IR Magazine
IR Magazine Awards – Canada 2022

IR Magazine Awards – Canada
Celebrating IR Excellence

Wednesday, May 25, 2022

The Ritz Carlton, Toronto

About the awards

The IR Magazine Awards – Canada 2022 took place in-person on Wednesday, May 25 at The Ritz Carlton, Toronto. This very special event honored excellence in the investor relations profession across Canada and we were excited to welcome everyone back for an evening of fine food, dancing and lots of celebrating!

Since the annual event first launched in 1996, tens of thousands of analysts and investors have voted in the surveys that fuels the awards. The result: vital benchmarking information on which companies do the best IR. In recent years, the awards program has expanded to recognize more aspects of an IRO’s role as we add new categories to the list and give IR teams the opportunity to nominate themselves.

By popular demand, we presented two types of award categories – researched and nominated – both celebrating the success of those individuals and companies that are leading the way in IR across Canada.

For our researched categories, companies do not submit nominations. Instead, hundreds of analysts and investors cast their votes and give their opinions on which companies provide the best IR service. In our nominated categories, companies submit written entries to articulate their success and achievements from the past year, giving any publicly listed company the opportunity to be considered for an award.

 

Nominated categories      Researched categories

In support of UNICEF

IR Magazine will be donating a portion of funds from this event to UNICEF Canada to protect children in Ukraine.

Children are the least responsible for war in Ukraine, but they suffer most from its consequences. Each donation will help UNICEF ensure that Ukraine’s children have access to safe water, nutrition, health care, education and protection.

Water and education systems have been and continue to be frequently targeted in attacks, and access to safe water and schooling is disrupted and remains limited as a result. Ukraine’s increasingly fragile health system continues to struggle to cover essential services. UNICEF provides critical support, particularly in the areas of childhood immunizations and HIV prevention.

All of these services and more are urgently needed as the situation in the country continues to deteriorate, posing an immediate threat to the lives and well-being of the country’s 7.5 million children.

To make a donation directly, click here. Donations are 100% tax-deductible and less than 3% of funds go to administrative costs.

Awards by nomination

For our awards-by-nomination categories, individuals and companies are given the opportunity to submit written entries, free of charge, to be put forward to a panel of expert judges made up of investment professionals and IR Magazine editorial team members.

WINNERS ANNOUNCED

To view the full list of 2022 nominees and winners click here.

Best crisis management

Best crisis management

Have you recently dealt with an unexpected event threatening your company's business or reputation? How did your company respond to the Covid-19 pandemic? Tell us about your ‘crisis ready’ plan, the strategy you implemented when the storm hit, and how the IR team’s actions successfully protected or restored shareholder value.

Nominees

  • Canadian Tire Corporation

  • CN

    WINNER

Sponsored by

Best ESG reporting (large cap)

Best ESG reporting (large cap)

Companies face growing demands to inform investors about the risk and opportunities - they face from a range of ESG issues. Describe how your company was able to meet the demands of shareholders looking for substance in ESG reporting?

Nominees

  • Agnico Eagle Mines

  • Canadian Pacific Railway

    WINNER

  • RBC

  • Rogers Communications

  • TD Bank Group

  • WSP Global

Sponsored by

Best ESG reporting (small to mid-cap)

Best ESG reporting (small to mid-cap)

Companies face growing demands to inform investors about the risk and opportunities - they face from a range of ESG issues. Describe how your company was able to meet the demands of shareholders looking for substance in ESG reporting?

Nominees

  • Aecon Group

  • ARC Resources

    WINNER

  • Boralex

  • DIRTT Environmental Solutions

  • Gibson Energy

Sponsored by

Best innovation in shareholder communications

Best innovation in shareholder communications

In this catch-all category, judges are looking for IR teams who have had to think out of the box in the past 12-18 months to update their shareholder communications campaign and keep up with the evolving needs and wants of the investor community. We’re looking for that tiny little spark of innovation that sets your company apart!

Nominees

  • Aecon Group

  • ARC Resources

  • Hut 8 Mining Corp

    WINNER

Sponsored by

Best investor event

Best investor event

Did you hold a capital markets day, site visit or other investor event that made your company stand out from the crowd? Tell us how you came up with an original initiative, the way you managed its organization, and how your audience’s expectations were met; audience feedback is also welcome. Both virtual and in-person events can be considered for this award.

