Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

What/who is Stwrd?

Verity Platforms Inc is a mission-driven, public benefit corporation founded to facilitate the integration of sustainability research into financial markets and reduce the friction of engagement among market participants and provide new opportunities for stakeholder participation. The main tool to advance this mission is Stwrd. For more information on the company, check out the About Us page.

Who uses Stwrd?

The core users of Stwrd are investors, asset owners, asset managers, corporate investor relations and sustainability professionals, and stakeholders; including NGOs (nonprofits), local governments, academia, industry groups and the like. But the flexibility of the platform lends itself to many other uses and communities.

What is a public benefit corporation?

A public benefit corporation differs from a traditional corporation by allowing a focus on a charter purpose in addition to the traditional corporate goal of maximizing profit for shareholders. In other words, besides making sure that we make a profit for our shareholders, we also can make sure our company has a positive impact on our communities and world.

Membership

Do I have to become a paid member to access Stwrd?

Stwrd offers a 72 hour free trial so you can try out the entire platform for free. You are able to cancel at any time. Following the end of your trial, the low cost of subscription ($20/month or $225/year) allows you to continue to access all the functionality of the platform: diverse ESG data sources, holistic analysis, engagement management, and AI-enabled insights.

We also offer guest access to certain functionality so that non-members can participate in collective engagement efforts.

Why is the subscription price so low?

Because we believe knowledge-sharing is necessary to make positive change, and that requires accessible data at an affordable price. Similarly, information is a pre-requisite to participation. If a private citizen or an organization wants to research and engage with a company in their community, they cannot be priced out of the conversation. The greater the diversity of peoples and perspectives present on the the platform, the richer and more powerful the experience.

How do we compensate for low subscription prices?

While a low subscription price aligns with our mission to reduce the friction of engagement among market participants, that price does not reflect the caliber of our services. Stwrd offers quality, first-of-its kind tools, and as a subscriber, you’ll receive full access to these tools within the platform. There is the option to pay for premium services throughout your research process in order to leverage the capabilities of those tools, which offsets Stwrd’s low entry fee.

Examples of Stwrd’s premium services:

• Hire a moderator to assist with facilitation and management of a collective engagement – schedule events, invite participants and observers, host conference calls, and prepare materials for the engagement record.

• Access premium research from financial research boutiques or stakeholder organizations – deepen your knowledge on an issue beyond what’s provided on Stwrd by purchasing additional reports from stakeholder organizations that are experts in their field.

Our business model is designed to be accessible for as many people as possible, with the tools and information to make informed decisions, and additional premium services to further those efforts.

Search

What can I search for?

You are able to search for organizations, financial/ESG data, documents, themes, and engagements. If you’d like to lock your results for one company, you can do so by clicking the binoculars icon.

Collective Engagements/Conversations

What are the different types of engagements you can have on Stwrd?

• Personal engagements can be anything from questions about an issue or education on a topic, to introductions or invitations to an event
  • 1-1 conversations
  • Group conversations
• Collective engagements are efforts to include multiple stakeholders, investors, and corporations to explore issues and best practices
  • Advocacy: advocate within a company or industry for change
  • Educational: to explore issues and develop a better understanding and best practice

Are all engagements private (hidden) or public (visible)?

Personal engagements are fully private. If a person is added to the conversation, they cannot see the previous messages, attachments, etc.

Collective engagements can be private or public.

• In private collective engagements, users cannot find them by searching within the platform, but must be invited. Once a private engagement has been completed, closed, and archived, the engagement title will appear underneath the associated companies or organizations. Along with the engagement title, an overview will be publicly available via its engagement record, as well as additional documents as decided by the moderator, i.e. summary document, shareholder letter, etc. If a collective engagement is closed (meaning the engagement is complete), then no changes can be made to the content of the engagement unless it is reopened prior to its archiving.

