The enemy within is probably a good way to describe it, it is like dry rot or some internal disease that you cannot see, smell or feel. The breeding ground is recognisable in most cases and usually involves a company that has strived to do well and is just gaining momentum. The owner probably splashes out for the first time on a nice car or has a couple of great holidays and the seed is sown.
What am I talking about I hear you say, well its umbrella name is known as Corporate Espionage and this is a process within this umbrella that is every bit as destructive as the secrets of a business that are passed on to a competitor.
I have set the scene already, the business has finally picked up and all the risks taken by the entrepreneur are looking to have been worthwhile, all those late nights and the stress endured is paying off and the business is now producing its rewards. This business is a small business probably less than 20 people at the company and a turnover of up to 1.5 million.
Into this comes envy, its an internal envy that is spawned by the new car or the new holiday that the business owner has purchased, an employee feels that he could do better and could have that car and that holiday but they are unwilling to apply the commitment so they decide to do it the easy way.
The following is just one real life experience of the easy way, the main sales person and two technical people meet in a pub, they are unhappy that the new BMW sitting in the carpark and want a piece of this life themselves. None of them are willing to take the risks which is why they are working for the company and not trailblazing their own business.
They decide to form a secret new company, they come up with a name and set up a bank account, there is much excitement but of course they are not looking to rent an office, buy expensive equipment, furnish an office, pay PAYE and Employers National Insurance or any of the other things that go with setting up a real business from scratch.
Why? Well because they already have a host business and they are going to be parasites sucking the life from their host until they are ready to jump ship. First of all is the undermining of existing customers, servers randomly going down without any logical explanation, important emails deleted so they remain unanswered, post secretly removed and contacts intercepted.
All this is very easy, the sales person starts to intercept incoming sales leads and clients who are disillusioned are groomed due to their relationship with the sales manager.
The host starts to falter and then one day the three parasites all jump ship with a complete business up and running with paying clients and no business development costs. Intellectual property and business processes have already left the building and so has a complete list of the client base.
The host is totally undermined and at best has to reconsolidate, the car goes and the holiday is ruined whilst the business tips on the precipice of closure. No thought is given by the perpetrators to those who are left behind with mortgages and families to support, no thought is given to the business owner about to lose everything after taking so many risks and giving so much commitment.
Beware of the enemy within as it is ticking away and just a parasite hibernating and waiting for you to become the perfect host!
Author Resource:-
Shaun Parker has seen the devastation of this type of corporate espionage at first hand. He contacted a good Private Investigator to trap the individuals who later ended up in court.
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