Nominees

  • Aecon Group

  • Hudbay Minerals

  • SNC-Lavalin Group

    WINNER

  • Sun Life Financial

  • TransAlta Corporation

Sponsored by

Best IR during a corporate transaction

Best IR during a corporate transaction

How did your IR team go above and beyond to support a recent corporate transaction? Let us know the details. We’ll be looking at the IR team’s involvement in crafting/releasing the messaging for the financial markets and how it organized outreach and dialogue to gain approval from key shareholders.

Nominees

  • ARC Resources

  • Arizona Sonoran Copper Company

  • Canadian Pacific Railway

    WINNER

  • Cenovus Energy

  • Sun Life Financial

  • The Lion Electric Co

Sponsored by

Best IR website

Best IR website

The IR website is the first point of contact for an IRO’s audience. We want to hear from companies that have developed a best-in-class website displaying top-notch customer experience, engaging content that meets analysts’ and investors’ needs, and multiplatform access.

Nominees

  • ARC Resources

    WINNER

  • Canadian Pacific Railway

  • CN

  • Endeavour Silver Corporation

  • Hudbay Minerals

  • Q4

Sponsored by

Best retail IR strategy

Best retail IR strategy

IR teams have recently started to pay attention to and service retail investors to meet growing needs for communication. In this category, we’re looking for IR campaigns that include a retail shareholder communication strategy, how it differed from the usual program and the results of these efforts.

Nominees

  • Aecon Group

  • Hut 8 Mining Corp

    WINNER

  • Solaris Resources

Sponsored by

Best use of technology & social media for IR

Best use of technology & social media for IR

Are you a tech-savvy IRO always looking out for cutting-edge technological solutions for IR? Describe the innovative ways you have incorporated video, audio, infographics or webcasts into your IR program. Judges will be looking for evidence of heightened investor and analyst engagement via these channels.

Nominees

  • Aecon Group

  • ARC Resources

  • Hut 8 Mining Corp

    WINNER

  • Solaris Resources

Sponsored by

Rising star

Rising star

This award seeks to honor individuals who bring fresh thinking and a unique approach to the profession. This category is open to anyone who has been working in IR for less than 10 years and has less than 15 years of professional experience.

Nominees

  • Canadian Pacific Railway, Chris de Bruyn

  • Nutrien, Tim Mizuno

  • RBC, Marco Giurleo

  • WSP Global, Quentin Weber

    WINNER

Sponsored by

The awards-by-nomination categories differ from our traditional researched awards, as individuals and companies are given the opportunity to submit written entries, free of charge, to be put forward to a panel of expert judges made up of investment professionals and IR Magazine editorial team members.

The judging process consists of three simple phases:

Phase one: Once the entry deadline has passed, the IR Magazine editorial team reviews all submissions and produces the short list

Phase two: The short-listed entries are shared with an independent judging panel made up of industry experts. The judges review each short-listed entry and select their top two picks per category

Phase three: The judges come together to discuss, debate and select the final list of winners who will go on to win an award

The judges’ votes are not made public, but their comments may be published in articles or reports after the event. Judges are not required to make comments against every submission.

Meet the judges

We are delighted to announce our judging panel for the 2022 awards! Click on each photo below to find out more.

Awards by research

Our awards-by-research nominees are determined by the input of hundreds of analysts and portfolio managers, who give their opinions on which companies provide them with the best IR service in Canada. Every year we invite any publicly listed company to submit their list of buy and sell-side analysts and portfolio managers, so that they have the opportunity to vote via our survey.

If you have any questions on this process or wish to access our data sharing agreement, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page. We are no longer accepting lists for the 2022 research, but should you have any queries about the process, please contact [email protected].

WINNERS ANNOUNCED

To view the full list of 2022 nominees and winners click here.

