This report I write first as information, and second, for additional rebuttal and comment having first hand experience with the above said organization. The World Headquarters are located out of Watford, UK and to find anything behind the organization or its "accreditation" leads nowhere..
Point to this post, is I participated in a recent orientation meeting they contacted me about because of my resume found on careerbuilder.com and my former business experience & knowledge.in fact, since this UK group came to USA, they have done mass advertising on all major employment databases for consulting jobs for executives to make well in excess of $100,000.00 your first year.
The internet sites show these people obtain senior executives and this is not accurate.in fact, most are middle aged persons who have lost their jobs or positions or downsized or had some difficulties from life, though they have worked 25 years or more in their lives. IIB seems to play on this making these people ffel like they have "special qualities" only IIB would want and how they can expect to make $150,000.00 yearly in a worst case scenario. Group, and those of us who know of them, enough said.
Now they did mention George S. May Group. The meeting leader did say he felt George S. May's sales people use
Unethical efforts and hard sell tactics, but IIB would not stand for such behavior and hold a high level of integrity and are very select... Yet they have their adds all over the internet for these job opportunities.
In a nutshell, from the 3 hours I spent listening and observing, you are expected to become an independent consultant and operate your own self employment type business; however, you can become part of this IIB group and have their accreditation and initial educational program to start your business. But you will be expected to pay $20,000.00 as a one time fee to get this "support" from IIB, and have to pay an annual fee of $350.00 to them plus some additional costs continually to stay affiliated to IIB.
As you establish your own consulting business, you will pay them 20% of the fees you arrange and charge small business clients whom you prospect and secure agreements with. Also, the people who put on the orientations around the country, actually are building a network of new associates who they receive piece of the invoiced amount to the small business clients.
Is it really a lot different than MLM type structures when you look deeper into it. Why go to such elaborate lengths for others to pay you monies so they can start their own businesses independently of you, and continue to pay you fees, yet they sign documents eliminating IIB from any liabilities or problems or association to them, etc...
They did reiterate a few times they do not want their associates to deal with restaurants or retail stores... Any other business is fine...
Though their ideas seem ideal on the surface (so is Pre-Paid Legal), why would anyone who wanted to start their own consulting business (or other) want to waste over $20,000.00 to some UK based organization, when you yourself could better utilize those monies for your own business development & growth to begin with? This is the point that kept going around in my brain while listening at this meeting. Sure I see there is approx. 4,000 accredited associates globally with IIB, but knowing its origins is what puzzles me to be honest. There are more gullible people out there than not too.
See, I operated a global consulting business for several years and in that time, I was heavily involved in elaborate financial scams, schemes, investigative measures and much more, associating to many agencies of law enforcement & banking globally. Though this IIB Group does not come across like a Nigerian 419 or con scam that most know, it is where it originted. Also this "up front costs" you must pay to be affiliated to them; yet they have no legal conenction to you, the independent associate.
You see, in UK/European regions, there are many business schemes all the time, and they can operate under the radar if certain criteria is set in place, though it would not be tolerated in the USA. I feel this is what is going on. Now that I see they are trying to recruit people in USA, and the sheer amount of financial fraud schemes we investigated over the years, I admit I have an uneasy feeling about how they go about doing what they purport to do for small businesses of $1million to $10million size..
Sure their intent may be genuine as they state to go into a business, but the savings they say they make for the business, they in fact increase charges and fees for more efforts for said business, so in the end; is the business really saving that much or is it a reallcation of funds into IIB's pockets via the independent associates who sign away any legal connection to IIB?
See, all of their IIB accredited associates are NOT affiliated to IIB itself, and they all must establish their own business identities. This means all liability, legal issues, problems, etc go back on the independent consultant and not IIB - though IIB has no problem requiring a $20,000.0 initial fee plus annual fees just to carry their logo on your business cards.
Maybe they are just. Maybe they are playing an extremely crafty game of chance? Knowing they come out of the region of UK that they do worries me and I know there is investigations going on in UK regarding their business practices and operations. But, it is not IIB that gets into the limelite - it is the 4000 associates who are independent and do all the efforts and stand out who, in my mind, will take the fall or heat for anything related to IIB's principles.
I mean, if what they state is so damn great, why do they not operate with employees and pay salaries to them and benefits for the amount of monies they take in, instead of expecting these associates to pay fees & charges & kickbacks and carry all the burdens of business on themselves, and operate as IIB associates, yet independent and unaffiliated to IIB? This is the strange thing...
Well, I have all the documents here and facts and have analyzed this, and it just makes no sense, why people are so willing to throw over $20,000.00 each to IIB instead of just operating their own business to begin with and save that money themselves? If I had another $20,000.00 lying around, I would just invest that into opening up my own business and not have so many hands in the mix.
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