Founded in 1969, NIRI is the professional association of corporate officers and investor relations consultants responsible for communication among corporate management, shareholders, securities analysts and other financial community constituents. The largest professional investor relations association in the world, NIRI’s more than 4,000 members represent 2,000 publicly held companies and $5.4 trillion in stock market capitalization.
Members - Please be sure to click on your name to view more services after login is completed. If membership is about to expire, click on the red text to process your renewal. Not a Member? Your Membership in NIRI entitles you to a wide range of services. Online Membership Join
Add Sessions headlines to your news reader:
Or, paste the URL in the box below into your preferred RSS reader.
Reg. FD (Fair Disclosure) has been a topic of discussion for several years; however, recently, the SEC issued additional guidance with regard to Reg. FD which completely contradicted several general concepts of the original regulation. This workshop will discuss the ins and outs of complying with Reg. FD.
Session Cancelled - No Audio
Have you ever thought of yourself as a brand? Certainly as IR professionals, we are responsible for building, maintaining and defending our corporate brand and reputation. But, from your personal career perspective it's important to proactively manage your personal brand as well. This workshop will discuss the commonalities of a corporate and personal brand, the attributes of a powerful personal branding strategy and methods to charter your own brand attributes.
Learn from an IR team's experiences before planning your next investor day. Participants in this in-depth workshop will walk through planning, logistics, execution and follow up, and will receive examples of agendas, checklists, timelines and follow-up surveys with emphasis on addressing specific participant questions. Take this opportunity to find out about recent trends for investor meetings, tips for content and presenters, bringing in outside speakers and pitfalls to avoid.
Today's business leaders are challenged in new ways by rapidly changing audiences and new communications venues. A multitude of individuals with varying perspectives are involved in the conversation on virtually any issue. It's crucial that executives and others know how to cut through the clutter and be effective in communicating information in both formal and informal venues. This workshop provides hands-on learning through videotaped exercises and simulations to provide participants with new diagnostic tools to strengthen both strategic thinking and message delivery skills.
What is the state of IR outside the U.S.? What are the implications for you? Hear practices and tactics from around the world in a lively discussion of IR society leaders and professionals from Australia, Brazil, Egypt, France and more. The panel will compare and contrast investor relations strategies and approaches from around the world, and provide an update on best practices. The NIRI International Reception will immediately follow the session.
The SEC has stepped up enforcement and investor protection initiatives amid an environment of near continuous change for IROs. The clock is ticking on Chairman Shapiro's team to act as the Administration and Congress face the impact of mid-term elections and growing dissent on Main Street. Hear directly from SEC leadership on what is next while having the opportunity to ask your questions in this interactive dialog.
IR is faced with a challenge to take on greater leadership in the new governance environment. Investor centric regulations mean investor relationships have greater importance to management and Boards. Increased enforcement actions mean an increase in professional risk for all public facing in financial communications. Hear from key governance players their leading issues in moving to the new world, and learn what IR can do to meet challenges to comply with regulations and stay in front of new investor actions.
NOTE: Breakout discussions are in various meeting rooms in the hotel.
Aerospace & Defense - Location: Madeleine D
Banking / Financial Services - Location: Douglas D
BioPharma - Location: Annie AB
Building Materials - Location: Del Mar A
Chemicals - Location: Del Mar B
Consumer - Location: Ford A
Energy / Oil & Gas - Location: America's Cup C
Healthcare - Location: Emma A
Insurance - Location: Ford B
Leisure Time Products/Hospitality - Location: Madeleine C
Manufacturing/Conglomerates - Location: Cunningham AB
Media & Entertainment - Location: Cunningham C
Medical Technology & Devices - Location: Maggie
Mining - Location: Moshen A
Real Estate - Location: Moshen B
Restaurants - Location: Madeleine A
Retail - Location: Gibbons
Semiconductor / Solar - Location: America's Cup D
Service & Service Providers - Location: Madeleine B
Technology - Hardware & Peripherals - Location: Emma BC
Technology - Internet & Software - Location: Randle DE
Telecommunication - Location: Ford C
Utilities and Power - Location: America's Cup AB
Look for breakout discussion locations in the program book.
