TEAM (company)

TEAM, formerly known as Team of Destiny, is a leadership development service provider designed to help individuals learn leadership principles, grow in their personal leadership abilities, and develop other leaders. The TEAM is not affiliated with any particular company, business, opportunity or enterprise. It was founded by Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady in 1999 in Michigan, though there are members of TEAM throughout North America. TEAM is an acronym that stands for Together Everyone Achieves More.

On August 9 2007, TEAM Leaders Woodward and Brady resigned from the board representing distributors of all North American IBOs and filed a lawsuit , one day before being terminated by Quixtar. On August 10 2007, Quixtar announced the termination of the distributorships of TEAM leaders Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady, claiming that they intended to start a new multi-level marketing (MLM) venture. As of November 7, 2007, TEAM has not started an MLM as Quixtar claimed. Woodward and Brady are abiding by The Six Month Rule that Quixtar instituted in 2004.

History

According to the TEAM's Better Business Bureau entry, its officially incorporated name is Signature Management Team, LLC and was created on March 1 1999 as a limited liability company. At that point, the company referred to itself as Team of Destiny. TEAM joined the Better Business Bureau on August 22 2003. On November 1 2004, the name was officially changed to TEAM by founder Orrin Woodward. In the audio message that announced this change, Woodward reasons that calling the organization TEAM makes referring to teams within TEAM simpler and more cohesive. Some bloggers have noted that searching the internet for the term "TEAM" returns far fewer results related to the organization than "Team of Destiny", making it more difficult to find information from sources other than TEAM itself.

On August 9 2007, TEAM co-founders Woodward and Brady resigned from the U.S. distributors Executive Board, the IBO Association International (IBOAI) Executive Board following failed discussions with Quixtar. Woodward and Brady say they resigned because Amway's sister Company Quixtar refuses to stop Pyramid Like business practices. Their resignation came one day before Quixtar terminated their IBO status.

Following their resignation from the IBOAI Executive Board, Woodward and Brady along with leaders of 8 Lines of Sponsorship (LOS) filed a lawsuit . The lawsuit requests the Federal Court in Southern California to enjoin Quixtar from enforcing its distributor contracts, including the non-competition and non-solicitation provisions." The lawsuit was dismissed on October 4, 2007.

Terminology

TEAM, is a leadership development service provider designed to help individuals learn leadership principles, grow in their personal leadership abilities, and develop other leaders. These leadership principles can be applied to professional and personal development. TEAM currently does not associate with any internet commerce businesses. Many Independent Business Owners (IBOs) associated with TEAM have opted to resign from their Quixtar IBOships and abide by the six month waiting period. Formerly they spent their time creating profit by using the power of the Internet coupled with many of the proven and successful principles of franchising. Members of TEAM say that any hard-working individual can profit if they actively apply the principles that they teach.

Since it started in 1999, TEAM has been joined by several Lines of Sponsorship affiliated with Quixtar, including organizations led by Billy Florence, Chuck Goetschel, and Randy Haughen. Today thousands of IBO leaders and Lines of Sponsorship make up the organization known as TEAM.

When TEAM was affiliated with Quixtar it refer to TEAM as a Line of Affiliation (LOA). Other sources refer to TEAM as a Line of Sponsorship (LOS), a Professional Development Program (PDP), or an Amway/Quixtar Motivational Organization (AMO/QMO).

IBOAI (IBO Association International) – All IBOs registered in the North America Sales and Marketing Plan are automatic members of the IBOAI For years the members of the Executive Board have been elected by profit sharing IBOs around North America. The IBOAI’s charge is to present the views of all IBOs to the owners and operators of the Order Consolidation Site (OCS)- Amway's sister company Quixtar. Prior to the formation of Quixtar in 1999, the IBOAI was called the ADA. When it was originally formed in 1959 by the co-founders of Amway, the board had a significant say in the way the “OCS” provided products and services to the community of Distributors now referred to as IBOs. According to some, the power of the IBOAI has eroded since the mid-1990’s. Over the past few years the main complaint of several members of the board involved wholesale pricing set in place by the owners of the OCS that make it difficult for IBOs to retail the line of core line products produced by Quixtar's affiliated supplier, Access Business Group and distributed through the OCS. In protest, eight members of the IBOAI Board with as many as ten or more years on the board resigned from the IBOAI Board and Quixtar terminated their business soon after.

