The idea of keeping and managing a downline in this scenario always sounds like a good idea, but in practicality I’ve seen it stumble more often than I’ve seen it work as intended. There can be many reasons for this. One is just natural attrition. As certain Distributors are given this opportunity to just stop, they choose that option. In addition, I’ve seen where transitioning an entire team from one company to the next can be resisted by some because they may not be quite as excited about the new company as the top leader is.

Of course, when you transition an entire team from one company to the next, it is clearly putting opportunity before product, because there’s no way everyone on the team feels the same about the product of the new company. If the team originally came together under the previous company, then there was much more than the top leader’s impact and influence at play. The company’s culture, their products, their home office staff, their compensation plan, etc. all mattered. Now, those things are gone.

On top of all that, you have natural human ambition, which will drive some young leaders on the team to want to start their own thing somewhere else, leaving the group behind.

And all of this is OK and natural.

I think if you’re the top leader, you need to recognize these natural moments of attrition, and also realize that your leadership of and influence on your team over the years will become very clear in this specific moment.

As for the other company you mention, if my colleagues at SCP were involved in that situation, it was before my time ;-). Regardless, I think it’s quite admirable when a company can close its doors with as much integrity as possible. I realize the very situation of closing the doors does not always allow a company to do it as gracefully as they would like, so I don’t fault anyone for that, but I also think company’s should find ways to help their people as much as they reasonably can during the transition.

Thanks for the comment –
bd

When the company, where I had built to the top, ceased operations (by shutting down its website without giving notice to anyone!) in 2008, there was panic, chaos, consultants hyperventilating because they hadn’t downloaded their customer lists from the back office, and so on.

Most of all, many of the leaders were scrambling to try and find ways to keep their team intact by transitioning to other direct selling companies. Just curious about your recommendations about that aspect of a shutdown — ways to keep and manage it for your downline?

On a different note, several years ago a company with a big mansion in Asheville launched into direct sales. (I’m going to “guess” that they were coached by Strategic Choice Partners since they are located in your backyard.) When it made the decision not to continue the direct selling business, the company managed that shut down with such incredible integrity. I hope it has been documented for other companies to follow.

Thanks!