Investor FAQs

As your stock and share plans grow and expand along with your company, Shareworks can help you simplify their administration – no matter how global-reaching they may be. We allow this through a variety of features, including:

• Employee mobility tracking
• Complete international tax calculations and automated withholding
• Support for distributed payroll services and cash settlement in multiple currencies
• A multilingual call center to provide complete plan participant support
• The ability to group data in reports by region, cost center, payroll, department insiders, etc., providing added flexibility for administrators
• The scalability to meet your needs as you grow and expand globally
• And much more

The Shareworks Community was designed to allow you to interact with other users, and with Solium, in an effort to better learn and understand the software and the stock plan administration industry. The Shareworks Community also allows you to:

• Interact with other users to help you improve your grasp of the software's capabilities
• Expand your industry knowledge
• Give your input on the future directions of Shareworks and other Solium services
• Vote and weigh in on topics that Solium seeks feedback on
• Have access to the latest Solium and Shareworks news, products and services
• And much more

Cut out all the time wasted on reconciling plan data – Shareworks' processes are automated to make the recordkeeping process accurate and secure. By automating manual processes, Shareworks offers a variety of other enhanced features, including:

• Instant recordkeeping of every participant transaction within one database, from those of executives to entry-level employees
• One comprehensive platform to integrate all types of plans and rules, simplifying and securing the process of recordkeeping for plan administrators
• One login for all plan types, enabling you to consolidate multiple incentive and award types across multiple stock exchange listings and geographies
• One data source to simplify information management, improve accuracy and ensure all stakeholders have access to the most recent data
• Easily accessible and configurable reports and documents
• Financial disclosure available in real time
• And much more

You have a smart and capable team in place to administer your plans in-house, but sometimes you need some expert guidance to fill in the gaps. Shareworks DIRECT was designed to give you the tools you need to be self-reliant, without leaving you hanging. Some of these features include:

• An automated ticketing system to ensure plan administrators get a prompt response to their questions and concerns
• Access to previously answered questions or items raised by your work colleagues, so you can review these to find quick answers when you need them
• Participant access to our call center by phone or email for help with logging into and managing accounts, retrieving forgotten passwords, and any other general questions/concerns
• And much more

It has never been easier to access the reports and information you need, when you need them. Shareworks allows you security-enabled access to this information, making the reporting process easier for you and everyone on your team. Other benefits include:

• Easily accessible and extractable reporting information for financial statements, expensing, proxy and quarterly reports and other compliance and reporting requirements
• Easily viewable and accessible reports, available through the Shareworks Reporting Center
• Access to information for everyone on your team and all the departments involved with stock plan administration, including HR, treasury, finance, payroll, etc.
• Advanced security features that allow you to control who can access specific data and reports within Shareworks

You want your employees to have the best experience possible when they access their plan, and Shareworks can accommodate that. Our full-service solution is the most user-friendly solution on the market, empowering your employees with 24/7 access to their online accounts, from anywhere with Internet access, and much more. Other features for participants include:

• Real-time stock quotes and direct access to financial markets for transactions and settlement
• Three-day fund settlement periods for rapid receipt of proceeds
• The ability to view awards and holdings in 30 currencies
• Self-serve online statements and complete history of all transactions
• Automated alerts on new grants, vesting periods, expiry of options and blackouts
• Real-time and self-serve trade execution solution enabling both market and limit orders
• The ability to exercise from multiple grants in the same transaction
• 22 alternative exercise types supported

As a plan administrator, reducing compliance risks is one of your top priorities – if not your main one. Shareworks was designed to a) help you keep your plan data and associated reporting accurate and compliant with industry regulations (such as FAS 123(r) / FASB / ASC 718, Sarbanes Oxley and IFRS), and b) accurately report your information. We do this by leveraging the following features:

• Automated processes to help you protect against errors and liabilities resulting from manual processes
• Easily accessible data history for audit trails
• Robust security features, safeguarding against inaccuracies such as transactions during blackout periods or after an employee termination
• Reliable, pre-configured reports and tools to easily prepare the information required for your expensing and financial reports
• One single platform and database to keep record of all your transactions, consolidate all your equity plans and enable administrators and participants to access the same up-to-date information

Keeping your data compliant with industry standards isn't enough – it should also be kept secure. We ensure this several ways:

• Create security settings for each corporate user, designating who can and can't access specific reports as well as certain areas of data within those reports thanks to Shareworks' matrix-level security
• Enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your data integrity is maintained with a single database housed in Tier 1 centers, with full redundancy
• Protect your participants' transactions with Shareworks' 256-bit encryption, the highest level of security for transmitting confidential data over the internet
• Rest assured you are using a reliable provider with Solium's rolling SAS 70 Type II certification

You have important things to do. Shareworks was designed to manage the small details involved with stock plan administration for you. Shareworks allows you to automate more processes than most solutions such as:

• Distributing grants and allowing review and acceptance online
• Scheduling blackouts in advance for all your participants or by employee groups
• Calculating taxes on grant exercises (when applicable)
• Withholding taxes and delivering proceeds to distributed payroll in the preferred currency
• Notifying participants of plan events such as new grants, vesting dates, grant expirations, blackout periods, transaction activity, etc.
• And so much more

Do you dread the thought of a lengthy process involved with migrating your current plans over to new ones? Have you been putting it off for this reason? You don't have to worry when you work with Solium – our implementation team knows how important it is to make the process as painless and easy as possible for you and your team.

• Our team has more than a decade of experience working with migrating plans for clients of all sizes and complexities
• Our team understands that you don't have a lot of time and effort to devote to migrating your plans over
• Our implementation process – for plans of all sizes and complexities – has been refined to require as little time and resources from your team as possible
• We will look after all the small details for you while you continue to focus on your own priorities

As your stock and share plans grow and expand along with your company, Shareworks can help you simplify their administration – no matter how global-reaching they may be. We allow this through a variety of features, including:

• Employee mobility tracking
• Complete international tax calculations and automated withholding
• Support for distributed payroll services and cash settlement in multiple currencies
• A multilingual call center to provide complete plan participant support
• The ability to group data in reports by region, cost center, payroll, department insiders, etc., providing added flexibility for administrators
• The scalability to meet your needs as you grow and expand globally
• And much more

Your team is experienced and capable but we can help you fill in the gaps where you need assistance, or we can take on parts of your stock plan administration where required. When you choose Solium, you will also have access to:

• Our entire team of experts, and their decades of experience in the stock plan administration industry
• A qualified group of implementation specialists to get you up and running in no time
• Your own assigned account team, dedicated to providing the best stock plan administration experience
• Our call center, available Monday to Friday by phone or email, to assist your participants with their plan management or any questions or concerns
• An unmatched technology backed by a passionate team of skilled software developers

Cut out all the time wasted on reconciling plan data – Shareworks' processes are automated to make the recordkeeping process accurate and secure. By automating manual processes Shareworks offers a variety of other enhanced features, including:

• Instant recordkeeping of every participant transaction within one database, from those of executives to those of entry-level employees
• One comprehensive platform to integrate all types of plans and rules, simplifying and securing the process of recordkeeping for plan administrators
• One login for all plan types, enabling you to consolidate multiple incentive and award types across multiple stock exchange listings and geographies
• One data source to simplify information management, improve accuracy and ensure all stakeholders have access to the most recent data
• Easily accessible and configurable reports and documents
• Financial disclosure available in real time
• And much more

You have important things to do. Our full-service Shareworks solution was designed to manage the small details involved with stock plan administration for you. Let us take care of the administrative jobs, so you can concentrate on more important things. We will help you with:

• Loading new grants
• Entering demographic information
• Managing grant acceptances, blackouts, terminations and forfeitures
• Notifying participants of major plan events
• Preparing tax slips such as Forms 3921 and 3922 for IRC Section 6039 requirements
• Automating processes that you previously had to do manually
• And more