Business Methodology

Members of TEAM are enrolled in a Leadership Development Program. In the future these leaders will be needed to help direct large blocks of consumers to web sites. Unlike traditional Internet businesses that depend upon banner ads and high ranking in search engines to generate traffic, TEAM uses word-of-mouth advertising. TEAM's business model is based on Michael Dell’s (billionaire founder of Dell Computer) “Three C’s”. In 1999, Michael Dell said that most businesses can deliver Content and Commerce on the internet but fail to develop a loyal Community of buyers. TEAM is focused on developing a community of a million leaders and consumers who will make repeat purchases because they will be paid advertising dollars to do so. The buying power of this large group of consumers will also drive down prices charged by suppliers. TEAM’s Mission statement is: Have Fun (Enjoy your life while pursuing worthwhile goals and dreams), Make Money (joining TEAM is an opportunity to learn and make a profit), and Make a Difference (Being significant in the lives of others transcends the accumulation of a fortune). ''pp 2,7

Training

TEAM offers books, compact discs, videos, meetings and mentoring. While TEAM members receive mentoring for free, members must pay for entrance to the TEAM section of their website much the same as other educational organizations operating on the internet. Media such as CDs and books and meetings also carry a fee, but are optional. Membership with TEAM is by invitation only. While prices are not listed on TEAM's website, the price to register on TEAM's website is $60.00 per year. Enrollment in the monthly leadership training program is optional and recommended. As of September 13 2007, the monthly leadership training program is approximately $80. As of 2004, three CDs costing $6 each are released every week. Every Tuesday evening, there is a meeting to introduce new members to TEAM, which cost IBO's $5. As of September 18 2007, TEAM has temporarily refrained from holding the Tuesday meetings. Once a month, there is a local seminar costing $25, and there are larger leadership seminars costing $90.

Some TEAM members make a profit selling Leadership Development Materials that are listed above. In Leading the Consumer Rebellion, Chris Brady acknowledges these claims:

While the purpose of our training system is to support the underlying business of our business owners, it is important to note that there are profits within the training system as well (much like a car dealership has profits in the sale of cars but also in parts and service) and that some business owners affiliated with the Team share in these profits. [...] As independent business owners each of us can, at the end of the day, choose not to participate in any form of the system provided through the Team. —pp.121-122

However, at the same time, Brady links business success with following the system detailed in the support materials:

We believe strongly in our approach to building this business and the system that has been developed to support our approach, or our Master Strategy. [...] As we listen to the stories of our most successful members of the Team, we see a consistent pattern: participation in the various meetings available to them as business owners was one of the key factors in their business success. —pp.120-122

Recruitment

The Primary recruitment practice is word of mouth and scheduling a "one on one" with potential new members. New members are also introduced to TEAM at Tuesday evening meetings, accompanied by the IBO that introduced them to the organization. These meetings typically last up to two hours, and at the end, those new to TEAM are offered an information pack known as a First Night Pack by their accompanying IBO. The First Night Pack includes two CDs and the book Leading the Consumer Rebellion by founders Brady and Woodward. The potential new IBO is instructed to review the material, then meet again with the IBO that provided them the informational pack to receive more media to review.

Stacking

TEAM organizes its members' downlines by growing depth before width, a practice which some detractors call stacking. TEAM members argue that depth building increases stability and ensures that all members receive the proper mentoring by being mentored by the person above them in a stack, also commonly referred to as a leg.

