Team Topologies Advocates Code Of Conduct

Version: 2023-06-03

What is the purpose of the TTA Code of Conduct?

The Team Topologies (TT) mission is to make work more humane and more effective for everyone via Team Topologies patterns and principles. Team Topologies Advocates (TTAs) are individuals who passionately share their knowledge and expertise with the community. Our standards and values as a program reflect our commitment to make a positive impact around the globe where we seek to provide a respectful, friendly, professional, and an inclusive experience for everyone: https://teamtopologies.com/mission  Simply put, an individual’s character and leadership truly matter to us.

Team Topologies makes this Code of Conduct (CoC) highly visible to clarify our values, expectations, provide reporting resources for conduct violations, and outline how Team Topologies may choose to enforce this Code of Conduct.

The Team Topologies CoC aims to empower every person with Team Topologies Advocate status to achieve more while advocating on behalf of Team Topologies. This is achieved by maintaining a respectful, caring and professional approach to those they come into contact with and by conducting themselves in a way that demonstrates integrity, maturity and good judgment.   

Behaviors and responsibilities

As a TTA you must always: 

  • Be a good role model with behavior and an attitude that are in line with Team Topologies’ mission and values: https://teamtopologies.com/mission 

  • Be friendly, courteous, and kind at all times. 

  • Treat everyone with dignity and respect in accordance with Team Topologies’ Equality and Diversity Policy.  A copy of the policy will be made available to you. 

  • Approach other TTAs in a spirit of collaboration and cooperation. We encourage TTAs to actively collaborate and cooperate with other TTAs, team members, and stakeholders, and to emphasize the value of teamwork, knowledge sharing, and supporting each other's efforts. Avoid competing directly with other TTAs. 

  • Respect other people’s privacy and boundaries and differences of opinion – just because someone holds a different viewpoint from your own, doesn’t mean that they’re wrong.

  • Foster environments that allow all members to feel connected to each other and the community.

  • Communicate with others in an open and respectful way. 

  • Be responsible and accountable in the way you carry out your role as a TTA. 

  • Adhere to Team Topologies’ policies, procedures, and rules. 

  • Avoid acting fraudulently or dishonestly, and avoid doing anything that brings (or is likely to bring) Team Topologies into disrepute. 

  • Admit that it is best to sometimes pause from commenting or reacting immediately to feedback/constructive criticism.

  • Recognize when you have made a mistake and take steps to make amends. We will make mistakes. When others are not at their best, we should reach out, offer support, and seek to understand. When you are at fault, listen, and ask how you can make things right.

  • Attribute work and materials correctly. TTAs may only post their own original work or work that they have written permission to post. If a TTA cites another author’s work,TTAs are expected to provide any necessary attribution according to the requirements associated with the original author’s work.

Dealing with discrimination or harassment

At Team Topologies we are all committed to providing safe and supportive environments for everyone involved with our organization and ecosystem. We will not tolerate:

  • Discrimination or harassment. TT  is committed to providing a harassment-free experience to Program participants regardless of age, ancestry, color, gender identity or expression, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical size, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, veteran status, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or technology choices. Harassment is unwelcome verbal, physical or virtual behavior based on the characteristics identified above.

  • Sexual harassment. Sexual harassment is unwelcome verbal, physical or virtual behavior based on sex and includes gender-based harassment of a person of the same or different gender. Examples of sexual harassment include, but are not limited to:

  • Unwelcome sexual advances

  • Sexual comments or inappropriate gender-based jokes

  • Excessive, unwelcome romantic attention

  • Offering or conditioning an employment benefit or preferential treatment, like a promotion or job assignment, in exchange for sexual favors

  • Unwelcome physical contact

  • Sharing or displaying sexually explicit content

  • Using sexually degrading words

The Team Topologies ecosystem should be a place where people want to work, our Partners (both individuals and organizations) want to engage and work with us to share the inspiration, motivation, knowledge, skills, and opportunities that Team Topologies brings to them.  

Adhere to brand guidelines

We ask all TTAs to adhere to the Team Topologies brand guidelines at https://teamtopologies.com/brand-guidelines when talking about Team Topologies in their private and public communication. 

As a TTA, we need you to be familiar with the guidelines and ensure that whenever you are using a Team Topologies logo that you bear in mind the acceptable way to use it. This is important in helping us maintain a consistent brand in all forms of communication. 

Breaches of the CoC and disciplinary process

Breaches of the Code of Conduct will be taken seriously and may result in removal of a TTA from our community of TTAs.

We encourage TTAs to seek resolution of disagreements through open dialogue, active listening, and finding common ground while maintaining professionalism. If this route does not resolve the situation, please report the problem to Team Topologies organization. 

All reported concerns are reviewed confidentially by the TTA Program team. Disciplinary actions, up to and including termination from the Program, are made on a case-by-case basis at Team Topologies’ sole discretion.

To report any concerning or violating behavior you, or anyone else in the community encounters, on or offline, you are encouraged to report it to the Team Topologies Partner team via email harassment@teamtopologies.com or a member of the TT Partner program team.

If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other concerns, please contact a member of the Program immediately via email harassment@teamtopologies.com.

Acknowledgments 

The TTA Code of Conduct document is inspired by the Microsoft MVP code of conduct at https://mvp.microsoft.com/en-us/Pages/mvp-code-of-conduct