, the ones who are actually thinking for themselves. it doesn't mean, they can't handle it. the only people ever defending these companies are the ones still in them. because that is what you're trained to do--to believe it is the greatest thing ever, that it is gonna make you rich and successful, that it will lead you to freedom and financial independence. all lies. read some stories from those who were owners, who were in the business for years--they will tell you the real truth. that the higher up you get, the less freedom you actually have. you are never actually running your own business, you are only following the plans that are laid out for you.

i'm not angry at you current employees for defending it--that's what you're trained to do. i do feel bad for you, because you are throwing so much of your life away, chasing a dream that will never be. i just hope that you see the truth, and can get out, before you lose to much.

i love that name. they can put a positive spin on anything. should be called the "manipulation training program", since that's what you're learning is how to manipulate people. how to make them fall for the false dreams and promises you're trying to get them to buy into. so it's not a "pyramid", cuz pyramid's are illegal, right? but it is multi-level marketing, can any of you people who work there deny that? look up multi-level marketing--all reasearch shows that mlm's are an unsustainable business model. they close as many operations as they open every year. they over-saturate markets. only the ones at the top actually make decent money. "A study by the Direct Selling Association found that 90 percent of MLM sales representatives made less than $5,000 per year."--and that's the average. so yes, there are some people involved who will make more, but the average is $5000 a year, which means there are many that make less than that amount. they have a "burn em and churn em" mentality--hire as many people as possible and make as much money off of them as you can, because they won't last long. that is their whole business model. it's all a numbers game--law of averages, anyone in the business knows about that. it's one of the things they teach you, isn't it? although they don't teach you all of the averages that it refers to.

i also love the current employees- who sign on as "ex-employees", yet write not to listen to what the "ex-employees" have to say, since they're just bitter or couldn't handle it. but wait, it says you're an "ex-employee" also, so does that mean people shouldn't listen to you?? the people who have negative things to say, are the ones who have seen what the business does, the one's who have come to their senses. they are the ones who see the reality of the business--they are the ones who aren't drinking the kool-aid anymore, the ones who are actually thinking for themselves. it doesn't mean, they can't handle it. the only people ever defending these companies are the ones still in them. because that is what you're trained to do--to believe it is the greatest thing ever, that it is gonna make you rich and successful, that it will lead you to freedom and financial independence. all lies. read some stories from those who were owners, who were in the business for years--they will tell you the real truth. that the higher up you get, the less freedom you actually have. you are never actually running your own business, you are only following the plans that are laid out for you.

i'm not angry at you current employees for defending it--that's what you're trained to do. i do feel bad for you, because you are throwing so much of your life away, chasing a dream that will never be. i just hope that you see the truth, and can get out, before you lose to much.

If this was a scam, would Verizon, AT&T and or Quill (owned by Staples) do business with them? Probably not. Also, what would be the benefit of them 'wasting a day of your life' by trapping you on a full day 2nd interview? It obviously wouldn't benefit anyone. Think of it this way, every company wants to expand. If a company wants to hire 1 rep, they need to conduct over 100 interviews. A lot of people decline these position because it is commission based in the past, but recently they added a base pay plus commission. So they have to invite back a large number of 2nd interviews. If 100 people go on a 2nd round interview, 3% will get angry and write about it on this website. Not everyone else likes the job, but people usually appreciate the time spent with a The Merl Group rep, because most of them are cool, motivated and work extremely hard.

During a shadow day, the average The Merl Group rep should be closing between 2-4 accounts, or sales. The 2nd interview is designed to show you that sales can be made, rather than just telling you. Yes, it is 8 hours of hard work, but not on an interview, it is just shadowing. The hours are 7:00am to 6:00pm on business to business
(including office time). 11am to 9pm on consumer.

At the end of the day, you will be invited to sit down with the manager and if offered a position the decision is yours as to whether you take the position or not. No, they do not always want the decision that day and most managers call at a later date after discussing the interview with other people. No, they can not hire everyone due to territory issues.

Lets say you take the position. It is performance based. If you dont make any money, how much does the company make? None. If you make a lot of money, the company benefits. So they would rather have you make money if hired. They will train you very well. They dangle a carrot in front of you. Management, run an office like this one, live the life you always dreamed of. For those who choose to work hard for a year and not give up, the return on the investment is large. The Merl Group, Inc. has already opened two offices and promoted two managers in the last 3 months.


