Greatness is a decision. It must be chosen. And making that choice is a defining moment.

Being Axelerant reflects why we’re part of Axelerant, what we aim to achieve together, and the shared boundaries and expectations that guide us in acting in Axelerant’s best interest.

Our purpose, mission, values, and principles are the foundation for how we make decisions and show up each day. These are the essential standards we strive to uphold—working in ways that are accountable, capable, coachable, and collaborative.

Being Axelerant replaces the need for a separate code of conduct or mutual work agreement, helping to keep our approach unified and free of ambiguity. We understand that perspectives may differ, and transitions are a natural part of any journey. We’re grateful for every contribution made along the way to help Axelerant thrive—for our peers, clients, families, and communities.

At the heart of it all is a commitment to a respectful, inclusive, and equitable workplace where everyone can grow and succeed

Table of Contents

Our Purpose

The top reason why we’re here.

We believe that when people are empowered by artificial intelligence, they can unlock extraordinary value for our customers and help shape a better future for all.

Our Mission

The topmost outcomes we’re working together towards.

We accelerate digital outcomes and scale with our customers as their partners of record.

Learn more about being a partner of record.

Our Mission Slogan

Digital Outcomes, Accelerated.

Our Values

At Axelerant, our values represent the principles and behaviors that guide how we work, collaborate, and grow together. These values influence not only our individual actions but also how we support one another as a team.

We share the intent and context behind these values to ensure that every team member—regardless of role, background, or identity—can understand and embrace our shared expectations. These values form the foundation of how we stay accountable, learn continuously, and contribute meaningfully to a respectful and inclusive workplace.

Excellence

Excellence is a consistently superior standard of quality or performance that stands out from the norm and is recognized as outstanding.

• Consistently — not a one-off, but repeatable.

• Superior standard — measurably above average, not just “good.”

• Quality or performance — excellence shows up both in what we produce and how we do it.

• Recognized — excellence is visible and acknowledged by others, not just self-declared.

In an AI-accelerated world where knowledge is widely accessible, excellence at Axelerant is no longer just about what you know — it’s about how you apply, adapt, and collaborate with tools, teams, and technologies to create meaningful value.

It reflects intentionality, discernment, and collective impact: amplifying human potential, not diminishing it; creating outcomes with integrity, not just outputs; and learning with humility, not chasing perfection.

Behaviors that Demonstrate Excellence

1. Deliver the Best Possible in Context

Aim for the highest achievable quality within constraints, focusing on what matters most.

• Use AI as a co-creator, not a replacement — add human context, ethical judgment, and critical review.

• Curate AI outputs for clarity, inclusivity, and sustainability.

• Adapt work for the audience — e.g., a project manager tailors an AI-generated status report differently for operations (governance and metrics) versus executives (business impact and risk mitigation).

Example: A project manager prepares an AI-generated project status report, but reviews and tweaks it to match the persona of the receiver and what they value the most. For example, if they are sending it to an operations person, they will share governance aspects & metrics of the project. If sharing it with an executive, they will share highlights, business impact, and any imminent risk mitigation plans.

2. Improve Relentlessly Through Data and Feedback

Pursue fast, informed iterations over delayed perfection.

• Use AI to uncover insights and patterns, then validate them with stakeholder context.

• Adapt plans quickly when feedback or constraints change—post a short ‘re-plan’ note that clarifies what shifts, why, and the impact. This ensures agility without confusion.

• Frame meaningful questions before automating or innovating.

• Embrace feedback loops and adjust with humility, favoring clarity over complexity.

Example:  A team requests automation or agentification of a task. The automation team first asks relevant questions to stakeholders, such as “how will automating this impact effort, experience and scalability?”. Using these answers and context, the automation team uses agents to automate said task.

3. Own Outcomes, No Excuses

Take responsibility for results and solutions — accountability cannot be outsourced to tools.

• Deliver work that reflects care, not just speed.

