Sparksuite’s Employee Handbook

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Code of conduct

As a company, we hold ourselves to the highest possible standards of ethical conduct; however, this wouldn’t be possible without the people who make up our team believing in and standing behind these same ideals. To that end, we’ve developed this code of conduct to demonstrate our company values and to guide employees toward conducting themselves in an honorable way.

This code has been written using broad language that demonstrates the expectations we have for employees in general since it would be impossible to comment on every foreseeable situation. We fully expect employees to use their best judgment in all situations to uphold these values and to encourage other team members to do the same.

Who does this code apply to?

We expect all employees and board members to abide by this code of conduct. Although this code has been written with employees and board members in mind, we also expect contractors and consultants to follow this code as well.

When does this apply?

This code is critical in the office and whenever you are representing our company. However, we believe it’s reasonable for employees to uphold these values in their personal lives too. This is especially important on social media since your employment is often listed and your statements and actions can be easily viewed by millions.

Questions and concerns

Immediately report concerns to the person you report to (unless that person is the target of your concern, in which case you should report your concern to the next in rank). If you have a question about the Code of Conduct, please direct it to the person you report to.


I. Communication

When communicating in any form, always maintain a level of professionalism and carefulness so as to represent yourself and our company in a positive light. This includes all communication, whether internal or external. Here are some expectations:

  • Always encourage, support, and build up teammates; never tear others down.
  • Be honest at all times; do not try to spin the truth.
  • Be respectful of others, their ideas, and their beliefs.
  • Speak kindly; avoid rude, sharp, harsh, or mean comments.
  • Even during challenging circumstances, remain calm.
  • Never make sexist, racist, crude, or other offensive jokes or comments.

II. Integrity

Consistently act with the highest degree of integrity possible. This means making decisions and producing work that you can be proud of, no matter the situation. Be honest and open with others, and foster an environment where others can be comfortable doing the same.

Additionally, integrity involves taking personal responsibility for your actions and decisions. Nobody is perfect, so when you make mistakes, own up to them. You’ll earn more respect by doing so than by covering up the truth.

III. Preserve confidentiality

This subject is already covered by the PIIAA, but we wanted to touch on it here as well. As an employee of our company, you will almost certainly be privy to information not known to the general public. This may include upcoming features, new business models, growth strategies, business deals in-the-works, hiring decisions, business metrics, intellectual property, and so on. Leaking such information can be harmful and costly to our company. We expect all employees to be exceedingly careful to safeguard confidential information at all times.

IV. Conflicts of interest

As an employee of our company, you have an obligation to always do what’s best for our company and our users. When you are in a situation in which competing loyalties could cause you to pursue a personal benefit for you, your friends, or your family at the expense of our company or our users, you may be faced with a conflict of interest. You should take care to avoid conflicts of interest and circumstances that reasonably present the appearance of a conflict.

V. Inclusiveness

Always work to create an inclusive environment for everyone, regardless of race, color, religion, veteran status, national origin, ancestry, pregnancy status, gender, age, marital status, parental status, mental or physical disability, medical condition, physical appearance, political affiliation, or any other characteristics protected by law.

VI. Harassment

We do not tolerate harassment of anyone in any form. Harassment includes offensive verbal comments related to the protected classes above, sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, photography or audio/video recording against reasonable consent, sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention. Harassment does not need to be recognized as unwanted or unwelcome by anyone other than the person being harassed.

VII. Retaliation

We will not engage in or allow retaliation against any employee who makes a good faith complaint or participates in an investigation. If you believe that you are being subjected to any kind of negative treatment because you made or were questioned about a complaint, report the concern immediately.