Methodology
How Verinode benchmarks are built.
Every benchmark you see in the Verinode platform is the combination of two independent pillars: Verinode Research and the Verinode Network. This page describes the architecture, the trust tiers, the published source catalog, and the governance that keeps it honest.
We do not accept payment, sponsorship, or vendor relationships in exchange for source weighting. Operator data is never sold to carriers, vendors, or TPAs.
Last updated: May 2026
How a Verinode benchmark is built
Every Verinode benchmark in the platform combines two independent pillars. Neither pillar speaks for itself; triangulation is structural, not optional.
Pillar 1
Verinode Research
Industry data points from public and licensed sources, weighted by methodological validity, sample size, and recency. We do not republish any one source; we synthesize an industry view across many. Source names appear here on this page, never inline next to a benchmark in the product.
Pillar 2
Verinode Network
Live, anonymized data from the Operator network. Cohorts are scoped national, regional, or peer-group depending on data density. Below the data-density threshold the metric falls back to the Research pillar alone. Operator data never flows backward to individual Operator identities outside their own account.
The two pillars combine at read time into the published Verinode benchmark. Click any benchmark in the product to see the breakdown (Research vs Network vs Combined) and the trust tier earned by the data behind it.
Trust tiers
Every benchmark in the product carries a trust tier. The tier reflects the underlying evidence: not what the number says, but what the data behind it can support.
- Indicative
- Two independent methodologies agree within a narrow band, but the third publisher hasn’t joined yet, or one source carries dominant weight. Use directionally; pair with judgment.
- Verified Research
- Three or more independent methodologies converge with no single publisher dominating. Defensible in a leadership meeting. The synthesizer’s confidence is high.
- Combined
- Verified Research layered with live Operator-network data from a sufficient peer cohort. The strongest signal Verinode publishes: your peers’ actual behaviour weighted with the broader industry research.
2 distinct publishers
3+ distinct publishers, balanced weight
Research + Network
When a metric has fewer than 2 distinct publisher methodologies, we do not publish a Verinode Research benchmark for it. Single-source pass-through is never published as Verinode Research; that would be rebranding someone else’s data, not synthesizing.
Disagreement between sources is surfaced openly: when contributing sources disagree by more than 30% on a metric, the benchmark carries a visible caveat tag.
Research sources
The following sources contribute inputs to Verinode Research. They are listed alphabetically and treated equally on this page. Exact weights and source mixes are not published; that is part of the Verinode Research methodology, governed by the Operator Advisory Council.
A source listed here is not necessarily contributing to every metric. Each source covers a different slice of the Restoration intelligence surface.
ADP Research
Comp and labor
ADP National Employment Report
ADP payroll-data-derived monthly employment and wage trends. Operational data from the largest payroll processor; methodology disclosed.
AHRI
Trade directory
AHRI Certified Equipment Directory
Air-Conditioning Heating and Refrigeration Institute equipment certification directory. Manufacturer-attested specs; deterministic and verifiable.
AM Best
Carrier data
Financial Strength Ratings
AM Best carrier financial strength ratings. Trust signal for carrier program decisions.
BLS
Government
Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics annual wage data by occupation × state × metro. Already used by the Verinode compensation benchmarker.
BLS
Government
Employment Cost Index
BLS quarterly compensation cost index. Used for wage-inflation deflation and forward comp projections.
BLS
Government
Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses
BLS annual workplace injury and illness incidence rates by industry. Drives Verinode safety benchmarks.
C&R Magazine × KnowHow
Industry survey
2026 State of the Industry Report
Annual restoration industry self-report survey covering revenue, AR, TPA reliance, AI adoption, workforce, M&A, and vendor preferences. Free with email gate. Methodology not fully disclosed; sample size not published. Covers FY2025 calendar year.
C&R Magazine × KnowHow
Industry survey
2025 State of the Industry Report
Annual restoration industry self-report survey. Covers FY2024 partial-year data.
C&R Magazine × KnowHow
Industry survey
2024 State of the Industry Report
Annual restoration industry self-report survey. Covers FY2023 partial-year data.
C&R Magazine × KnowHow
Industry survey
2025 State of the Industry Pulse Check
Mid-year recalibration survey from the SOTI authors. Smaller sample than the full annual; lower validity weight.
CFMA
Industry consultant
Construction Industry Annual Financial Survey
Construction Financial Management Association annual financial benchmark covering AR aging, days sales outstanding, and balance-sheet ratios. Construction-industry breadth (broader than restoration), used for AR / collection benchmarks where restoration cuts are sparse.
IBBA
Broker research
Market Pulse Quarterly Report
International Business Brokers Association quarterly small-business M&A survey. Broker self-reported; lower validity weight reflects limited methodology transparency.
Indeed Hiring Lab
Comp and labor
Posted Wage Trends
Indeed posted-wage tracker. Real-time leading indicator of comp shifts vs lagging BLS data. Methodology partially disclosed.
JD Power
Carrier data
U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study
JD Power consumer-side property claims satisfaction rankings. Independent triangulation of carrier reputation. Methodology partially proprietary.
NACM
Industry consultant
Credit Managers' Index
National Association of Credit Management monthly survey of credit conditions across construction and other sectors. Useful for AR / collection-velocity directional signals.
NAIC
Carrier data
Market Conduct Annual Statement / Complaint Index
National Association of Insurance Commissioners regulatory data. Carrier-level complaint ratios and claim payment timeliness. Mandatory reporting, independent of carrier marketing.
NOAA
Weather
Storm Events Database
NOAA observational database of every CAT event with location and damage estimate. Drives revenue-forecasting and CAT-corridor signals.
RIA
Industry consultant
RIA Cost of Doing Business 2025
Restoration Industry Association annual benchmark on operating costs, margin, COGS, and AR. Accountant-validated submissions; methodology disclosed publicly. Covers FY2024 data.
SHRM
Industry survey
SHRM Benchmark Surveys
Society for Human Resource Management annual benchmark surveys covering compensation, benefits, turnover, healthcare coverage, and burnout policy practices. Methodology disclosed; sample sizes published.
U.S. Census Bureau
Government
Construction Spending (Value of Construction Put in Place)
Census monthly residential vs commercial put-in-place values. Independent triangulation of restoration service-mix shifts.
Verinode | Research
Verinode Research
Verinode Research evaluations and methodology studies
Verinode | Research is the publication arm of the Restoration Operator Trust. Outputs include adjuster scorecard methodology, per-carrier days-to-pay retrospectives, canonical-COA mapping evaluations, vendor ROI evaluations, and process supplement-to-SOP anchor evaluations. All Research outputs are reviewed by the Operator Advisory Council before contributing weight.
Cadence: continuousCoverage: US · CA
New sources are added through the Operator Advisory Council approval process described below. When a new source contributes weight to a published benchmark, it appears here before its data flows.
Operator Advisory Council
The Operator Advisory Council is the governance body that advises on Verinode’s research methodology and data handling. The Council ratifies the validity-scoring framework, reviews drift signals on published benchmarks, and approves new sources before they contribute weight to Verinode Research.
Council membership, composition, and the full Charter are published at verinode.ai/council. Operator interest in serving on the Council goes to [email protected].
Contact
- Methodology questions and factual corrections: [email protected]
- Operator Advisory Council inquiries: [email protected]