The Esri Community is a professional collaboration space designed to support constructive dialogue and meaningful knowledge sharing among GIS professionals and enthusiasts. To maintain a safe and productive environment, all participants should adhere to certain standards of behavior. The following etiquette expectations are meant to elaborate on Esri Community’s guiding principles: “Be Helpful. Be Human. Be Smart.” which are outlined in our Community Guidelines.
Remember that this shared space supports a global network of GIS practitioners from diverse industries and experience levels, including many Esri staff who extend the scope of their roles to better understand, help, and collaborate with Esri users. Users should embody their best selves in every interaction by following these behavioral DOs and DON’Ts.
Maintain Professionalism
DO: Use clear and respectful language in your posts and comments, ensuring that your tone is considerate of diverse perspectives and cultures.
DON’T: Use sarcasm, cynicism, or provocative commentary, which can be perceived as offensive and risks undermining the spirit of professional collaboration.
Limit Repetitive Posts
DO: Check if your question or concern has already been addressed before posting and consider adding to existing discussions instead of starting new ones.
DON’T: Post repetitive content, especially regarding issues that have already been acknowledged and/or responded to by Esri staff or other community members.
Engage Constructively
DO: Focus on finding solutions and respectful collaboration, even when disagreeing.
DON’T: Engage in personal attacks, blaming, or inflammatory language, which can derail constructive conversations.
Avoid Instigating and Trolling
DO: Contribute to discussions with the intention of sharing helpful knowledge or learning from others.
DON’T: Engage in behavior that intentionally provokes or inflames others, or seeks to incite negativity.
Lead with Courtesy and Kindness
DO: Maintain a courteous tone and assume best-intent from others. Exercise mindfulness in your language, tone, and content to ensure they are respectful and considerate.
DON’T: Use language or tone that could be reasonably perceived as dismissive, condescending, or hurtful.
Reporting Concerns
Even in a professional environment, we’re all still human. Slipups, misunderstandings, and regrettable choices made in “the heat of the moment” happen. Except for more serious infractions that can call for forceful action, the goal is not to penalize but to instead promote the improvement of conduct so that everyone can continue using Esri Community without concern for how they’ll be treated or what behaviors they’ll encounter.
As important as these expectations are to follow, elements like tone, intent, and meaning can be easily misunderstood or even held to an unreasonable standard. The big-picture goals of this space are complimented by practicing mindfulness of the many different personalities, styles of communication, and cultural norms that are present and may impact interactions. Users are encouraged to interpret others’ intentions generously and exercise tolerance, particularly in the case of one-offs or uncertain conditions.
If you encounter behavior that conflicts with these etiquette expectations, the Community Guidelines, or the Terms of Use, you can use the relevant post’s built in feature to Report Inappropriate Content and Spam. Alternately, you can reach out to the Esri Community team email alias at: esricommunity@esri.com
Thanks for helping us keep Esri Community a safe, welcoming, and constructive environment that reflects the professional nature of our shared work!
