Amid the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic, Christine Yang, senior IR analyst at Central China Real Estate, embraced digital tools and events to help her company stay close to the investment community.
That work included co-ordinating a monthly online reverse roadshow that included bilingual introductory videos, and teaching the management team how to stay connected with the market through online platforms.
Her efforts were recognized in December last year when she won the rising star trophy at the IR Magazine Awards – Greater China 2021. The award is for an IRO who has been in the profession less than five years and contributed fresh thinking or a unique approach.
In a video interview with IR Magazine, Yang discusses her career path so far, what skills she brought from previous roles into IR and how her company’s engagement with the market has evolved during the Covid-19 pandemic.
While the pandemic has thrown up many challenges for IR teams, Yang says it has been rewarding to find solutions. ‘In this environment, I have come into contact with more investors that I perhaps would not have encountered before, which makes me really excited and enthusiastic about my work,’ she says.
Highlighting another positive, Yang notes how, during pre-pandemic physical roadshows, sometimes an investor would cancel at the last minute – obliterating the only opportunity that year to meet that fund. ‘This situation rarely, if ever, happens in the virtual world as one can be more flexible, with the ability to reschedule meetings,’ she says. ‘We can always reschedule for another week or month.’
Turning to life outside of work, Yang says she has maintained a healthy mindset during the pandemic by challenging herself with a new hobby. ‘Recently I have learned to wake surf, which has allowed me to conquer my fear of water since I was a kid. The sense of achievement brings me positive energy,’ she says.
