2017 NIRI Annual Conference 개요

□ 시간: 6.4(일) ~ 6.7(수)
□ 장소: Grand Lakes Orlando, Florida

□ 2017NIRI Annual Conference 세부내용

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Conference Workshop - IRO Teach In: IR Strategy and Planning

   
 |  Deb Wasser, IRC | Julie Tracy, IRC | Kevin Kalicak | Jennifer Beugelmans | Meredith Kaya |

A dynamic and interactive two-hour session focused on formulating and executing IR plans and addressing key domains in the practice of IR, including strategy and planning, brand and reputation management, and effective reporting and measurement. Top senior investor relations officers from corporations in diverse industries and market capitalizations will help lead this workshop, which will cover normal IR situations as well as transactions, executive transitions, crisis and activist situations, and more.
  
 Learning Objectives:
> Learn how to build and evolve your strategies and plans in various scenarios that regularly impact IROs
> Gain insights from "fireside chats" with 4 senior IROs who will review their situations, how they planned their strategies for success, what worked, lessons learned 
> Takeaway specific examples of IR plans and strategies that will work for your company
> Ask questions and get answers from peers who have faced a variety of IR and corporate challenges

Thought Leader Session: Global IR Summit - Materiality of Nonfinancial Information Hosted by BNY Mellon

 Sunday, June 4, 2017 | 3:00PM - 4:00PM | Room: Palazzo E  |   Thought Leader Session 

Sustainability and ESG have been an increasing focus of the investment community in the past 10 years. With a lack of guidelines on disclosure practices for nonfinancial information, IROs globally constantly battle with various requests from investors and ESG rating agencies. In this session, we will discuss how to bridge the gap between the different expectations of market participants and identify best practices for nonfinancial information disclosure practices.

Thought Leader Session: Best Practices for Competitive Intelligence - Hosted by AlphaSense

 Sunday, June 4, 2017 | 3:00PM - 4:00PM | Room: Palazzo F-H  |   Thought Leader Session 

Learn best practices on effective competitive intelligence for IR teams. We recognize that IROs are often the voice of a company, and increasingly, IROs also function as the eyes and ears of the organization ? providing key business leaders with insightful analysis and updates on peers, the industry and broader market. Learn how to quickly access and monitor important competitive information that will allow you to deliver meaningful insights with the speed and depth necessary to keep pace with the market and the expectations of your organization. In this session, you will learn about the practice of competitive intelligence from a leading industry source, as well as how your peers in investor relations use new technology and address the competitive intelligence demands of their job.

 Learning Objectives:
> Develop a framework for effective competitive intelligence analysis
> Learn best practices in competitive intelligence amongst your peers
> Leverage Natural Language Processing, Machine Learning and new technologies to conduct research

Concurrent Session: Sell-Side Disruption: What's the Future of Research

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 11:00AM - 12:00PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Economics and Markets 
 |  Mark Pellegrino | Paul Steinhauser |

Market forces are having a significant impact on the sell side ? outflows from actively managed funds are reducing commission levels and regulation in Europe is increasing which is expected to have a ripple affect globally. Investors are increasingly looking for unique and differentiated research and corporate access.  How will this impact IROs and their relationship with the Street?

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn how to partner with the sell side to maximize your exposure to investors
> Uncover information resources investors are using to make their investment decisions today
> Understand why your covering analysts are focusing more on proprietary, thought leadership pieces, and less on “maintenance” research
> Discuss "MiFID II" and how it applies to your company and its relationship with the sell and buy side globally

Concurrent Session: Actions from Insights: Putting Perception Research to Work

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 11:00AM - 12:00PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Marketing and Communications 
 |  Deb Wasser, IRC | James Marsh | Laura Kiernan |

You've talked to the Street.  You've received third party feedback.  Now what?  Hear how some top IROs have effectively incorporated Street feedback into their IR programs and moved the needle on understanding and valuation. 

