Intellectual Property Disclosure
This one-page guide helps employees spot work that may need intellectual property review, prepare a useful disclosure, and send it through an approved confidential route before sharing it externally.
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Rolled out to every employee at AutoZone (125,000), PetSmart (50,000+), A.S. Watson and Raley's (20,000) — and at larger retailers we are not permitted to name.
Built for: Software and technology · Manufacturing and engineering · Professional services
Overview
The Intellectual Property Disclosure page is a practical guide for employees who have created work that may be new, reusable, or headed for an external audience. It opens with a clear prompt to contact the IP team before sharing, then separates possible inventions and original creative work from third-party software dependency questions. The page explains when to ask, how to summarize the work, which contributors and outside inputs to identify, and what sharing plans or agreements to mention.
Its preparation checklist groups the requested details into the work itself, people and inputs, and plans and constraints. A fictional Northstar Works example walks through a reusable method with a scheduled industry demo, including a contractor, open-source components, and an existing partner agreement. The example also clarifies that the page does not decide ownership or protection. A form embed section and contact cards point employees toward the intended intake and specialist routes, subject to configuring the organization’s actual confidential form and contacts.
Use this page as an employee-facing reference when a team is considering a demo, publication, customer preview, release commitment, or broader reuse of original work. It is not a substitute for legal advice, an approved IP policy, or the separate open-source approval process. It is also not necessary to turn every routine internal document into a disclosure; the guide says to ask when uncertain, while leaving the decision to the appropriate team. Before publishing, confirm the intake route, policy language, and local guidance, and make clear what happens if work has already been shared.
Standards & compliance context
- Treat this page as general internal guidance, not a determination of ownership, legal protection, or a substitute for the organization’s approved policy.
- Preserve the source’s qualification that jurisdiction- or role-specific questions should go to the IP team and follow approved local guidance.
- Use the organization’s approved confidential intake route for sensitive details; do not imply that an unconfigured form embed is secure or operational.
- Keep third-party software dependency approval separate, following the organization’s open-source process rather than treating this disclosure guide as authorization.
- Use accessible headings, descriptive image text, readable contrast, and an understandable form path in line with WCAG 2.1 AA.
General regulatory context for orientation only — verify current requirements with counsel or the relevant agency before relying on this template for compliance.
What's inside this template
Contact the IP team before you share new work
Use this opening to recognize the purpose of the guide and the need to follow your organization’s approved policy.
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If something you made may be new, may be reused by others, or is headed for an external audience, ask the IP team early. This page shows when to ask, what to bring and where to send the details. The examples use Northstar Works, a fictional organization. Your organization's approved policy decides what applies to your work.
Which route fits your question?
These examples distinguish original work that may need IP review from third-party software questions handled through a separate process.
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Pick the closest match. If none fits, asking the IP team is still reasonable. New method, feature or reusable tool Ask for review when your team has built something that works differently from what existed before, or that others could reuse. A new technical method, workflow or algorithm A product feature or internal tool other teams may adopt A prototype you plan to demonstrate or pilot outside your team Creative or written work Ask about ownership and permissions when you have produced content that may be reused, published or shared outside the organization. Training material, documentation, designs or templates Work made with a contractor, partner or another organization's input Work you want to publish or present under your own name Third-party software dependencies Using someone else's open-source code is a separate question with its own approval process. This page covers what you create, not what you borrow. Adding a library or package to a project Checking licence terms for code you did not write Use your organization's open-source process for these requests
When to ask and how to get ready
Follow these actions to raise the question before sharing and give the IP team useful context.
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Early questions are easier to answer than late ones. Five steps, in order. Raise the question before anything goes public Contact the IP team before a conference demo, publication, customer preview or release commitment, where practical. Sharing first can limit your options. Summarize the work in plain language Write two or three sentences on what it is, what problem it addresses and how it differs from what you did before. Say whether it is an idea, a prototype or already in use. List the contributors and inputs Name everyone who helped, including contractors and other teams. Note any outside tools, data or materials you built on. Note your sharing plans and any agreements Give the date and audience for any planned demo, paper or customer conversation. Mention customer, partner, university or grant agreements that may apply. Send the details confidentially Use your organization’s approved confidential intake route. If the route is unclear, ask the IP Intake Team before sending sensitive material. For jurisdiction- or role-specific questions, ask the IP team and follow your approved local guidance.
Information to prepare
Use this checklist to gather the work, contributor, input, agreement, and timing details before submitting.
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A short, complete summary saves a round of follow-up questions. The work What it is, in two or three plain sentences The problem it solves and what is different from before Its stage: idea, prototype, in pilot or in use The team and project it belongs to People and inputs Every contributor, including contractors and other teams Third-party tools, datasets or materials you built on Where and when the work was developed Any earlier description of the work outside the team Plans and constraints Date, place and audience of any planned demo or publication Customer, partner, university or grant agreements involved Who needs an answer, and by when Anything you have already shared externally
Worked example: a demo with a date
The fictional scenario shows how a team can prepare an early request without treating the page as a decision about ownership or protection.
