Values
Category: identity Sources: live-service-sop-summaries.md, trace-summary-services-icp-competitors-background.md, founder-interview-glen-2026-08-11.md, founder-brain-dump-ai-systems-reframe-2026-08-16.md Confidence: high Last Updated: 2026-08-16
These values are not aspirational statements — they are operational rules extracted from how Trace actually works.
1. No Guessing
Unknown, unverified or low-confidence information stays visible as TBC rather than being filled by assumption. Every technical statement must be verified against approved sources. If essential evidence is absent, stop and quote the next step — don't paper over the gap.
2. Written Scope Before Work
Every engagement defines scope, deliverables, assumptions, exclusions, client inputs and timing in writing before work begins. Payment clears before delivery starts. No silent scope creep — out-of-scope work is separately quoted, not absorbed.
3. The Client Owns the Decision
Trace does not guarantee test results, certificates, approvals, compliance outcomes, market-access outcomes or decision dates. Independent laboratories, certification bodies, regulators, marketplaces and clients retain their own decisions. External decisions are recorded accurately, never overstated or strengthened.
4. Written Approval Before Cost
Third-party laboratory, certification-body or other external costs require written client approval before commitment. Fees are passed on at cost without markup.
5. Honest Close-Out
Work isn't done until open questions, TBC items, dependencies and client responsibilities are visible. Follow-on work is separately scoped, not bundled in by assumption. The client walks away knowing what's resolved and what's still on them.
6. Reduce Scope, Don't Discount
If the price doesn't work, the scope is reduced, not the fee. The training SOP makes this explicit: "Do not discount; reduce scope if necessary." The fee is fair value for making the client's life easier and buying back lead time. Test and certification is genuinely expensive, and that is the point: do it right the first time, pay someone to do it, and reap the reward.
7. Fair Value or No Engagement
A client who negotiates the fee down does not need the service. Someone trying to pay below the value, or who brings nothing to the table beyond wanting it done cheaply, is a disqualifier rather than an objection to overcome. Trace does not win price-shoppers by discounting, and does not work with brands that do not care whether their product actually passes. See Objections.
8. Finish the Product Before Testing It
Trace will not put an unfinished or uncertain product into testing to hit a deadline. A design change after testing means paying to test again. This is advising the client, not refusing the work: be sure of the product first. It protects the client's money and Trace's record.
9. Systems Accelerate, Never Replace
Trace's trained systems draft, flag, and surface — they never decide, issue, or advise on their own. Glen reviews every system output, strengthens caveats where the system has been too confident, and owns whatever reaches the client. See Systems And Ai Stance for the per-service detail.
Non-Negotiables
- Never create unsupported claims, values or conclusions
- Never issue a client document in Trace's name
- Never send samples to the virtual registered office
- Never treat unknown information as confirmed
- Never guarantee certification outcomes
- Never silently absorb out-of-scope work