 Learning Objectives:
 > Learn best practices in taking third party research and incorporating it into on-going IR initiative
 > Leverage feedback into more effective non-deal roadshows and investor days

Concurrent Session: Global Governance Trends: Breaking the Status Quo

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 11:00AM - 12:00PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Corporate Governance and Regulatory 
 |  Brandi Piacente |

Learn more about the current global corporate governance trends. What are global companies seeing that’s important for investors in their region? What are the minimum standards a company should have in place in order to be marketable across multiple geographies? 

 Learning Objectives:
 > Learn how to incorporate global industry governance trends and issues into your internal and peer analyses
 > Determine the governance implications on the viability of a non-domestic marketing strategy
 > Boost your value as a trusted partner to the C-suite, Board and Corporate Secretary in governance matters

Concurrent Sessions Round 1: The Tech Savvy IRO

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 11:00AM - 12:00PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Innovations in IR 
 |  Patrick Van de Wille | Darin Arita, CFA IRC |

With the increasing demands IR practictioners face, it can be difficult to stay abreast of the latest trends.  At the same time, technology is increasingly being used by both investors and corporates to gain an edge.  This session will include short case studies from multiple IROs on how they are leveraging technology in new ways to improve performance, leverage productivity and rethink how they run an IR program.

 Learning Objectives: 
> Learn how other IR departments leverage technology to solve problems and improve
> Hear lessons learned from using these innovative techniques
> Find out how this is leading IROs to rethink their approach to running their programs

Concurrent Session: Finding Liquidity for Small- and Mid-Cap Companies

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 11:00AM - 12:00PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Economics and Markets 
 |  Frank Hatheway | Stacey Cunningham |

For small and mid-cap companies, it has been particularly challenging to access capital following the global financial cisis. Their securities generally have less trading liquidity than large-cap companies. The smallest 4,721 securities account for just 22 percent of all trading volume, while the largest 500 securities represent 61 percent of trading volume. Regulators and industry participants are working together to focus on creating more liquid, transparent markets for smaller cap companies. 

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn the most important capital markets trends and factors impacting trading liquidity today 
> Find out how liquidity impacts a company’s market valuation
> Get up to speed on key regulatory initiatives including preliminary results of the SEC’s Tick Size Pilot Program

Concurrent Session: Communicating Capital Allocation: It's All About the Cash

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 3:15PM - 4:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Marketing and Communications 
 |  Katie Royce, CFA |

U.S. companies have already amassed record cash and now Trump’s repatriation promise and lower corporate taxes will let loose a new ‘cash tsunami’. Rising interest rates, shareholder activism and exhortations from BlackRock and others have also ramped up the stakes around capital management. Yet research shows that most companies omit capital allocation from their investor deck and earnings call and investors are dissatisfied. In this session, we will examine how investors view the strategies behind buybacks, dividends, capex and debt, and how IR can best communicate capital discipline. We will also look at how IROs can contribute to capital allocation decisions by conveying investment community feedback.

 Learning Objectives:
> Find out how investors judge capital allocation
> See examples of best and worst capital allocation communication.
> Explore how management links company strategy to capital management
> Learn about the macro forces and business trends that are shaping approaches to capital discipline
> Learn how to proactively announce a buyback as an opportunity, not a lack of one                   

Concurrent Session: Environmental Social and Governance (ESG): De-mystifying Sustainability for IR Practitioners

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 3:15PM - 4:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Corporate Governance and Regulatory 
 |  Pamela Styles |

Not long ago ESG (Environmental Social & Governance) was a relatively unknown investment style. Presently, one in every six dollars under professional fund management in the US has a sustainability mandate and organizations have taken notice: 80% of S&P 500 companies issue sustainability reports. This session will cover what makes a company ESG compliant, how  PMs screen to find the best ideas in the space and what you can do from the IR seat to get on their radar and attract ESG focused funds.

 Learning Objectives;
> Learn why ESG investors matter
> Understand how ESG investors screen for investments
> Determine how to promote your company's sustainability practices
> Expand your strategic impact within your company by understanding and guiding ESG discussions

Concurrent Session: GAAP vs. Non-GAAP Metrics: One Year After SEC Guidance

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 3:15PM - 4:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Corporate Governance and Regulatory 

One year after the SEC issued its letter restating the importance of the prominence of GAAP over Non-GAAP “adjusted” results, let’s gain more real world insight into where we stand on this important issue.  This session will cover takeaways from a recent Ipreo/Edelman survey, discussion by IROs about adjustments their companies have made and the legal perspective from SEC attorneys who have fought the issue both from the SEC perspective as well as helped companies respond to SEC comments.

