Tales from Wall Street: The NDR Warrior’s Toolkit
The mystery behind what’s in an IR practitioner’s workbag is revealed.
Anyone who has ever been on a non-deal road show or done an investor conference will tell you…it’s not for the faint of heart. I describe it as a planned marathon made up of many, many sprints. Meetings with existing investors, new investors, sell-side analysts, investment bankers – a typical day can start as early as 7 a.m. and run as late as 9 or 10 p.m. (depending upon when you wrap up that last dinner).
My job on these trips is to make sure that my management is on top of their game throughout the day: from making sure they have the right background information on the people they’re meeting with to making introductions and helping facilitate the discussion, and finally, helping them stay on schedule and as energetic about their story at 4 p.m. as they were at 8 a.m.
Just as a builder wouldn’t go to a construction site without his toolbox, my handbag is my silent partner in making sure the day is a success. It’s more than just a place to hold my wallet, ID, business cards, lipstick and cell phone – it’s my NDR toolkit.
So what’s in it?
- My Surface Pro 3 – it can be a prop-up tablet for when we do a 1×1 (or 1×2 or 1×3) meeting or a fully functioning laptop that management and I can use to do work in between meetings
- Hard copy of our schedule with background info on our meetings
- Hard copy of last conference call transcript/earnings release
- A bound hard copy of the investor presentation
- Notebook, pen and mechanical pencil
- Must have apps on my phone:
o Google Maps
o Waze (much better for managing through traffic)
o Starbucks (so I can make sure that my management team is ready to go for that 8 a.m. meeting or re-energized at midafternoon)
o Yelp! (to find good eats on the fly) - Electronics mini bag contents:
o Two UBS flash drives with copies of the investor presentation (just in case that AV guy at the conference walks away with one)
o Chargers for my Surface Pro 3 and cell phone
o Back up battery charger (just in case an outlet is nowhere to be found)
o Screen cleaner and microfiber cloth - Small Ziplock bag with:
o Altoid mints, Orbit peppermint gum – for eliminating coffee or post-lunch breath
o Lozenges – to make sure my CEO or CFO’s throat stays strong throughout the day
o A few energy bars (just in case we miss lunch and need to eat on the run) - Metro card (when traffic’s tied up, there’s no better way to travel in NYC). In San Francisco, it’s a BART card.
- Antibacterial soap, hand lotion
- Colgate Wisps
- Hairbands (perfect for keeping my long hair tamed but also for organizing all the business cards I’ve collected)
- My iPod – so when I’m winding down the day, I can kick back with a chill tune
— E.E. Wang, Wang@pondel.com
