Know-How Exchange : Strategy

So...you want really qualified people who don't need a paying job for a year? I don't follow.

Too good to be true will most likely be most people's response. You need to develop a plan for bringing people into a website that explains in detail how and why this will work.

And, why you are not just going to a venture capitolist, getting money, hiring 365 people at 50 grand a pop and pocketing the difference.

First let's start with the not needing a paying job for a year question: The group members will not be rejected for needing to keep their paying job. Highly motivated people will be able to complete all of their tasks without needing to quit their job.

Next: The group does not just get handed $1 million dollars at the end of the experiment. They work dilligently during the 365 days to accumulate as much group income as possible, but more importantly to create a stable business which at the end members will get their equal cut on proceeds over the 365 days.

Yes, there is an exit strategy in place for continued operations after the 365 days. Most group members will be given the opportunity to be a part of this.

And what happens on the 366th day...?

Corporate greed has cost our country too much heartache and although I am very capitalistic and love success stories I also hate stories illustrating the general population being taken advantage of. Such as taking a government bailout and then giving yourself a $40 million bonus.

I'm not only an entrepreneur but an opportunist and building a business around this model provides better insight into the potential problems, profit vehicles, opportunities, operational issues, logistics, engineering, legal, publicity, marketing and much more. An employee won't necessarily tell me when I'm wrong but a partner will. I may not have the best business plan, but put a few 100 of them on the table with huge added benefits to the person who's business plan is selected and now you'll find something with true ingenious potential. The business plans are selected through group voting and narrowing to 10 plans. Then we cooperatively identify the cost, profit vehicles and obstacles of each. The one with the highest overall rating is selected.

I pose this question: If you could build a $300 million dollar company in 1 year, make 365 people millionaires and retain a commanding interest in the company after the 365 days wouldn't you do it? It seems like a better plan than taking 5 years to get the company to the same point, giving up the same amount of the company and helping no one achieve the American dream.


The real question is why am I the first to think of this.

On the 366th day many people from the group will continue with highly lucrative positions, others will quit and others will be replaced. Positions that are no longer needed will be eliminated and depending on a great deal of unforeseeable factors the company will either be held onto, sold or taken public. Nevertheless the transition will cause minimal operational disruption. Oh, and if it's successful. I DO IT AGAIN!

I appreciate your desire to try something new, but there are some stark realities that I don't think you're facing...

Finding and managing 365 people...that's a real challenge. And the people who are really qualified to do it? They don't work for free.

There's a reason that you don't see companies go from zero (and by zero, I mean not even having an idea as to what the business is, as is the case with you) to 365 employees in one year, or zero to $365 million in sales (forget about $365 million in after-tax profits) in one year.

Like I said, I don't mean to talk you out of it, and if you really believe in this, then I couldn't do that anyway, but I'll be candid: I don't like your odds.

Now get to provin' me wrong!

The problem has always been staffing, but that being said I already have 5 people on board all of which I thought would be the most difficult to recruit.

Also, I understand the daunting task ahead, but B2B and wholesale channels can easily create those types of numbers in that short of a time frame. Also the business selection and preliminary structuring happens prior to the beginning of the 365 days.

On top of that many of these issues have been addressed already. I am currently in negotiations with one of the top securities attorneys in the country, a top sales person who has a household name and a publicist on the best sellers list. I am recruiting these people in order to gain access to those people you refer to who won't work for free. So that they will realize they aren't working for free they are investing and my investors get taken care of.

Also, let's say they only generate $250 million in profit. Does it not make sense that the sale of the company could easily create the additional 100 million or more?

-sales (proven track record required - 50-100 seats available)
-legal
-Intellectual Property
-securities
-real estate
-operations
-marketing
-SEO
-PPC
-copywriting
-geurilla
-viral
-web 2.0 designer
-graphic designer
-video animator
-video editor
-television producer
-engineers (all types being accepted)
-entrepreneurs -internet sales expert -publicist(s)

The capital doesn't come from the 365. There is a small commitment fee in order to help prevent people from walking away, but the investing comes from outside sources.

That being said I believe everyone should have ample information to craft a response to my question:

How do you feel I should go about recruiting these individuals. Trust me the i's are dotted and the t's are crossed. It could fail, but it could also be successful at any rate everyone will make money. The question is how much. Also, this is a social experiment and with all experiments you hypothesis has a chance of being wrong, but since I'm talking to marketers here I have to ask this question.

Could you make $365 million dollars in 365 days if you had 365 people working with you and the required capital.

I done just as much with lesser resources for companies I've worked for so why wouldn't it be possible this way. I know I would sacrifice my TV time for 1 year for the opportunity at making $1 million as a result of the sacrifice.

I think it is unreasonable to believe that you can get 365 people to all agree on anything. However, if you are this magical person who can get 365 people to start with no direction whatsoever and you end up all singing the same tune, then why are you thinking so small? Why didn't you use these magical talents to create peace in the Middle East?

I think that in the best case scenario, assuming for the moment you can attract and retain hundreds of qualified people, you will have six or seven competing ideas and business models. You will need to structure this enterprise to break off into multiple factions, despite your dreams of a singular focus.