• Validate AI-generated contributions — e.g., code comments should be accurate, relevant, and helpful.

• Know when to pause, reflect, and make judgment calls; context and nuance cannot be automated.

Example: When using AI to build automation workflows, use proper variable names and prepare relevant diagrams or documentation to ensure relevant use cases, impact areas, and intended flow are well understood by others.

4. Master Your Craft

Continuous growth is part of the job.

• Treat AI as a catalyst for learning and experimentation.

• Stay curious about emerging tools and bridge them with domain expertise.

• Share learnings openly

Example:  Share your learnings and experience on channels such as guild-ai-coding-tooling-and-ideas. Read about new trends in your field of interest, try them out, and share what worked for you.

5. Create Value That Matters

Prioritize meaningful outcomes and impact over activity for its own sake.

• Consider downstream impacts on teams, customers, and communities.

• Integrate ethics, privacy, accessibility, and sustainability into every decision.

• Promote transparency and explainability 

Example: Use AI to generate code comments, but validate that they’re accurate, relevant, and helpful for the next person reading your code.

Missteps to Avoid While Demonstrating Excellence

Kindness

As technology accelerates and AI takes on more of our cognitive work, kindness keeps us rooted in what makes us irreplaceably human. It now means leading with empathy, acting with courage, and creating psychological safety, even as we engage with increasingly intelligent systems.

Kindness shows up in how we support others with presence and care, make space for diverse experiences, and hold one another accountable with compassion. While machines can predict and produce, human connection, healing, and growth depend on kindness.

Behaviors that Demonstrate Kindness

1. Courageous Empathy

• Go beyond politeness by listening to understand rather than merely responding.

• Approach emotionally complex topics with grace and honesty. AI cannot model human vulnerability.

Example:

During a tough conversation with a teammate, instead of jumping to solutions, ask: “How are you really feeling about this? What would support look like for you right now?”

2. Human-Centric Feedback

• Use AI insights to inform your perspective, but deliver feedback with presence and empathy—acknowledge the person, not just the performance.

• Practice “kind candor”: be honest and hopeful, clear and constructive.

• Invite feedback regularly on your own behavior and its impact.

Example:

When providing performance feedback, say: “Here’s something I noticed that might help you grow—and I want you to know I believe in your progress.”

3. Co-Elevation, Not Competition

• Focus on amplifying collective success rather than individual productivity.

• Sponsor others by highlighting their contributions, advocating for their growth, and investing in shared wins.

• Leverage AI to empower your teammates, not to outshine them.

Example:

Instead of showcasing only your own AI-enhanced work, highlight a teammate’s success in a team meeting and explain how their inputs strengthened the outcome.

4. Inclusive Action, Not Passive Agreement

• Kindness means standing up for fairness and equity, especially when it would be easier to remain silent.

• Actively include quiet voices, diverse perspectives, and underrepresented individuals.

• Adapt systems and processes so that kindness becomes embedded, not conditional.

Example:

Notice a teammate repeatedly being talked over? Pause the meeting to say: “I’d really like to hear Priya’s point—can we go back to her thought?”

5. Ownership with Integrity

• Take initiative with clarity and a strong sense of responsibility for others’ context.

• Communicate decisions transparently with humility and fairness.

• Acknowledge mistakes and take steps toward repair—not to appear perfect, but to be trustworthy.

Example:

After unintentionally leaving someone out of a decision, reach out directly: “I realize I missed including you in this, and I’m sorry. Here’s how I’ll make it right going forward.”

Collaboration through Kindness

In a distributed and digital work environment, kindness becomes evident in how we:

• Respond with patience, not just speed

• Stay accessible and present, even across time zones

• Design workflows that include everyone—caregivers, neurodivergent teammates, and others

• Foster psychological safety, allowing people to take emotional risks without fear

AI doesn’t build culture. We do.