• In public collective engagements, the engagement will appear within search results and on the associated company of organizations profile. Users can request to be a participant or an observer of any public engagement. While an engagement may be classified as a public engagement, its contents are not visible while in progress, unless a user joins the engagement. Once the collective engagement is closed (meaning the engagement is complete), no changes can be made to the content of the engagement unless it is reopened prior to its archiving. The time period between closure and archive is decided by the moderator. Once archived, transcripts of public collective engagements will be available and searchable. Also, if decided by the moderator, additional documents can be attached to the record of archived collective engagements.

All collective engagements have a unique URL that is available to share with colleagues, other stakeholders, or even clients to show your level of participation and impact. Depending on the nature of the engagement, the amount of information attached to the record is described above.

How do I join a collective engagement? How are participants added to a collective engagement?

First you have to find an existing collective engagement or start your own. If you own the engagement, you will be able to invite other users to join as participants or as observers. To find an existing collective engagement, you can search for a company or issue, and you will see if there is an existing public engagement listed in the engagement tab of their profile. You can then see if the engagement is open or closed, and if there are openings for participants or observers. You may then apply to join the conversation.

Why would I want to be an observer in a collective engagement?

There are two main reasons to be an observer. First, there may not be openings to be participants and you want to see what’s being discussed. Secondly, you may simply want to learn more about the issue and best practices. An excellent way to educate yourself is to watch the discussion unfold. 

Will my comments on the platform be visible to the public?

Comments on documents, data points, and other research materials are public. Private engagements stay private, so all comments and messages within it remain private.

Why do private collective engagement records become public?

Only the record of a private collective engagement becomes public, which includes an overview, purpose, and list of involved companies and organizations. Additional documents (i.e. stakeholder letter, summary document, etc.) may also become available as decided by the engagement’s moderator. This is for several reasons. First, we believe increased transparency in markets is a public good. Secondly, if a company is approached about the same issue, it is good to know the history of engagements, what issues were discussed, etc. Thirdly, it is a record of engagement that a company, investor, or stakeholder can use to provide evidence of participation or carrying out one’s fiduciary responsibility.

Stwrds’s Collaboration with Stakeholders

What is a stakeholder collaborator?

A stakeholder collaborator is a stakeholder organization (nonprofit research organization, NGO, etc.), who has data and research that they would like to share via Stwrd. There are two types of relationships that are possible, neither of which have any fees associated with them:

What is a stakeholder collaborator?

1. Content contributors simply share unstructured content with us, such as PDFs and spreadsheets. Doing so increases the reach and impact of this content. Contributors can also provide their content information for direct outreach by users.

2. Platform collaborators work more closely with us to maximize the impact of their content. Stwrd offers a fully integrated distribution and engagement solution for organizations looking to increase their visibility and help build the stakeholder economy. We map individual components to established frameworks (e.g. SASB) and thematic hubs for easier discovery and consumption. Contextual overlays and AI-enabled insights bring the content to life while also providing a bridge for additional insights through engagement on the platform. Collaborators enjoy additional benefits, such as a full Stwrd user license, the right to sell supplemental content in our marketplace, participation in our profit-sharing plan, and access to our network of providers offering discounted services to our community.

Why work with us?

Content contributors enjoy:

• New audiences for research and data

• More influence on capital allocation decisions

Platform collaborators also get:

• Full access to the Stwrd platform and direct interaction with its community of users

• Participation in collective engagements started and managed in the platform

• Insights into their audience via Stwrd’s cohort analysis tool

• Consultations with our expert staff to position your research for a sustainable finance audience

• New revenue streams from our profit-sharing plan, content sales, or consulting opportunities

• Discounted value-added services from our pool of associated providers

I represent a stakeholder organization and would like to be more active on Stwrd. How do I do this?

We want to help you be successful in your mission through access to investors and corporations, making your research and data available to decision makers, and by having your voice represented in impactful engagements. Part of our mission is the belief that conversation and engagement can bring about greater understanding. Please start by filling out this form and we will respond shortly.

Get in Touch

What is the best way to get in contact with us about Stwrd?

The two best ways of contacting us are by sending an email to hello@verityplatforms.com or by contacting @MarkStephan through the Interchange on Stwrd.