# Entity data

In addition to the core fields that accompany a KERN ID, Kernel's entity database also includes the following data points across all entities and all corporate hierarchies

1. Entity category & sub-category
2. Operational status
3. Regional subsidiary flag & regional scope

### 1. Entity category & sub-category

The entity category field classifies the organization into one of three main categories based on its primary function and legal nature.

**Company:** Used for commercial businesses, non-profits, and trade associations.

* **Includes:** Corporations, partnerships, startups, NGOs, charities, unions, and state-owned enterprises operating as commercial entities (e.g., national airlines).

**Government:** Used for public administration bodies.

* **Includes:** National, regional, and local government bodies, ministries, departments, agencies, regulators, and armed forces.

**Education:** Used for teaching and academic research institutions.

* **Includes:** Universities, colleges, business schools, K-12 schools, and research institutes.

#### Company sub-categories

| Sub-Type            | Definition                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           | Examples                                                                                    |
| ------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Operating           | Companies that sell goods or services directly to external customers under their own brand.                                                                                                                                                                                          | Salesforce, Frito-Lay, Heineken                                                             |
| HoldCo / Investment | Entities that primarily exist to own or control other companies/assets. They rarely sell products directly.                                                                                                                                                                          | Berkshire Hathaway, Alphabet Inc., KKR & Co.                                                |
| Business unit       | <p>A unit (brand/portfolio/line/division) inside a Company that is not a separate legal entity. It packages offerings for customers but contracts through a parent Operating entity.</p><p><br></p>                                                                                  | Jell‑O (under Kraft Heinz); Amazon Music (under Amazon)                                     |
| Establishment       | A specific physical site (branch, office, store, hotel, warehouse, plant, etc.) tied to a company, not a separate corporation and not independently legally responsible; generally shares the legal business name of its HQ/parent but represents a distinct address-level location. | McDonald’s Store #1234; Lloyds - London Bridge branch; Conopco, Inc. – Jefferson City plant |

#### Education sub-categories

| Sub-Type                         | Definition                                                                                                       |
| -------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Higher-Education Institution** | Degree-awarding tertiary providers (Universities, Colleges, Polytechnics).                                       |
| **Academic Unit**                | A specific department, faculty, or school *inside* a Higher-Ed institution (e.g., Harvard Business School).      |
| **Pre-tertiary school**          | K-12, High Schools, Primary Schools, and International Schools.                                                  |
| **Education System**             | A governing body that controls multiple schools/institutions (e.g., University of California System).            |
| **Research Institute**           | Organizations focused on research or vocational training that do not award degrees (e.g., Max Planck Institute). |

#### Government sub-categories

| Sub-Type                           | Definition                                                                             |
| ---------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Agency / Department**            | Executive bodies, ministries, regulators, and authorities (e.g., Ministry of Finance). |
| **National Government**            | The central/federal government of a sovereign state.                                   |
| **Subnational Government**         | First administrative level below the country (States, Provinces, Regions, Cantons).    |
| **Local Government**               | Municipal tiers (Cities, Towns, Councils, Boroughs).                                   |
| **Intergovernmental Organization** | Polities formed by sovereign states (e.g., EU, ASEAN, UN).                             |
| **Judiciary**                      | Courts and judicial councils at any level.                                             |

{% hint style="info" %}
**Hierarchy Example:** A corporate tree can span multiple Entity Types. For example, a Government body may own a Holding Company, which owns an Operating Company.

* **Government of Singapore** (Gov — National)
  * └── **Ministry of Finance** (Gov — Agency)
    * └── **Temasek Holdings** (Company — HoldCo)
      * └── **Singapore Airlines** (Company — Operating)
        {% endhint %}

***

### 2. Operational Status

Classifies the current "Go-To-Market" reality of the entity.

| Status              | Definition                                                                       | Scenario                                                                    |
| ------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Active**          | The company operates today under its own brand.                                  | **Slack** is owned by Salesforce, but the brand is still live and selling.  |
| **Absorbed**        | The original brand is retired, but operations continue under the parent's brand. | **ExactTarget** was acquired by Salesforce and rebranded (Marketing Cloud). |
| **Out of Business** | Operations have ceased. No active selling or support exists.                     | **Quibi** shut down completely.                                             |

### 3. Regional Subsidiary flag

We identify specific child entities that act as primary regional operating arms using two related data points.

#### Regional Subsidiary Flag

A boolean (`True`/`False`) indicator identifying if the entity is a verified regional branch. A record is marked as **True** only if it meets **all** of the following criteria:

1. **Verified Existence:** It is a real legal entity (e.g., "Salesforce UK Ltd"), not just a generic marketing term.
2. **Brand Identity:** It operates under the same core brand as the parent (e.g., Sony → Sony Europe).
3. **Explicit Naming:** The name contains a specific geographic term (e.g., "UK", "France", "EMEA", "APAC", "West Coast").
4. **Market Scope:** The entity operates in a specific market that is a subset of the parent's global scope.

#### Regional Scope

A text field defining the specific geographic market served by the subsidiary.

* **Value:** The core geographic area (e.g., "United Kingdom", "Western Europe", "New York Metro", "Japan").
* **Availability:** This field is only populated when the **Regional Subsidiary Flag** is `True`.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Note:** Product divisions (e.g., "Google Cloud Japan") are **not** classified as Regional Subsidiaries unless they are the only legal entity representing the parent in that region. "Google Japan Inc", however, is a regional subsidiary.
{% endhint %}