It’s the best of times and the worst of times. The first readers who get the chance to peruse these wise words will be those at the London Hilton for the 1999 Investor Relations Magazine UK Awards. Some will be happily celebrating and clutching a much-prized trophy; others will be disappointed that, despite all their efforts, the financial community did not view them as worthy of a prize.
Putting all the glam and razzmatazz of the awards evening to one side allows us the chance to discuss the real effect of the IR awards program. Sure, it gives people a chance to let their hair down and network with their peers. It might also raise the salaries of one or two lucky winners. But there’s more: the chance for a wider group of investor relations officers to access the views of over 450 of London’s financial community through the awards research report. Here’s some advance warning for those of you who haven’t yet dug deep to reserve your own copy.
As ever, fund managers and analysts point to many of the usual suspects in defining what constitutes a good IR program: from high level understanding of the business and access to management; to the more mundane – returning phone calls. This might not be news to many of our more experienced readers but the financial community rightly reminds us that many companies and IR practitioners regularly forget the basics. And that’s even more likely if corporate news starts to go a little pear-shaped.
On top of this comes the advice and snippets of information which makes such research valuable. For example, the length of time fund managers can maintain concentration levels; the need for input from divisional heads; the secrets of how certain companies have dragged themselves out of an IR mire.
Of course, those of you who read through the research report will also be in a much better position to access the highs and avoid the lows detailed in this month’s cover story. Accompanying the best and worst of times that may occur as a result of the awards themselves, we felt it would be worth detailing a few of the peaks and troughs which most investor relations officers encounter as part of their working lives.
If you’re down in the dumps, search for some positives to bring you back on track. And if you think you’re flying too high you’ll find a dose of reality to bring you down to earth. Whatever you’re looking for, the IR advice remains the same: avoid surprises.
