Code of Conduct

Like the agile community as a whole, the Business Agility Institute is made up of a mixture of professionals and volunteers from all over the world, working on every aspect of the mission – including thought leadership, guidance, teaching, learning and connecting people.

Diversity is one of our huge strengths, but it can also lead to communication issues and unhappiness. To that end, we have a few ground rules that we ask people to adhere to. This code applies equally to conference organisers, volunteers, speakers and attendees.

This isn’t an exhaustive list of things that you can’t do. Rather, take it in the spirit in which it’s intended – a guide to make it easier to enrich all of us and the technical communities in which we participate.

This code of conduct applies to all spaces managed by the Business Agility Institute. This includes slack, any mailing lists, the conference venue, related events, and any other forum created by the conference committee which the community uses for communication. In addition, violations of this code outside these spaces may affect a person’s ability to participate within them.

If you believe someone is violating the code of conduct, we ask that you report it by emailing [email protected]

  1. Be friendly and patient.
  2. Be welcoming. We strive to be a community that welcomes and supports people of all backgrounds and identities. This includes, but is not limited to members of any race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, colour, immigration status, social and economic class, educational level, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, size, family status, political belief, religion, and mental and physical ability.
  3. Be considerate. Remember that participants come from all over the world, so you might not be communicating in someone else’s primary language.
  4. Be respectful. Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behavior and poor manners. We might all experience some frustration now and then, but we cannot allow that frustration to turn into a personal attack. It’s important to remember that a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. Members of the Business Agility Institute should be respectful when dealing with other members as well as with people outside the community.
  5. Be careful in the words that you choose. We are a community of professionals, and we conduct ourselves professionally. Be kind to others. Do not insult or put down other participants. Harassment and other exclusionary behavior aren’t acceptable. This includes, but is not limited to:
    • Violent threats or language directed against another person.
    • Discriminatory jokes and language.
    • Posting sexually explicit or violent material.
    • Posting (or threatening to post) other people’s personally identifying information (“doxing”).
    • Personal insults, especially those using racist or sexist terms.
    • Unwelcome sexual attention.
    • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.
    • Repeated harassment of others. In general, if someone asks you to stop, then stop.
  6. When we disagree, try to understand why. Disagreements, both social and technical, happen all the time and Business Agility Institute is no exception. It is important that we resolve disagreements and differing views constructively. Remember that we’re different. Our strength comes from our varied community; people from a wide range of backgrounds. Different people have different perspectives on issues. Being unable to understand why someone holds a viewpoint doesn’t mean that they’re wrong. Don’t forget that it is human to err and blaming each other doesn’t get us anywhere. Instead, focus on helping to resolve issues and learning from mistakes.

Original text courtesy of the Django and SpeakUp projects.