Shame on me! I haven’t posted in way too long. I’m sure that I have been missed terribly by the visitor that may have accidentally stumbled upon this blog while looking for information about factoring polynomials or some such unrelated topic.
Anyway, true to my catty and petty self, I came across a blog post about receivables factoring that I thought was quite interesting, if not a bit too honest.
A recent post on a blog titled “Factoring Vibe” introduced the background of the post author which was, to say the least, incongruous with the profession which the author now inhabits. The author is quite forthcoming about her lack of knowledge of the world of finance, economics and asset-based financing. In fact, I am wondering if she is not a bit too forthcoming.
The post author identifies herself as a highly-educated writer, acting enthusiast and all-around artsy-fartsy type. But we soon discover that, not only is the author not just some hired-hand writer, designated to churn out relevant blog posts targeting the factoring industry, she is the company’s marketing manager.
“So what?” you ask. Well, consider the following statement:
“So here I am, in charge of marketing for a financial company, with very little understanding of this industry.”
And this:
“Being a writer by trade, the company I work for, Universal Funding, thought it would be a good use of my skills for me to write a blog about topics relevant to the financial industry. Sure, no problem, other than the fact that I know nothing about the subject.“
It sets me to wondering about the hiring process for this position. What in the world was the interview like?
Universal: So, can you tell me about your experience in the financial sector?
Candidate: Well, I was treasurer for the drama club at my college. Oh, and I accidentally balanced my checkbook once!
Universal Funding: Balanced? To the penny?
Candidate: Yes, to the penny!
Universal Funding: Damn! You’re hired.
Forgive me, but I can’t help notice things like this. Perhaps I am evolving into the Perez Hilton of the receivables factoring industry. But let’s face it. This industry could use a little personality.
And speaking of personality, check out these two personalities from Universal Funding. Henry D. Wozow is the President and Founder of the company. His bio states that “as a young man, Henry was the California Amateur Welter Weight Boxing Champion, with 168 fights under his belt, and 19 fights as a professional.”
Ouch! In other words, don’t make Henry mad. He’ll kick your ass.
Another interesting character is Senior Vice-President and Sales Manager Deron Nicholson. Frankly, I don’t ever remember seeing a corporate photo representation of an executive in a really cool, low-set “jeff cap.” Upon reading that Deron is a former U.S. Marine, I am starting to appreciate that he and Mr. Wozow are 3,000 miles away. They could hurt people.
Although I found this comical for the most part, I felt it necessary to point out the improvements to the Universal Funding brand and messaging since this post was written. As a career marketing professional I was hired in October to improve all aspects of the marketing. On January 4, 2010 we launched a totally redesigned website at http://www.universalfunding.com. Laura has since moved on and although she was unexperienced and promoted to a position she was not totally suited for, she did her best to be honest and bring a passion to her work. We have tried to be an open book when it comes to sharing who were are as individuals and as a company. We aim to ensure that companies truly can know the people they are entrusting a very intregral part of their continuing success too.