Learn the basics of options and derivatives and their applicability to your company. Gain a quick appreciation of standard option trading and portfolio risk management strategies that impact your stock. This session is aimed at helping the IRO understand and explain unusual activity not directly related to the company's story.
Equity trading has drastically changed over the last ten years. As investor relations officers, it's essential that we understand the effect this innovation has had on our stock and on the information available to us. We'll make sense out of many of the recent developments, such as dark pools, flash orders, high frequency trading, etc, and drill down to what it all means to the practice of investor relations. We'll take what we learn to follow the process of how a stock trades from start to settlement.
Highlights of capital markets changes that impact trading:
This session is designed to help you understand the debt markets architecture, debt jargon, and how to service the information needs of the debt community. Learn about best practice in debt investor relations, including
With the rise of shareholder proposals, "say on pay" initiatives and a push for proxy access, the trend has been clear for some time: shareholders are demanding more input in the boardroom. The market meltdown is likely to intensify these demands, and boards need to be prepared. Topics for the presentation include: shareholders increasingly reaching out directly to directors; most BODs have no formal communication policy in place; no best practice established; directors often untrained in Reg. FD; directors uninformed on company's public disclosures; legal liability and shareholder impact are key concerns; and IROs should own this area working directly with the BOD on this hot topic.
For those wondering if there is a next level career step above and beyond the role of investor relations at a publicly traded firm, this panel presentation will provide various insights as to how this can be accomplished with great success. Intended to be presented from four different viewpoints:
Within the past few years, some companies have combined their financial and corporate sustainability or responsibility disclosure into "one report." Our panelists will share why or why not their companies have adopted integrated reporting, and how they are incorporating CR objectives and metrics into their financial reporting, including the challenges and how they were met. We'll learn what has been the impact with investors, analysts and others of importance to their business, and whether taking an integrated approach has led to benefits in capital markets. We'll also explore the pitfalls and whether the business case for the combined report is firm or in flux.
The Restoring American Financial Stability Act has very recently been debated and voted on by the US Senate, following similar processes in the US House of Representatives. Both chambers have debated hundreds of amendments and far-reaching proposals affecting all aspects of the financial services industry including capital markets, consumer finance, and shareholder communications. IRO practitioners need to be informed as to how their company's capital structure, market access, and financial service relationships may change in the future. This session will provide insight into content, political process, market impact, and IRO perspective on handling the uncertainty of legislative/regulatory changes.
The intense spotlight on corporate governance has brought about "game-changing" proposals from the SEC as well as numerous bills in Congress related to proxy access and proxy disclosures. For example, by the 2011 proxy season, shareholders most likely will have the ability to nominate directors on a company's own proxy materials and will have a non-binding say on executive pay. Probably most significantly, directors in 2011 will probably be subject to majority voting in uncontested elections. Investor relations practitioners need to be ready for dramatic changes in how public companies communicate through proxy materials and about corporate governance practices. This session will provide a review of recent changes, a review of the 2010 proxy season in light of recent changes, an update on the status of changes expected for the next proxy season, and advice on how to best prepare to communicate in the new proxy environment. An important discussion area will be how to implement an effective board-shareholder-proxy advisor communications program as proxy changes and proxy advisor standards create an environment of increased and complex communications among management, boards of directors and stakeholders.
In the first few years, understanding the key areas of focus, available resources and potential pit falls is critical to succeeding in your role as an IR professional, whether you are the lead or support. Panelists will delve into:
Less experienced analysts covering an increasing number of names has led to the dilution of talent and quality of equity research from the sell-side. Buy side investors are less reliant on the sell-side and increasingly looking for the IRO to fill the void. Speakers will discuss what buy-side analysts and portfolio manager expect of the IRO.
