Monitoring 9 Critical Business Change Types

How do you monitor 100 companies for changes? What about 500? Or 1,000?

Manually checking company data is impossible at scale. Spreadsheets go stale. Manual registry checks take hours. By the time you discover a supplier entered bankruptcy, it's too late.

InfoX's Datawash feature automates business monitoring: upload a list of organization numbers, choose which data fields to monitor, set a schedule, and receive automated reports showing exactly what changed.

This guide explains the 9 critical categories of business changes Datawash can monitor.

The 9 Field Categories

Datawash monitors 57+ fields across 9 categories. You choose which fields matter for your monitoring needs.

1. Basic Information

What it includes:

• Organization number
• Company name
• Website
• Email
• Phone

Why monitor:

• Name changes indicate rebranding, mergers, or restructuring
• Contact updates ensure your records stay current
• Website changes signal shifts in digital presence

Use case: A competitor changes their name. You discover it the next day through Datawash instead of months later.

2. Post Address

What it includes:

• Street
• Postal code
• Postal area
• Municipality
• Country

Why monitor:

• Companies relocating may signal expansion or contraction
• Address changes affect deliveries and legal correspondence
• Multi-location companies may add or remove sites

Use case: A supplier moves to a new warehouse. Datawash flags the address change, so you update shipping records immediately.

3. Business Address

What it includes:

• Street
• Postal code
• Postal area
• Municipality
• Country

Why monitor:

• Distinguish between post address (mail) and business address (operations)
• Track physical location changes for site visits
• Verify operational presence

Use case: A company's business address changes from Oslo to a smaller municipality—potential cost-cutting or downsizing signal.

4. Organization

What it includes:

• Legal form code
• Legal form description (AS, ASA, NUF, ENK, etc.)

Why monitor:

• Legal form changes indicate restructuring (e.g., from ENK to AS)
• AS to ASA means going public—major strategic shift
• Changes can affect liability, taxation, and risk

Use case: A key vendor changes from AS (limited company) to ENK (sole proprietorship)—your risk profile just changed significantly.

5. Industry Classification (NACE Codes)

What it includes:

• NACE code 1 + description
• NACE code 2 + description
• NACE code 3 + description

Why monitor:

• NACE codes define business activities
• Changes indicate business diversification or pivots
• New codes may signal expansion into your market

Use case (Competitor Intelligence): A competitor adds a new NACE code matching your primary business—they're entering your market.

6. Employees

What it includes:

• Employee count
• Registration date in employee register
• Registration date in VAT register

Why monitor:

• Employee count changes signal growth or contraction
• Rapid hiring indicates expansion
• Layoffs indicate financial trouble or downsizing
• VAT/employer registration changes affect compliance status

Use case (Market Research): You're tracking 50 competitors. Datawash shows 10 are hiring rapidly (growing) while 5 are laying off staff (struggling). Market intelligence at scale.

7. Status Indicators (CRITICAL)

What it includes:

• Bankruptcy (konkurs)
• Under liquidation (underavvikling)
• Forced dissolution (tvangsoppløsning)

Why monitor (THIS IS THE #1 REASON TO USE DATAWASH):

Bankruptcy means the company is insolvent. Engaging with them carries massive risk:

• You may not get paid
• Contracts may be void
• Goods may not be delivered

Liquidation means the company is winding down operations. Similar risks apply.

Forced dissolution means authorities are forcibly closing the company for legal non-compliance. Extreme risk.

Use case (The Most Valuable Alert):

• Monday 08:00: Datawash runs your weekly supplier monitoring
• Result: "Company ABC Logistics AS - Bankruptcy status changed: No → Yes"
• Action: You immediately contact ABC Logistics to verify
• Outcome: They filed bankruptcy Friday evening
• Impact: You stop shipping orders (they can't pay) and activate backup supplier
• You avoided a major loss because you knew within 1 business day instead of discovering it weeks later when invoices went unpaid

That's the value of Datawash status monitoring.

8. VAT & Registers

What it includes:

• VAT registered
• In foundation register
• In employer register
• Other special registers

Why monitor:

• VAT registration indicates active business operations
• Employer register shows they have staff (not a shell company)
• Removal from registers signals problems or closures

Use case: A company is removed from the VAT register. This often precedes bankruptcy or cessation of operations.

9. Other

What it includes:

• Parent organization number
• Purpose description
• Business activity description

Why monitor:

• Parent organization changes indicate mergers, acquisitions, or ownership shifts
• Purpose/activity changes signal strategic pivots
• New parent companies may change risk profiles

Use case (M&A Detection): A supplier's parent organization number changes. They've been acquired. The new parent is financially unstable (you check in Company Lookup). You reassess the supplier relationship before problems arise.

How to Select Fields

When creating a Datawash order, you choose which fields to monitor.

Checkbox Interface

• Each field has a checkbox
• Check the fields you want to monitor
• "Select All" / "Deselect All" buttons for quick actions
• Category grouping for easy browsing
• Preview field count shows how many selected

What to Monitor? Recommendations

Minimum monitoring (Risk alerts only):

• Bankruptcy
• Under liquidation
• Forced dissolution

Even if you don't care about other changes, always monitor these three. Critical alerts that can save you from major losses.

Standard monitoring (Comprehensive):

• Basic information (name, contact)
• Addresses (post and business)
• Status indicators (bankruptcy, liquidation, dissolution)
• Employee count
• Legal form

This covers most business-critical changes without overwhelming you with noise.

Full monitoring (Everything):

• All 57+ fields

Best for compliance-heavy industries or detailed market research.

Recommendation: Start with standard monitoring. You can always adjust later using the "Manage > Settings" tab.