So, a little bit of info for potential interviewers. There is opportunity with The Merl Group, Inc. It's a completely legit business model. They don't really want to waste anyone's time, but it is a natural byproduct of the type of business they run. There are some very successful people who do make it to management with The Merl Group,Inc. You never really know unless you try. Don't listen to the ex-employees on this website. Check out a 2nd interview. If you like it and are offered a position, try it for a couple weeks. If worse comes to worse, you lose a couple weeks but still make a few hundred bucks. No one will leave without developing their communication skills and learning work ethic. Most people can not handle the challenge of this company and are not willing to go above and beyond the minimum requirements of a normal, stagnant position.

It is sad that ex-employees that choose not to complete the management program are attempting to ruin it for others that could be very successful. Either way, there are two sides to every story.

Excited to be growing and providing careers for over 90 employees across 3 states!

If this was a scam, would Verizon, AT&T and or Quill (owned by Staples) do business with them? Probably not. Also, what would be the benefit of them 'wasting a day of your life' by trapping you on a full day 2nd interview? It obviously wouldn't benefit anyone. Think of it this way, every company wants to expand. If a company wants to hire 1 rep, they need to conduct over 100 interviews. A lot of people decline these position because it is commission based in the past, but recently they added a base pay plus commission. So they have to invite back a large number of 2nd interviews. If 100 people go on a 2nd round interview, 3% will get angry and write about it on this website. Not everyone else likes the job, but people usually appreciate the time spent with a The Merl Group rep, because most of them are cool, motivated and work extremely hard.

During a shadow day, the average The Merl Group rep should be closing between 2-4 accounts, or sales. The 2nd interview is designed to show you that sales can be made, rather than just telling you. Yes, it is 8 hours of hard work, but not on an interview, it is just shadowing. The hours are 7:00am to 6:00pm on business to business
(including office time). 11am to 9pm on consumer.

At the end of the day, you will be invited to sit down with the manager and if offered a position the decision is yours as to whether you take the position or not. No, they do not always want the decision that day and most managers call at a later date after discussing the interview with other people. No, they can not hire everyone due to territory issues.

Lets say you take the position. It is performance based. If you dont make any money, how much does the company make? None. If you make a lot of money, the company benefits. So they would rather have you make money if hired. They will train you very well. They dangle a carrot in front of you. Management, run an office like this one, live the life you always dreamed of. For those who choose to work hard for a year and not give up, the return on the investment is large. The Merl Group, Inc. has already opened two offices and promoted two managers in the last 3 months.


So, a little bit of info for potential interviewers. There is opportunity with The Merl Group, Inc. It's a completely legit business model. They don't really want to waste anyone's time, but it is a natural byproduct of the type of business they run. There are some very successful people who do make it to management with The Merl Group,Inc. You never really know unless you try. Don't listen to the ex-employees on this website. Check out a 2nd interview. If you like it and are offered a position, try it for a couple weeks. If worse comes to worse, you lose a couple weeks but still make a few hundred bucks. No one will leave without developing their communication skills and learning work ethic. Most people can not handle the challenge of this company and are not willing to go above and beyond the minimum requirements of a normal, stagnant position.

It is sad that ex-employees that choose not to complete the management program are attempting to ruin it for others that could be very successful. Either way, there are two sides to every story.

Excited to be growing and providing careers for over 90 employees across 3 states!

For the record, I worked on the ATT consumer/Business campaign for a Cydcor office in the Chicagoland region.

First thing's first.... Cydcor IS in charge of all of its ICL's which run the offices, which are paid by a wire from Cydcor. I know this as I have seen it and has been cross verified by others on this site. The payment system goes something like this... ICL's are paid a cut of other ICL's under them, as well as a percent of sales made by the leaders and account executives. What's left (and there is A LOT left) is taken by the executives of Cydcor and the remainder of Ds-MAX. The cuts are paid out through Cydcor and distributed to the ICL's to give to their leaders and account executives. Another way that Cydcor has power over ICL's is through licensing and production. Cydcor can shut down offices this way as well, like they did with an ATT consumer office in Columbus, OH. (So much for the "No Layoffs" promise)

Second thing is that the reason for ICL's is to make it nearly impossible legally for anyone to sue Cydcor or anyone up the chain from you, either current/former employees or clients of Cydcor. (They can sue an office for a practice widespread through Cydcor, cydcor shuts down said office and "Problem" is solved)

