Complaint Review: The Women's Information Network

You State:  Her vision is still there, it is just that your anger and lack of “vision” is not allowing you to see it.  The WIN is successfully moving forward as we speak.

Answer:  Define "successful"?  After over ffive years is The WIN, as a corporation (not a non-profit - I checked) paying any employees or generating revenue?

You State:  Here you are actually are saying that you would help women if you get paid for it.  Well anyone would do that I would assume.  Paula mortgaged her home and maxed out all her credit cards helping women worldwide.  Are you saying that she forgot to go into debt to support you?  You joined the WIN, an organization that has no money, as many now billionaires joined up with Microsoft when the company first started and had no money.  In your own words, you would have started to get paid when the WIN actually produced revenue.

Answer:  When I joined The WIN, the documents stated that The WIN was worth $10MM.  Here you state that The WIN is an organization that has no money.  Which is it?  I imagine a billionaire would have money to suport themselves while they "volunteered" for Microsoft.  Since I was hired for a position that I was told I would be paid for, I made the erroneous assumption that I would be paid.  My intention was never to volunteer.  My intention was to work for a for profit company valued at $10MM.

You State:  Here you state that investors never invested and then you state that Paula “traveled the World”, obviously without money.  Maybe it did not occur to you that Paula had to mortgage her home and run up all her credit cards to the max just to spread her vision into other countries where women get sold for prostitution, get castrated and are treated as lower than animals.  It also never crossed your mind the danger that she faced in those countries, where men are the ultimate and women can be disposed (killed) at any man’s will.   You also state that you were told that you would get paid "as soon as the money came in”. and were not an employee, just a volunteer until money came in.

Answer:  During my time at The WIN, I never saw Paula do anything with The WIN that aligned her vision of being on stages all over the world with helping women.  There was no volunteer work done for any organization that helped countries where women "get sold for prostitution, get castrated and are treated lower than animals."  The countries she went to are not considered third world countries, unless Australia and New Zealand have been downgraded.  I also have first hand knowledge that she ran up other peoples' credit cards as she traveled, with the promise to pay them back.  She has never paid them back.  Her debt, as she stated to us, went to put on events around the world so she could speak on stages. 

You State:  I assumed that you were not at those events overseas and couldn’t possibly as a volunteer know how many people attended.  You seem to think that Paula and the WIN by helping the less fortunate owes you something too because you are a woman.  That is not how the vision of the WIN works..

Answer:  Paula reported back to the team on the number of people who attended each event.  You keep saying the word "volunteer".  Please see this link:  http://www.dol.gov/elaws/esa/flsa/docs/volunteers.asp

"Under the FLSA, employees may not volunteer services to for-profit private sector employers."

The WIN is a for-profit sector employee.  I was never told that there was a not-for-profit arm of The WIN and certainly never volunteered for any not-for-profit arm of The WIN.  I was made an offer to work for the for-profit company The Women's Information Network.  

You State:   The WIN BIG Event in Los Angeles had over 250 attendees, I know that because I attended and took over 1,500 pictures!!.  The testimonials from women who loved the event and support the WIN vision are too numerous to mention.  Also every program presented by the WIN is owned and proprietary to the WIN.  There is no lawsuits and with all due respect I don’t believe a “volunteer” is the one to ask about the financial status of a company, specially one that shows the kind of anger, lack of knowledge and lack of research that you show here.

Answer:  Are any of the programs being sold by The WIN at this time?  They are mentioned on the website, with no link to purchase.  Really?  Your statement "There is no lawsuits and with all due respect I don’t believe a “volunteer” is the one to ask about the financial status of a company, specially one that shows the kind of anger, lack of knowledge and lack of research that you show here," is perplexing.  Were we as a team working for The WIN supposed to do research about the financial status of The WIN, or were we "lowly volunteers" who have no business asking about the financial status of the organization we were hired to work for?

Regarding The WIN BIG event, I talked with another person who attended The WIN Big event who had a much different experience:  No registration table.  1,000 people promised, a little over 100 attended.  Speakers didn't show up.  Speakers being pushed aside and time cut.  People felt like they were just being sold to.  Double charged for tickets.  But you are right, a picture is worth 1,000 words and therefore 1,500 pictures must be validation that it changed the lives of already affluent women in Los Angeles.  And actually, a woman who is suing The WIN attended the event.  She counted and there were 110 people who attended. 

You State:  The WIN has never had a revenue program in place, much like Skype, Facebook, Tweeter, etc.   none of those companies do.  The WIN website has way over 1 million unique visitors a month, and during this beta testing there is no revenue program in place.

