what happened between Parker Conrad and David Sacks?

Parker Conrad and David Sacks's conflict stemmed from the downfall of Zenefits. Parker Conrad, the founder of Zenefits, asserts that after his departure, David Sacks, who became CEO, labeled the company as unethical and attacked Conrad specifically for compliance issues. Conrad believes these attacks were partly responsible for Zenefits' continued struggles, as they critically damaged the company’s reputation and morale 1.

Conrad was restricted legally from discussing certain internal issues, especially related to who was responsible for compliance violations. He claimed that Sacks received favorable treatment while Sacks’ team also had compliance lapses, which were not publicly disclosed. Additionally, there was a plan for a mutual press release about Conrad's departure that was switched at the last minute to one that placed the blame on him 2.

Parker Conrad specifically accused David Sacks of several actions related to the downfall of Zenefits:

1. Artful Misrepresentation: Conrad claimed that Sacks misrepresented the company's compliance issues to make it appear that they were solely due to the sales team, when in fact, many violations occurred in the account management team that reported directly to Sacks. This narrative positioned Sacks as the "white knight" while tarnishing Conrad’s reputation 1.

2. Public Blame: According to Conrad, Sacks issued a different press release than what was agreed upon, one that directly blamed Conrad for the compliance issues. This was seen as a strategic move to distance Sacks from any wrongdoing and place the blame squarely on Conrad 2.

3. Media Attacks: Conrad accused Sacks of using the media to consistently attack him and ruin his reputation. Sacks hired a crisis PR person and adopted a strategy of continuous public attacks to undermine Conrad's credibility 3.

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     1

     Zenefits' Downfall

     00:05:55
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     2

     Compliance Issues, Press Releases

     00:03:34
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     3

     Legal Battles

     00:29:45
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     4

     Emerging from Depression

     00:36:51

4. Financial Pressure: There was also a financial component, where Sacks allegedly used the threat of expensive litigation to pressure Conrad into signing non-compete agreements and forcing stock transactions while denying responsibility for legal expenses 3.

Overall, these actions contributed to Conrad's perception that Sacks was more focused on salvaging his own reputation rather than trying to make Zenefits successful 4.