Third thing is that the abuses that the man posted about are true, I can verify it, as well as a lot of ex employees of the Cydcor universe. There is a cult like mentality, "Hey this, Hey what" chants, bell ceremonies, ect. It is in this enviroment that they teach you the system and how to sell stuff "Without actually selling stuff" (Which does work and is perhaps the most effective part of cydcor system). Harassment and pushy tactics are common within many offices. Furthermore, you are worked for 55+hours a week Monday through Saturday, without any base pay . Most ICL's don't pay for gas, or have people who go out in the field with the drivers pay for it. Some do, but it cuts into their bottom line. They also make you do other tasks pay free, such as training newbies, filing paperwork, planning team night, and interviewing/hiring new account executives (By using the "System" on them)

Legally you are a seperate company because Cydcor wants to be shielded from any legal liability.

You keeping saying you don't work for Cydcor even though your only income is the weekly wire from Cydcor. Every evening you report your sales to Cycor. You use bookkeeper controlled by Cydcor and every week your financials are sent to Cydcor, your promoting owner, and Cydcor consultants.

Cydcor dictates every step in your door-to-door sales tactics. They tell you how much to pay youur reps.

It's pretty funny to try to claim respectability by disowning Cydcor. And it is pathetic that in your May 21st posting you claimed a partnership with National City / PNC bank when all you have is a checking account there.

To be legitmate, you need to do the following:

1. Disclose in your recruting ads and job interviews that the job is door-to-door sales.

2. Work hour is 12 hours a day.

3. Pay is mostly based on commission and average pay is $300 a week.

4. You are part of Cydcor which has some 2,000 reps. But with the high turnover 20,000 reps are hired to maintain a staff of 2,000.

5. Less than 1% of reps make it to ownership, when you own your supposedly private company.

6. Ownership is just the beginning of hardship. Every year Cydcor opens 170 offices and closes 165 offices.

The Merl Group, Inc. is a corporation in the state of Indiana and is owned and operated privately. This can be looked up under the secretary of state of Indiana and the state's website and confirmed under the small business section. We are not owned by cydcor and we do not work for cydcor. If anyone has questions about our two new offices and expansion please feel free to call or come here to talk face to face about our company.

www.themerlgroup.com

317-569-6433

"We do not work for Cydcor, we are an independent corporation who utilized Cydcor as a contact to gain At&t as a client."

That is simply a flat out lie. Your company is a part of the Cydcor scam. You are paid weekly by Cydcor. You have a contractual agreement with Cydcor and must do what Cydcor tells you to do.

AT&T does not pay you. AT&T is not your client. You do not have any contractual agreement with AT&T.

If you lie about such a well known fact, I can just imagine all the other things you lie about.

Employees of The Merl Group, Inc. will not hide behind anonymous names and defame those who have written negatives against our company. Those that have written have actually worked for our company for more than a few months and obviously know we are a growing firm that produces results or they would not have continued to work for the company. We are a very competitive company and unfortunately not everyone will choose to complete the tasks required to manage one of our offices or clients. When an employees completes the management training program they will run offices for At&t, Staples, Verizon and other Fortune 500 and 100 companies. These are all large clients which would only work with the most professional companies like The Merl Group, Inc. We do not work for Cydcor, we are an independent corporation who utilized Cydcor as a contact to gain At&t as a client. If anyone wants to learn about cydcor, then go to www.cydcor.com which The Merl Group, Inc. does not work for.

In the negative articles written by past employees who either quit or were fired for causing inappropriate scenes, they have written false statement due to either frustration or emotional anger associated with not being promoted or being released from the company. I personally am one of the managers of The Merl Group, Inc. and I fortunately chose to work hard and complete the program and understand that those who have chosen to defame The Merl Group, Inc. only do it because they chose to not succeed in our program.

A few of the articles claim that we go into business face to face and do sales. This is absolutely true, but only a part of our management training program. We are outsourced by the companies mentioned above because it is more cost effective to outsource. We are very well respected in the community and we do not call and do sales over the phone because telemarketing is ineffective. At&t and Quill and Verizon has hired The Merl Group, Inc. do all of the face to face in the Midwest. We produce millions in revenue for our clients. Ethics are very important to me and I train people to upsell when possible and bundle different packages, but always to be clear with the business that we are taking care of. Our reps are not trained to be unethical and unfortunately sometimes people choose to do the wrong thing, but we strive to weed those people out of our company.

