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ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

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Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#31

Post by protomyth »

jusben1369 wrote: post #2

I feel like Zenefits is becoming a case study in everything you don't do when you enter an industry. We'll be switching away because I'm worried who else they won't play nice with in the future. Uber and AirBNB have scared the heck out of huge incumbent industries and cities/governments and had scraps to be sure. But they don't have the consistent missteps as Zenefits. They know when to fight and when to take a lump…

Also Über and AirBNB are consumer companies. Zenefits has to appeal to enterprise customers. Beyond that we're talking payroll. This is the most conservative part of any business. Lawsuits do not make for good advertising.

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#32

Post by smileysteve »

boomzilla wrote: post #9

Is this the same CEO who said in Quora to the effect of: if you have to ask how it's like to work here, you won't fit in here?

> if you have to ask how it's like to work here, you won't fit in here?

The response was more, if you know that you'll find the work at Uber or another company more exciting, then we wouldn't want you to work here.

It was really a matter of phrasing/tact on the applicant's part and hubris on this CEOs part - you want people to be excited about working for you, but you also want the humility to be able to see how it fits in their career path.

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#33

Post by runamok »

boomzilla wrote: post #9

Is this the same CEO who said in Quora to the effect of: if you have to ask how it's like to work here, you won't fit in here?

Yes this is the same CEO but your summary isn't quite right. He was trying to figure out a pros and cons of Uber vs. Zenefits and for instance he asked:

"My biggest problem with Zenefits is that it isn't a buzzword like Uber. Most people won't know what Zenefits is (or so I think). I think that this isn't as exciting a brand name to have on your resume when applying to the likes of Google."

Full question: http://www.quora.com/What-is-the-best-way-to-start-my-career...

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#34

Post by apalmer »

This is just a minor skirmish really, honestly this is just Zenefits being welcomed into the big leagues. Zenefits should be ware of biting the hand that feeds them at this point, they shouldnt be 'cowed' but you dont start a war with providers you are dependent on.

Basically ADP wont 'win' this court case, it wont even stretch out too long. However, both companies will probably have to feed the lawyers 5 million for this... which is not a big deal for one, and is probably 10% of capital on hand for the other. Its more a statement than a lawsuit with an expectation of success.

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#35

Post by [deleted] »

DannyBee wrote: post #13

Reading the complaint, ADP is not likely come close to winning. The defamation they claimed happened is that Zenefits "alleged that ADP intentionally sought to cause harm to ADP’s clients solely to gain an unfair competitive advantage against Zenefits.” Even if you argue this is defamation per se (and not per quod), about a matter of private concern, they'd still have to prove "4. That [name of defendant] failed to u…

[deleted]

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#37

Post by thewhizkid »

Someone1234 wrote: post #15
tdees40 wrote: post #4

The descent into lawsuits is pretty sad. When customers hate your product (i.e. the ADP front-end) so much that an entire company forms around making something less terrible, you really have to look at yourself in the mirror. I continue to be amazed by the horribleness of benefits web front-ends. I recently did a simple task in our Hewitt system, and it required five pop-up windows. It's just so, so terrible.

> When customers hate your product (i.e. the ADP front-end) so much that an entire company forms around making something less terrible, you really have to look at yourself in the mirror. Is this really accurate? Doesn't Zenefits exist to merge several services, only some of which ADP provide? And while many people have said that ADP's front end is bad, it seems like you've taken those claims a step further by claimin…

Would you rather have something that looks nice or actually works? Especially when it comes to nontrivial things like benefits and payroll? Don't you think it's a bit silly for you as a user to be swayed to use one thing or another by a pretty interface?

We seem to understand never to "judge a book by its cover"...except when it comes to web interfaces.

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#38

Post by iamshs »

olafskyansian wrote: post #19

I have a lot of respect for what Zenefits has done to date in shaking up the insurance space, but you have to REALLY question what the heck is going on with Parker's leadership there. What is going on that the founder/CEO has enough time to chastise an engineer candidate on Quora and put out factually inaccurate posts on topics like healthcare reform (he had something out on LinkedIn a few weeks back) but doesn't hav…

First thing that came to my mind was; where I work, if employees do not get paid on time, company will have to deal with quite a lot of grief and substantial monetary loss due to the work arrangement company has. I am sure something like this exists in other jobs/industries/countries too. How come such a critical component was not taken care of?

Also, I had to wean off from using the Mint app because I was concerned about violating my bank's TOS by giving login credentials to a third party, and if something happens in future my claim will be a bit weak. So are SMBs not violating ADP's TOS by providing them login info?

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#39

Post by peteretep »

DannyBee wrote: post #13

Reading the complaint, ADP is not likely come close to winning. The defamation they claimed happened is that Zenefits "alleged that ADP intentionally sought to cause harm to ADP’s clients solely to gain an unfair competitive advantage against Zenefits.” Even if you argue this is defamation per se (and not per quod), about a matter of private concern, they'd still have to prove "4. That [name of defendant] failed to u…

    > ADP is not likely come close to winning
Are they trying to win the case, or a longer game involving customer confidence?

Re: ADP Sues Zenefits for Defamation

#40

Post by hatred »

apalmer wrote: post #34

This is just a minor skirmish really, honestly this is just Zenefits being welcomed into the big leagues. Zenefits should be ware of biting the hand that feeds them at this point, they shouldnt be 'cowed' but you dont start a war with providers you are dependent on. Basically ADP wont 'win' this court case, it wont even stretch out too long. However, both companies will probably have to feed the lawyers 5 million for…

>> 10% of capital on hand for the other.

Well , they just raised $ 500m, so looks like just 1% of the new capital raised ( or wasted , whatever way you put it )

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