When companies think about assets, intellectual property ranks high on the list of priorities. Still, the biggest questions can be what to protect and when to protect it.

A properly crafted audit of your company and its IP can help you form an idea of what should be protected and in what ways.

Founders School expert and IP lawyer Peter McDermott explains how the level of thoroughness varies based on your company.

“The thoroughness of an IP audit will depend on the particular circumstances of the company, including its technology area, market space, stage of development, available budget, and other factors,” McDermott said.

 There are a wide variety of sample IP audit checklists and guides available online. The following few are just a sampling and should be used in consultation with IP counsel.

IP Audit – A “How to” Guide – Available from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

IP Audit and Management (PDF), – Presented in June 2013 by M. A. Yafi at the WIPO Training of Trainers Program on Effective Intellectual Property Asset Management by Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises

IP Basics (PDF). – Intellectual Property is a competition tool, so a company’s IP strategy must support the company’s business plan.

Basic Components of Invention Protection Program (PDF). – An invention protection program typically is just one part of a broader intellectual property strategy implemented to support the company’s business plan. This paper focuses on the protection of work product created by a company’s research and development personnel, as opposed to IP acquired by licensing or corporate acquisition or merger.