Seems like a good time to dump this =).
I think I know the kind of world Travis comes from. He was in a fraternity, and he treated it like a business like I did. When he owned a real business he applied those lessons far too liberally.
Fraternities are ruthlessly competitive, going as far as planting fake pledges and building internal dossiers on all the other frats on campus. Very valuable was your loyal man with a generic young face that could walk their way into other houses unsuspected.
Fraternities are also bound strongly by shared goals and lifetime membership, something that doesn't translate to a company where you can leave anyday. They're both a company and a political structure within the university. A strange 501c3 title 9 exempt chimera that forever walks the line.
I'm not defending what he's done, just saying that ruthless counterintelligence is normal for Greek houses trying to get an edge, just like politics. We did much of the same, going as far as putting together wifi sniffers with long range dish antennas pointed at other houses to figure out how many people connected to their WiFi during parties.
We never did any harm, but we watched as closely as our abilities (and the law) allowed. It was opposition research, as bad as politics, and often intertwined. At one point I was fraternity president and my roommate was president of the Student House of Representatives, in charge of the school's 'activity fee', which was close to 50 million a year. We both hated politics and left them forever after graduation, but seeing into the void was a hell of an eye opener for both of us.
I have a strong feeling Travis tried the fraternity formula on a unicorn. A fraternity is much different primarily because you're elected. If you own it, you don't have to pander to anyone or spend half your time watching your back. I think the shadier and secretive projects are a reflection that Travis didn't understand that.