CIRI Alberta Chapter Update
Approximately 40 people attended a March panel discussion about best practices in disclosure and communicating effectively. The panel focused the discussion on: what makes disclosure effective; key objectives of a news release beyond the regulatory requirements; are the numbers hijacking the company story; what are investors asking; what analysts are looking for; and how to enhance investor presentations. Recommendations included:
- Do not read the news release on the conference call; people can read. Focus on Q&A and any ‘colour’ that can be added to what is already publicly available.
- Tailor your headline to the most important factor; don’t just stick to ‘XYZ Company announces third quarter results'.
- When reporting fourth quarter results, also report full-year results. Make it easy for investors and analysts to run their numbers.
- Do not ignore bad news.
This session provided perspectives from experts who develop and consume the messages that directly impact the value of companies. The highly engaging panel included: David Mann, Senior Consultant at NATIONAL Public Relations; Mark Friesen, Oil Sands and Mid-cap Energy and Power analyst at RBC Capital Markets; and Gord Tait, Managing Director, Equity Research at BMO Financial.
Later in March, the Chapter held another free-to-members Brains Over Beers networking events; about 25 members attended.
In April, approximately 50 CIRI members attended our Senior IRO Roundtable and AGM. The panel, which was moderated by Anne Plasterer, Executive Director, IR, Newalta, included: John Cobb, Vice President Investor Relations and IT, Keyera Corp; Brian Ector, Senior Vice President, Capital Markets and Public Affairs, Baytex Energy Corp.; and Lisa Ottmann, Vice President, Investor Relations, Trinidad Drilling. The panel provided recommendations for surviving the tough economic climate in Alberta right now. Key themes included:
- Keep communicating. Don’t defer returning calls just because you have no good news; be available and willing to discuss challenges and how your company is meeting these challenges;
- Keep going on roadshows. Companies want to be on investors’ radar screens when they have money to invest. Perhaps a story was too expensive before and this is a great opportunity for investors to buy in; and
- Address key issues head-on; if your company is running into financial struggles, the management team must be willing to explain exactly what it is doing to correct the situation.
The following new directors were elected to the CIRI Alberta Board for 2015-2016:
- Lisa Ottmann, VP Investor Relations, Trinidad Drilling
- Ashley Nuell, Senior Investor Relations and Corporate Planning Advisor, Spyglass Resources Corp.
CIRI BC Chapter Update
CIRI BC held its AGM in April and, it’s safe to say, we haven’t had an AGM like this before! The event was held at One Under Urban Golf Club in Vancouver and attendees had a great time hitting the links on courses from around the world.
The AGM was well attended by members and guests alike, including many of our sponsors. We were very pleased to have the opportunity to publicly thank our design firm partner, Blender Media, and our newswire partner, CNW, for their continued support. CTS Trust Company celebrated its 19th year as our scrutineer and we appreciate this participation and support.
There have been significant challenges for the BC Chapter this year as commodity prices continue to struggle. However, our targeted renewal rate was 65% and the end result was 76%. We believe this higher than expected rate of renewal is due to our commitment to offer relevant, timely and quality programming for our members. The majority of our members are in the resource sector but we will continue to focus on meeting IROs from other industries and encouraging a more diverse membership base, resulting in greater value for all members.
The mentorship breakfasts also continue to resonate with our members; providing insight into an ever changing role as well as lighter and entertaining stories from our most experienced IROs.
The Chapter Executive remains largely unchanged this year, with two exceptions: Chairman Jon Bey has reached his term limit of six years and steps down. We would like to thank him for his tremendous hard work and dedication in leading CIRI BC for the past two years. A warm welcome to Monica Hamm, Manager of Investor Relations for Entrée Gold, who joined the BC Executive for the upcoming year and brings with her an experienced view of IR and a number of relevant ideas. Your 2015-2016 Executive is: Kettina Cordero, Arne Gulstene, Lynette Gould, Sandra Daycock, Erin O’Toole, Lisa May (Chair), Dave Salmon, Jamie Kokoska and Monica Hamm.