Corporate & Non-Profit Data Overview
In your professional career, you may research and report on for-profit corporations and non-profit organizations. This type of information is generated from the company itself (e.g. company website and government documents) as well as outside sources (e.g. third-party profiles and analyst reports).
Finding corporate records is sometimes difficult due to the nature and value of business industries. If it were easy for companies to find financial information on their competitors through the open web, the company and industry could suffer. Valuable company information can either be behind a paywall in an expensive, subscription-based database, or proprietary and not available at all.
Where to Begin:
When looking for corporate records you should first determine if the company is public or privately owned, and for-profit or non-profit. Public companies are required by law to file financial information with the SEC, whereas, private companies are not. But that doesn’t mean the information isn’t out there. While you are here at IU, you have access to corporate databases and resources, such as PrivCo, which provides financial information on private companies.
Likewise, a non-profit organization can be verified on its status through the IRS. If a non-profit meets the requirements of the Internal Revenue Service's Code, section 501(c)(3), it can obtain tax-exempt status, and does not pay federal or state income taxes.Use the recommended resources below to find corporate and nonprofit records.
Corporate Resources
- Mergent Intellect
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Provides access private and public U.S and international business data, industry news, facts and figures, executive contact information, and the ability to access industry profiles. - PrivCo
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PLEASE NOTE: INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION WITH AN OFFICIAL INDIANA UNIVERSITY EMAIL ACCOUNT IS REQUIRED TO ACCESS THIS RESOURCE. PrivCo is a source for business and financial data on major, non-publicly traded corporations, including family owned, private equity owned, venture backed, and international unlisted companies.
- SEC FilingsThe U.S. Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) provides free public access to corporate information on public companies. It contains a company’s financial information and operations by reviewing registration statements, prospectuses and periodic reports filed on Forms 10-K and 10-Q.
- Corporate Affiliations
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Corporate Affiliations is no longer available. Currently, users may access the Nexis Dossier section of Nexis Uni to find similar information. To access Nexis Dossier, go to the “Menu" dropdown at the left of the Nexis Uni homepage, and select “Company Dossier.” Details corporate hierarchies and includes company addresses, personnel, and financial information on public, private, and international parent companies and their affiliates, subsidiaries, and divisions.
Non-profit Resources
- Gale Directory Library
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Online collection of premier directories providing information on companies, publishers, associations. Includes descriptions of associations, professional societies, and nonprofit organizations, at local, state, national and international levels. - Foundation Directory Online
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Under the auspices of Candid, this resource provides comprehensive information on grantmakers and their funding activities.
- GuidestarAn organization that collects, organizes, and presents nonprofit information.
- IRS EO Select CheckExempt Organizations Select Check is an online search tool from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) that allows users to search for and select an exempt organization and check certain information about its federal tax status and filings.