FDP
Fair Deal Policy (FDP)
A fairness covenant for collaboration in real economies.
Most collaboration does not fail because of bad intent. It fails because expectations are unclear, power is asymmetric, and fairness is assumed rather than agreed. FDP exists to change that.
Start here
FDP is intentionally simple. The fastest way to use it is to reference FDP early, then capture expectations in a short Fair Deal Memo.
Use FDP anywhere
Fair Deal Policy is designed to be portable: a small fairness covenant you can carry into different platforms, organizations, and contexts—without permission, enforcement, or central control.
- Open Collective: paste the FDP alignment clause into your Collective’s About section and link the memo.
- LinkedIn: reference FDP on your Company Page and in collaboration announcements; share learnings publicly.
- Deals & projects: use the Fair Deal Memo to make expectations explicit before work begins.
- Teams: use FDP as lightweight collaboration hygiene for partnerships and cross‑functional work.
We don’t track usage. The learning comes from patterns that people voluntarily share—especially where FDP helps, fails, or is missing.
What the Fair Deal Policy is
The Fair Deal Policy (FDP) is a shared covenant that defines baseline expectations for fair, transparent, and reciprocal collaboration between people and organizations.
FDP is designed to work across sectors, platforms, and jurisdictions. It is a structural layer that improves collaboration before legal or institutional mechanisms are needed.
What FDP is not
- Not a legal contract
- Not a certification or badge
- Not a compliance framework
- Not a moral ranking system
- Not a substitute for law
FDP is intentionally non-legal in nature. It does not create enforceable obligations by itself.
Core principles
Collaboration aligned with FDP is expected to respect these principles.
1) Reciprocity
Value exchange should be mutual and proportionate. Asymmetry may exist—but it must be acknowledged and agreed.
2) Transparency
Expectations must be explicit before collaboration begins: intent, constraints, contributions, decision authority, and exit conditions.
3) Proportionality
Influence, reward, and responsibility should scale with contribution and risk. Power differences are named and managed.
4) Purpose integrity
Collaboration must not defeat or hollow out the purpose of any participating party. Selective collaboration is legitimate when exercised in good faith.
5) Human dignity
Ideas may be challenged rigorously. People are never dehumanized. No deal justifies violating this boundary.
6) Fair exit
Every collaboration should allow for non-punitive, non-exploitative exit. Exits minimize harm and preserve future cooperation where possible.
Progressive adoption
FDP alignment is not binary. You can adopt it progressively—from awareness to transactional use to operational integration.
Use FDP in real work
FDP works best before commitments are locked in. Start by referencing FDP early, then capture expectations in a short memo.
Quick actions
FDP-aligned: I collaborate under Fair Deal Policy principles—reciprocity, transparency, proportionality, purpose integrity, human dignity, fair exit.We propose collaborating under the Fair Deal Policy (FDP): reciprocity, transparency, proportionality, purpose integrity, human dignity, and fair exit.Learning from real experience
FDP encourages participants to share patterns and blockers encountered in collaboration—transforming isolated experience into collective intelligence.