The cheap and nasty party...

A couple of our readers have pointed out that the BNP is currently advertising on its website for someone to fill the role of Group Support/Training Officer. Nothing wrong with that, of course, though we would have expected the party to have invested in a new member of staff who actually knew their way around a set of accounts, or possibly someone who could get reasonably close to winning a by-election. Still, it's not for us to wonder why - just to take the piss. And we can do this by taking a closer look at the advert, which looks like it has been cobbled together by someone with too much spare time, an overwhelming sense of their own importance and the mistaken belief that plagiarising whole sections of the ad from another website would never come to light because they are a management guru. Yes, it looks like Jim Dowson has been in action again, doing whatever it is that he does for the BNP in the cheapest way possible in order to maximise his own profits.

There's actually nothing wrong with the ad itself, though it's a tad verbose. Most job descriptions tend to be padded out with all kinds of nonsense which in theory relate to the job but in practice are just buzzwords and phrases to make it sound good within a corporate environment. Like I said, there's nothing wrong with that, and most personnel officers use this kind of language as a matter of course - but it doesn't come naturally from the BNP or anyone I've ever heard from the party. So where has it been pinched from?

Well, as it happens, we know. There is a group called Businessballs which provides 'free online learning for careers, work, management, business training and education', among other things. If you ever wondered where Dowson got his expertise at business or even where Lee Barnes picks up his sometimes surprisingly lucid notes on employment law, you've found the source. And it will come as absolutely no surprise at all to be told that while the BNP is happy to plagiarise a good deal of Businessballs' text for its advert, it's a little coy about acknowledging Businessballs' copyright.

So where is the evidence that the BNP's ad-writer has plagiarised? Mostly not until the profile of the new employee is discussed in the ad. See below:

The BNP's plagiarised advert (click on image to enlarge)

It's worth comparing the two sections because the BNP has lifted most of its ad verbatim from Businessballs - particularly the Specific Job Skills, Computer Skills and the Literacy and Numeracy sections.

Businessballs' original version (click on image to enlarge)

The contents of the Businessballs page is provided free, and a bloody good resource it is, but the site owner, one Alan Chapman, clearly states that,

'The use of this webpage is free provided copyright (see below) is acknowledged and reference or link is made to the www.businessballs.com website. The webpage text may not be sold, or published in any form. Disclaimer: Reliance on information, material, advice, or other linked or recommended resources, received from Alan Chapman, shall be at your sole risk, and Alan Chapman assumes no responsibility for any errors, omissions, or damages arising. Users of this website are encouraged to confirm information received with other sources, and to seek local qualified advice if embarking on any actions that could carry personal or organisational liabilities. Managing people and relationships are sensitive activities; the material and advice available via this website do not provide all necessary safeguards and checks. Please retain this notice on all copies.

© alan chapman 2006-2009'

Elsewhere, in a more explicit statement of the copyright for the site, Alan Chapman says,

'Reproduction of Businessballs materials online (internet or intranet) for any purpose requires permission.'

Naturally, the BNP, not even granting an author his own acknowledgement, has chosen to ignore this notice and we feel that this should be brought to the author's attention. You can do this by emailing Mr Chapman on ac@alanchapman.com or calling him on 0116 235 5585. Let us know what response(s) you get via the comments. For reference, the BNP advert is here (the link goes via an anonymiser).