Missteps to Avoid While Demonstrating Kindness

Openness

AI now automates communication, generates content, and synthesizes insights. In this environment, openness at Axelerant means upholding human clarity, intentional transparency, and collective trust.

This kind of openness goes beyond granting access to information. It’s about ensuring that people feel informed, included, and heard, even when working across asynchronous, AI-augmented workflows. The focus is not only on what we share, but how we share it. Context, emotional nuance, and ethical responsibility take priority.

Visibility is our default, enabling inclusive collaboration while remaining mindful of privacy, power dynamics, and psychological safety.

Behaviors That Embody Openness

1. Transparent Communication, Augmented by Care

• Share updates early, even if incomplete, so stakeholders can engage, adapt, or ask for clarity.

• Use AI to help summarize or document, then apply human judgment to ensure tone, context, and inclusivity.

• Take ownership of decisions and mistakes, and communicate both the “why” and the “what.”

Example:

Instead of just announcing a decision in Slack, add: “Here’s what led to this, and what we’re still figuring out. If you have thoughts or concerns, I’d love to hear them.”

2. Contextual Clarity Over Content Volume

• Ensure communication provides background, intent, and expected outcomes, especially in cross-functional or cross-cultural settings.

• Make decisions and documentation accessible and understandable. Apply metadata, summaries, and access controls deliberately and consciously.

• Approach documentation as a shared responsibility, not an afterthought.

Example:

When someone disagrees with your approach in a design review, respond with: “That’s a fair point. Can you walk me through how you’d approach it?”

3. Active Listening and Shared Learning

• Create space for voices other than your own. Consider ideas, critiques, and alternate perspectives, particularly those that challenge assumptions.

• Use active listening and summarization during meetings and reviews to reflect true understanding, not just agreement.

• Let AI feedback tools guide your thinking, but confirm insights through meaningful, human conversations.

Example:

After a team collaboration, say: “Would you be open to sharing what worked and what I could do differently next time?”

4. Proactive Inclusivity

• Don’t wait for others to request information. Share proactively to support progress and expand shared visibility.

• Provide feedback that is timely, specific, and empowering rather than vague or performative.

• Ensure that information reaches and resonates with diverse audiences across time zones, roles, and communication preferences.

Example:

In a client call, if you're asked something you’re unsure about, say: “I don't have the full answer yet, but I’ll dig into it and get back to you. Here’s what I do know so far…”

5. Responsible Transparency

• Know the line between openness and oversharing. Respect personal boundaries, emotional sensitivities, and lived experiences.

• Use open channels as your default, while recognizing moments that require privacy or discretion for psychological safety.

• Before communicating decisions or updates, ask: Who will this impact, and have they been informed in a way that respects their ability to understand, respond, and participate meaningfully?

Example:

When sharing an update, avoid just linking a document—add a short summary in your message so people can quickly understand what it’s about and why it matters.

Missteps to Avoid While Demonstrating Openness

Axelerant’s Domain Principles

We work together in many ways, and each manner has its expectations of desired behavior shared below.

Decision Making

We intend for timely, good-enough decisions at Axelerant.

• Act in Axelerant’s best interest per https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/1447493744/Being+Axelerant#Our-Values-and-Principles intent and context.

• Always use good judgment to create contextually relevant outcomes versus blind policies.

• Avoid decisions https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-SbRExnMLc&t=1s.

• Lean towards equitable, just decisions.

• Pick a good enough decision now over a future-perfect one.

• For each significant decision or initiative, define one outcome statement and two/three measurable signals of success. This ensures clarity and accountability, while still enabling fast progress.

• Treat Axelerant, its people, and its resources preciously.

• Use https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMucX7oB81w.

• We are not a democratic or consensus-driven company; the person closest to a must-decide situation owns it by listening to good-enough feedback and then making a choice.

• We respect disagreements and differences, yet we commit to the given decision.

• When relevant, use the #disc- Conversation Creator to collect feedback.