Throughout different industries, sub-sectors, market caps, style-types (growth, GARP, hedge, value, income, index, quant, technical, risks, allocation decisions), what makes a stock come across the buy-side's screen? What drives an investor to buy your stock vs. your peers? What fundamental, strategic and financial metrics are most important to investors with different investment styles? What methods do the buy side use to buy, sell, and/or hold?
"How can I make use of social media and not get in trouble?" "How much time do I have to devote to social media to be effective?" "Does social media really have an impact on investment decisions and shareholder value?" "What is the future of social media in an IR context?" These questions precede every company's venture into this new communications platform.
In 2009 we heard from Dell and Cisco on how they manage and grow their IR social media programs. What has changed in the past 12 months? What's no longer necessary, what is now mandatory and what have they learned? This session will help IROs understand the role of social media can play in their organizations, maneuver around potential pitfalls and learn the tips and tricks to create a solid, easy-to-manage online investor program.
In a changing governance and capital market landscape finance's role evolves with that of IR. Credibility and ethics have the same seat as communicating the story and helping management demonstrate performance. What do CFOs need from IR? How do they perceive their future roles? Hear firsthand perspective to help formulate programs supportive of management.
Changes in the capital markets continue to create challenges for small and mid cap companies, with strategic investor targeting framing the foundation for a solid outreach program. Hear how proven practices in working both sides of the Street have successfully broken the mold of the small-cap targeting dilemma. Panelists will focus on creative targeting strategies, targeting tools and resources, maximizing nondeal roadshows with or without the sell side, and the importance of reaching markets off the beaten track.
Attracting and retaining quality investors can have a dramatic impact on your company's valuation and volatility. Identifying investors that will respond to the value of your company's message can be based on various factors including, investment style, recent buying patterns and industry. Learn how to utilize market intelligence from your sell-side and surveillance firms to enhance your targeting plans. By understanding how to target investors and evaluate market data, IROs can manage the time they and their executives spend engaging with investors more effectively. Participants will also learn how to interpret feedback and measure the success of their targeting efforts.
Intense public scrutiny of corporate conduct has made ethics a risk factor for investors. IROs have therefore assumed a more central role in supporting companies' sustainability. Their success requires a broadened awareness and a new set of tools.
NIRI member Peter Firestein, a reputation management consultant, will be interviewed by NIRI Ethics Council member David W. Olson on today's ethics. Firestein, author of "Crisis of Character: Building Corporate Reputation in the Age of Skepticism" will answer your ethics and reputation questions during this interactive session.
Ever wonder about how the SEC works? This session covers the most current issues on the SEC's plate, including CD&A, dark pools, hedge fund regulation, website disclosure rules, the SEC reorganization, and regulatory priorities targeted for the next several years. Special emphasis will be placed on the SEC's new enforcement environment and how to establish and maintain compliance, integrity and tone at the top within your organization.
Many investor relations practitioners regard social media as a potential communications tool for their IR programs. However, there are myriad questions about how to use social media most effectively, and how to stay in compliance with SEC regulations. For example, should social media be used to simply disseminate publicly disclosed information (such as an earnings release), or should IROs, or even senior management, respond to investor questions through a social media platform? These questions need to be thoroughly examined through the application of Reg. FD and other regulations prior to implementing any social media activity. The panel will discuss these issues and explore the need for corporate "social media policies."
The financial uncertainty of the past 18 months has resulted in companies questioning their earnings guidance policies. Will the Street penalize companies that "go dark" and stop providing guidance? On the flip side, not providing guidance can keep a company from being boxed in and having to live up to certain targets.
Not providing guidance can also result in wild and diverse analyst estimates.
