I received the following e-mail via LinkedIn from a "Senior Partner":
"I am in the process of interviewing for 2 strategic sales management development positions within New York Life's Partner Development program. The successful candidates will enter a 12-month program and at their successful completion will be promoted into a sales leadership role. The successful candidate must possess a college degree, and have a minimum of 5 years of successful management experience or specific financial services experience within the financial planning or wealth management arena. Would be great if we could set up some time this week to talk regarding this position. Please provide me availabilities and a good contact number I can call you on. Look forward to speaking with you.
Best Regards,
Dean Panjwani
Senior Partner"
Currently in a "Vice President" position with a nearly six-figure base salary and ample commission, I was not desperate and am generally open to "the right" opportunity. My LinkedIn profile is very clear about my background and 15 years of sales and sales management experience.
The short version is after a 90-minute interview (that was mainly scrolling through a powerpoint deck telling me about the company), I found that the position has no base salary, is 100% commissioned and it would be a minimum of one-year before I could actually be considered for a management position.
Not that this would not be a potentially good opportunity for someone fresh out of college, but it was quite irksome to have spent all of this time on a position that didn't really exist. Very similar to Primerica. Own it. False pre-tenses will only frustrate your cause.