Answer:  How is The WIN worth $10MM as stated in documents to potential investors, if there isn't a revenue program in place and there has never been a revenue program in place?  Skype, Facebook and Twitter all have revenue programs.  It is advertising-based.  And they pay their employees when they hire them.  If The WIN has 1 million unique visitors a month and is not profitable, it is not being run well as a for-profit business.  In my entire time working with The WIN, the word beta testing was never used.  In fact, beta testing is a term typically used for testing software.  The WIN is a five year old company.  Perhaps the beta testing didn't work.

You State: You speak of due diligence, yet everything you mention here has not been researched.  I am so sorry that you are such angry and lost soul, but you are right, YOU should have done your due diligence before making these slanderous comments.

Answer: You are right.  I should have done my due diligence before ever going near The WIN.  What I posted isn't slander, it is the truth of my experience.  Saying that I am an angry and lost soul might be considered slander, however.  What is your name and I will have my lawyer contact you.  But again, had I done my due diligence, perhaps I would have seen the letter posted on Facebook on March 26, 2012 from the former COO of The WIN.  I would have made a different decision, certainly.  He seems to have had a similar experience to mine.

Paula,

As a preamble, what I am about to share with you is all truthful and accurate. None of this content is conjecture, meant to be presented with any sort of malice or malcontent. It is, however, time that you--as the Chief Executive Officer of the Women's Information Network--face a solid, grounded reality as offered by your soon-to-be former Chief Operating Officer, as to the actual state and welfare of The WIN organization:

Based on the level of correspondence below, regarding your arbitrary course change, in turning to Hector's team for web support (because you do not have the funds to actually do what is best for the WIN in revamping a new site), your arbitrary decision to seek a new video producer (probably because of the immense debt you have accrued with myself, and the outstanding invoices I have with my team), your arbitrary decision to continue to ignore my professional advice, and your arbitrary decision to continue to represent the WIN as imminently receiving "major investment," (funding, revenues, etc.), which has never been accurate, I have determined that my continued counsel and resources are of little use and provide little impact with your objectives for the WIN. Your insistent pursuit of people who provide free services (or worse yet, people whom you have further promised resources with which you do not have to compensate even your current obligations), to replace the people to whom you already owe reimbursement, those whom you have told me are "replaceable," is both self-interested and flat out unethical. By the way, I question the legality of such actions and your conduct as the leader of The WIN.

Further, to note that people who have left the WIN, such as these good people whom you have reassured would be taken care of (like Michelle ***** and other "replaceables"), and others, knowing full well that they will not see any financial compensation for their efforts (and those with whom you have worked in the distant past, who have yet to be compensated)--well, it just isn't the way business is done. By contrast, you are surrounded by some of the most seasoned, capable professionals with whom I have ever encountered, yet you have continued to mislead and commit false resources to them, not that it is your fault that they (or I), have continued to believe you and have operated in good faith and in some cases, verbal and written assurances by you--even at their own fiscal and personal peril.

Granted, you are a nice lady with ambitions dreams and visions, but when it comes to business, well, there is no sense of business process or ethics in the mix, contrary to the solid and sound business practices I spent hours advising you to follow back in December. Moreover, these were not business practices conjured by me in any way; rather, these were (and are) business processes developed by people far smarter than I, at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, the McKinsey Group, KPMG--even Warren Buffet's sister (someone with whom I have had personal business dealings). So many people to whom you have committed resources you have never had, who have given so much, (some of whom as I've said, are pending personal financial loss, family conflict and even loss of property, possessions and homes), while all along, your tying yourself to people of dubious histories, illegitimate and outright illegal practices, and checkered pasts. Paula, even after 35 years of professional training and business success, it boggles my mind, given that you have had as part of your "insider team," advisors with extensive and successful backgrounds at all levels--to simply ignore their advice and proven counsel (like Val *********, myself, Hector, the "Michelles," Kathy, the Sterry's, your show host people, and even your own son-in-law). Like I said, it just boggles the mind, and it reminds me of when I started iLearning Global with John. The man had no business experience or ethics, and completely destroyed an otherwise solid business strategy (not dissimilar to the WIN model).

Now I know, like in the case of others who have elected to challenge the integrity of your business ethics and practices, you will no-doubt come up with some convenient line of self-belief that shifts your lack of accountability and unethical behavior as noted from this message, back to me, and describe me as some dysfunctional or disgruntled individual blah blah blah. I expect that. Nonetheless, the truth is, well the truth is what I just defined, and you simply cannot accept it.

