NDA before interview?
March 19, 2023 9:12 PM Subscribe
Some questions about NDAs signed in advance of interviews
Are these now a thing? Ive heard of them in software, but I’m in a biotech industry and haven’t run into any myself. I’ve had a brief interview with HR and now am set up to speak with a bunch of people at the company and have been sent an NDA to sign before that. (If it matters, it’s a one-way NDA, requiring me not to share anything confidential that comes up in the interview but nothing requiring them to keep my info secret.)
So whatever, I have no reason to ever share that I’ve even interviewed with this company much less what their business plan is or how their tech works, so that’s low risk. But I do worry there will be an oversharer on their side (I.e, like that nightmare boss I had who was only too willing to tell anyone who’s listening how his awesome little invention works). So for those who are used to signing these agreements, any strategies for tactfully shutting down TMI that’s not pertinent to the interview so I don’t have to safeguard it or worry that my own idea later somehow came from them?
Are these now a thing? Ive heard of them in software, but I’m in a biotech industry and haven’t run into any myself. I’ve had a brief interview with HR and now am set up to speak with a bunch of people at the company and have been sent an NDA to sign before that. (If it matters, it’s a one-way NDA, requiring me not to share anything confidential that comes up in the interview but nothing requiring them to keep my info secret.)
So whatever, I have no reason to ever share that I’ve even interviewed with this company much less what their business plan is or how their tech works, so that’s low risk. But I do worry there will be an oversharer on their side (I.e, like that nightmare boss I had who was only too willing to tell anyone who’s listening how his awesome little invention works). So for those who are used to signing these agreements, any strategies for tactfully shutting down TMI that’s not pertinent to the interview so I don’t have to safeguard it or worry that my own idea later somehow came from them?
First, can you ask them to put a date range on the NDA so that it's not effective "for life"?
Second, at the start of the interview say something like "Before we begin, even though I've signed the NDA you sent, I would like to ask you to please share _only_ that information which is necessary for me to know in the context of interviewing for the job, and for you to use to judge whether I am qualified for the job. I can learn other proprietary information in the first few weeks of employment, if you decide to offer me the position and I decide to accept it."
That sounds kind of stilted now that I read it again - but I'm sure you can reword it to work for you.
posted by TimHare at 9:50 PM on March 19, 2023
Second, at the start of the interview say something like "Before we begin, even though I've signed the NDA you sent, I would like to ask you to please share _only_ that information which is necessary for me to know in the context of interviewing for the job, and for you to use to judge whether I am qualified for the job. I can learn other proprietary information in the first few weeks of employment, if you decide to offer me the position and I decide to accept it."
That sounds kind of stilted now that I read it again - but I'm sure you can reword it to work for you.
posted by TimHare at 9:50 PM on March 19, 2023
Response by poster: Thanks both - very helpful so far. fake’s comment made me realize I forgot to mention these will be Teams calls so I suppose they could be recorded….
posted by Tandem Affinity at 9:58 PM on March 19, 2023
posted by Tandem Affinity at 9:58 PM on March 19, 2023
I'm working in biotech in a very IP-sensitive area. I signed one of these before being allowed on-site to interview. Going on-site is critical for me - I want to meet my potential coworkers, see the office space, etc etc etc. And the NDAs I've encountered are generally set up to protect the company, obviously. Because there will be sensitive things on desks or written on whiteboards and they can't sweep the office clean every time there is a visitor coming in.
So whatever, I have no reason to ever share that I’ve even interviewed with this company much less what their business plan is or how their tech works, so that’s low risk.
I'm not a lawyer but if you said that to me, my answer would be "of course. So let's put that down in writing before we proceed." They don't know you from Adam and there's always the remote possibility you work for the competition and are trying to sniff out things from going on-site. People love to talk freely in interviews and you never know what will be shared.
A company that protects their IP fiercely will make sure those possibilities are eliminated. Those types of companies may not fight back if you decline their NDA...but they also may have a policy to reject your application on those grounds alone.
posted by JoeZydeco at 4:59 AM on March 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
So whatever, I have no reason to ever share that I’ve even interviewed with this company much less what their business plan is or how their tech works, so that’s low risk.
I'm not a lawyer but if you said that to me, my answer would be "of course. So let's put that down in writing before we proceed." They don't know you from Adam and there's always the remote possibility you work for the competition and are trying to sniff out things from going on-site. People love to talk freely in interviews and you never know what will be shared.
A company that protects their IP fiercely will make sure those possibilities are eliminated. Those types of companies may not fight back if you decline their NDA...but they also may have a policy to reject your application on those grounds alone.
posted by JoeZydeco at 4:59 AM on March 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
RE: I forgot to mention these will be Teams calls so I suppose they could be recorded….
If the meeting is being recorded IN Teams, you will see a statement advising you of that fact. If you do not see a recording statement in the Teams interface, you may want to ask explicitly whether it's being recorded.
If you are a guest (external participant) in their tenant's Teams meeting, once the meeting is over, you might not have any access to the recording. It depends on how the company has allowed external access to be configured.
I mean, even if they tell you it's not being recorded, anyone can always record anything at any time on their phone or some other way that you would never know about, so if this matters to you, be sure to ask so they are required to tell you 'on the record' one way or the other.
Or I guess you could set up your own phone to record, and maybe just capture audio-only to have that as a reference, if you are concerned about that sort of thing. (I have done this in the past for my own sanity when on a Teams meeting with someone who was notorious for saying they didn't say something when they in fact did.)
posted by I_Love_Bananas at 11:11 AM on March 20, 2023
If the meeting is being recorded IN Teams, you will see a statement advising you of that fact. If you do not see a recording statement in the Teams interface, you may want to ask explicitly whether it's being recorded.
If you are a guest (external participant) in their tenant's Teams meeting, once the meeting is over, you might not have any access to the recording. It depends on how the company has allowed external access to be configured.
I mean, even if they tell you it's not being recorded, anyone can always record anything at any time on their phone or some other way that you would never know about, so if this matters to you, be sure to ask so they are required to tell you 'on the record' one way or the other.
Or I guess you could set up your own phone to record, and maybe just capture audio-only to have that as a reference, if you are concerned about that sort of thing. (I have done this in the past for my own sanity when on a Teams meeting with someone who was notorious for saying they didn't say something when they in fact did.)
posted by I_Love_Bananas at 11:11 AM on March 20, 2023
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First, when I ask questions, I say "I don't need to know the whole thing, just the gist" or "don't tell me anything important/internal". Most places won't, intentionally.
Second, if someone starts dishing info, depending on circumstances I will stop them (usually with a "yeah yeah move on" kind of thing), or simply listen. They're disclosing.
If these conversations are happening in person, verbally, and are not being recorded you have very little to worry about.
Since you have been asked to sign a one-way NDA, it is dramatically more likely that they will extract information from you. In this case your move is to pause before answering and to have a bunch of stock phrases ready. "Sorry, that's proprietary." "Secrecy is very important to me". "I can't answer that right now". "I'm not at liberty to discuss". "That's not my department". "I will ask and get back to you". Etc
posted by fake at 9:47 PM on March 19, 2023 [4 favorites]