We live in a world where information about nearly everything is available on demand.
That includes lots of publicly available information about your company. The more interesting question is, how far should you go to inform the public about your Enterprise?
This question is especially tricky if you’re still privately held. Let’s look at seven details you probably should reveal about your company — for the benefit of your employees, investors, and other stakeholders, past and present.
1. Who is in your C-suite?
Your company is more than the sum of its C-level executives, and it’s a team effort, as you no doubt remind your subordinates regularly.
Still, what matters to most industry-watchers and especially to would-be investors is who’s steering the ship. That’s why it’s essential to have a transparent org chart on platforms like Bloomberg company profiles and Crunchbase.
Include as much information as possible — within these platforms’ constraints — about your executives’ prior work history and board memberships.
2. Who is behind your C-suite (who’s on the board)?
On board memberships, being transparent about who’s on your corporate board is just as important as being transparent about your C-level executives.
If you’re an early-stage startup, be clear about who’s advising your leadership team as well. Investors want to know that you’ve got years of experience behind you, especially if this is the first rodeo for you or those around you.
3. Your (approximate) revenue
This is a dicey one. If you’re a private company, it’s your prerogative to keep your revenue to yourself, or at least not to be too transparent about your company’s finances.
If you’re a public company, it’s an easier call. You have to report your firm’s earnings.
If you’re private, don’t be so quick to shut the door on disclosing an approximate revenue range, though, especially if it tells a positive story about your firm’s trajectory. Inquiring minds want to know, and transparency could lead to big wins — landing top talent or a fundraising round that exceeds expectations — in the future.
4. How many employees do you have?
This is another metric you’re not obligated to disclose if you’re not listed on a public stock exchange. And another that could be in your interest to disclose, or at least approximate.
Why not fake it till you make it — implying in public that you’re a much bigger enterprise than you are?
Because savvy observers know how the game is played. If you’re heavily reliant on short-term or freelance labor or third-party service providers, it’s easy enough for those who know what to look for to tell. That could increase their skepticism about your company — a bad thing if and when you need their help raising funds, recruiting new executives, or getting valuable earned media mentions.
5. Where you’re domiciled and headquartered
In the era of remote work, this information is less important for recruiting purposes than it used to be. It still matters for other reasons, though, like:
- How your company is taxed?
- Where you’ll be raising funds?
- Your exposure to foreign exchange risk
- The laws your firm is subject to, like GDPR
Even if you’re still private, regulation may require you to post an official business address publicly. So there’s no point trying to hide where you’re based.
6. How much you’re worth?
This is yet another metric you must disclose if you’re a publicly-traded company (though there are plenty of accounting games you can play) but can keep close to the vest if you’re private.
However, you can’t be hush-hush about your valuation if you’re raising funds from outside investors. Word has a way of getting out when you raise funds through equity investments since the size of the raise implies a specific valuation.
7. Whether (and how) they can get a piece of the action
Regarding fundraising, be transparent about your raising history and plans. Needing outside capital isn’t a sign of weakness, and being transparent about your needs and the progress you’ve made can endear you to future investors.
Keep some things to yourself
You don’t want to reveal everything about your organization, at least not in broad daylight. The Coca-Cola Company famously keeps its original Coke recipe under lock and key to protect its competitive advantage — despite years of pressure for more transparency.
You don’t want to sell your company short. But whetting the public’s appetite for details about your firm could be a wise long-term play. The secret lies in knowing what to reveal and what to keep to yourself.
