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Ethics Statement

Ethics do not define what to do, or how to do it. They define who you are. Consistent with our commitment to reliability, professionalism, transparency and quality service, The Alder Group adheres to a strict code of ethical conduct. As individuals and as a private sector consulting firm, the following ethical vision has guided our work since our establishment in 1998:

	Above all, we believe in honesty, responsibility and integrity.
	We will work only with organizations that are ethical, honest and have the best interests of individuals and communities in mind.
	We protect people's right to privacy and confidentiality with respect to information sought or received and resources consulted, borrowed, acquired or transmitted.
	We recognize and respect intellectual property rights.
	We treat people with respect, fairness and good faith, and advocate conditions of support that safeguard the rights and welfare of all.
	We do not advance personal interests at the expense of clients, colleagues, partners or contractors.
	We distinguish between our personal convictions and professional duties and do not allow our personal beliefs to interfere with our consulting work.
	We strive for excellence in the profession by maintaining and enhancing our own knowledge and skills.

Respecting confidentiality and information security is central to all of The Alder Group’s work. The highest level of professional and personal ethical conduct is promoted in all our consulting assignments.

The Alder Group is not officially affiliated with a university, college or other research institution and therefore does not have access to such an institution’s Research Ethics Board (REB). There has been considerable debate as to whether or not evaluation requires review by a REB. The Tri-Council Policy Statement regarding ethics and research notes that a “REB should adopt a proportionate approach based on the general principle that the more invasive the research, the greater should be the care in assessing the research.” The range of program evaluations carried out by The Alder Group tend to be minimally invasive and the Tri-Council Policy specifically states that “quality assurance studies, performance reviews or testing within normal educational requirements” do not require REB review.

The Alder Group confirms its commitment to high standards of ethical integrity in our evaluation work. As a corporation, we accept the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans and abide by the Guidelines for Ethical Conduct developed by the Canadian Evaluation Society. In short, in our work we will be guided by the principle that the interests of the participants in a research or evaluation study should not be compromised by their participation (or non-participation). Any risks to the participants can be justified only when participants are fully informed, competent to make a decision to participate and free from coercion in the decision-making process.

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