It was standing room only when IR Magazine revealed the big North American takeaways from its latest research reports at the NIRI 2022 Annual Conference.
‘The independent voice of IR’ shared with delegates key findings relating to the US and Canada from its flagship Global and Regional Investor Relations Practice Report 2021, as well as the deep dives into executive compensation, earnings calls best practices, corporate access and IR salaries & careers in North America in four specific research reports.
NIRI delegates heard how North American senior managers spent an average of 38 days in total on IR in the past year, one day fewer than the number spent by senior management globally, according to the Global and Regional Investor Relations Practice Report 2021. ‘That is three days more than they dedicated to IR in 2020 and represents a recovery toward pre-pandemic levels when the number of days North American senior management teams spent on IR was often in the low to mid-40s,’ said the IR Magazine spokesperson.
The NIRI audience heard that North American IR budgets have fallen a further $17,000 in the past year, with the average budget now standing at $357,000: ‘Budgets have shrunk by a third since 2017, having regularly averaged more than half a million dollars in the years before then.’
Turning to executive compensation in North America, IR Magazine’s spokesperson said a higher proportion of North American companies, compared with companies in other regions, report that no one from the board speaks to investors about executive compensation. ‘But 52 percent of global investors say they expect the board to discuss this with them,’ the spokesperson said.
IR Magazine’s brand-new corporate access report finds that regionally, North American companies are the most likely to hold virtual roadshows, while European companies are the most likely to go on the road in person: ‘The view that more virtual meetings are needed before an investor takes a position is most common among European IROs and least common among North American IROs, where just over a quarter hold this view.’
On the matter of IR salaries & careers in North America, NIRI delegates heard that North American IROs report the highest average pay and that the average North American pay has remained consistent for the past two years. ‘Regionally, the greatest disparity between the gender make-up of IR teams and IR heads is reported in North American IR teams,’ noted the spokesperson.