As such, I am terminating all connections with the WIN and will tender a final invoice for monies accrued since our September 15 start date, anding on February 7, 2012, and will be notifying my colleagues at Utah Valley University and elsewhere that The WIN, under its current model (is there one?), is not a good business model with which to engage.

Paula, please allow me to add some very real advice and observations, which--while I doubt you take--I would encourage you to at least keep it available for an occasional reference:

#1. When you recruit people and you commit to them that you have funds to compensate them for their time and efforts, actually have the funds in the bank. This avoids getting into a situation where you are seen as misrepresenting the truth, and spending other people's money that YOU cannot reimburse.

#2. If and when you have real revenues to hire people to help you create some potential, future business platform, actually trust them to know how to do their jobs, instead of circumventing their expertise to push your own agendas, and choosing to run to the next "firesale" offer from less than reputable sources. And do not dismiss their input in high-level meetings with comments like, "Honey, how old are you?" or "You're the new kid on the block" (implying, "I know more than you do"). This avoids misleading your team as to who is actually empowered to do what's best for the organization, rather than to forward any personal efforts born out of the overuse of a "911" philsophy.

#3. People like start-ups, and there is nothing wrong with them. It's actually okay to use the term "start-up," however, start-ups don't usually accrue hundreds of thousands of dollars in back committed pay, which will most likely never see a resolution (no investor or lender that I have ever known would take that kind of bad debt as a "good investment). This avoids a "start-up" from facing bankruptcy protection before even coming to market.

#4. Learn a little about the science (and art) of creating a business--I mean a real business--one with P&L definitions, budget-based activities, cause & effect analyses, market-drivers, and more than anything: actual deliverables. This enables a business to actually look, breathe and feel like a real business, sans the whole "soft and fuzzy slippers" approach, which actually never works. "Sweet" and "Darling" and "Dear" are not terms used in the business world, or by bill collectors and investors. Pandering to an audience is best left for bad politicians and used car salepeople.

#5. Never lie to people. Never mislead people. Never take advantage of people. This avoids the possibility that you will lose everything; such as your friends, potential colleagues and future partners, your long-term livelihood, your home--your relationships at home.

Paula, I wish you the best in your continued attempt to put the WIN on a legitimate road to success and revenue generation, but one final note: the path you are currently on will only yield further disappointment and exascerbate a growing level of a tainted reputation for how the WIN is seen, and your reputation as its leader. For your sake, Dear Sister, my personal advice is for you to reevaluate your intentions Vs your actions, as they are NOT in harmony or reflective of what you have tried to live your whole life representing.

With frank sincerity,
Drew (Former COO of The WIN)

 YOU STATE: There is no doubt that Paula Fellingham once had a great vision. 

ANSWER:  Her vision is still there, it is just that your anger and lack of “vision” is not allowing you to see it.  The WIN is successfully moving forward as we speak.

YOU STATE: Having worked for The Women's Information Network or "The WIN", I saw that vision as being one that could really help women around the world.  The problem is that Paula Fellingham makes promises of money that she can't keep. 

ANSWER:  Here you are actually are saying that you would help women if you get paid for it.  Well anyone would do that I would assume.  Paula mortgaged her home and maxed out all her credit cards helping women worldwide.  Are you saying that she forgot to go into debt to support you?  You joined the WIN, an organization that has no money, as many now billionaires joined up with Microsoft when the company first started and had no money.  In your own words, you would have started to get paid when the WIN actually produced revenue.

YOU STATE:  I was excited when I was offered a position with The WIN and told that I would get paid "as soon as the money came in".  During my time there, Paula met with investor after investor who she claimed "really got The WIN".  Except no one ever invested and I never was paid for the full time work that I did. 

ANSWER:  Here you state that investors never invested and then you state that Paula “traveled the World”, obviously without money.  Maybe it did not occur to you that Paula had to mortgage her home and run up all her credit cards to the max just to spread her vision into other countries where women get sold for prostitution, get castrated and are treated as lower than animals.  It also never crossed your mind the danger that she faced in those countries, where men are the ultimate and women can be disposed (killed) at any man’s will.   You also state that you were told that you would get paid "as soon as the money came in”. and were not an employee, just a volunteer until money came in.

YOU STATE: Each week it was another promise, and each week I waited (and the entire team waited) in vain.  In the meantime she flew to India, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore...to attend her Global Women's Summits because she promised that she would be there.  The attendance of those events was less than 50.  Instead of paying her employees, she traveled the world by using the money that she received by selling spots on her now defunct "eTV for Women" program. 

