Programmer Musings

The IP Goose

One of the problems with being a software developer these days is company Intellectual Property agreements. I understand that companies want to protect the time, money, and expertise that they have invested. But some of the agreements I have seen go way past reasonable concern. Some IP agreements take the position that any programming a developer does should belong to the company. This includes software that was developed off company premises, without company resources, and in fields that have nothing to do with the company's business. On the face of it, this seems a bit overboard.

Just to be clear, I do not suggest that companies give up all IP agreements. A company needs to be able to protect the work that they have commissioned. They also need some form of protection against an unscrupulous individual taking their proprietary knowledge and going out to compete with them. On the other hand, taking too hard-line a stance can have consequences. I'd just like to suggest that companies consider the tradeoffs involved.

Consequences

So what are some of the consequences of a too-strict IP policy? The simple answer is that these agreements discourage programmers from programming in their free time. These kinds of agreements also make it impossible for a programmer to work on any open source projects. These projects normally require that any code a programmer submits to the project be unencumbered by any IP agreement. If everything a programmer touches belongs to the company, the programmer cannot work on open source projects.

Many management or legal types might take the position that protecting company assets is more important than a programmer's ability to program in his or her free time. Unfortunately, this is a very short-sighted view. This viewpoint ignores some important facts.

• Programmers improve through practice.
• Open source projects are a great way to improve skills.
• Many programmers have (programming) interests outside of work.

Practice

Although many non-programmers don't realize this, a programmer requires specialized knowledge and skills to program well. These skills can only be improved through practice. Some people are born with more inherent programming aptitude than others, but all programmers need practice to enhance and maintain their skills. Really good programmers often find themselves writing code even when they don't have to. Interestingly, it seems to be less important what you are working on, than that you are continuing to use those skills.

Programming on different projects, with different groups of people is a great way to extend the programmer's skills and knowledge. Different experiences tend to make the programmer more flexible in his approaches and more aware of best practices. Open source projects are a great way to see how other people develop software and to be exposed to other methodologies and approaches. The more experience a programmer develops, the better his or her skill set.

Projects

One thing that would probably amaze the legal and management types that craft those IP agreements is that many of their programmers will tend to work on completely different kinds of programming outside of work. This makes it less likely that the software the programmer develops will have any relation to the company's business. There are some exceptions to this, but many of us program differently for fun than we do for work.

Although some programmers will work on work-related code in their free time, the work generated could be protected by much more restricted agreements than many companies generally use. Moreover, in many cases the programmer in question intends to provide the completed product to his employer anyway, but needs to work on it outside work hours for political, personal, or (in rare cases) technical reasons.

Word of Mouth

One important point that many companies forget is that programmers do discuss work environments with each other. Any company that employs tactics that make our work less fun or interesting will find that the word will get out, making it more difficult to find and hire the best. Conversely, a company that recognizes the tradeoffs involved in the IP agreement may find word of mouth makes it easier for them to hire better programmers.

The Goose

I remember a fairy tale from when I was young about a goose that laid golden eggs. It sometimes seems that many people have never heard this story. One version of the story can be found here. The important part of the story is that the farmer lost the steady flow of gold eggs by trying to get everything at once. In a way, this is similar to the strict IP policy. By trying to capture all of the output of each programmer, the policies may prevent a steady stream of innovations that come from better skills and wider knowledge.

Some very big companies have begun to realize the benefit of this approach. In recent years, IBM has been providing support, cash, and personnel to open source projects. This has allowed them to reinvent the company and has helped to make IBM a place where good programmers would want to work. I don't know what their IP agreement looks like, but I would guess that they have put more thought into it than many companies.