Communicate considerately

• Whether in-person or online, think before you speak/type.
• Learn how to eliminate unconscious bias and microaggressions.
• Use inclusive language: be mindful of someone’s gender pronouns, use neutral terminology in the collective.

Treat others as you would like to be treated

• Harassment in any form will not be tolerated.
• Make space for other members, and make them feel welcome.
• Don’t stare at someone because they are different from yourself.
• Respect people of all genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, ages, languages, and cultural heritages

Make safe spaces for underrepresented and marginalized communities

• Speak up for, support, and protect your fellow members.
• Empower and amplify the voices of BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, persons with disabilities, and marginalized individuals in the community.
• Fight to include people from these marginalized groups in your work.

Should a Factory Network member harbor concerns regarding a fellow member’s conduct, we encourage discreet communication with the Factory Network team. Such matters may be addressed in person or via email at [email protected]). To facilitate a thorough review, we kindly request the inclusion of any evidence, if available.

The Factory Network team will then follow this basic procedure:

• Determine if the conduct is contrary to what would be expected of a Factory Berlin member.
• Seek a response from the member to whom the conduct relates.
• Consider whether the conduct can be corroborated by documentary evidence or reports from other members and
• Ultimately determine whether the conduct constitutes any further action or consequences.

The Factory Network team reserves the right to provide a member with a written warning, or terminate an individual or company’s membership with immediate effect (by Clause VIII.5 of the General Terms and Conditions for Factory Berlin Members) for conduct that:

• is inconsistent with this policy;
• threatens the integrity of the trustworthy environment within the community or
• is detrimental in any way to the overall well-being of the community.

The Factory Network team reserves sole discretion in determining conduct warranting membership termination. In such instances, the team commits to delivering written notification to the affected member.

1. Be kind and be fair. Think before you type.
2. We’re a community of innovators. Spam is not very innovative.
3. Harassment of any kind is unacceptable and is a reason for membership termination.
4. We expect responsible collaboration. Our team is happy to provide guidance in finding the right tone for conflict resolution, but we are not mediators for business disputes.

While members are welcome to share business opportunities with one another via our Member Platform or Factory Network Slack, our team ask that members refrain from targeting or spamming other members. If a member asks not to be contacted for a particular purpose, it is expected that other members will be respectful of that wish.

We are a community of all genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations, and cultural heritages. Rude, sexist, racist, and ignorant language is not acceptable.

We believe that everyone can learn to be more considerate of others’ perspectives when communicating. To get you into the habit of thinking about and using inclusive language, even in your sleep, we have compiled some useful guides for you.

• Language is ever-changing and learning new trends can be fun. Have a look at the Other Box‘s blog.
• Not everything we’re used to saying is as innocent as we think. Here is an example. Think about your language and its origins.

If you read something that makes you uncomfortable, here (and here) are some handy guides to start a constructive dialogue. If you feel overwhelmed, please reach out to the Factory Network team.

We expect everyone who visits our campuses (members, guests, staff, etc.) to respect the following guidelines when it comes to on-site behavior, interaction with others, usage of our spaces, and care for our facilities and property.

Conduct guidelines

We expect everyone to behave according to our Community House Rules, and treat other members, guests, as we as the Factory Network staff with a friendly and respectful attitude. Any unethical, offensive, abusive, threatening, unlawful, or generally commercially harmful conduct will not be tolerated.

Do not harm, endanger, hinder, or harass anyone under any circumstances. This applies in particular to the consumption of alcohol, which is permitted only to a socially acceptable level, i.e. to the extent that others do not feel disturbed, bothered, or endangered. Employers have a duty of care towards their employees in this regard.

Use of shared workspaces

Use shared workspaces with care and respect. As these working spots and lounge areas are shared with other members, remember to be considerate when it comes to noise level and space usage.

Don’t leave your things unattended at a workspace regardless of how long you are going to be absent. You are welcome to store your items in one of our lockers. If you see a workspace with items left but no one using it for more than 30 minutes, please let the Community Desk team know about it. You may also sit down and work from this spot, as it’s not allowed to reserve spots by placing items on a desk.

Treat our campuses, facilities, and furniture with respect. Do not place your feet on the furniture or the upholstery.

Cleanliness of our campuses

Workspaces must be left clean after use. All rubbish has to be thrown away, cups and other tableware should be returned to their place after use, e.g. to the Café/Restaurant, or put into the dishwashers in the Community Kitchens. Bottles and glasses used during events/parties, and broken glass (if any) should not be left in the Courtyards, but returned to the respective event venue.

You are welcome to bring your own food and beverages to our campuses. Make sure to eat only in the designated Community Kitchen areas. It is not allowed to eat in the shared workspaces.

Private and shared labs rules

Teams that have rented a lab, share a lab, or have otherwise made it possible for their employees to work from our campuses are responsible for their own employees.

Heating & Energy Saving

Use our workspaces sustainably and conscientiously. This means, for example, that ventilation and heating are not carried out at the same time. We ask that our members take responsibility for contributing to our sustainability goals.

Lost Property

All found, foreign objects have to be handed over to the Community Desk team.

Safety

Our campuses and workplaces comply with occupational safety regulations. Should you nevertheless be in the Café or other workplaces, you are responsible for your own occupational safety. In the event of personal injury or damage to property, this must be immediately reported to the Factory Berlin team or the Security team.

You may enter the Ball Pit in the Görlitzer Park campus at your own risk. Parents and legal guardians are responsible for their children and have to ensure their duty of supervision. Access with shoes, sharp objects, food and drinks is prohibited. Animals may not enter the the Ball Pit. We recommend not going in with any valuable items, especially electronic devices or glasses.

As a business club, we encourage collaboration between our members on a variety of levels, from informal day-to-day conduct to the formation of official business relationships.

We respect that our members are autonomous individuals, and possess the freedom to act independently without the interference of Factory Network. This means that each member of our community is ultimately responsible for their conduct, and for taking steps to protect their business interests.

In saying that, we strive to create and preserve trust within our community and have certain behavioral and conduct expectations of our members. We do our best to gain an understanding of an applicant’s character during the application process and take the time to educate all incoming members on our values and expectations during the mandatory onboarding. We are unanimous in our belief that all members – whether interacting in personal or business conduct – should collaborate ethically, responsibly, and respectfully.

Before engaging with other members, we recommend that members take the time to do the following:

Agree upon whether initial meetings are billable or not.

Sometimes it is necessary for two or more members to sit together for some time to work through some initial steps, before deciding to work together in a more formal sense. Both parties are responsible for being realistic and transparent about how long this process is likely to take and should agree upon whether the hours spent together are billable or not before undertaking those initial steps.

Clearly define the parameters of the collaboration.

Ensure that both parties are clear about the expectations of the collaboration, and the deliverables of each party.

Produce written agreements.

If possible and practical, we recommend always drafting a contract outlining the scope of the collaboration, the expected timeframe of the collaboration, the deliverables of each party, and the compensation that has been agreed upon by the parties. Ensure that the contract is signed by both parties prior to engaging in any work.

Of course, it is not always practical or financially viable for parties to draft a proper contract. In these cases, we recommend at least having an email thread or some other form of written agreement outlining the relevant details. Where necessary, request that the other party provides a written confirmation that they have read, and agree to, what has been outlined in the email correspondence.

In summary, we encourage all members to be diligent when working with others, take the time to be clear about the working arrangement at the beginning of the collaboration, and refer to the general best practices of business at all times.