ANSWER:  I assumed that you were not at those events overseas and couldn’t possibly as a volunteer know how many people attended.  You seem to think that Paula and the WIN by helping the less fortunate owes you something too because you are a woman.  That is not how the vision of the WIN works..

YOU STATE: Paula has hired many people who know how to build and run a business.  She has not  allowed any of them to do the job she hired them to do.  She owes hundreds of thousands of dollars to employees and investors.  And when someone who has left The WIN tries to warn other people about the scam that Paula Fellingham is conducting, she accuses them of being slanderous and threatens them with legal action.  She accuses them of trying to hurt The WIN, when in reality, they are trying to warn other people to stay away and not invest time and money.

ANSWER:  Just so everyone is on the same page here, “investors” do just that, they invest money, they don’t lend money.  If anyone invested in the WIN, they would get dividends as the WIN earns money.  I don’t believe that your knowledge extends to any business skill deep enough to understand the position of investors with the WIN.  An employee is one who is hired and paid weekly, semi-monthly or monthly for their services.  If a person joins an organization and is told that there is no money, but when money comes in they would get paid, they do not become employees until money does come in and they get on payroll.  I also believe that if the WIN has no money and investors do, suing someone would be the course taken by the one that has money, not the WIN.

YOU STATE: Paula Fellingham has been running The Women's Information Network for the past four years on nothing but promises and bad debt.  Lawsuits have been filed and action is being taken.  She continues to move forward, claiming to help women, but instead creating events where she can be the center of attention.  In spite of the fact that she owes so many people so much money, she is currently promoting a huge event in Los Angeles called "The WIN BIG Event".  She is continuing to advertise programs on The WIN that don't exist, created by women who are no longer associated with The WIN.  Her numbers of people going to the website are exaggerated. 

ANSWER:    The WIN BIG Event in Los Angeles had over 250 attendees, I know that because I attended and took over 1,500 pictures!!.  The testimonials from women who loved the event and support the WIN vision are too numerous to mention.  Also every program presented by the WIN is owned and proprietary to the WIN.  There is no lawsuits and with all due respect I don’t believe a “volunteer” is the one to ask about the financial status of a company, specially one that shows the kind of anger, lack of knowledge and lack of research that you show here.

YOU STATE: During my time working for The WIN, we never sold a single membership, program, or ticket to an event from The WIN website in spite of Paula's claim that the website had "500,000 to 1 million unique visitors per month.

ANSWER:   The WIN has never had a revenue program in place, much like Skype, Facebook, Tweeter, etc.   none of those companies do.  The WIN website has way over 1 million unique visitors a month, and during this beta testing there is no revenue program in place. 

YOU STATE: As someone who was in the trenches working for The WIN, I recommend that if you are considering working with The WIN, investing with The WIN, or being any part of The WIN, that you do due diligence. 

ANSWER:  You speak of due diligence, yet everything you mention here has not been researched.  I am so sorry that you are such angry and lost soul, but you are right, YOU should have done your due diligence before making these slanderous comments.

YOU STATE:  I think that what you will find is a great idea built on a very shaky house of cards that has no chance of succeeding - unfortunately because of Paula Fellingham's choices and decision about running the business.  The WIN as a company is a fraud.

 ANSWER:  The statement “The WIN as a company is a fraud” carries serious implications and liabilities.  Please furnish us your name so we can hand that over to the WIN legal department.  They will deal with slanderous baseless statements.

I can rebut these allegations by this angry and misguided individual because I know Paula for over seven years and been aware and attended the WIN events for the past four years.  Also I am a strategic partner of the WIN, currently arranging revenue generating programs following the four years of Beta testing.

YOU STATE: There is no doubt that Paula Fellingham once had a great vision. 

ANSWER:  Her vision is still there, it is just that your anger and lack of “vision” is not allowing you to see it.  The WIN is successfully moving forward as we speak.

YOU STATE: Having worked for The Women's Information Network or "The WIN", I saw that vision as being one that could really help women around the world.  The problem is that Paula Fellingham makes promises of money that she can't keep. 

ANSWER:  Here you are actually are saying that you would help women if you get paid for it.  Well anyone would do that I would assume.  Paula mortgaged her home and maxed out all her credit cards helping women worldwide.  Are you saying that she forgot to go into debt to support you?  You joined the WIN, an organization that has no money, as many now billionaires joined up with Microsoft when the company first started and had no money.  In your own words, you would have started to get paid when the WIN actually produced revenue.

YOU STATE:  I was excited when I was offered a position with The WIN and told that I would get paid "as soon as the money came in".  During my time there, Paula met with investor after investor who she claimed "really got The WIN".  Except no one ever invested and I never was paid for the full time work that I did. 

