Re: Denver Contracting

[written_by -at- juno -dot- com]

> If an employer hires you to do a job, they don't want you cutting 
> corners on
> your full-time job so you can build your own empire on the side. 
> Seen it done
> lots of times. Its lame. 
Hi... Bob the new guy here.

I have had this discussion with my supervisors and managers and it was a
very complicated and painful discussion. What I was told went against
what was covered in our employee handbook. I maintained that the opinion
of a part time supervisor mattered very little, because they can't make a
rule on the fly that negates a rule in the corporate handbook. There was
a section in the handbook specifically devoted to how important the
handbook is, and why the rules must be followed. Changing rules was a
complicated process. 

The handbook clearly said that an employee could freelance, if he or she
did not reveal proprietary information. They were also allowed to take a
PT job in the same industry, building the same general types of products,
if proprietary information was not disclosed. The problem was that much
of what we did and how we did it was proprietary. We did some things with
Surface Mount Components that put us way ahead of the game. The average
employee is unaware that what we did was often proprietary, and if they
discussed our methods, they could cause us problems.

The supervisor said no freelancing and outside jobs were discouraged. He
had a part time job, so what right did he have to make rules? Palm
Computing's lawyer did not allow us to write about the Palm Pilot, even
after the product was released. Palm told me that I needed to follow the
rules in their employee handbook, and I disagreed. I do not work for
Palm. 

Donna Dubinsky told me flat out that if I wanted to write a book about
the Palm Pilot, fine, but she did express concerns over what information
I might inadvertently release. She asked that anything I wrote be run
past her if I thought it might be a problem. I mentioned the prior
communication from Palm, and she thought it was ridiculous. 

Since they were our largest customer (we built every palm unit sold in
the United States), they had a certain amount of influence. My decisions
came from the top rung of the Palm Computing ladder and our employee
handbook, so I felt no need to ask a supervisor for permission.

Some employers have legitimate concerns. I know many people who took on
other jobs, and most of them were useless to us because they were always
tired. I am betting that some writers use their time at work writing or
searching for clients, so I do see the concerns. 

Bob

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