Relationship with Quixtar

As of September, 2007, TEAM is no longer associated with Quixtar. It is now a Leadership Development Service Provider.

Controversy

In addition to controversy over Quixtar, TEAM has received criticism from the media and blogging community concerning suppressing information, and tax deductions.

Suppressing information

David S. Touretzky of Carnegie Mellon University has been vocal about Quixtar and TEAM's alleged attempts to suppress the free speech rights of their critics. Of TEAM in particular, he notes that, while founder Orrin Woodward used to acknowledge the connection between the two companies, information about their relationship is now only available in password-protected areas of TEAM's websites.

However as of August 2007, the "Product Showcase" on TEAM website's main page showed XS Energy Drink, a Quixtar product . Although, in September 2007, the product showcase removed the XS Energy Drink image and description and displayed motivation books instead because members are no longer affiliated with any particular company, business, opportunity or enterprise.

Tax Deductions

Business ownership is one important distinction between a TEAM member and a traditional salesperson. With ownership comes a different set of tax rules. TEAM has advertised this as another incentive to joining the organization. Since IBOs work from home, and TEAM encourages members to travel to meetings and purchase products for personal consumption, business owners must be aware of what can and cannot be claimed as a business expense for tax purposes.

Response to Criticism

TEAM founders Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady have been quick to respond to criticism.

On March 15 2004, Orrin Woodward sued vocal TEAM critic Scott Larsen. While the suit was dismissed in 2005, the reason behind the dismissal is not known, and the court proceedings have been sealed. Material specific to TEAM on Larsen's website has been removed.

In Leading a Consumer Rebellion, Brady warns newcomers to "Expect resistance."

Learning to expect resistance was an important lesson. When you decide to step out and pursue success, in anything, there will be detractors. There will be people who shine doubt on what you are doing. As a matter of fact, negative resistance will be inversely proportional to the size of the undertaking: the bigger the dream, the bigger the critics. [...] Believe it or not, some are staunchly opposed to almost everything you hold dear in life. If you are for freedom, there are those who want to take it away. If you believe in saluting the flag, there are those who want to burn it. The list goes on indefinitely. This is where success becomes a battle; because to create anything, to take a stand on anything, requires change, and the only people who like change are babies! —pp.104, 106

Later, in a section entitled "Critics are wrong," Brady writes:

The simplest way to overcome these obstacles is to realize that critics are cowards. Critics are spectators. Criticism is the death-gurgle of a non-achiever. While the peanut gallery is busy saying something can't be done, a few leaders with courage are busy doing it. [...] This business has been no different. Every step of the way, with every innovation and advancement, there were those saying it couldn't be done, or that it had already been tried, or that it wasn't legal, or something or other. —pp.106, 108

TEAM Founders' exit from Quixtar

August 9 2007, According to FreeTheIBO.com:

A group including eight of the largest Quixtar distributors filed a lawsuit seeking to enjoin Quixtar from enforcing its distributor contracts, including the non-competition and non-solicitation provisions." Stamped Court Documents

A day later Quixtar announced the termination of the 8 and 7 more influential IBOs associated with TEAM.

On August 10 2007, Quixtar announced termination of 15 distributorships including those of TEAM founders Orrin Woodward and Chris Brady and other leaders from TEAM and connected training organizations. Quixtar states that the TEAM founders refused to work with Quixtar to bring TEAM to compliance with Quixtar rules , and that Woodward and Brady had stated their intention to start a new MLM. Woodward, Chris and other IBOs have filed a class action lawsuit complaining that Quixtar prices are not competitive and that Quixtar admitted this problem in meetings with IBO leaders.1 The lawsuit seeks relief from the non-competition and non-solicitation rules in Quixtar distributor contracts, so that IBOs have the freedom to continue with Quixtar or to pursue other business opportunities The lawsuit was dismissed (with prejudice) on October 4, 2007.

Main Menu