ANSWER:  Here you state that investors never invested and then you state that Paula “traveled the World”, obviously without money.  Maybe it did not occur to you that Paula had to mortgage her home and run up all her credit cards to the max just to spread her vision into other countries where women get sold for prostitution, get castrated and are treated as lower than animals.  It also never crossed your mind the danger that she faced in those countries, where men are the ultimate and women can be disposed (killed) at any man’s will.   You also state that you were told that you would get paid "as soon as the money came in”. and were not an employee, just a volunteer until money came in.

YOU STATE: Each week it was another promise, and each week I waited (and the entire team waited) in vain.  In the meantime she flew to India, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore...to attend her Global Women's Summits because she promised that she would be there.  The attendance of those events was less than 50.  Instead of paying her employees, she traveled the world by using the money that she received by selling spots on her now defunct "eTV for Women" program. 

ANSWER:  I assumed that you were not at those events overseas and couldn’t possibly as a volunteer know how many people attended.  You seem to think that Paula and the WIN by helping the less fortunate owes you something too because you are a woman.  That is not how the vision of the WIN works..

YOU STATE: Paula has hired many people who know how to build and run a business.  She has not  allowed any of them to do the job she hired them to do.  She owes hundreds of thousands of dollars to employees and investors.  And when someone who has left The WIN tries to warn other people about the scam that Paula Fellingham is conducting, she accuses them of being slanderous and threatens them with legal action.  She accuses them of trying to hurt The WIN, when in reality, they are trying to warn other people to stay away and not invest time and money.

ANSWER:  Just so everyone is on the same page here, “investors” do just that, they invest money, they don’t lend money.  If anyone invested in the WIN, they would get dividends as the WIN earns money.  I don’t believe that your knowledge extends to any business skill deep enough to understand the position of investors with the WIN.  An employee is one who is hired and paid weekly, semi-monthly or monthly for their services.  If a person joins an organization and is told that there is no money, but when money comes in they would get paid, they do not become employees until money does come in and they get on payroll.  I also believe that if the WIN has no money and investors do, suing someone would be the course taken by the one that has money, not the WIN.

YOU STATE: Paula Fellingham has been running The Women's Information Network for the past four years on nothing but promises and bad debt.  Lawsuits have been filed and action is being taken.  She continues to move forward, claiming to help women, but instead creating events where she can be the center of attention.  In spite of the fact that she owes so many people so much money, she is currently promoting a huge event in Los Angeles called "The WIN BIG Event".  She is continuing to advertise programs on The WIN that don't exist, created by women who are no longer associated with The WIN.  Her numbers of people going to the website are exaggerated. 

ANSWER:    The WIN BIG Event in Los Angeles had over 250 attendees, I know that because I attended and took over 1,500 pictures!!.  The testimonials from women who loved the event and support the WIN vision are too numerous to mention.  Also every program presented by the WIN is owned and proprietary to the WIN.  There is no lawsuits and with all due respect I don’t believe a “volunteer” is the one to ask about the financial status of a company, specially one that shows the kind of anger, lack of knowledge and lack of research that you show here.

YOU STATE: During my time working for The WIN, we never sold a single membership, program, or ticket to an event from The WIN website in spite of Paula's claim that the website had "500,000 to 1 million unique visitors per month.

ANSWER:   The WIN has never had a revenue program in place, much like Skype, Facebook, Tweeter, etc.   none of those companies do.  The WIN website has way over 1 million unique visitors a month, and during this beta testing there is no revenue program in place. 

YOU STATE: As someone who was in the trenches working for The WIN, I recommend that if you are considering working with The WIN, investing with The WIN, or being any part of The WIN, that you do due diligence. 

ANSWER:  You speak of due diligence, yet everything you mention here has not been researched.  I am so sorry that you are such angry and lost soul, but you are right, YOU should have done your due diligence before making these slanderous comments.

YOU STATE:  I think that what you will find is a great idea built on a very shaky house of cards that has no chance of succeeding - unfortunately because of Paula Fellingham's choices and decision about running the business.  The WIN as a company is a fraud.

 ANSWER:  The statement “The WIN as a company is a fraud” carries serious implications and liabilities.  Please furnish us your name so we can hand that over to the WIN legal department.  They will deal with slanderous baseless statements.

I can rebut these allegations by this angry and misguided individual because I know Paula for over seven years and been aware and attended the WIN events for the past four years.  Also I am a strategic partner of the WIN, currently arranging revenue generating programs following the four years of Beta testing.