Guiding Principle and Responsibilities

The guiding principle of the ASTD Benchmarking Forum is the open and equal exchange of information regarding the training, learning, and performance improvement practices and processes of members. To ensure the professionalism and effectiveness of the Forum, all members agree to abide by the following ethical principles for participation.

Representation

ASTD Benchmarking Forum members will provide appropriate senior staff leadership to attend meetings and speak on behalf of their organizations, allocate sufficient staff time to collect benchmarking information, and apply the necessary expertise to ensure the validity of information provided to the ASTD Benchmarking Forum.

Representatives may not miss attending one of the meetings in two consecutive time periods--Spring or Fall. Changes in representation should be made in consultation with the ASTD Benchmarking Forum’s staff.

Information Exchange and Committment

All ASTD Benchmarking Forum members must be willing to share the same type and level of information. The sharing of information takes many different forms:

Members are required to provide at least one set of data to the ASTD Benchmarking Forum each year. This information must be returned in a complete, accurate, and timely manner. Failure to provide data in any one year may result in the suspension of member benefits for the remainder of that membership year. Failure to provide data in any second year may result in termination of membership. ASTD reserves the right to regulate an individual organization's access to Forum-wide data based on the member's willingness, effort, and ability to contribute data. Members present in general sessions and/or facilitate small group discussions at ASTD Benchmarking Forum meetings.  Members submit questions for, and respond to, surveys or other requests for information through the ASTD Benchmarking Forum.

Confidentiality

All information specific to member organizations collected by the ASTD Benchmarking Forum is considered strictly confidential and may not be communicated outside the Benchmarking Forum without the prior consent of the member that provided the information.

ASTD Benchmarking Forum member-specific data is strictly used to benefit Forum members. Member-specific data may be freely shared with all internal training departments and staff, but may not be communicated to clients, customers, business partners, or any other consortia of individuals or organizations.   It is the responsibility of the representatives to the ASTD Benchmarking Forum to control access to the member-specific information and ensure that individuals using the information within their organizations understand and abide by the Forum's principle of confidentiality. All requests for information received by ASTD from employees of member organizations other than the designated Forum representatives will be directed to those representatives. While the names of the ASTD Benchmarking Forum’s member organizations are public information, the names and contact information of representatives are strictly confidential. Names, titles, and contact information of representatives may not be shared without the prior consent of the individual.  In the event that an organization terminates its membership in the ASTD Benchmarking Forum, they will agree to protect the confidentiality of all Forum information.

Member Status

Membership responsibilities continue throughout an organization’s tenure in the ASTD Benchmarking Forum. Members' adherence to Forum ethics and responsibilities will be reviewed by the Advisory Group approximately once every two years. If compliance is deemed inadequate, the Advisory Group may choose to place a member on probation for a one-year period prior to revoking their membership. Advisory Group members will be reviewed by ASTD Benchmarking Forum staff.