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A fictional case at Northstar Works A Northstar Works product team has built a reusable method that cuts duplicate data entry between two internal systems. They plan to show it at an industry event in six weeks. What the creator does Contacts the IP team before the demo, not the week of it. Summarizes the method and the problem it addresses in a few sentences. Lists the four contributors, including one contractor, and the open-source components used. Gives the planned demo date and notes that a partner agreement was signed last year. Asks one question: "What review is appropriate before we present?" What this page does not decide The IP team reviews the request and explains next steps. Whether the work belongs to the organization, or whether any protection applies, is not settled here. A contrasting case Another employee drafts a routine internal status document. It is not new and not meant for reuse, so there is probably nothing to disclose. If you are unsure, asking is still reasonable. A short question costs less than a late one.
Send your disclosure through the confidential form
Use this section only after the organization’s approved confidential intake form has been connected and verified.
Who to ask
These role-based contacts separate the initial IP question, open-source review, and policy guidance.
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First contact for questions about possible inventions, reusable work and ownership context IP Intake Team Legal and Compliance Separate process for approving third-party software dependencies Open-Source Review Team Engineering Governance Questions about policy wording, jurisdiction-specific guidance and this page Legal and Compliance Policy Owner
How to use this template
- Confirm the organization’s approved IP policy, confidential intake route, open-source review path, and named team contacts with their owners.
- Configure the form embed using the site’s supported setup process, verify where submissions go, and provide a clear fallback if the form is not available.
- Replace the fictional example and contact details with approved organizational information while preserving the distinction between original work review and third-party software review.
- Ask the employee or project lead to summarize the work, its stage, contributors, outside inputs, development context, agreements, and planned or completed external sharing.
- Have the employee send the information through the approved confidential route before a planned demo, publication, preview, or release commitment where practical.
- Review the page when the intake process, policy, team ownership, or local guidance changes, and update the instructions and example accordingly.
Best practices
- Keep the organization’s actual confidential intake route prominent and verify it before publishing the form section.
- Preserve the example’s distinction between original work disclosure and the separate open-source dependency process.
- Ask employees to describe what is different from prior work and label the stage as idea, prototype, pilot, or in use.
- Tell employees to include every contributor, including contractors and people from other teams, rather than only the project lead.
- Capture planned audience and date as well as any earlier external sharing so the IP team can understand timing.
- Do not present the fictional Northstar Works scenario as an actual case, legal conclusion, or guaranteed outcome.
- Keep the steps and checklist scannable, and use descriptive headings and accessible text for the page’s image and form instructions.
- Name a role or team responsible for checking the page when the approved intake process or policy changes.
What this template typically catches
Issues teams running this template most often surface in practice:
Common use cases
Frequently asked questions
What kinds of work should I raise with the IP team?
The guide points to new methods, features, workflows, algorithms, reusable tools, prototypes, training materials, designs, documentation, and templates. It is especially relevant when work may be reused, published, demonstrated, or shared outside your team. The examples help you decide when to ask, but your organization’s approved policy determines what applies.
When should I send a disclosure?
Contact the IP team before a conference demo, publication, customer preview, or release commitment where practical. Include the planned date, audience, and anything already shared externally. If a deadline is close or you have already disclosed the work, describe that plainly and ask the IP team what to do next.
Who should prepare and submit the request?
The employee or team closest to the work can prepare the plain-language summary and gather contributor, input, and sharing details. Include contractors and contributors from other teams rather than listing only the lead author. Send it using your organization’s approved confidential intake route; if you cannot identify that route, ask the IP Intake Team before sending sensitive material.
Does this page determine who owns the work or whether it can be protected?
No. The page helps you raise a question and supply relevant context; it does not decide ownership, patentability, copyright status, or other legal outcomes. The IP team reviews the request and explains next steps. Follow your organization’s approved policy and local guidance for decisions.
Is this the right route for open-source software or other third-party material?
The page distinguishes work you create from software and materials you borrow. It directs third-party software dependency questions to the organization’s separate open-source process. Note outside tools, datasets, or materials in your disclosure when they are relevant to your work, but do not treat this page as approval to use them.
What information should I include to avoid follow-up questions?
Describe what the work is, the problem it addresses, what is different, and whether it is an idea, prototype, pilot, or already in use. List contributors, contractors, outside inputs, where and when it was developed, and any earlier external description. Add planned sharing details, relevant customer or partner agreements, and who needs an answer by when.
How do we customize this template for our organization?
Replace the fictional Northstar Works scenario with a clearly labeled example that matches your organization’s work, while keeping it illustrative rather than presenting it as a legal decision. Confirm the approved confidential form or intake route, team names, policy wording, and escalation guidance with the relevant owners before publishing. Keep the open-source route distinct if your organization uses a separate review process.
What setup is needed for the confidential form section?
The page includes a form embed section, but the supplied template does not specify a connected form or its fields. Before rollout, configure the embed through your site’s supported setup process and confirm that it routes submissions to the approved confidential intake destination. If the form is unavailable or its confidentiality is unclear, direct employees to ask the IP Intake Team before sending sensitive details.
How is this better than an ad-hoc email or waiting until a demo is imminent?
The checklist prompts employees to include contributors, inputs, agreements, stage, and sharing plans in one request, reducing avoidable gaps in an initial inquiry. The worked example shows why to raise a question before a scheduled external demo rather than at the last minute. It does not replace the organization’s formal intake process or the IP team’s review.
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Rolled out to every employee at AutoZone (125,000), PetSmart (50,000+), A.S. Watson and Raley's (20,000) — and at larger retailers we are not permitted to name.