 Learning Objectives:
> Gain insight into what impact these changes have had on companies' performance
> Learn about specific feedback companies have received from using these reporting measures
> Find out about to successfully incorporate this SEC guidance into your disclosure program

Concurrent Session: The Employee Equation: Improving Shareholder Value Through Employee Communications

 Monday, June 5, 2017 | 3:15PM - 4:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Marketing and Communications 
 |  Deborah Belevan, CPA | Ashley Engler | Mark Donahue |

Engaged employees are a critical component to drive shareholder value, yet this is sometimes overlooked by IROs.  This session will explore ways for IROs to connect their work more directly with employee communications during times of change (M&A, activism, leadership succession) and the normal course of business (earnings reporting).  Learn best practices for leveraging your IR role and know-how to have an impact with internal stakeholders.  

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn how to bridge the gap between IR and Employee Communications to collaborate in ways that create a more engaged and educated workforce
> Get actionable ideas for building processes to align internal communications to maximize effectiveness and eliminate confusion or inappropriate disclosures
> Hear real-world examples of IROs that act as internal partner and consultative leader with other key internal functional area leads to create clear, consistent communications

General Session with Connie Dieken - Influence Your World: The Proven Path to Gain Gravitas in a Demanding World

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 8:30AM - 9:30AM | Room: Coquina Ballroom  |   General Session 
 |  Connie Dieken |

As an IR professional, you have the opportunity to influence the strategic direction of your company. You face new challenges every day that may impact your organization’s growth along with the mindset of your leadership team and board. To be viewed as a respected advisor when you deliver potentially unpopular recommendations, you must influence with integrity and gravitas.

Concurrent Session: The Evolution of Investing: Has the World Gone Passive?

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 9:45AM - 10:45AM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Economics and Markets 
 |  Victoria Sivrais |

Historically, investors have engaged in active and passive investing. Active investing, which includes algorithmic, fundamental, and quantitative continues to dominate investment dollars, but there has been tremendous growth in passive assets, such as index funds and ETFs. The line between these two investment approaches has begun to blur with the rise of factor-based strategies. What are the implications for IR from this growth in passive investing?
 
 Learning Objectives:
> Understand the explosive growth in passive and how IR can best work with this segment
> Learn about factor-based investing and IR outreach opportunities
> Bring insight back to your C-suite about the trends in passive vs. active and the influence on valuation

Concurrent Session: Proactive Corporate Governance: An Investor, IRO and Director Walk into a Bar

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 9:45AM - 10:45AM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Corporate Governance and Regulatory 
 |  Theresa Molloy | Jeff Barbieri | Cathy Kinney |
Investor outreach has expanded in recent years to encompass engagement on corporate governance matters and proxy items. Given the various constituents involved, assembling a corporate governance roadshow requires a steady hand and strategic thinking.  Hear from our panel of experts on how they gained internal buy-in, determined the correct method of outreach, and measured their efforts. 

 Learning Objectives:
> Evaluate if governance outreach is appropriate for your company and how to assess voting risk
> Learn how to develop and execute a corporate governance roadshow
> Learn relevant metrics for assessing the effectiveness of proactive corporate governance outreach

Concurrent Session: Big Data: How Investors are Using It to Up the Investing Game

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 9:45AM - 10:45AM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Innovations in IR 

You’ve likely heard the term “Big Data” by now -- sets of data so large or complex that they cannot be processed by traditional data analysis applications. What you may not know is that Big Data is a growing part of some investors’ strategic research process. During this panel, IROs will learn about how investors are incorporating Big Data into fund management and the new ways analysts are assessing info about their company from third party sources.

