Another winner of a client or non-client as the case may be. I am calling out the company because the founder, Alex, should know better.
I talked to the founder, Alex Osaya, back in February. I reached out to him to see if he would partner with a company I was working with in the HR space. We got to talking and it turned out he was looking for a sales and marketing specialist – right up my alley.
The company I was working with reviewed his site and information and found it to be too competitive – did not move forward with meeting him nor did they allow me to concurrently engage. When the client I was working with ended the engagement due to lack of demand and interest, I reached out to Alex who was happy to hear from me and we met in March on a Saturday afternoon – did a demo and review. I sent a proposal with a start date of April 1st which was moved to April 13th per his request.
On Friday, April 10th I received an email from Alex stating that he would not be able to move forward on April 13th. We had a kickoff meeting scheduled for the 11th at noon to review messaging. He never sent the credentials for the email or CRM. I called him, had to call a few times and he finally answered the phone. He told me he had to delay the engagement until June (one month) because he had a large client in the works who required SOC compliance and that he had to be heads down on getting in line and could not focus or take on any additional work. Especially if I were to focus on prospecting for larger accounts. I understood and responded that it made no sense to engage if I landed some larger accounts…it made sense and a month delay is feasible. He clearly stated when he delayed that “my services are definitely needed and he would engage”. I even asked if money would be an issue given the expense of the compliance effort and he told me “no”. I expected to engage in June.
I started seeing LinkedIN messages about 2 weeks later. Messages coming from Alex touting the need for his solution. I thought that was odd because with the compliance need, he couldn’t take on more clients – so why the marketing? I responded to one of the messages saying that they were cool and it is great to warm up the market. No response.
I reached out before Memorial Day asking if we were ready to start in June. Got no response. Called Alex in the AM, messaged him on LinkedIN (he was more responsive there) and through my business email. Received an email stating that because of compliance and “business issues” he would not be able to engage in June. He provided no further info on when. I then called him, was unable to reach him – tried a few times to get him on the phone.
Received an email stating that I was unprofessional for repeatedly calling him and to stop calling – after he “gave me an update”. He refused to speak to me. I responded that I held the time per the SIGNED AGREEMENT and was counting on his engagement financially. He responded that he was unable to engage (he also wanted to pause) now and that he would reach out when he was ready.
When I went to review the LinkedIN interactions, I saw he blocked me. I knew then there was going to be no engagement and I was completely and utterly screwed. I then responded to his final email and told him not to reach out to me – ever. And he called me unprofessional?
While I believe he did have some residual compliance issues, I also believe the more pricey LinkedIN campaigns were working and he had no need for my services any longer. I am glad I have integrity and honesty in my business dealings.
Lessons Learned:
1. When you sign a contract, it is a legal agreement. I did not have a termination or cancellation clause which I will going forward – unfortunately it is needed. This is only the second time a prospect reneged on a signed agreement. While this is a clear breach of contract, I have no legal recourse.
2. It is not “unprofessional” or unreasonable to want to discuss the situation, especially with a signed contract in hand. He refused to speak to me, to provide a new start date, or explanation other than what he provided which was not good enough.
3. He is also an independent recruiter and should understand what reneging on a contract means.
I wish him luck in his endeavors. Karma is a bitch. Someday he will need some sales support – many other talented people out there – none like me. We are definitely not a fit from an integrity, honesty, values perspective for sure.
I talked to the founder, Alex Osaya, back in February. I reached out to him to see if he would partner with a company I was working with in the HR space. We got to talking and it turned out he was looking for a sales and marketing specialist – right up my alley.
The company I was working with reviewed his site and information and found it to be too competitive – did not move forward with meeting him nor did they allow me to concurrently engage. When the client I was working with ended the engagement due to lack of demand and interest, I reached out to Alex who was happy to hear from me and we met in March on a Saturday afternoon – did a demo and review. I sent a proposal with a start date of April 1st which was moved to April 13th per his request.
On Friday, April 10th I received an email from Alex stating that he would not be able to move forward on April 13th. We had a kickoff meeting scheduled for the 11th at noon to review messaging. He never sent the credentials for the email or CRM. I called him, had to call a few times and he finally answered the phone. He told me he had to delay the engagement until June (one month) because he had a large client in the works who required SOC compliance and that he had to be heads down on getting in line and could not focus or take on any additional work. Especially if I were to focus on prospecting for larger accounts. I understood and responded that it made no sense to engage if I landed some larger accounts…it made sense and a month delay is feasible. He clearly stated when he delayed that “my services are definitely needed and he would engage”. I even asked if money would be an issue given the expense of the compliance effort and he told me “no”. I expected to engage in June.
I started seeing LinkedIN messages about 2 weeks later. Messages coming from Alex touting the need for his solution. I thought that was odd because with the compliance need, he couldn’t take on more clients – so why the marketing? I responded to one of the messages saying that they were cool and it is great to warm up the market. No response.
I reached out before Memorial Day asking if we were ready to start in June. Got no response. Called Alex in the AM, messaged him on LinkedIN (he was more responsive there) and through my business email. Received an email stating that because of compliance and “business issues” he would not be able to engage in June. He provided no further info on when. I then called him, was unable to reach him – tried a few times to get him on the phone.
Received an email stating that I was unprofessional for repeatedly calling him and to stop calling – after he “gave me an update”. He refused to speak to me. I responded that I held the time per the SIGNED AGREEMENT and was counting on his engagement financially. He responded that he was unable to engage (he also wanted to pause) now and that he would reach out when he was ready.
When I went to review the LinkedIN interactions, I saw he blocked me. I knew then there was going to be no engagement and I was completely and utterly screwed. I then responded to his final email and told him not to reach out to me – ever. And he called me unprofessional?
While I believe he did have some residual compliance issues, I also believe the more pricey LinkedIN campaigns were working and he had no need for my services any longer. I am glad I have integrity and honesty in my business dealings.
Lessons Learned:
1. When you sign a contract, it is a legal agreement. I did not have a termination or cancellation clause which I will going forward – unfortunately it is needed. This is only the second time a prospect reneged on a signed agreement. While this is a clear breach of contract, I have no legal recourse.
2. It is not “unprofessional” or unreasonable to want to discuss the situation, especially with a signed contract in hand. He refused to speak to me, to provide a new start date, or explanation other than what he provided which was not good enough.
3. He is also an independent recruiter and should understand what reneging on a contract means.
I wish him luck in his endeavors. Karma is a bitch. Someday he will need some sales support – many other talented people out there – none like me. We are definitely not a fit from an integrity, honesty, values perspective for sure.