Enjoyable Customer (External & Internal) Experiences

We look to consistently provide great experiences that matter to our clients and peers.

• Be desired-outcome focused

• Be easy to work with

• Deliver quality and service reliably

• Ensure long-term relationships

• Keep our promises

• Mutually improve profitability

• Practice fair negotiation and agreements

Feedback

We ask for, give, and receive feedback.

• Feedback is an act of kindness.

• Constructively debate and disagree.

• Focus on improvement.

• Influence is a value-add, not a title.

• Make suggestions for improvements.

• Seek and give lots of feedback.

• We value truth-seeking over cohesion.

More at https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/3176857691, https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/5105188867/Feedback+Giving+at+Axelerant?atlOrigin=eyJpIjoiMmZmZTU5NGZlOThhNDE5MGI1ZWMxZDhlMTc5ZGQ5OGUiLCJwIjoiYyJ9 , and https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/3177414685.

Freelancing

We’re open to your other work that does not conflict with Axelerant’s best interests.

• Axelerant work should always be the priority, without exception.

• We hope that your freelancing brings value to yourself and Axelerant.

• When in doubt, ask People Operations to verify conflicts of interest.

• When Axelerant fits your project, please let us help and earn a commission.

Getting Things Done

Focus on getting the most relevant tasks done first.

• Plan your day before it starts: pick 1–3 key outcomes, block focus time, and protect it. Use async notes to reduce unnecessary meetings.

• Coordination will occur through collaboration, not centralization.

• Organizational boundaries will be porous.

• Strategy-making will be a dynamic, company-wide conversation.

• Strive to make the organization simpler.

• Structure emerges where it creates value and disappears everywhere else.

• When choosing what to do next, use a simple rule of thumb: prioritize urgent-important first, then high-impact non-urgent work. Revisit and adjust priorities when context shifts.

• We achieve control through transparency and peer feedback.

• We work asynchronously by writing relevant things down as they happen.

• Align meetings by purpose and share notes before the meeting.

• For recurring team sessions, take five minutes at the start to clarify scope, break down steps, and confirm who owns what. Post the plan in the open channel so progress is visible and accountable.

• Be on time to demonstrate respect for the people attending.

• Casually enjoy the first minutes before getting focused.

• Default to asynchronous conversations to avoid timezone and work timing conflicts.

• Don’t wait for others to show or repeat things for latecomers.

• Leave the meeting when it’s no longer relevant to you.

• Only invite relevant people to meetings.

• Video is on by default, communicate your reasons when not possible.

• When ending a meeting, summarize the salient points and calls to action.

• Work towards unblocking decisions or systems asynchronously.

Welcoming–Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Belonging

Be a globally aware team.

• Respect, appreciate, understand, and support every aspect of diversity.

• Welcome people with differences regardless of age, ethnicity, experiences, family relations, gender, ideology, nationality, neurodiversity, perspectives, physical abilities, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, or social status.

More at https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/3933372419.

Unacceptable Behavior

Axelerant team members act per https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/1447493744/Being+Axelerant#Our-Values-and-Principles, and when not, https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/1859388194 are the consequence. Axelerant has zero tolerance for breaches of our values, professional ethics, https://axelerant.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/OA/pages/1446019276 violations, and these non-inclusive behavior examples.

• Discrimination: demeaning, intimidating, racist, sexist, or threatening behaviors

• Disrespect: discourteous or disrespectful treatment, using abusive or offensive language

• Harassment: bullying, sexual, or any other form of harassment 

• Incompetence: failure to meet job performance standards, severe misuse of judgment

• Insobriety: reporting for work under the influence of alcohol, drugs

• Insubordination: refusal to follow work instructions, role-related activities 

• Negligence: failing to report to work at assigned times, misusing company time, and delaying projects

Report violations as soon as feasible.

References

• https://jobs.netflix.com/culture

• https://www.bridgewater.com/principles-and-culture

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