Best overall investor relations (large cap)

Best overall investor relations (large cap)

This category covers companies that have most impressed the investment community with their overall IR program. Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • Agnico Eagle Mines

  • Canadian Pacific Railway

    WINNER

  • CN

  • Enbridge

  • Intact Financial Corporation

  • Shopify

  • TC Energy Corporation

  • WSP Global

Sponsored by

Best overall investor relations (mid-cap)

Best overall investor relations (mid-cap)

This category covers companies that have most impressed the investment community with their overall IR program. Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • BlackBerry

  • Endeavour Mining

  • Finning International

  • Gibson Energy

  • Hudbay Minerals

  • Stantec

    WINNER

  • TMX Group

Sponsored by

Best overall investor relations (small cap)

Best overall investor relations (small cap)

This category covers companies that have most impressed the investment community with their overall IR program. Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • Aecon Group

  • Badger Infrastructure Solutions

  • Calian Group

  • Cascades

  • Cronos Group

  • The Lion Electric Co

    WINNER

Sponsored by

Best investor relations officer (large cap)

Best investor relations officer (large cap)

This category is for individual IROs whose knowledge of their company and sector and whose ability to build relationships with members of the investment community and to be transparent, accessible and responsive, sets them apart. Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • Agnico Eagle Mines, Brian Christie

  • Canadian Pacific Railway, Maeghan Albiston

    WINNER

  • CN, Paul Butcher

  • Enbridge, Jonathan Morgan

  • Hydro One, Omar Javed

  • OpenText Corporation, Greg Secord

  • Shopify, Katie Keita

  • TC Energy Corporation, David Moneta

Sponsored by

Best investor relations officer (small to mid-cap)

Best investor relations officer (small to mid-cap)

This category is for individual IROs whose knowledge of their company and sector and whose ability to build relationships with members of the investment community and to be transparent, accessible and responsive, sets them apart. Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • Baytex Energy Corp, Brian Ector

  • Element Fleet Management, Michael Barrett

  • Hudbay Minerals, Candace Brule

  • The Lion Electric Co, Isabelle Adjahi

    WINNER

  • TMX Group, Paul Malcolmson

  • Vermilion Energy, Kyle Preston

Sponsored by

Best IR by a senior management team (large cap)

Best IR by a senior management team (large cap)

Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • Agnico Eagle Mines, Sean Boyd, CEO & David Smith, CFO

  • Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, David Krant, CFO & Samuel Pollock, CEO

  • Canadian Pacific Railway, Keith Creel, CEO & Nadeem Velani, CFO

    WINNER

  • Intact Financial Corporation, Charles Brindamour, CEO & Louis Marcotte, CFO

  • Loblaw Companies, Richard Dufresne, CFO & Galen Weston, CEO

  • Shopify, Tobias Lütke, CEO & Amy Shapero, CFO

  • TELUS, Darren Entwistle, CEO & Doug French, CFO

  • Tourmaline Oil Corp, Brian Robinson, CFO & Michael Rose, CEO

  • WSP Global, Alexandre L'Heureux, CEO & Alain Michaud, CFO

Sponsored by

Best IR by a senior management team (small to mid-cap)

Best IR by a senior management team (small to mid-cap)

Market cap breakdown: Small cap = below C$2 bn / Mid-cap  = between C$2 bn - C$10 bn / Large cap = C$10 bn and over

