VENDOR ENGAGEMENT POLICIES

Our Approach to Vendor Engagement

At the IA FORUM, we are deeply committed to fostering a highly valuable peer-to-peer community, along with programs and content that are always end-user-centric and designed to help our members and their organization achieve technology and digital & business transformation excellence. To uphold this commitment, we maintain a vendor-free zone and enforce strict content neutrality and integrity protocols.

However, we also recognize its essential for our members to be informed about the vendor landscape in their particular focus areas. By doing so, this ensures they can stay aware of the tools available in the marketplace, select the best solutions for their initiatives, and collaborate with their peers to troubleshoot any roadblocks they may encounter with their current vendors or solution providers.

That said, the IA FORUM, members, and vendor and solution provider event or content sponsors must adhere to the below policies.

Policies

The IA FORUM upholds stringent standards for content integrity, neutrality, and excellence, which all members and contributors are expected to observe at all times. We also ensure full compliance with industry protocols surrounding member confidentiality, data privacy, and information security.

• The IA FORUM is a Private Community: In turn, all community events, event videos & PPTs, content and insights, and community programs are strictly for members’ consumption and usage - and should not - and are not - shared outside the IA FORUM community. The IA FORUM does NOT share or distribute members’ Thought Leadership, special content, event video footage or PPTs outside the IA FORUM community without first obtaining members’ authorization and approval to do so. Members are also expected to adhere to these policies.

• Employer Confidentiality & Information Sharing Policy: It is universally understood as standard industry and business protocol that members must never disclose any confidential, privileged, proprietary, or regulated information related to their employer’s projects, initiatives, operations, strategies, policies, clients, or internal systems. Members must fully understand and strictly adhere to this industry protocol - and this IA FORUM strict policy - which requires that all insights shared within the IA FORUM community remain high-level, non-sensitive, and experience-based. This ensures every member remains compliant with their organization’s confidentiality, legal, compliance, and data-security obligations.

• Media & Press: The media and press are never present or part of IA FORUM events or community activities.

• Chatham House Rule: All IA FORUM programs follow the Chatham House Rule, ensuring open dialogue without attributing statements or information to any individual or organization. That said, the information and views expressed in IA FORUM events, presentations, and community discussions are those of the member and do not reflect the official position or opinions of the company they are employed by.

• Vendor-Free Zone: The IA FORUM community is a vendor-free zone. Vendor sales pitches/endorsements & member self-promotion are NOT permitted at anytime. If a member violates this protocol, their membership will be immediately cancelled and they will not receive a partial or full membership refund.

• Confidentiality & Data Security: The IA FORUM maintains stringent standards to ensure compliance with industry protocols for members’ confidentiality, data privacy, and security. Members are required to uphold these same standards. We protect members' contact information and do not share it, except when necessary for coordinating peer partnerships and mentorships programs - or for coordinating event co-speakers' and Advisory Board meetings.

• 3rd Party Data Sharing: As an organization that highly respects our members' confidentiality, under no circumstances are our members’ names, emails, phone #s, or any other information shared with third parties, vendor or solution provider event or content sponsors, other vendors and solution providers, et cetera.

• Vendor or Solution Provider Sponsored Events & Content: Occasionally we allow vendors or solution providers to speak on IA FORUM events or share their organization's content within the IA FORUM community. Vendors must uphold the same no vendors sales pitches or self-promotion, confidentiality, and data security protocols our members must adhere to. If a vendor or solution provider event or content sponsor violates this protocol, they will be banned from future IA FORUM partnerships opportunities.