There are rejected orders if a customer cancels, but not everyone deals with those. The sales reps that do their job correctly rarely deal with rejected sales. It seems to only be those employees, like the ones on here who wrote negative things, that seem to deal with them. If someone does not clearly explain the products and services being ordered or make a sale that is ethical, then I agree it should be rejected. Most reps average between $600-$1000 a week in our company based on their performance.

Due to the economy, we now offer a base plus commission or a commission option. We can offer a salary at the managers discretion, but choose usually not based on the fact that people will take advantage of our company. We are all W2 employees and we are corporation that runs its payroll through ADP. We are currently partners with National City/PNC Bank and also now offer new revised benefits package as well.

One ex-employee, Adam Bronstrup, who was actually fired from the company states that some of the managers take money from the reps. This is libel and defamation and a false statement. Our clients and the FCC regulate all of our sales and it is literally impossible for our managers to take sale in our own names. This was written and the other articles out of anger and out of a personal vendetta.

We do a lot of interviews, and actually only invite 12% of first round interviews back for full day shadows. The reason we have our second round interviews do job shadows is to reduce turnover and also it benefits the person interviewing. All of our employees go through an extensive background check and three interview process. If hired, an individual will be trained on sales, interviewing, and training which are all invaluable skills. We do not require for an individual to run meetings and network with conference calls and other offices responsibilities. Those who choose to separate themselves volunteer to do these responsibilities and I encourage them to.

I have personally been a manager with the company for a year and have already promoted two managers who now independently run an office in Columbus, Ohio and Cherry Hill, New Jersey. I recently graduate college three years ago and it took me 13 months to go through this program and be in a managerial role. I now manage the state of Indiana for commercial market share as an outsourced firm with At&t. I think it is sad that people will defame a company because they chose to not complete the program for various reasons. We will not hide behind anonymous names like those who have written these articles against our company!

If anyone has any questions on our company or its growth please inquire at our website www.themerlgroup.com.

In response to the rebuttal, I am a former employee who has witnessed first hand the actions that Adam has written about. The Merl Group has gone through a consistent pattern or growing in size, then dropping. The company hires a new person almost everyday because of this. In the interview, you're given false hope on a potential salary you can make. With time, employees discover how much unnecessary work is needed to make a slightly decent paycheck and find other career opportunities that provide a stable work environment along with a defined salary.

The response rebuttal has to be questioned as well since the author Theresa is not just a recent employee of the company but also the live in girlfriend of the owner. There is no doubt that the owner of this company had a heavy hand in writing and constructing the grammar of that rebuttal. Any company expects their employees to work hard but there are much better, more rewarding opportunities for college graduates along with the currently unemployed, so don't waste you time applying for a position on the several career websites The Merl Group floods with their job postings

Bottom line, Consumers need to be aware of The Merl Group. The company employees are trained to take control of each customer and find ways to "save you money" when actually they're adding services to your account which don't lead to a measurable amout of savings for your company. What's even worse is that these employees are required to report to the office in the morning, cold call customers in their territories that span through Central Indiana, then report back to the office in the evening. These employees are paid on commission which means they are not paid for travel time to and from the office. Adam, thanks for being the first one to tell the truth, I'm sure there will be more testimonials that will contradict Theresa(Steve Kordella's) rebuttal.

The above response was written by Adam Bronstrup, a former employee of the company who was terminated for causing a scene at our company on this past Friday the 10th.

I am a current employee of the company and am able to release this information.

Yes our company is hired by AT&T as well as Quill, a division of Staples. Are we direct employees of AT&T, of course not; we are an outsourced company which our customers clearly know. AT&T entrusts our company to build rapport with out current small to medium sized commercial accounts in the Indianapolis area. Also, obviously since we are outsourced we use a billing department who fully handles our need. They are also hired directly by AT&T.

80% of customers are retention clients of AT&T, meaning they already have our products and services. 20% are new customers, so cold calling is a portion of our work. When we work with fortune 500 clients like AT&T and Quill, we use the best marketing techniques that work for them. AT&T as well as Quill does not find telemarketing or direct mail as effective as our face to face approach.

As far as these claims of stealing money, those will be dealt with by legal authorities due to the face that it is defamation of the company and the reputation of those listed. Like any legitimate c-corporation we have a team of accountants and legal representation on our side as well as AT&T and Quill who handles what our company needs.

Lastly, does the company expect people to work hard? Yes of course! Seeing 60 businesses a day not only shows us work ethic but that is a requirement of the company. We look for future managers, not sales individual so hard work is expected of all of our employees. This is a career not a sales job.

