(i) Appropriate Non-Disclosure Agreements. Confidential information may take many forms. An oral presentation about a company's product development plans may contain protected trade secrets. A customer list or employee list may be a protected trade secret. A demo of an alpha version of a company's new software may contain information protected by trade secret and copyright laws. You should never accept information offered by a third party that is represented as confidential, or which appears from the context or circumstances to be confidential, unless an appropriate non-disclosure agreement has been signed with the party offering the information. THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT CAN PROVIDE NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENTS TO FIT ANY PARTICULAR SITUATION, AND WILL COORDINATE APPROPRIATE EXECUTION OF SUCH AGREEMENTS ON BEHALF OF THE COMPANY. The Company's standard form non-disclosure agreement applicable to most commercial transactions is posted on the internal web sit e. Even after a non-disclosure agreement is in place, you should accept only the information necessary to accomplish the purpose of receiving it, such as a decision on whether to proceed to negotiate a deal. If more detailed or extensive confidential information is offered and it is not necessary, for your immediate purposes, it should be refused.
(ii) Need-to-Know. Once a third party's confidential information has been disclosed to the Company, we have an obligation to abide by the terms of the relevant non-disclosure agreement and limit its use to the specific purpose for which it was disclosed and to disseminate it only to other Company employees with a need to know the information. Every employee, agent and contractor involved in a potential business relationship with a third party must understand and strictly observe the restrictions on the use and handling of confidential information. When in doubt, consult the Legal Department.
(iii) Notes and Reports. When reviewing the confidential information of a third party under a non-disclosure agreement, it is natural to take notes or prepare reports summarizing the results of the review and, based partly on those notes or reports, to draw conclusions about the suitability of a business relationship. Notes or reports, however, can include confidential information disclosed by the other party and so should be retained only long enough to complete the evaluation of the potential business relationship. Subsequently, they should be either destroyed or turned over to the Legal Department for safekeeping or destruction. They should be treated just as any other disclosure of confidential information is treated: marked as confidential and distributed only to those Company employees with a need to know.
(iv) Competitive Information. You should never attempt to obtain a competitor's confidential information by improper means, and you should especially never contact a competitor regarding their confidential information. While the Company may, and does, employ former employees of competitors, we recognize and respect the obligations of those employees not to use or disclose the confidential information of their former employers.
E. Selecting Suppliers
The Company's suppliers make significant contributions to our success. To create an environment where our suppliers have an incentive to work with the Company, they must be confident that they will be treated lawfully and in an ethical manner. The Company's policy is to purchase supplies based on need, quality, service, price and terms and conditions. The Company's policy is to select significant suppliers or enter into significant supplier agreements though a competitive bid process where possible. Under no circumstances should any Company employee, agent or contractor attempt to coerce suppliers in any way. The confidential information of a supplier is entitled to the same protection as that of any other third party and must not be received before an appropriate non-disclosure agreement has been signed. A supplier's performance should never be discussed with anyone outside the Company without the supplier's specific prior consent. A supplier to the Company is generally free to s ell its products or services to any other party, including competitors of the Company. In some cases where the products or services have been designed, fabricated, or developed to our specifications the agreement between the parties may contain restrictions on sales. Always consult the Legal Department in advance with respect to any such restrictions.
F. Government Relations
It is the Company's policy to comply fully with all applicable laws and regulations governing contact and dealings with government employees and public officials, and to adhere to high ethical, moral and legal standards of business conduct. This policy includes strict compliance with all local, state, federal, foreign and other applicable laws, rules and regulations. If you have any questions concerning government relations you should contact the Company's Legal Department.
G. Lobbying
Employees, agents or contractors whose work requires lobbying communication with any member or employee of a legislative body or with any government official or employee in the formulation of legislation must have prior written approval of such activity from the Company's General Counsel. Activity covered by this policy includes meetings with legislators or members of their staffs or with senior executive branch officials. Preparation, research, and other background activities that are done in support of lobbying communication are also covered by this policy even if the communication ultimately is not made.
H. Government Contracts
It is the Company's policy to comply fully with all applicable laws and regulations that apply to government contracting. It is also necessary to strictly adhere to all terms and conditions of any contract with local, state, federal, foreign or other applicable governments. The Company's Legal Department must review and approve all contracts with any government entity.
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