It has never been easier to access the reports and information you need, when you need them. Shareworks allows you security-enabled access to this information, making the reporting process easier for you and everyone on your team. Other benefits include:

• Easily accessible and extractable reporting information for financial statements, expensing, proxy and quarterly reports and other compliance and reporting requirements
• Easily viewable and accessible reports, available through the Shareworks Reporting Center
• Access to information for everyone on your team and all the departments involved with stock plan administration, including HR, treasury, finance, payroll, etc.
• Advanced security features that allow you to control who can access specific data and reports within Shareworks

You want your employees to have the best experience possible when they access their plan, and Shareworks can accommodate that. Shareworks is the most user-friendly option on the market, empowering your employees with 24/7 access to their online accounts from anywhere with Internet access, and much more. Other features for participants include:

• Real-time stock quotes and direct access to financial markets for transactions and settlements
• Three-day settlement periods for rapid receipt of proceeds
• The ability to view awards and holdings in 30 different currencies
• Self-serve online statements and complete history of all transactions
• Automated alerts on new grants, vesting periods, expiry of options and blackouts
• Real-time and self-serve trade execution solution enabling both market and limit orders
• The ability to exercise from multiple grants in the same transaction
• 22 alternative exercise types supported

As a plan administrator, reducing compliance risks is one of your top priorities – if not your main one. Shareworks was designed to a) help you keep your plan data and associated reporting accurate and compliant with industry regulations (such as FAS 123(r) / FASB / ASC 718, Sarbanes Oxley and IFRS 2), and b) accurately report your information. We do this by leveraging the following features:

• Automated processes to help you protect against errors and liabilities resulting from manual processes
• Easily accessible data history for audit trails
• Robust security features, safeguarding against inaccuracies such as transactions during blackout periods or after an employee termination
• Reliable, pre-configured reports and tools to easily prepare the information required for your expensing and financial reports
• One single platform and database to keep record of all your transactions, consolidate all your equity plans and enable administrators and participants to access the same up-to-date information

Keeping your data compliant with industry standards isn't enough – it should also be kept secure. We allow you to:

• Create security settings for each corporate user, designating who can and can't access specific reports as well as certain areas of data within those reports thanks to Shareworks' matrix-level security
• Enjoy the peace of mind that comes with knowing your data integrity is maintained with a single database housed in Tier 1 centers, with full redundancy
• Protect your participants' transactions with Sharworks' 256-bit encryption, the highest level of security for transmitting confidential data over the internet
• Rest assured you are using a reliable provider with Solium's rolling SAS 70 Type II certification

You want a full-service solution for your stock plan administration, but you also want to retain ultimate control of your plan, and have quick and easy access to your data whenever you need it. At Solium, we understand this. Our unique, fully encompassing solution was designed to give you the best of both worlds by allowing you not only the peace of mind that comes with outsourcing your administration services, but also the ability to:

• Access the information you need, when you need it
• Run your own real-time reports at any time
• Enable security-controlled access for all your plan administrators
• Add time-sensitive blackouts at any time, from anywhere with Internet access and a browser connection
• Contact your assigned account team to obtain additional information about your plans – such as plan rules, grant information, etc. – or with any issues or concerns

Do you dread the thought of a lengthy and intrusive process new plan implementation? Have you been putting off switching over your current equity incentive plans to a new administration solution for the same reason? You don't have to worry about this when you work with Solium. Our implementation team knows how important it is to make the process as painless and easy as possible for you. A few more benefits to our process:

• Our implementation team has more than a decade of experience working with clients and plans of all sizes and complexities
• Our team requires as little of your time and resources as possible
• Our client training ensures your plan administrators are fully acclimated to Shareworks as soon as it's up and running
• Your data will be balanced to your starting point without any need for auditor explanations
• Our streamlined brokerage integration will ensure you're up and running without undue delays