The Web represents a fundamental opportunity for Gartner to evolve its means and style of interaction across its ecosystem of clients, prospects, technology providers, business leaders, media, etc., as well as expanding and deepening such interactions. In promulgating these guidelines, Gartner is building both upon longstanding policies regarding associates’ personal interactions and upon the sound judgment that we expect our associates to use in their professional interactions.
Accordingly, these guidelines are simply a reflection of that expectation of sound judgment as it is applied to the concrete issues and circumstances of Web participation. These guidelines (and associated examples) will evolve as our collective experience with such participation evolves. Web participation is currently defined as all forms of public Web-based communication and expression, such as blogs, microblogs, linkblogs, wikis, bookmark sites, photo sharing sites, video sharing sites, forums, mailing lists, discussion groups, chat rooms, and social network sites. These guidelines apply to all individual contributions to the public Web. They do not apply to official corporate communications, content published through standard research processes for clients, or internal interactions.
Summary
1. All Gartner policies apply: Know and follow Gartner’s policies.
2. Think before you post: Use sound judgment and think about reactions to your post before you post it.
3. Respect your audience: Avoid negative personal comments or inflammatory subjects.
4. Have productive conversations: For Gartner and its associates, the primary benefits of Web participation are for others to learn about Gartner and for Gartner to learn from others.
5. Don’t “give away the farm”: Avoid posting the kind of information and advice for which clients pay Gartner.
6. Protect and enhance the value of the Gartner brand: Present Gartner in a positive light and avoid making derogatory comments about Gartner, our products, services, management, employees, or systems.
7. Protect confidential information: Protect Gartner’s and our clients’ confidential information.
8. Be personable and have fun: Web participation is about enjoying personal interactions, not delivering corporate communications.
Detailed Discussion
1. All Gartner policies apply.
Know and follow all Gartner policies, including our Code of Conduct and Ethical Conduct Principles.
2. Think before you post.
Use sound judgment and think about reactions to your post before you post it. Remember that whatever you post may live for many years in the Web, even after you delete your copy of it. Avoid posting in the heat of the moment, especially in a discussion list that is escalating into a flame war. Ask yourself, “Is this issue better handled by another part of Gartner, such as Research management or PR?”
3. Respect your audience.
Avoid slurs, personal attacks or insults, obscenity, etc., and topics that may be considered objectionable or inflammatory – such as topics in the areas of politics and religion. Show proper consideration for others’ privacy, and avoid picking fights. Be the first to correct your own mistakes, and be constructive and respectful in correcting others.
4. Have productive conversations.
For Gartner and its associates, the primary benefits of Web participation are for others to learn about Gartner and for Gartner to learn from others. While it is OK to offer criticism, such criticism should be constructive and never mean-spirited, and should not involve accusations of wrongdoing or improper conduct. Find out who else is blogging on the topic, and link to them. If Gartner has relevant research on the topic, link to it (even if it is just the abstract). Try to add value. Provide worthwhile information (get your facts straight) and perspective (be constructive). Test your ideas and move research forward while avoiding direct disagreement with published research. Remember, if a posting generates a request from a technology provider for a briefing, a journalist for an interview, or a client or prospect for an inquiry, route it through normal Gartner channels.
5. Don’t “give away the farm.”
Avoid posting the kind of information and advice for which clients pay Gartner. Gartner wants clients to pay us for information and associates want Gartner to get paid for information. Associates also may want to participate in Web conversations about IT – which means exchanging information and opinion about IT. To ensure you aren’t divulging too much information, be thoughtful about what information you post and how you respond to feedback. Ask yourself: “Is this the kind of information that our clients normally pay us for?” If the answer is “Yes” or even “Perhaps,” then confer with other Gartner colleagues before posting. Especially with IT subjects, focus on opening a dialog around topics to enhance awareness of the topic, to gain constructive feedback from the broader IT community and to build awareness of Gartner activities and research.
6. Protect and enhance the value of Gartner’s brand.
Present Gartner in a positive light and avoid making derogatory comments about Gartner, our products, services, management, employees or systems Although this is already covered by the Gartner Principles of Ethical Conduct, it is worth highlighting explicitly in the context of Web participation. To minimize the risk that your personal post is perceived as official published Gartner opinion, you should make it clear that you are speaking for yourself and not on behalf of Gartner. Specifically, if you post personally and it has something to do with your work or subjects associated with Gartner, use a disclaimer such as: “This post is my own and does not necessarily represent my employer’s positions, strategies or opinions.” (A blanket disclaimer for an entire set of posts is appropriate, as long as the disclaimer is clearly visible – for example, in a blog sidebar.)
When posting about IT-related issues it is inevitable – indeed healthy – for contrary points of view to be debated and discussed. It is inevitable that an associate’s personal post about an IT subject may occasionally be viewed as representing or contradicting Gartner’s official position on a subject. However, it is never appropriate to intentionally disparage or contradict published Gartner research. If such a post actually generates controversy or confusion, the associate should post as quickly as possible a clarification that resolves the issue.
7. Protect confidential information.
Protect Gartner’s and our clients’ confidential information. Information that we would not publicly disclose in our research due to confidentiality concerns should not be disclosed or discussed on the Web. Also, because we are a public company, don’t disclose or discuss Gartner’s revenues, future business plans or share price. If in doubt, gain permission prior to posting on matters that might be private or internal to Gartner. Respect copyright, fair use and financial disclosure laws.
8. Be personable and have fun.
Web participation is about enjoying personal interactions, not delivering corporate communications. Always identify yourself. Write in the first person. If your Web participation (e.g., keeping up your blog) feels like work, you’re probably doing too much of it and it’s likely to interfere with your work at Gartner. A big part of the Web experience is that it is more playful than most other mediums. Your Web participation should reflect this characteristic. The most successful blogs are those with an informal and humorous style. It’s OK — some might say mandatory — to poke fun in Web postings, but keep in mind that such humor should always be appropriate and should stimulate discussion, not stifle it.
