Ethically if you are not competing against your company or any other divisions then you may be fine with it but technically you are paid a salary for giving them your time. If you are selling other products during their time during the day then you are really cheating them....I'm an independent and it's the best thing I ever did getting away from a big company direct role. If you are going to sell independently at the same time as you are selling direct then I would be prepared to be cut loose at anytime by your current employer as most likely if they get wind of it at all then they will cut you....Good luck with the independent role it can be a little tough getting started but once you get going and develop a network it can be very rewarding and not nearly as stressful.
I totally agree with the above statements.
Its wrong, and be very careful . You will get fired from your w2 gig and your 1099 will know you are being sneaky. GO ALL IN OR DONT AT ALL.
Although wrong, since when has anyone -- from the execs at the top with a golden parachute, to the grunt worker in the trenches -- in this industry been ethical?
Yes, if your W2 employer learns you are doing 1099 work on the side, you will be terminated on the spot. However, in the device/pharma world, if the rep comes in wildly over quota, is the rep rewarded with a larger territory or larger bonuses of commissions?
Hell no.
Instead, that wildly successful rep will be financially punished by having their territory split in half, or that wildly successfully rep will be pulled from the field and made a trainer or a manager -- effectively reducing the rep's income.
That's just the way it is.
Work your 1099 job on the side, and hopefully if you are successful, you will be able to give your W2 employer notice after your 1099 commissions far exceed your salary with bonuses and/or commissions.
To avoid detection from your present W2 employer, you may want to consider having your significant other, or a trusted family member, be the named 1099 rep -- with your job being to get your significant other or trusted family member past the gatekeeper so he/she can get face to face time with the decision maker.
It's a dog-eat-dog world, and to think otherwise is to be hopelessly naive. Do what you have to do in order to put food on the table today, while ensuring that your long-term future will be financially secure.
The 1099 entity does not care if you are being "sneaky," but instead, the 1099 entity only desires to see you produce sales.
Regardless of whether you are doing W2 work or 1099 work, it's either produce or perish.
Loyalty is admirable -- but not to your W2 entity that could care less about you as a person. If your W2 company is bought out by another entity, you will probably get laid off by the new entity.
Then again, even if your present W2 employer does not get bought out, there is always the possibility that you may get laid off and replaced by someone younger, prettier, or by one who does a better job of brown-nosing, and you will be laid off in a NY minute.
Why be loyal to an entity that looks at you as someone who is as replaceable as a cog in a machine?
At the end of the metaphorical day, being loyal to the W2 employer may result in being given a gold plated watch or a plaque for putting in 20 years of service. Well, that gold plated watch or plaque, along with 5 bucks, will buy you a great cup of coffee at Starbucks.
As a true 1099, you are the master of your destiny. You will be able to eat what you kill, or freeze it for a rainy day. Do what you have to, without committing any felonies, to ensure you and your family have a sound financial foundation for the future.
