Introduction 

Our code of ethics provides ethical and responsible guidelines that we use to run our company and guide our work with clients, community, our team, and other stakeholders.

If you are a potential client or potential employee researching our agency, this information might also help you better understand what working with or for 10 Degrees is like. 

We have pulled inspiration from organisations we admire and respect to create this code of ethics:

• The Sustainable Web Manifesto
• The Open Source Way
• The UN Global Compact’s Ten Principles
• The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

How we use business for good

10 Degrees is committed to using our business as a force for good. Our FuturePlus assessment is an objective, third-party toolkit that ensures our company meets the highest verified standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.

Corporate digital responsibility

As a digital organisation, we understand that 10 Degrees is in a unique position to influence how technology and design can be used for good. By adhering to emergent corporate digital responsibility principles, we can positively impact society and the planet in ways that are unique to our industry and business model.

Corporate governance

Ethical corporate governance practices are the cornerstone of our company’s commitment to using business for good. To honour this commitment, 10 Degrees will:

• Use our skills to benefit society and human well-being: we acknowledge that all people are stakeholders in technology
• Pursue returns for all stakeholders, not just shareholders: we will create multiple forms of value and share this value with our networks
• Support open source, peer-to-peer knowledge commons in our work
• Support regenerative and distributive design in our operations and in our work
• Avoid harm and negative consequences in our work, including unjust physical or mental injury, destruction or disclosure of information, or damage to property, reputation, and the environment
• Be honest, trustworthy, and transparent as well as fair and actionable
• Respect the work required to produce new ideas and give credit where it is due
• Respect privacy and honour confidentiality for all stakeholders
• Strive for the highest quality in everything we do
• Maintain high standards of professional competence, conduct, and ethical practice
• Prioritise collaboration: utilise peer and stakeholder review in our work, processes, and internal practices
• Embrace principles of continuous learning, organisational agility, and design thinking
• Evaluate systems and their impacts for potential risks
• Articulate, encourage acceptance of, and evaluate fulfillment of environmental and social responsibilities by all team members

Environment

Without a healthy environment, it is impossible to create a just society or shared prosperity for members of that society. Everyone has a responsibility to care for and nurture the planet we call home. This is not a responsibility we take lightly. To honour our ecological commitment, 10 Degrees will:

• Apply sustainability principles to our work
• Strive for net-zero emissions in our company operations
• Power our products and services with renewable energy whenever possible
• Maintain a healthy work environment with ecological features, such as composting and living plant walls
• Consider the systems-level implications of our work and, when possible, design ecologically-friendly solutions that include the planet as a stakeholder
• Promote positive systems change when possible
• Grow at an intentional pace: life creates conditions conducive to life
• When possible, apply regenerative and circular economy principles to our work: restore ecosystems rather than simply “do less harm”

Clients

We greatly value our client relationships. Our clients are, after all, the reason we exist. We commit to working with clients who share our values. We seek out projects that improve social and environmental standards, enhance quality of life, and actively contribute to a better future. We screen prospective clients on a case-by-case basis.

Here is how we incorporate clear ethics into our client relationships:

Privacy and security

To honour stakeholder privacy and the security of systems we design and build, 10 Degrees will:

• Respect the privacy of client and user data by adhering to guidelines set forth by GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and others.
• Maintain a baseline hardening against security attacks by identifying potential risks, keeping software up-to-date, and alerting clients whenever we discover a known threat.
• Access private computing and communication resources only when authorised or compelled by the public good.

Collaboration and transparency

To maintain great client relationships that are mutually beneficial and based on trust and transparency, 10 Degrees will:

• Prioritise honesty and transparency in all communications
• Value collaboration and co-creation to more efficiently execute projects
• Include clients and end users in our discovery, design, and testing processes
• Measure success and value: quantifiable solutions are easy to understand. We strive to create value across the spectrum.

Systems design and risk

As a small company, we understand that some systems are outside our control. For those where we have agency, we commit to several important systems design practices to maintain adaptability:

• Continually assess risk and evaluate resilience in the face of ongoing disruption
• Support bottom-up, open source, peer-to-peer knowledge commons
• Include diverse stakeholders in our process to be certain we are designing the most inclusive and accessible systems, products, and services possible
• Release early and often, prototyping with real users whenever possible
• Use care when modifying or retiring systems; better yet, plan for end-of-life from the beginning

Team ethics

Our small team is 10 Degrees’ most valuable asset. Without them, we would cease to exist. We strive to foster an inclusive environment where people can bring their whole selves to work. To prioritise team needs, we commit to the following practices:

JEDI Principles

Justice, equity, diversity, inclusion. We commit to incorporating these principles into all our work.

• We are an anti-racist organisation. We also acknowledge that there is much work to do in this area.
• We will not tolerate discrimination in any form.
• We will support civil rights and JEDI-forward legislation and, when company resources allow, actively campaign against violations of these rights.
• Our shared values will guide decision-making and stakeholder goals supersede individual interests and agendas.

Quality of life

Quality-of-life is paramount to maintaining a productive, healthy environment and delivering high-quality work. We commit to:

• Create ongoing opportunities for learning and professional growth
• Pay everyone on our team a living wage and minimise the difference between lowest and highest paid employees
• Offer schedule flexibility and other practices to nurture wellbeing
• Support team interests outside of the workplace inasmuch as company resources will allow

Community

We also acknowledge that in the age of the internet we are part of a global community which offers unique opportunities beyond the geographical constraints of where we operate. 10 Degrees commits to ethical stakeholder community-building in the following ways:

• Foster education and public awareness of technology, design, digital marketing, sustainable business practices, and their potential consequences (unintended or otherwise)
• Provide equitable educational benefits through events, content, and learning initiatives.
• Respect the privacy and confidentiality of community members.
• Consider marginalised voices in our work and communications.

Ethical marketing and advertising

Honesty is our guide in all sales, marketing, and advertising. We will make only complete, factual, and truthful statements about our company and its services. We will also work with our clients to ensure information integrity in the communications and technology which we create on their behalf.

All advertising and marketing claims must be substantiated and must include all information and disclosures necessary to make them accurate and complete.

• We must take care to ensure all disclosures are written in a manner that is easily understood by the intended audience. 
• We must never make disparaging remarks about our competitors or make unfair comparisons between a competitor’s services and our own. 
• With new laws and regulations, as well as increased political and media focus, it is critical to know the latest requirements on disclosures, privacy, and other legal constraints in this area. 

Grounding evolving work in a clear, ethical foundation

10 Degrees exists in an always evolving industry amidst a constantly shifting cultural and technological landscape. We are an intentionally small agency, committing to growth only when it makes sense for most stakeholders. As such, we can only do what our resources allow while also meeting financial and impact-related goals. 

Grounding everything we do in strong ethical principles helps us navigate uncertainty and chart a clear course through disruption.

We welcome feedback or suggestions to improve our Code of Ethics. Please share your thoughts via [email protected].