Gearing Up for the IR Community’s Largest Gathering

On Sunday, I’ll be heading to the 2016 NIRI annual conference in San Diego to learn about the latest developments in our industry, hear informative (and I hope entertaining) speakers and meet like-minded people to gather intelligence about what makes a successful IR program.

The sessions I’m most interested in follow:

  • Overview of Key Corporate Governance and Regulatory Issues – And What You Need to Know to Keep Activism at Bay. Those who follow this blog know that we’ve written about activism in the past, including this post about the rising tide of activism. Although it was written nearly eight months ago, the message is still relevant today. A recent Wall Street Journal article reported on the creation of the Council for Investor Rights and Corporate Accountability, or Circa, which is the “first coordinated effort by activists to make their case to lawmakers and the American public that their investment strategy helps, rather than harms, companies and the U.S. economy.” There are some major heavyweights on the Council, including Carl Icahn and Bill Ackman.
  • Breaking through the Noise: Latest Trends in Quarterly Reporting. Without trying to give away my age, I have now been involved in nearly 90 quarterly reporting cycles. If I add the fact that for the majority of that time I’ve been at an agency serving a multitude of clients, I bet I’ve written more than 500 earnings releases and conference call scripts (kind of crazy seeing that in black and white). Oftentimes, it’s hard to get excited about a process that generally lacks creativity in how the news is delivered. Recently, however, we’ve seen video earnings calls from Restoration Hardware, use of social media as a primary disclosure outlet from Netflix and formal remarks being posted on IR websites to allow for Q&A-only calls.
  • Short Attacks: The New ‘Wolf Pack’: Best Practices for Preparing and Defending Against a Short Attack. I’ve been intimately involved in an organized short attack this year, and it’s anything but fun. A recent Supreme Court Ruling, as reported by Bloomberg, could make naked short selling much more difficult for those trying to manipulate the stock market, while Carson Block, an activist short seller, told Business Insider, “I think we’re helping people.”

There will be lots more to see, hear and explore. If you’ll be in San Diego next week, look for me so we can exchange war stories.

— Laurie Berman, lberman@pondel.com