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn how big data is being used by investors of different styles (i.e. quantitative, fundamental)
> Understand the range of metrics investors, and how to engage to discover which ones are being used for your company
> Hear strategies for influencing the metrics used by investors

Concurrent Session: Be the Board’s Valued Partner

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 9:45AM - 10:45AM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Marketing and Communications 
 |  Mike Pocalyko | J. Kevin Buchi |

The Board of Directors has a fiduciary responsibility to do what is in the best interest of the Company and its shareholders. Historically, directors worked with the executive team to fully understand shareholder perception as they evaluated corporate strategy. However, directors are increasingly working directly with the Company's IRO to gain further insights on what the Street is saying about management and company performance. This session will discuss how to become a valued partner to the Board, how involved the IRO should be to ensure mutual success, and best practices in distilling and sharing information with them.

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn about the varying types of relationships IROs have with their Boards
> Help navigate the appropriate communications with the Board, as it relates to frequency and content
> Better understand what the Board is looking for in order to become a strategic resource
> Hear best practices on IRO-Board partnerships

Concurrent Session: Establishing Your IRO Leadership Brand

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 9:45AM - 10:45AM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Professional/Career Development 

The stronger your personal brand the more likely that new opportunities will find their way to you. The question is how do you go about building your brand? This session will focus on the different steps you can do to best position yourself as a highly respected IRO both within your own company and externally.

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn why is it important to develop a personal brand
> Determine what actions you can take within your company to build your brand
> Determine what actions you can take to build your brand external to the company

Concurrent Session: Speed Networking: Take Peer Power to the Next Level

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 11:15AM - 12:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Professional/Career Development 

This fast-moving session will enable you to meet up with other attendees, create contacts, and get a pulse on the concerns of your peers. Speed networking sessions involve moving from one table to another in intervals, chatting with fellow attendees, and adding to your professional network.

Concurrent Session: The Activist Front: What's New

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 11:15AM - 12:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Corporate Governance and Regulatory 
 |  Kenneth Traub | Steve Wolosky | Joshua Black |

Catch up on the latest trends and developments in activism and get the inside scoop from the activist's perspective. A well-known activist, a leading advisor to activists, and a journalist who exclusively covers activism will share their insights, discuss activist tactics, and provide their perspectives on recent situations. 

 Learning Objectives:
> How activism has changed and what was new and different in the 2017 season
> Learn how activists identify targets to anticipate potential impact on valuation and improve IR messaging
> Hear practical tips to help keep activists at bay, and lessons learned from real-world scenarios

Concurrent Session: Short Sellers, Short Term and Long Term Investors: How it All Works Together

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 11:15AM - 12:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Economics and Markets 
Theresa Molloy |
If the market were only long-term investors, there would be no market.  If there are no sellers, there can be no buyers and vice versa.  This panel will explore the relationships short sellers, short-term, and long-term investors have with each other that produce that equity market we know today.

 Learning Objectives:
> Discuss the role, if any, short-sellers have in boosting overall equity market efficiency
> Learn the role momentum and event-driven investors play in creating liquidity and driving fair valuation
> Identify if it would be beneficial to target both short-term and long-term investors

Concurrent Session: Analyzing Stock Volatility & Risk: The Relationship Between Stocks and Oil Prices

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 11:15AM - 12:15PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Economics and Markets 

The past decade has been a roller coaster for equity markets, one that market participants have probably not enjoyed riding at times, given the market crash associated with the financial crisis in 2008 and significant periods of volatility therein.  Recently, in analyzing stock volatility, we note that U.S. equity market movements have been highly correlated with oil prices, at levels not seen for the past 25 years given that oil prices have fallen from over $100 per barrel in mid-2014 to around $50 per barrel today. As such, oil market trends and prices are one of the main commodities all corporations and IROs should be watching.  Markets are expected to be volatile, with oil prices only one potential source of volatility.  Learn what key sector experts think about the oil and gas market outlook, managing risk and the potential implications for your company and its stock price.