Nominees

  • Capstone Mining, Darren Pylot, CEO & Raman Randhawa, CFO

  • Gibson Energy, Sean Brown, CFO & Steve Spaulding, CEO

  • Hudbay Minerals, Steve Douglas, CFO & Peter Kukielski, CEO

  • Stantec, Theresa Jang, CFO & Gord Johnston, CEO

  • Toromont Industries, Michael McMillan, CFO & Scott Medhurst, CEO

    WINNER

Sponsored by

Best IR by a Canadian company in the US market

Best IR by a Canadian company in the US market

Nominees

  • Canadian Pacific Railway

    WINNER

  • CN

  • lululemon athletica

  • Shopify

Sponsored by

Best in sector: consumer discretionary

Best in sector: consumer discretionary

Nominees

  • Canadian Tire Corporation

  • Gildan Activewear

  • lululemon athletica

    WINNER

  • Magna International

Sponsored by

Best in sector: consumer staples

Best in sector: consumer staples

Nominees

  • Alimentation Couche-Tard

  • Cronos Group

  • Loblaw Companies

    WINNER

  • Saputo

Sponsored by

Best in sector: energy

Best in sector: energy

Nominees

  • Ballard Power Systems

  • Enbridge

    WINNER

  • Gibson Energy

  • Suncor Energy

  • TC Energy Corporation

  • Tourmaline Oil Corp

Sponsored by

Best in sector: financials & real estate

Best in sector: financials & real estate

Nominees

  • Brookfield Asset Management

  • Intact Financial Corporation

    WINNER

  • Manulife Financial

  • Scotiabank

  • TD Bank Group

  • TMX Group

Sponsored by

Best in sector: industrials

Best in sector: industrials

Nominees

  • Canadian Pacific Railway

    WINNER

  • CN

  • Finning International

  • GFL Environmental

  • Stantec

  • WSP Global

Sponsored by

Best in sector: materials

Best in sector: materials

Nominees

  • Agnico Eagle Mines

    WINNER

  • Endeavour Mining

  • First Quantum Minerals

  • Hudbay Minerals

  • Lundin Mining Corporation

  • Teck Resources

Sponsored by

Best in sector: technology & communications

Best in sector: technology & communications

Nominees

  • BlackBerry

  • Constellation Software

  • Descartes Systems Group

  • OpenText Corporation

  • Shopify

    WINNER

  • TELUS

Sponsored by

Best in sector: utilities

Best in sector: utilities

Nominees

  • Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp

  • Brookfield Infrastructure Partners

  • Brookfield Renewable Partners

  • Capital Power Corporation

  • Fortis

    WINNER

  • Hydro One

Sponsored by

The first thing to explain is that our awards are different from most others: for our awards by research, companies do not submit nominations. The winners are identified by in-depth research and any publicly traded company is eligible to be considered. This survey is the only one of its kind to go directly to the investment community, via a combination of an electronic survey and one-to-one telephone interviews, canvassing the opinions of the people who matter to you most.

July 2021: Sample selection

IR Magazine has been building investment community databases for more than 30 years. As part of the updating process, listed companies are contacted every year for details of the professionals who currently cover their stock. These details are combined with IHS Markit’s list of US investment community contacts to produce a total of around 50,000 investors and analysts.

September – November 2021: Telephone survey

The telephone survey then gets under way. The researchers conduct in-depth interviews with an additional 250 portfolio managers and analysts across the US and Canada. Many of them participate in the study year after year, but there is always a healthy proportion of new respondents each year as well. As the research progresses, the sample is adjusted to ensure appropriate weightings are maintained.

October 2021: Electronic survey

IR Magazine then conducts an electronic survey of buy-side and sell-side analysts and portfolio managers. The electronic survey typically receives 200 individual responses from the investment community. These responses then go to Mary Maude Research for initial analysis. The research firm determines what will constitute a representative sample, weighted for industry sector.

Results analysis

Once the survey stage of the research is completed, the final analysis is undertaken. The companies with the highest scores make the short lists for the awards categories, and the points are further analyzed to identify the best exponents of IR by sector. The independence of our research is crucial to the integrity of the whole awards program, so IR Magazine sees the results only once the research is complete. This ensures a transparent, independent set of results that IROs can trust as a valuable bench-marking tool.

January 2022: Short list compiled

IR Magazine receives the results in January and contacts the short-listed companies to give them the good news. The short list is then published to the entire IR community the month before the event.

 May 25, 2022: Winners announced

And finally… the winners are announced live at the black tie awards gala on Wednesday, May 25, 2022!

May 2022: Report published

Shortly after the awards, the Investor Perception Study – Canada 2022 report is published and made available to IR Magazine subscribers. This report will profile the top ranked companies and reveal information on how they conduct their IR activities and why investors voted for them.

 

Who attends our events

Attendees at this event are leading IR practitioners from across Canada. Each participant is someone with an established track record and a strategic IR role within his or her company.

Below is a sample of some of our past attendees:

Company Job title Company Job title
DLF AGM, investor relations Verde AgriTech Manager, investor relations
Alamos Gold Associate, investor relations BRP Manager, investor relations
AirBoss of America CFO Lundin Mining Manager, investor relations
Cenovus Energy Communications contractor Tervita Corporation Manager, investor relations
Suncor Energy Coordinator, market access Canadian Pacific Railway Managing director, investor relations
Shawcor Corporate & investor relations National Bank of Canada Senior advisor, investor relations
Cordoba Minerals Corp/Kaizen Discovery CS & ethics compliance officer Bank of Montreal Senior analyst
BMO Financial Group Director George Weston Senior director, investor relations
Endeavour Silver Director, investor relations IGM Financial Senior manager, corporate responsibility
Parkland Corporation Director, capital markets Cineplex Senior manager, investor relations
Air Canada Director, investor relations RBC Senior manager, investor relations
Capital Power Director, investor relations Aecon Group Senior vice president
Capstone Mining Director, investor relations Intact Financial Senior vice president
Hudbay Minerals Director, investor relations Pembina Pipeline Corporation Senior VP & chief financial officer
TC Transcontinental Director, investor relations Parkland Sr. Associate, corporate communications
Fortis Executive assistant Kinross Gold SVP, investor relations
TD Bank Group Head of ESG reporting Samsung Life Insurance US chief representative officer
Roots Corporation Head of investor relations Boralex VP
Thomson Reuters Head of investor relations Real Matters VP, investor relations
Nutrien Investor relations administrator Altus Group VP, investor relations
ARC Resources Investor relations analyst Hydro One VP, investor relations
Canadian Tire IR associate and executive assistant Stantec VP, investor relations
WSP Global IR Gibson Energy VP, strategy, planning & IR

 

Request full attendee list

What our attendees say

"Exceptionally executed. Timely flow to the agenda, lovely atmosphere, and the live band was a very nice touch. Very nice to come back to a classy event where it seemed everyone had a great time."

Notified

"I thought that the event was exquisitely planned - from the timing, the entertainment, the audio, visuals, food, etc. Clearly, a lot of work went into it, and it showed."

Aecon Group

"It was a warm, energetic atmosphere and great to see colleagues I hadn't seen for years. I also really appreciated how quickly the awards ceremony was as sometimes they can drag on. I also loved the band that performed for each walk-up. It seemed like a really well-organized event."

First Quantum

"I loved the venue, it was amazing to be back in person. The food, wine and drinks were superb."

Tricon Residential

"It was nice to be reunited with colleagues and attendees again. Venue was great and the food was fantastic!"

Hydro One Limited

"Congratulations on a flawlessly executed in-person event despite a two-year gap"

Intact Financial Corporation

"The food and service at the bar were phenomenal. I also enjoyed having ample time to mingle and the dedicated 1 hour slot strictly for the awards"

Sun Life

"The IR team did a phenomenal job organizing and executing the event; it was a fun evening! Looking forward to seeing what comes next"

RBC Capital Markets

Inquire about partnership

Partners

Become a partner

Why partner with us?

Our awards provide a unique opportunity to get in front of some of the most influential people in the Canadian IR community. As a partner, you will gain an extensive amount of exposure through a wide range of print and digital marketing materials, both pre and post event, as well as on the day itself. Additionally, you can use the event to align yourself with IR excellence and network with key decision makers from across the region – the ones pushing the profession forward through innovation.

Partnering with the event will provide:

  • A chance to network with qualified, senior decision-makers in the IR community
  • Increased awareness and credibility through association with the region’s leading awards
  • New business opportunities through higher-brand presence among current and potential clients
  • The chance to entertain clients at the most respected event of the year
  • Exposure as the market leader in your chosen area by sponsoring the awards category that best reflects your area of expertise

All our partnerships are created using a mix of branding, thought leadership, lead generation and meetings with your target audience. You tell us your objectives and we will work with you to create you a package that’s makes sense for your company and will help you achieve those objectives. To find out more get in touch with Ian Richman or call on +1 212 430 6865.

Register your interest for 2023

Register your interest for the 2023 awards by filling in the form at the link below. You will be the first to receive important updates about the event, including what to expect and how to book your table.

If you have any questions, please contact Danielle Gardiner at [email protected] or call +44 20 8090 0556.

 

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST

Photobooth partner

 We would like to thank Harbor Access for being our Photo Booth Partner at this year’s awards ceremony. Our guests enjoyed something a little bit different as we introduced the 360 photo booth, because after all, photos are so 2019!

To view the gallery, please click here and don’t forget to share your videos on social media using #IRawards

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Privacy Policy

IR Media Group (USA) Inc, the owner of IR Magazine, Corporate Secretary and IRspace, respect the privacy of every person who visits, registers with or subscribes to our websites and online publications, and is committed to ensuring a safe online experience. This privacy statement applies to all IR Media Group’s websites as listed under the heading ‘Sites’ and outlines the information IR Media Group may collect and how we may use that information. It also explains what we do with information about you when you register to attend one of our events.
To view our privacy policy in full, please click here.