By publicising our ethics policy, we intend to make sure our clients and the people who depend on our business are aware that we have a policy to hold ourselves to a high standard of ethics in our professional duty to deliver technological solutions that help us all achieve our sustainability goals. It's the very foundation of our profession, built upon every day by the competence, integrity and diversity of our employees, clients, suppliers, and local communities.

Prevention is better than cure

We must seek to understand the costs and benefits of deploying technology to ensure that we are consistent in delivering technology solutions that benefit our clients, their customers, and the environment.

We agree deliver a net benefit by:

• Only agreeing to deploying solutions where we have the evidence that the technology solutions will not cause harm to the people that use the technology.
• Researching and understanding risks associated with the design of the technology.
• Developing risks management solutions to deal with known risks that can manifest in the deployment and use of the technology.
• Rejecting and not offering to deploy and technology that can cause harm to people, wildlife, and the environment.

Design technology to protect our customers and the environment

Working together to address issues in our profession and in wider society, we want everyone to have access to technology to achieve their best and sustain success. We intend to share what we know, uphold these professional standards of integrity, not engage in business where there is a conflict of interest, and conduct ourselves in a professional and fair manner at all times.

We agree to act in the benefit of client interests and the environment:

• Have due regard for the health, privacy, security and the overall wellbeing of people and the environment.
• Have due regard for the legitimate rights of third parties.
• Conduct our professional activities without social discrimination on the grounds of sex, sexual orientation, marital status, nationality, colour, race, ethnic origin, religion, age or disability, or of any other conditions or requirement.
• Promote equal access to the benefits of technology and seek to promote the inclusion of all sectors in society wherever opportunities arise.

Demonstrate what we know, what we don't know, and what we are learning

We protect our integrity and demonstrate competence, and we know we don't know everything, which is why we continuously invest in ourselves to learn and grow and we never take on tasks that we don't have the skills and resources to complete.

We agree demonstrate professional comptence and integrity by:

• Only agreeing to take on work, or provide a service that is within our professional competence.
• NOT claiming any level of competence that we do not possess.
• Developing our professional knowledge, skills, and competence on a continuing basis, maintaining awareness of technological developments, procedures, and standards that are relevant to our field.
• Ensuring we have the knowledge and understanding of legislation and that protects our compliance with such legislation in carrying out our professional responsibilities.
• Respecting and valuing alternative viewpoints while seeking, accepting and offering honest criticisms of work in an evidence-based manner.
• Avoiding any harm caused to other people, their property, reputation, or employment by false or malicious or negligent action or inaction.
• Rejecting and not offering any bribes or unethical inducement in the course of business.

Respect individuals and the organisations we work for

We work with due care and diligence, acting in the mutual benefit of our client and our company at all times. We take personal and collective responsibility for our actions while maintaining discretion and ethical standards.

We agree to our duties to our relevant authority by:

• Performing our professional responsibilities with due care and diligence in accordance with the relevant authority's requirements while exercising your professional judgement at all times.
• Seeking to avoid any situation that may give rise to a conflict of interest between ourselves and our relevant authority.
• Accepting professional responsibility and accountability for our work and for the work of our colleagues who are defined in a given context as working within our team and under our supervision.
• NOT disclosing or authorising the disclosure, or use of confidential information for personal gain or to benefit a third party, except with the written permission of our relevant authority, or as required by legislation.
• NOT misrepresenting, withholding, or ommitting evidence on the performance of products, systems or services, or take advantage of the lack of relevant knowledge or inexperience of others (unless lawfully bound by a duty of confidentiality and national security not to disclose such information).

Be authentic, make evidence-based decisions, and collaborate to innovate

As employees of Authentic Evidence Limited, we are ambassadors for our company and the engineering and communications industries. We use our voice and skills to help improve and promote innovations that drive progress towards our sustainability goals. We support our clients, colleagues and the people who depend on us to achieve their sustainability goals both personally and within an enterprise.

We agree to our duties to our profession by:

• Accepting our personal duty to uphold the reputation of the engineering and communications profession and not take any action which could bring the profession into disrepute.
• Seeking to improve professional standards through participation in the design, development, and adherance of better standards.
• Upholding the reputation and good standing of Authentic Evidence and the professional authorities that issue our professional accreditations.
• Acting with integrity and respect in our professional relationships with all members of the company and other professions with whom we work in a professional capacity.
• Encouraging and supporting fellow colleagues and clients in their professional development.