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The most exciting story in 401(k) administration today—or all year—is the saga of Sterri brothers. The three brothers are the key players in a corporate espionage allegation for an operation they reportedly dubbed the “Sterri Takeover.”
According to TechCrunch, 401(k) provider Human Interest has sued competitor Guideline for attempting to steal company information. Human Interest alleges that Brandon and Brian Sterri, while serving as junior inside sales representatives, were feeding its most sensitive intelligence, including customer data and internal strategy documents, to older brother Eirik Sterri, who was a Guideline employee.
To further raise the stakes, Human Interest alleges that Guideline’s CEO and CFO “approved and directed” the scheme. And that Brian and Brandon were set to take more senior positions at Guideline.
The first of a group of revealing leaked texts from the lawsuit was sent on January 29, from Brandon to his brothers.
“We are going to tear apart HI,” he says. “It’s going to be the easiest thing to do.”
Then in late February, two days after he resigned from Human Interest, Brian sent a text that the company alleges exposed the whole operation.
“Got a big favor to ask,” he wrote to former colleague and current Human Interest employee. “A screenshot of total lead flow for ISR team this month.”
Total lead flow represents the company’s potential clients, which according to Human Interest’s complaint is among the most valuable of its data, costing the company years and millions of dollars to cultivate.
When they refused the request, Brian continued calling and texting, and his wife reached out on his behalf. He eventually contacted a second employee, asking for internal metrics from a Slack channel.
“Yea so I cannot send you anything HI related,” they texted back.
Human Interest’s complaint argues that Brian’s response reveals his acknowledgement.
“Mitch [another Human Interest sales rep] would be the only person that could really give me the information GDL [Guideline] would want,” he says.
What’s striking about the operation is the alleged involvement of Guideline executives. Human Interest’s complaint says that after it sent cease-and-desist letters in March, Eirik texted his brothers that he’d met with Guideline’s Senior Vice President of Sales, and assured them that everyone had their backs.
“Everyone has expressed how fired up they are about the situation,” he texted. “It will blow over and all of us will be so fired up.”
According to Axios, Human Interest has now filed suit against two brothers and Guideline itself. The lawsuit claims breach of contract, breach of trade secret, and computer fraud and RICO.
According to their Linkedin profiles, Brian and Brandon both currently work as account executives at Guideline.
In a statement to TechCrunch, a Guideline spokesperson said, “Guideline believes allegations in this lawsuit are false and without merit. We are vigorously defending ourselves and we look forward to presenting the facts and showing that these claims are unfounded.”
What’s more is that Guideline agreed to be acquired by payroll giant Gusto, which would be a $600 million deal according to TechCrunch, and planned to divest accounts associated with rival payroll companies. But when Human Interest inquired about purchasing the assets, Guideline’s CFO allegedly refused unless the lawsuit was dropped.
A Gusto spokesperson told TechCrunch that while the companies remain separate, it plans to greenlight the deal.
“Joining forces with Guideline means that payroll and 401(k) management will become more seamlessly integrated, all in one place, for the small businesses we serve — and we’re excited about that future.”
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Ava Levinson
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