 Learning Objectives:
> Gain insight into the positive correlation between stocks and oil prices with market outlook and implications for global markets and economies
> Learn how corporations use hedging to reduce the risk associated with material movements in oil prices
> Take away critical knowledge of how you can mitigate risk and stock volatility for your company by closely monitoring the relationship between stocks and oil prices

Strategic Investor Days that Drive Valuation - Sponsored by Rivel Research

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 12:30PM - 1:30PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom  |   Lunch and Learn 

The global buy-side believes that investor days are integral to superb IR programs.  However, they are often executed as tactical activities instead of strategic forums essential to a company's IR plan and valuation.  This session will feature research from the global investment community, tips from an investor day planning expert and an actionable case history from an IR executive. Takeaways include insight for IR professionals to reach a higher level strategic perspective with their investor day. Getting beyond the mechanics of planning and hosting, attendees will learn how to move the needle towards higher valuations with their investor day.

 Learning Objectives:
> Identify the not so obvious issues that the Street may be concerned with and how to address those issues during your investor day
> Prepare attendees with points that IROs need to implement in order to change their event from tactical to strategic
> Listen and learn from an IRO who took a turbulent situation with investors and transformed the Street's perspective through the company’s investor day

Securing Your Earnings: Mitigating Risk during the Earnings Process - Sponsored by Business Wire

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 12:30PM - 1:30PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom  |   Lunch and Learn 

Take a closer look at the unknown or hidden risks companies face during the earnings process. We will outline the most common mishaps from versioning errors, to social attacks, to news scraping bots, and the options available for companies to defend themselves. We discuss the questions IROs must ask to uncover the risks most common to their business, and the modern technologies available to mitigate these potential issues.
 This session will be both strategic and tactical, outlining the major issues and providing tangible solutions.  Attendees will learn what the biggest issues are within the earnings process, and how to resolve them. Seasoned and new IROs alike will benefit from attending.

Concurrent Session: The Proxy: Why IROs Need to Take a Greater Role

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 1:45PM - 2:45PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Corporate Governance and Regulatory 
 |  Pat Tucker | Valerie Finberg | Peter Kimball | Matt DiGuiseppe |

Historically a legal-heavy document read by a narrow audience, the proxy statement is increasingly a communications tool used to convey much more than baseline compensation and governance information. But often, the discussion of performance and strategy in the proxy is not aligned with the company’s other communications. This panel makes the case that IR should play a significant role in proxy drafting because: IR has insights into what resonates with investors, including the institutional proxy voting teams; IR can anticipate what drives proxy advisory firm recommendations; and IR knows how to communicate a compelling message.

 Learning Objectives:
> Hear proxy reporting trends to support your governance program success
> Gain insight into proxy statement best practices to generate shareholder support for governance matters
> Learn why IR should collaborate internally in developing and reviewing this key regulatory filing

Concurrent Session: Debt IR: Know Your Bondholders

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 1:45PM - 2:45PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Economics and Markets 

Your debt investors matter too.  Understand the role they play and how their concerns differ from your shareholders.   When you put on the hat of the debt IRO, you have a new audience.  You have to understand the role of rating agencies, the nuances of the banking relationships, and what bondholders worry about.  Working well with the high-yield bankers and analysts also matters. They are communicating your story, so make sure they understand it! 

 Learning Objectives:
> Learn what you need to know to effectively engage with rating agencies 
> Identify the concerns of debt investors and why they matter
> Understand how IROs can support activities around debt issuances to help ensure access to capital markets
> Learn the ratios and leverage metrics that matter to debt investors
> Gain insight into why it matters to the IRO if there is a new bond offering

Concurrent Session: Digital IR Communications: Innovation and Best Practices

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 1:45PM - 2:45PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Innovations in IR 
 |  Scott Payton |

The IR website remains the most efficient and broad-reaching way to communicate with investors. What are the hottest new features and content on IR websites? What do investors, analysts and other stakeholders want?  Which IR websites are the best in the world and why? Based on research consultancy Bowen Craggs’ world-recognized Index of Online Excellence, this session will help you benchmark your IR website and yield concrete ideas for how to improve it. With digital IR experts as your guides, you will be taken on a tour of cutting-edge online content, design and shareholder tools, on both desktop and mobile devices.

 Learning Objectives:
> Gauge how your IR website measures up against your peers
> Take away ideas to improve or rebuild your site
> Get inspiration and practical tips for creating multimedia and interactive content such as CEO videos and charting tools
> Assess the performance and ROI of your IR website

Concurrent Session: Are We Managing the Street Well or is The Street Managing Us?

