Their suggestion about assigning IP to the company seems fairly standard (and employee-hostile), but their anecdotal story doesn't really justify it in my mind:
> Assign Intellectual Property. Ask everyone to sign a Proprietary Information and Inventions Assignment (“PIIA”). This document says that what they do at the company is owned by the company. Early on we had a friend who came by and brainstormed ideas. We thought of it as interesting banter. He later said he owned part of our storage design. While we worked it out together, a PIIA makes ownership clear.
If a friend came by to brainstorm ideas, it does't seem likely that someone would have the nerve to open with "Ok but first we need you to sign this PIAA agreement."
> If a friend came by to brainstorm ideas, it does't seem likely that someone would have the nerve to open with "Ok but first we need you to sign this PIAA agreement."
Better the awkwardness of that discussion than the situation they almost had of someone suing for a payoff after they had success because of (uncompensated?) discussions with friends. If any party is under the impression that what they're doing requires compensation or ownership that NEEDS to be known up front by everyone.
If someone informally visits a company and brainstorms business ideas, it is THEIR responsiblity to ascertain whether they will be compensated somehow. I doubt at any point that someone led him to believe he would be, and it's his own damn fault for not voicing his thoughts and concerns before offering his expertise.
[1] https://meaningness.com/geeks-mops-sociopaths