What we're about, and what we're not

So there's an interesting discussion going on over at TechCrunch with the title "Unvarnished: A Clean, Well-Lighted Place For Defamation". It talks about a recently launched service that lets anyone create a profile of another person and review them anonymously.

To be very clear up front: we have several competitors, but we do NOT consider this site one of them. Sure, there are some similarities, but the differences far outweigh them. We actually market tested a similar model early on in our evolution, and decided that it was not viable. Not to mention that we like being able to sleep at night.

It's tempting to take shots at these guys, but frankly it's unnecessary, and the majority of the commenters at TC have already roundly panned the idea. Instead, I will simply reiterate some of our key concepts, and you can draw your own conclusions.

Building up, not tearing down: We believe that everyone can benefit from honest feedback. However, it should be done in a constructive way, and the goal should be to help that person improve his or her work, not to "name and shame" them. Transparency is a good thing, but it must be superseded by an individual's right not be defamed.

Ask and ye shall receive: Coworkers.com is built around the question "how's my work? ®" not the statement "what a jerk". It's for people who want to advance their careers and strengthen their reputations by asking their coworkers for genuine, detailed feedback about their work. Yes, you can also send unsolicited, optionally anonymous feedback. But it is only displayed to the world when the recipient says it should be.

Cherry picking allowed here: on Coworkers.com, nothing is publicly displayed about you unless you confirm it. If you get an unwarranted or irrelevant review, you delete it, it's that simple. Does that mean that some valid, negative feedback will be deleted? Yes, of course. But we believe that's better than the alternative. And many people actually publish not-so-positive reviews of themselves, because they can use it to show how they have improved over time (see http://www.coworkers.com/analytics).

Don't like it? Fine, opt out: We do not try to hoodwink anyone into using our service. It's out there for anyone who derives value from it. If you don't like it, you can make your profile private, or remove your profile altogether, at any time.

Free speech is limited: Finally, and possibly most importantly, we believe that every person has a fundamental right to privacy. If you are a celebrity, different rules apply, which is why we have sites like TMZ. If you hang up a shingle as a lawyer or carpenter or restaurant, different rules apply, which is why services like Yelp are completely legitimate and useful. But if you are just a guy or gal trying to make your way in the workplace, it is simply wrong for someone to be able to spew venom about you for the whole world to see. We have all had bad moments with coworkers, and yes, retribution can be tempting. And to be honest, some people really do deserve it. But is it worth it if even one person's career is destroyed unfairly? We think the answer is no.

Jonathan Clay
Founder and President, Coworkers.com