Code of Ethics and Conduct
ICA will prosper with the practice of good business ethics by it’s members.
Creed
- We believe in treating others as we would like to be treated.
- We believe in dealing honestly and fairly with each other, clients, providers of service, employees or employers past and present, and with the general public.
- We recognize the right of those with whom we deal to make a profit.
- We believe that business profitability is not only a right, but an obligation in order to preserve the continuity of our business and the quality of our product and service.
- We believe that we have the responsibility constantly to strive to improve our product and service to make the best value possible.
- We believe that the best interest of all are served when we pay fair wages and provide steady employment, education, and career opportunities for our employees.
- We believe in a policy of proper conduct with courtesy to all individuals with whom we deal, and in prompt and undisputedly excellent service to all of our customers and business associates.
- We expect all ICA members to represent their companies and their products and services honestly and proudly.
- We believe in and encourage membership networking. ICA members are encouraged to give first right of refusal on equal terms of service, rates, and conditions to their ICA colleagues.
Principals of Professionalism
International Caterer’s Association (ICA) Principals of Professionalism believes that the behavior of its members impacts their perceived character. Proper professional behavior is essential to instilling public confidence, engaging in fair professional relationships with catering industry colleagues.
As members of International Caterers Association, we are responsible for ensuring public regard. Our conduct directly impacts this result.
Maintaining Professional Integrity:
- Honestly represent and act within one’s areas of professional competency.
- Avoid actions which are or could be perceived as a conflict of interest.
Utilizing Professional Business Practices:
- Honor written and oral contracts, striving for clarity and mutual understanding communication, while respecting legal and contractual rights of others.
- Ensure rights to privacy and protect confidentiality of privileged information
- Refrain from misusing solicited information, proposals or concepts.
- Actively pursue educational growth through training, sharing of knowledge – industry.
Respecting Diversity
- Embrace and foster and inclusive business climate of respect for all people’s marital status, age sexual orientation, physical or mental impairment.
Code of Ethics
- Applicants for ICA membership recognize the role of ICA in providing a platform for professionalism, quality, education and business opportunities, and accept personally and within the scope of their authority, on behalf of their companies the responsibility to abide by and follow ICA’S policies and Code of Ethics.
- Applicants for membership shall not misrepresent their qualifications and experience within the industry.
- A member shall support the purpose and goals of the ICA.
- No member shall solicit a proposal or seek terms, conditions, format, or ideas from another with the intent of taking unfair advantage of the information which may be obtained as a result of solicitation or with deliberate intent of using that information to manage his/her own program without services of that company.
- No member shall take confidential information or creative ideas of his/her competition and/or current or former employers and present them to customers as his/her own exclusive creation.
- No member shall take confidential information or creative ideas and send them to competitors of the provider for any reason.
- No member shall knowingly make false or misleading statements:
- About Competitors
- To secure otherwise confidential information
- About the member’s expertise or ability successfully and professionally to meet a potential client’s needs.
- No member shall solicit a proposal from a supplier without intent fairly to consider the proposal.
- No member shall purposely misinform or mislead by act or omission, a client as to why a proposal was rejected or why another proposal was accepted.
- Unless privileged relations or agreements already exist, suppliers asked to quote on the same business by different customers shall treat all customers equally, with confidentiality, offering the same conditions and giving them the opportunity to compete on equal terms.
- Members must protect the confidentiality of all business arrangements and not knowingly reveal details of such agreements.
- A member shall honor signed contracts in spirit as well as in intent and will make every effort to honor all commitments, both written and verbal, as may legally be required.
- A member intending to leave his/her employer and work for another firm to establish his/her own company shall abstain from soliciting future business for himself/herself or another company, and shall not displace any confirmed business or take advantage of confidential information as long as he/she is under contract to the last employer.
- A member shall deal honestly and fairly with all members and business associates.
- Membership in ICA implies that members have read the Code of Ethics and that they fully agree to apply it, conducting business accordingly. Breach of any of the above articles may result in disciplinary action including expulsion from ICA.