DNOW - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

DNOW is Medium Risk.

DNOW, Inc. is Medium Risk. The company often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. The company occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	Lower Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	High Risk
Funding	Lower Risk
Political Actions	No Data

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

DNOW integrates ESG into its business practices. From its 2024 Sustainability Report: “[The management team d]evelops and executes on overall business strategy, including creating initiatives to integrate ESG throughout our operations…. [W]e conduct comprehensive assessments of key suppliers, including evaluations of ESG practices within the supply chain” (1). The company has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs (2).

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

DNOW does not appear to discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs (1).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

DNOW requires its employees to take DEI training (1). The company appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its recruitment, leadership composition, and supply chain. From its 2022 Sustainability Report: “Our goals and objectives, which are approved by our Board, are linked to ESG topics such as: … Making diversity, equity and inclusion integral to the culture of the Company and embed in recruiting, talent development and succession planning” (2). From its Corporate Governance Guidelines: “Directors shall be diverse in gender, race and background, consistent with the Board’s requirements for knowledgeable , experienced, motivated and ethical members, and in identifying candidates for membership to the Board, the Board shall take into account all factors it considers appropriate, which may include age, gender, tenure, employment status, character, judgment, diversity of viewpoints, experiences, and other demographics” (2). From its 2022 Sustainability Report: “At DNOW, we work to foster an equitable, diverse and inclusive supply chain to help our customers in diversifying their own supply chains, while strengthening minority- and women-owned businesses. We seek to assist in the development of minority- and women-owned businesses to enable them to qualify as an approved manufacturer and supplier of quality products and services to DNOW” (4). DNOW does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (5).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

DNOW supports DEI within its business practices, hosting a DEI Council and employing a DEI Officer (1). The company supports DEI within its business practices. From its 2022 Sustainability Report: “As part of our continued efforts to advance DEI at DNOW, we are moving from a stage of awareness and compliance into a tactical stage, where we embed DEI efforts into our business to create a more inclusive experience for our employees and our customers” (2). DNOW supports ESG within its business practices. From its 2024 Sustainability Report: “In support of our ESG efforts, we align with leading sustainability organizations and industry peers, which enables us to enhance our reporting and protocols in-line with evolving best practices, ultimately advancing our sustainability impact and increasing our ESG awareness” (3). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of the company using its reputation to advance ideological causes or policies (4).

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Lower

Rationale:

DNOW has not used corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (1).

Criteria:

Uses corporate political actions and/or financial contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level:

N/A

Rationale:

DNOW does not operate a PAC or engage in lobbying at this time (1)(2)(3).