Then add the complexity of today's market environment and many questions arise like:
While the IRO may not be responsible for selecting how its company complies with the SEC XBRL mandate, it is imperative the IRO be prepared to field questions about its organization's financial statements in XBRL format. Therefore, this session will cover:
The Web has transformed how businesses communicate. Companies now have access to huge audiences, more control over how and when to communicate, and access to direct feedback on their messages--all while leveraging significant cost-efficiencies. Despite these benefits, the disclosure process has not fully embraced Web technologies.
Aside from saving money, the web provides direct access to investors and the media. And by driving traffic to their IR website, companies are able to measure the true impact of their disclosures across the institutional and retail investment, traditional and social media communities.
Learn how you can extend the advantages of Web 2.0 to the disclosure process. Go beyond compliance to increase the effectiveness of your disclosures:
Main Street,Wall Street, Capitol Hill. The economic crisis has led to a ground swell of reform and fundamentally changed the terms of the regulation debate. Today's dialogue among business leaders and legislators is driven by a public mandate to create a U.S. system of regulation that is more comprehensive, effective and responsive to the needs of investors, consumers and regulators.
Clarke D. Camper, Senior Vice President, Head of Government Affairs and Public Advocacy at NYSE Euronext, will share his insight about how the NYSE is helping to shape reform on behalf of the issuer community.
Learning Objectives
The new regulatory environment will make the investor relations role more critical to senior management. Attendees will gain unique insight regarding reform that will directly impact their shareholders, and board of directors:
An in-depth discussion with leading capital markets professionals and C-level execs offering varied perspectives into the capital raising process and corporate interactions with investment banks. Ipreo's Lunch-and-Learn panel will examine the recent trends in the capital raising process, the current market environment, issuer considerations, how issuers can effectively work with their bankers, and how IROs can be more involved and add value in the deal process.
Many growing companies reach a point where they need to raise equity capital and issue additional stock in order to fulfill their growth objectives. If your CFO told you tomorrow your firm was evaluating capital raising options, would you be ready to weigh in on possible funding mechanisms, discuss the impacts on your shareholder base, propose a marketing approach and maybe even suggest sources of capital and timing? This session will illustrate how an IRO can add exceptional value at each stage of the capital raising process with your management, advisors, and investors.
Previously, if shareholders had not provided voting instructions 10 days prior to the annual shareholder meeting, brokers were able to exercise discretionary voting for "routine" or uncontested elections. With the amended NYSE Rule 452 approved by SEC in July-2009, brokers are no longer permitted to vote un-instructed shares in an uncontested direction election. In conjunction with other implemented corporate governance and regulatory changes, Rule 452 will likely have a significant effect -- negatively impacting small to mid-cap publicly traded companies with considerable retail shareholder base while enhancing the influence of institutional investors, proxy advisory firms and shareholder activists.
Challenges resulting from amended NYSE Rule 452:
Gain insight into establishing expertise and credibility with executive management and BOD, as well as developing your team. Key areas of focus for the panelists will include:
As IR professionals build the foundation to qualify for opportunities beyond mid-level jobs, what framework will help their decision making? How does a Manager make the leap to Director and possibly VP? What are the emerging trends to watch that will impact IR jobs e.g. the alignment/integration between IR and CorpCom and the use of social media? And, what skill sets are required? Classic IR posts will not vanish and deciding which of several diverging career paths fit, once you have mastered the basics, will clarify the direction to take.
As companies continue to build robust and information-filled Web sites, are corporate sites the future tool for fair disclosure? First, companies must demonstrate their sites are recognized source of important information. After that, companies should ask themselves if they really want to use their site as the Reg. FD tool. What are the advantages and what are the disadvantages?
As competition for capital increases domestically and internationally, roadshows are a core feature of any successful IR Plan. This session will bring together a complementary set of expertise that will address the challenges of small caps with little to no sell-side or media coverage, as well as the needs of larger caps on the global capital markets. Participants will learn how to set objectives for their roadshow programs, develop a strategic annual calendar that optimizes management time, utilize market intelligence and leverage performance scorecards which will allow them to measure the effectiveness of their program before they hit the road again.