Understanding Report Changes: Added, Changed, Removed

When Datawash runs, it compares current data to previous data and reports changes in three categories:

Added

A data field that was previously empty now has a value.

Example: A company didn't have an email address registered. Now they do.

• Report shows: "Email added: info@company.no"

Changed

A data field that had a value now has a different value.

Example: Company name was "ABC AS." Now it's "ABC Norway AS."

• Report shows: "Name changed: ABC AS → ABC Norway AS"

Removed

A data field that had a value is now empty.

Example: A phone number was registered. Now it's not.

• Report shows: "Phone removed: +47 123 45 678"

Viewing Reports

After each scheduled run, you receive a report.

Report Summary

Each report shows:

• Run date and time
• Companies checked (total count)
• Items added (new data fields that appeared)
• Items changed (data fields that were modified)
• Items removed (data fields that disappeared)

Filter/Group Options

View changes by type:

• All changes
• Additions only
• Changes only
• Removals only
• Status issues only (bankruptcies, liquidations, forced dissolutions)

Start with "Status issues only" to see critical alerts first.

Per-Company View

Each company with changes shows:

• Company name
• Organization number
• Total changes for this company
• Change details:
  • Field name
  • Old value (if changed or removed)
  • New value (if added or changed)
  • Change type (added/changed/removed)
  • Color coding (green = added, yellow = changed, red = removed)

Example:

Company: XYZ Transport AS
Organization Number: 987654321

Changes (3):
1. Address changed: "Storgata 12, 0123 Oslo" → "Industriveien 45, 0456 Bergen"
2. Employee count changed: 25 → 18
3. Bankruptcy status added: "Yes"

That third change? That's a critical alert. XYZ Transport just entered bankruptcy.

Analytics and Trends

Datawash includes visual analytics to help you spot patterns.

Charts Available

Changes Trend Chart:

• Line graph of changes over time
• X-axis: Report dates
• Y-axis: Number of changes
• Separate lines for: Added, Changed, Removed
• Use case: See if change volume is increasing (market volatility?) or stable

Field Change Distribution:

• Bar chart showing which fields changed most frequently
• Sorted by frequency
• Color-coded by change type
• Use case: "Most changes were address updates" vs. "Most changes were bankruptcy status" tells very different stories

Status Issues Chart (THE MOST IMPORTANT):

• Companies with critical problems
• Bankruptcy count
• Liquidation count
• Forced dissolution count
• Percentage of total companies
• Use case: "5% of our suppliers are in bankruptcy" is an immediate red flag requiring action

Check the Status Issues Chart first in every report. If it shows non-zero counts, prioritize those companies immediately.

Real-World Monitoring Strategies

Investment Portfolio Manager: Weekly Monitoring

Fields to monitor:

• Bankruptcy, liquidation, forced dissolution
• Employee count (growth/contraction signals)
• Parent organization (M&A activity)

Frequency: Weekly (every Monday)

Why: Catch problems early. Employee count trends reveal company health. Parent organization changes indicate M&A.

Compliance Officer: Daily Vendor Monitoring

Fields to monitor:

• Bankruptcy, liquidation, forced dissolution
• VAT registration status
• Employer registry status
• Legal form

Frequency: Daily

Why: Regulations require continuous monitoring. Daily checks ensure compliance. VAT/registry changes signal operational issues.

Market Researcher: Competitive Intelligence

Fields to monitor:

• Company name (rebrands)
• NACE codes (business diversification)
• Employee count (growth/contraction)
• Address (expansion/relocation)
• Parent organization (M&A activity)

Frequency: Weekly (every Friday)

Why: Weekly reports reveal market trends. See which competitors are growing, contracting, or being acquired.

Tips for Effective Monitoring

1. Always Monitor Status Indicators

Even if you skip everything else, monitor bankruptcy, liquidation, and forced dissolution. These are critical alerts that can save you from major losses.

2. Choose Frequency Based on Risk

• High risk (active borrowers, critical suppliers): Daily
• Medium risk (portfolio companies, vendors): Weekly
• Low risk (market research): Biweekly

3. Review Reports Promptly

Datawash generates reports automatically, but they only help if you review them. Set a reminder to check reports after each run.

4. Use the Status Issues Chart First

This chart is your red-flag dashboard. Check it first in every report. If it shows non-zero bankruptcy or liquidation counts, prioritize those companies immediately.

5. Adjust Fields as Needs Evolve

Your monitoring needs may change. Use "Manage > Settings" to add or remove fields without recreating the order.

Getting Started

Ready to monitor business changes?

1. Log in to InfoX
2. Navigate to Datawash
3. Create New Order
4. Upload CSV/Excel with organization numbers (start with 10-20 companies for testing)
5. Name the order
6. Set monitoring frequency
7. Select fields (at minimum: bankruptcy, liquidation, forced dissolution)
8. Review and create
9. Wait for first report (next scheduled run)
10. Review changes and explore charts

Start small. Test with a subset. See how reports look. Then scale to your full list.

Conclusion

Monitoring companies manually doesn't scale. Datawash automates it across 9 critical field categories:

1. Basic Information
2. Post Address
3. Business Address
4. Organization
5. Industry Classification
6. Employees
7. Status Indicators (bankruptcy, liquidation, dissolution)
8. VAT & Registers
9. Other (parent organization, purpose, activity)

Select the fields that matter. Set a schedule. Receive automated reports showing exactly what changed.

The status indicators alone—automatic bankruptcy and liquidation detection—are worth the price of admission.

Stop checking companies manually. Automate monitoring. Catch changes before they become problems.