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Time to Get Your NIRI On

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NIRIThe film industry has Sundance, technology has the Consumer Electronics Show, and the world of investor relations has the NIRI Annual Conference.  More than 1,000 IR practitioners attend what is considered the preeminent IR event of the year, and 2015 will be no exception with a dynamic lineup of panelists, myriad stimulating topics, and the rare opportunity to sing “Kumbaya” with fellow IR folks.

PondelWilkinson will be at the conference not only as an attendee, but as an active participant.  Evan Pondel will serve as a panelist for the workshop session entitled “Social media: Friend or Foe for Reaching Target Audiences?”  Joining him is Beth Blankespoor, professor of accounting at Stanford University, Nils Paellmann, head of investor relations at T-Mobile, and Serena Ehrlich, director of social and evolving media at BusinessWire.

Evan will also be moderating a panel entitled “Engaging Financial Media, Trade Publications, and Bloggers to Enhance an Investor Relations Program.”  Joining Evan is Peter Frost, business reporter from Crain’s, Paul Hart, editor of Midstream Business magazine, and Guy Cohen, director at Seeking Alpha.

The conference runs June 14 to June 17 at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago.  For more information, please visit www.niri.org.

PW Participates in IR Certification Exam

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First it was the CPA certification for accountants, instituted in 1917.

 

Then in 1963 came the CFA credential, administered by the CFA Institute, for finance and investment professionals, particularly in the fields of investment management and financial analysis of stocks, bonds and their derivative assets.

 

One year later, in 1964, the Public Relations Society of America, www.prsa.org, launched the APR designation as a way to recognize PR practitioners who have mastered the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to develop and deliver strategic communications.

 

Soon, investor relations professionals, courtesy of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI), www.niri.org, will have a test of their own. The designation has yet to be named, but development of the Body of Knowledge (BOK) is now underway, and the inaugural exam is scheduled for mid-2015.

 

The BOK is the basis for most certification exams, including the CFA. It forms the base of teachings, skills, and research in a given function, along with details on the essential competencies required of a practitioner based on a set number of years of experience.

 

It is with great honor that I am serving as an advisor to the NIRI committee preparing the first BOK for the investor relations profession.  I will be working directly with editor Ted Allen and a distinguished group of 25 investor relations professionals from throughout the nation who will write the definitive book—one that will represent every element of the requisite knowledge that will be tested in the IR certification exam.

 

It’s a big project and a tall order, especially for a profession whose practitioners require a wide range of knowledge, spanning disciplines that include finance, accounting, capital markets, news media, disclosure regulations, public relations practices and virtually all aspects of communications.

 

Canada and the UK currently have IR certification programs, and two U.S. universities—Fordham and the University of San Francisco—offer graduate degrees in investor relations.

 

While validation of competency through an exam or graduate degree may not guarantee practical success, we at PondelWilkinson are proud to have been asked to participate in this milestone endeavor for our industry.  I’ll keep you posted as the program develops, but please do not ask me for any answers to the exam—none of the BOK committee members will have access to it!

 

Roger Pondel, rpondel@pondel.com

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It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where your IR program is?

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Investor Relations

Investor Relations (source)

I’m not really asking where your IR program is in the geographic sense of the word.  I’m asking where your IR program is in terms of effectiveness.  Every once in a while, it’s good to take a step back and evaluate whether your strategies and tactics are still productive.

A recent webcast, based on a survey conducted by Thomson Reuters, demonstrated that in today’s world of “risk aversion, macro dominance, reduced focus on active equity and equity fund outflows,” getting your story heard can be very challenging.  An article in CFO Magazine echoed the sentiment that “the rockiness of the equity markets and the prevalence of high-frequency trading and exchange-traded funds make cultivating the investor base tougher than ever.”

Are you doing the right things to be appropriately noticed by the investment community?  Respondents from the Thomson Reuters survey noted that knowledge of the business and ability to answer questions, responsiveness and timelines, and financial guidance are among the most important facets of a good investor relations program.  Interestingly, however, a separate survey conducted by the National Investor Relations Institute showed that the number of companies providing financial guidance has steadily declined over the last several years, with 76 percent of companies providing financial guidance in 2012, compared with 81 percent in 2010 and 85 percent in 2009.

While there will never be full agreement between the investment community and listed companies on providing guidance, and while every investor relations program is unique, there are a few things that all IROs should consider:

  • Build trust with the investment community through consistency, transparency and willingness to engage.
  • Take an individualized, targeted and precise approach to identifying appropriate investors.  Spend time with these prospective investors through one-on-one meetings, at conferences or by hosting site visits and investor days.  Stress quality over quantity.
  • Ensure your messages help the investment community understand your growth path and its trajectory.
  • Use business and financial press as an additional communications vehicle.  Include video in press releases and on your IR website to generate better engagement by making your story come to life.
  • Be aware of what’s being said about your company via social media, and strategically use social media to deliver your messages.
  • While any worthwhile activity generally requires time and patience, the long-term result should be enhanced shareholder value.

— Laurie Berman, lberman@pondel.com