FOUNDING DESIGN PARTNER PROGRAM
Help shape a sustainability system built around real operational work
OCEANS™ Sustainability — carbon-accounting software for growing US manufacturers — is in active product development. Access is currently limited to founding design partners: a small group of growing companies and sustainability practitioners helping test assumptions, examine workflows, and influence how it develops.
Not ready to join product development? Founder-led questionnaire support is available now, separately from this program — see the EcoVadis/OEM response sprint.
What a design partnership means
A design partner may:
- Share current sustainability workflows and pain points
- Help identify where spreadsheets, evidence, and ownership become disconnected
- Review early workflow concepts or product capabilities
- Provide structured practical feedback
- Help determine which improvements create meaningful operational value
We do not promise free software, discounts, exclusivity, priority support, or guaranteed product influence as part of this program.
What you'll actually review
- The same product-preview screens shown across the platform pages, walked through against your own data scenarios
- The calculation methodology — how a result connects to its source record, method, and emission factor
- Early workflow concepts for supplier data collection and Scope 3 categorization, before they are finalized
- Draft reporting outputs, to confirm they match what your team would actually need to share
Who this is for
- Sustainability managers
- EHS leaders
- Operations or facilities teams
- Finance and procurement stakeholders
- Growing companies building their first repeatable carbon-accounting process
- Companies replacing spreadsheet-led reporting
- Teams facing customer, investor, or regulatory information requests
What participants should expect
- 1
Initial fit conversation
A short conversation to understand your context and whether there is a reasonable fit.
- 2
Workflow discovery
We look at how your team currently collects, calculates, and reports sustainability data.
- 3
Agreed participation scope
We agree in writing what the collaboration will and will not involve.
- 4
Structured review or pilot activity
Hands-on work against the agreed scope — reviewing concepts, testing workflows, or both.
- 5
Feedback and next-step decision
We review what was learned together and agree on a sensible next step.
Submitting an application does not guarantee acceptance.
What OCEANS™ will protect
- Respect for participants' time
- Clear meeting objectives
- No request for confidential operational information through the public form
- Agreement on what may be shared
- Honest distinction between current product capabilities and future direction
New to OCEANS™ Sustainability? Read About OCEANS™ Sustainability before applying.
Apply to become a design partner
This application is more qualifying than a general enquiry, but still concise. Please do not include confidential operational information.
Frequently asked questions
What does being a Founding Design Partner involve?
Sharing your current sustainability workflows and pain points, helping identify where spreadsheets, evidence, and ownership become disconnected, reviewing early workflow concepts or product capabilities, providing structured practical feedback, and helping determine which improvements create meaningful operational value.
What will I actually get to review?
The same product-preview screens shown across the platform pages, walked through against your own data scenarios; the calculation methodology; early workflow concepts for supplier data collection and Scope 3 categorization, before they are finalized; and draft reporting outputs, to confirm they match what your team would actually need to share.
Who is the Founding Design Partner Program for?
Sustainability managers, EHS leaders, operations or facilities teams, finance and procurement stakeholders, growing companies building their first repeatable carbon-accounting process, companies replacing spreadsheet-led reporting, and teams facing customer, investor, or regulatory information requests.
What does the process look like after I apply?
Five stages: an initial fit conversation, workflow discovery (how your team currently collects, calculates, and reports data), an agreed participation scope in writing, structured review or pilot activity against that scope, and a feedback and next-step decision.
Will I be asked to share confidential operational information?
No confidential operational information is requested through the public form. What may be shared is agreed explicitly, meeting objectives are kept clear, and the distinction between current product capabilities and future direction is stated honestly throughout.
Not ready to apply?
Read why we are building OCEANS™ this way, or explore the platform directly.