| (a) | Company Confidential Information: During the Executive’s employment with the Company, the Company shall grant the Executive otherwise prohibited access to the Company Confidential Information, which is not known to the Company’s competitors or within the Company’s industry generally, which was developed by the Company over a long period of time and/or at its substantial expense, and which is of great competitive value to the Company. The Executive understands that the “Company Confidential Information” includes, without limitation, all of the following that is available to the Executive from the Company, either directly or indirectly, in writing, orally, by observation or any other means: proprietary information, information of a confidential nature, technical data, trade secrets or know-how, including but not limited to research materials and other research-related materials, product plans, products, services, customer lists, customer information of customers of the Company or its Affiliates (including, but not limited to, customers of the Company or its Affiliates on whom the Executive called for business or with whom the Executive become acquainted during the term of his employment), business partnerships and transactions, markets, software, development. inventions, processes, formulas, technology, designs, data, drawings, management, hardware management, computer programs, database business plans and strategies, marketing and sales methods, plans and strategies, financial budgets, financial data and information, methods of operation, pricing strategies, training techniques, training manuals, information regarding the skills and compensation of employees and contractors of the Company and other business information. The Executive further understands that the Company Confidential Information does not include any of the foregoing items which has become publicly known and made generally available through no wrongful act of the Executive or of others who were under confidentiality obligations as to the item(s) involved. Failure by the Company to mark any of the Company Confidential Information as confidential or proprietary shall not affect its status as Company Confidential Information. Company Confidential Information prepared or compiled by the Executive and/or the Company or furnished to the Executive during the Executive’s employment with the Company shall be the sole and exclusive property of the Company, and none of such Company Confidential Information or copies thereof, shall be retained by the Executive. The Executive acknowledges that the Company does not |