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 1:45PM - 2:45PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Marketing and Communications 
 |  Matthew Stroud | Adam Berry | Steve West | Stuart Stein |

The modern landscape of earnings guidance continues to evolve and is always full of pitfalls. And when analyst expectations and company performance don’t line up, where do IRO’s draw the line between keeping investors and sell side analysts informed and providing too much disclosure before earnings are released? How do you stay within the parameters of Reg FD?  What policies and guidelines do you have in place for Management and IR when speaking with the buy and sell side? How can IRO’s be proactive to help inform better “Street” estimates?

 Learning Objectives:
> Develop clear and effective IR policy and realistic guidelines to comply with Reg FD while clarifying expectations
> Learn effective ways to communicate expectations when the Street has it wrong
> Learn effective guidance policies to appropriately manage expectations

Concurrent Session: IRMatch.com: Advancing Your Career

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 1:45PM - 2:45PM | Room: Palazzo Ballroom and Del Lago 1-2  |   Track: Professional/Career Development 
 |  Carol Murray-Negron | Tabitha Zane | Jason Fredette | Angie McCabe |
How do you find the perfect match for your next IR career opportunity? If you want to switch industries, market caps or even go from consulting to corporate or vice versa, it can be a challenging quest. Hear from a panel of IROs who have made big career moves explain their approach to finding the perfect match and offer ideas on how you can put yourself in the best position to do the same.

 Learning Objectives:
> Understand how important it is to have a plan for your career and understand what it will take to get to your ultimate goal
> Discover the best way to position yourself when looking to change industry or market cap
> Understand the pluses and minuses of being an IR practitioner or an IR consultant
> Once you know what you want, how to go get it

General Session with Elisse Walter: The Evolution of Regulatory and Sustainability Disclosures: What are the Latest Trends?

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 3:30PM - 4:15PM | Room: Coquina Ballroom  |   General Session 
 |  Elisse Walter |

More than $1 out of every $5 under professional management in the United States is invested based on sustainable investing strategies?an increase of 33% from just two years ago. While many companies disclose sustainability information in both mandatory filings and voluntary channels, it’s often not “investment-grade.” Only 29% of investors express confidence in the quality of the ESG information they receive. At this session, former SEC chair Elisse Walter will share her insights on how companies can provide ESG disclosure that better suits investor needs.

 Learning Objectives:
> What factors have contributed to increased investor demand for sustainability disclosure?
> If more mainstream investors are incorporating ESG into their decision-making processes, why aren’t companies receiving more questions about ESG on earnings calls?
> How are companies currently disclosing sustainability information, and in what ways does existing disclosure fall short of investor needs?
> What steps can companies take to provide more decision-useful information to investors?

General Session: Managing for the Long Term in a Short Term World

 Tuesday, June 6, 2017 | 4:15PM - 5:00PM | Room: Coquina Ballroom  |   General Session 
 |  Sarah Williamson | Karessa Cain |
Companies must plan for the long-term, but many investors are focused on short-term results. How can IROs balance these competing mandates?  Are the demands of short-term oriented investors harmful to the companies in which they invest, and the U.S. economy generally? Or do hedge funds and other investors with shorter time horizons add value by asking the hard questions, holding companies accountable, and using activism to force change when it is warranted? 

 Learning Objectives:
> Hear differing perspectives from experts on value creation and what will drive growth
> Understand how to strike a messaging balance to effectively communicate to short and long-term audiences
> Consider processes for integrating investment community feedback into messaging to improve relevance and impact

General Session: Good Corporate Governance: Is it Just Common Sense?

 Wednesday, June 7, 2017 | 9:30AM - 10:30AM | Room: Coquina Ballroom  |   General Session 
 |  Glenn Booraem | Molly Carpenter |

In an open letter in July 2016, a group of 13 CEOs and heads of major institutional investment firms outlined “commonsense” corporate governance principles. Their letter focused on board composition, internal governance, and responsibilities; shareholder rights; public reporting and guidance; management compensation and succession planning; and asset managers’ role in governance. This general session is a unique opportunity for IR professionals to hear from executives from three institutions that signed the letter.
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