Complaint Review: DS-Max - Cydcor - Midwest Focus Group

Here is an interesting site or two about dsmax.

CLICK here to see why Rip-off Report, as a matter of policy, deleted either a phone number, link or e-mail address from this Report.

ebay does have plenty of innovage items for sale.

I responded to a newspaper ad with vague details, I should have kept a copy.

The address was an industrial park in decline. Midwest Focus Groups is the sign in the door but no such listing in my 2003-2004 Yellow Book.

I wasn't impressed with the array of cars in the parking lot, and I certainly wasn't impressed by spending my day of orientation in a crammed clapped-out Maxima with no air-conditioning. Luckily the power windows worked.

Nobody seems to have business cards or last names.

For all intents and purposes, there is zero documentation to take home and study, which makes sense in a twisted way. If an organization is going to work your butt off, then "Take this home and show your family" is not an option.

The 'success story' plaques are not in a public area. If you wanted to take notes on names and places you would be observed. Chain of command is not documented.


I couldn't figure out the rhino drawing on the office wall; thought it was an artifact of previous tenant.

While I was waiting to start my day of orientation, a shouted voice was coming from a back room. Nothing you couldn't hear at some churches or temples, though I don't care for that form of motivation.

There is an Innovage.com "website", it consists of dead links and pages not in English. There is no contact list and no home page.

There is a dsmax.com "website" that wants to download a file (blocked by my security settings). The site consists of "dsmax" repeated for the entire page, and no further pages.

At first glance, ds-max.com appears to be a functioning site, but read the text and become confused. Dead links exist, there is no shopping cart. The page looks like it's designed to pop up in search engines and not much else. At the bottom of the page is this link:

CLICK here to see why Rip-off Report, as a matter of policy, deleted either a phone number, link or e-mail address from this Report.
Don't ask me why or what for.

The scariest part of ds-max.com is this link:
CLICK here to see why Rip-off Report, as a matter of policy, deleted either a phone number, link or e-mail address from this Report.

During my initial interview Germaine noted my resume had customer service and warehousing experience and asked what I wanted to focus on. I said customer service.

Door-to-door selling definitely depends on the six basic customer needs being satisfied, but that's like saying sex with an animal depends on the same details as sex with another human.

There are billion dollar "respected" companies that are just as flakey, vague, and perverse as what I saw at dsmax. If you live in Indy, ask around and see if anyone you know has experience with the Inacom/Vanstar/Compaq/HP Edge computer assembly plant on Georgetown Road.

Did I see anything illegal, or expect anything illegal? No, but I suspect the new rules on overtime are going to bite this "company" in the a*s. I understand the rules to allow exemption of overtime pay only when the salary is $455 a week or higher. I was offered $300 a week to start.

I repeatedly asked about commission structure and such, but was told I was being fast-tracked to management. I was also told that everyone knew everything about the operation; there was no compartmentalized knowledge. These two statements are in conflict.

Speaking of conflicts, there seems to be three 'offices' in Indy with no clearly-defined sales areas.

While in my day of orientation I saw that James and his 'clients' interacted smoothly and in a friendly manner. If a no was given we departed the premises.

We had no dealing with police and James usually volunteered to the businesses we entered that we had parked on their lot. If there was a groundswell of animosity against these peddlers I didn't see it, I saw the exact opposite.

Why am I not railing against this organization?

If you have the proper permits and obey common courtesies and laws, door-to-door peddling is perfectly legal.

There are incompetent people and poor organizational skills in every enterprise. At HP Georgetown Road I was given a document that stated "Your Goal: 90% in two weeks" Nobody could explain that 90% reference, and the document itself was 10 pages although the footer declared "page __ of 14". Poor communication skills and flawed documents are the universal rule, not the exception.

Walking all day is part of many occupations.

Working outside in the weather is part of many jobs (usually with a collective bargaining agreement).

Except for the posted links, I could not find evidence of legal proceedings against dsmax or innovage anwhere on the internet.

Job ads are always deceptive. Even the contact person's name is suspect. Ever see a "Call Mr. Green" ad? There is no law against deceptive or misleading job descriptions.

It seems that the misleading phrase of the decade is "Customer Service". I have been asked/ordered to perform product assembly, hang banners on the building, unclog toilets and fix roof leaks while performing "Customer Service".

Wearing out a personal vehicle is part of many sales or service jobs.

In conclusion, there are many business models where the employer/employee relationship is closer to predator/prey. This is not illegal; you are assumed to be smart enough to leave the relationship before damages occur.

This company will never destroy anyone's pension benefits or stock portfolio. There is no stock, there is no pension. I consider the fiascos of WorldCom and Enron to be a bigger cancer on America than an ill-organized group of street peddlers.

You just have to accept being a street peddler of cheap Chinese goods.

Stevve
greenfield, Indiana
U.S.A.

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