Facilitated by a leading sustainable and responsible investor, this hot-topic open conversation with your peers will dive into the state of this investment style and what IR should know. Topics are open to the group and may include:
Through case studies and audience participation, IROs will learn how to leverage the power of plain English writing and information design to turn complex financial statements and regulatory reports into clear, easily understandable communications. See how IROs are setting new standards for disclosure transparency and communicating their business strategy and financial performance more effectively to investors. By analyzing what information investors need to make informed decisions, by presenting that information in more reader-friendly formats, IROs can more effectively communicate with institutional investors, analysts and other key stakeholders.
New technologies and regulations are changing how public companies disclose information. The roadmap has called for the SEC to decide by 2011 whether to proceed with mandatory adoption of IFRS that could lead to retiring US GAAP and adopting IFRS in the US. Ultimately, based of the SEC's view of what's better for the capital markets and best for investors, financial reporting in the US will be influenced by IFRS over the next few years.
How can IRO's leverage the value of these global financial reporting changes? What best practices are emerging among IROs and analysts and how can you improve your productivity and be prepared for analyst questions?
A sluggish economic environment has caused many firms to rethink how they carry out their investor relations function. And in a market environment that is still facing a number of challenges, now is the time to re-examine your IR best practices to ensure your program is running as efficiently as possible.
The program will cover from three different perspectives tips and tactics for developing a best in breed IR program:
Investor Relations change as much and as fast as the regulatory landscape. Is it evolution or revolution? Evolving buy- and sell-side dynamics reform IR marketing and the investment process. Proxy changes immediately impose new types of investor conversations. And, more investment process transformation is to come. Hear the investor perspective on how companies and investors will interact, and learn what investors would like to see from IR.
Globalization, regulations, and market structure changes have and will continue to press evolution in how issuers interact with their equity exchanges. While evolution offers great opportunity for innovation, it also adds uncertainty among issuers trying to stay informed and be out in front of change. In this unprecedented gathering of your exchange leadership, hear insight and deliberative discussion on the future of markets, hearing directly from key players their perspective on change.
Equities are like needles in a haystack--easily overlooked by the Street, especially in a market consumed by the volatility of the economic environment. How can issuers increase demand for their stock in the midst of the changing regulatory and economic environment? How can you improve the balance of your shareholder mix and establish ongoing investor support? Reaching prospective investors takes a consistent, focused and proactive approach augmented by strong relationship management. While face-to-face meetings are the cornerstone of an IR outreach program, alternative targeting methods, including a global reach, require looking beyond the obvious.
Everything we thought we knew about the capital markets has drastically changed over the last ten years. This workshop will touch on the three pillars of our capital markets: trading, research and equity capital markets. In this workshop, we'll make sense out of all the recent changes in the capital markets and drill down to what it all means to the practice of investor relations. By the end of this seminar, you'll leave as a more powerful IRO.
Highlights of capital markets changes:
Do you wonder how the buy-side creates financial models for your company? What is the buy side looking for when they call an IRO to walk through financial statements? In this session, you will learn the key components to building a model, the factors and value drivers based on earnings power, growth assumptions, EPS forecasting and cash flow generation.
This workshop focuses on the development and delivery of investor presentations. As IROs communicate with the investment community, their PowerPoint presentations are an important component of their communication. For a presentation to be well received, the slides must effectively convey the company's story, and the speaker's delivery must be dynamic and persuasive. To provide advice on how to develop an effective investor slide deck, the workshop will include real-world examples of effective and ineffective use of PowerPoint. From these examples, attendees will be able to apply effective slide graphics and messaging strategies to their own investor presentations. The workshop also will include practical strategies to improve presentation delivery. We will cover the effective use of body language and voice to convey messages effectively, and provide strategies for IROs to train their CEOs and CFOs to deliver a dynamic presentation.