The above written by the ex-employee should not be regarded with any truth as he is a former employee of the company let go for causing a scene with the employer and co-workers.

The above response was written by Adam Bronstrup, a former employee of the company who was terminated for causing a scene at our company on this past Friday the 10th.

I am a current employee of the company and am able to release this information.

Yes our company is hired by AT&T as well as Quill, a division of Staples. Are we direct employees of AT&T, of course not; we are an outsourced company which our customers clearly know. AT&T entrusts our company to build rapport with out current small to medium sized commercial accounts in the Indianapolis area. Also, obviously since we are outsourced we use a billing department who fully handles our need. They are also hired directly by AT&T.

80% of customers are retention clients of AT&T, meaning they already have our products and services. 20% are new customers, so cold calling is a portion of our work. When we work with fortune 500 clients like AT&T and Quill, we use the best marketing techniques that work for them. AT&T as well as Quill does not find telemarketing or direct mail as effective as our face to face approach.

As far as these claims of stealing money, those will be dealt with by legal authorities due to the face that it is defamation of the company and the reputation of those listed. Like any legitimate c-corporation we have a team of accountants and legal representation on our side as well as AT&T and Quill who handles what our company needs.

Lastly, does the company expect people to work hard? Yes of course! Seeing 60 businesses a day not only shows us work ethic but that is a requirement of the company. We look for future managers, not sales individual so hard work is expected of all of our employees. This is a career not a sales job.

The above written by the ex-employee should not be regarded with any truth as he is a former employee of the company let go for causing a scene with the employer and co-workers.

The above response was written by Adam Bronstrup, a former employee of the company who was terminated for causing a scene at our company on this past Friday the 10th.

I am a current employee of the company and am able to release this information.

Yes our company is hired by AT&T as well as Quill, a division of Staples. Are we direct employees of AT&T, of course not; we are an outsourced company which our customers clearly know. AT&T entrusts our company to build rapport with out current small to medium sized commercial accounts in the Indianapolis area. Also, obviously since we are outsourced we use a billing department who fully handles our need. They are also hired directly by AT&T.

80% of customers are retention clients of AT&T, meaning they already have our products and services. 20% are new customers, so cold calling is a portion of our work. When we work with fortune 500 clients like AT&T and Quill, we use the best marketing techniques that work for them. AT&T as well as Quill does not find telemarketing or direct mail as effective as our face to face approach.

As far as these claims of stealing money, those will be dealt with by legal authorities due to the face that it is defamation of the company and the reputation of those listed. Like any legitimate c-corporation we have a team of accountants and legal representation on our side as well as AT&T and Quill who handles what our company needs.

Lastly, does the company expect people to work hard? Yes of course! Seeing 60 businesses a day not only shows us work ethic but that is a requirement of the company. We look for future managers, not sales individual so hard work is expected of all of our employees. This is a career not a sales job.

The above written by the ex-employee should not be regarded with any truth as he is a former employee of the company let go for causing a scene with the employer and co-workers.

The above response was written by Adam Bronstrup, a former employee of the company who was terminated for causing a scene at our company on this past Friday the 10th.

I am a current employee of the company and am able to release this information.

Yes our company is hired by AT&T as well as Quill, a division of Staples. Are we direct employees of AT&T, of course not; we are an outsourced company which our customers clearly know. AT&T entrusts our company to build rapport with out current small to medium sized commercial accounts in the Indianapolis area. Also, obviously since we are outsourced we use a billing department who fully handles our need. They are also hired directly by AT&T.

80% of customers are retention clients of AT&T, meaning they already have our products and services. 20% are new customers, so cold calling is a portion of our work. When we work with fortune 500 clients like AT&T and Quill, we use the best marketing techniques that work for them. AT&T as well as Quill does not find telemarketing or direct mail as effective as our face to face approach.

As far as these claims of stealing money, those will be dealt with by legal authorities due to the face that it is defamation of the company and the reputation of those listed. Like any legitimate c-corporation we have a team of accountants and legal representation on our side as well as AT&T and Quill who handles what our company needs.

Lastly, does the company expect people to work hard? Yes of course! Seeing 60 businesses a day not only shows us work ethic but that is a requirement of the company. We look for future managers, not sales individual so hard work is expected of all of our employees. This is a career not a sales job.

The above written by the ex-employee should not be regarded with any truth as he is a former employee of the company let go for causing a scene with the employer and co-workers.