The Ritz Carlton, Toronto
The IR Magazine Awards – Canada 2023 will take place on Wednesday, April 5 in Toronto. This very special event honors excellence in the investor relations profession across Canada and we are excited to welcome everyone for an evening of fine food 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.
All times displayed are in Eastern Time (ET)
Please note: timings are subject to change
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.
The entry deadline for 2023 nominations has now passed and we are no longer accepting entries. We will be in touch with all submitters from January onwards.
Please note that categories are subject to change based on the final number of submissions received. Some categories may be split by market cap size.
View the full list of 2022 winners by clicking here
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.
We are delighted to announce our judging panel for the 2023 awards! Click on each photo below to find out more.
Brian Christie
Former vice president, investor relations
Agnico Eagle Mines
Mr. Christie served as the Vice President of Investor Relations at Agnico Eagle Mines from December 2012 until July 2022. During his tenure at Agnico Eagle, the company was consistently recognized as having one of the top Investor Relations programs across all industries in Canada. Mr. Christie is currently retained by Agnico Eagle as a Senior Advisor, Investor Relations.
From 2016 until 2021 he served as an Independent Director (including 2 years as Board Chair and Compensation Committee Chair) of the Denver Gold Group, a Colorado based not-for-profit association owned by its member gold companies who control most of the world’s precious metal output and mineral assets.
Before joining Agnico Eagle, he worked for over 17 years in the investment industry, primarily as a precious and base metals mining analyst with Desjardins Securities, National Bank Financial, Canaccord Capital and HSBC Securities. Prior to this, Mr. Christie spent 13 years in the mining industry as a geologist for a variety of mining companies, including Homestake, Billiton, Falconbridge Copper and Newmont Mining. Mr. Christie holds a BSc. in Geology (University of Toronto) and an MSc. in Geology (Queen’s University) and is a member of the Canadian Investor Relations Institute (CIRI) and the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI).
Lorne Gorber
Senior advisor and Quebec lead
LodeRock
Lorne Gorber is a bilingual executive with nearly 20 years of success leading global strategic reputation management initiatives within large, global, and publicly-traded companies.
Top Gun ranked by Brendan Wood for multiple years, Lorne is recognized leader in the investor relations community. He was named a Fellow of the Canadian Investor Relations Institute (F.CIRI) in 2017, a designation for those who have advanced the investor relations profession and the efforts of CIRI. In 2018, Lorne received IR Magazine’s award as best investor relations officer in Canada (large cap) and, over several years led IR teams recognized as Best in the Technology Sector.
Lorne began his career as a writer and editor for various publications in Canada and the United States, conceptualizing and developing compelling narratives that engaged and informed audiences on a variety of topics.
Lorne holds an undergraduate degree from Concordia University in Montréal and a master’s degree from the University of Southern California. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Council of the Great Lakes Region; sits on the Advisory Council of Ubico Inc. Additionally, Lorne serves as CEO of Blockify Inc., an emerging blockchain technology company.
Colleen Johnston
Former CFO
TD Bank
Colleen currently serves on the boards of Shopify, McCain Foods, Q4 and Private Debt Partners. Colleen is Chair of Unity Health Toronto, which includes St. Michael’s Hospital, St. Joseph’s Health Centre and Providence Healthcare. She previously served as the Chair of Bridgepoint Health and the Heart & Stroke Foundation of Ontario.
Colleen Johnston retired from TD Bank Group in 2018. Prior to this, she was the Group Head Direct Channels, Technology, Marketing and Corporate & Public Affairs, TD Bank Group. Colleen served as TD’s Chief Financial Officer from 2005 2015. Prior to joining TD in 2004, Colleen spent 15 years with Scotiabank in various senior finance positions. Colleen started her career at PwC in 1982. She received her CA designation in 1984 and in 2006 was elected an FCA (FCPA) recognizing her outstanding career achievements and dedication to community activities.
At TD, she was actively involved in promoting diversity and inclusion in the workplace as Chair of the Women in Leadership Committee for ten years. In 2013, Colleen was awarded the Catalyst Canada Honours in the Business Leader Category. Colleen has received numerous top industry honours as a senior finance executive including Canada’s CFO of the Year in 2012. She was recognized by Women’s Executive Network as one of Canada’s Most Powerful Women three years in a row and inducted into Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2011, for the third year in a row, she was named one of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Banking by American Banker. Colleen has received Honorary Degrees from St. Mary’s University and York University (Schulich School of Business).
James Beech
Editor-in-chief
IR Magazine
James Beech joined IR Media Group as Editor-in-Chief in January 2022. He was a multimedia journalist, editor, client relationship manager, awards host and public speaker at Campden Wealth, for and about the global ultra-wealthy multigenerational family business and office community, in 2016-21.
The Englishman reported and photographed news and features for daily and weekly regional newspapers and websites, in New Zealand and Australia, including the Otago Daily Times and Canterbury-Bankstown Express, in 2006-15.
He wrote and edited market-leading consumer magazines and websites in Bournemouth then worked in public relations and media communications in London, in 1999-2006.
He graduated from Bournemouth University with a BA (Hons) in Multimedia Journalism in 1999.
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. For any further queries about the research process, please contact [email protected].
To view the full list of 2022 nominees and winners click here.
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 2022: 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 2022: 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 2022: 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 2023: 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.
April 6, 2023: Winners announced
And finally… the winners are announced live at the black tie awards gala on Thursday, April 6, 2023!
May 2022: Report published
Shortly after the awards, the Investor Perception Study – Canada 2023 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.
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 |
Awards Partners
Broadridge, a global fintech leader with $4 billion in revenue, provides communications, technology, data and analytics. We help drive business transformation with solutions for enriching client engagement, navigating risk, optimizing efficiency and generating revenue growth. We power the entire investment lifecycle, from trading, portfolio management and financial advisory to omni-channel communications. Part of the Canadian financial services community for three decades, our footprint spans the big five banks, one-third of North American wealth management firms and 75 percent of the mailboxes in North America. We are uniquely positioned to help clients get ahead of today’s challenges and capitalize on what’s next.
Broadridge also delivers a single-source solution to help corporations simplify securityholder management, efficiently navigate regulatory and compliance communication requirements and gain insights to effectively serve and engage securityholders. Our smart, simple and strategic solutions for public companies and alternative investments, such as REITs help you build your brand and engage your securityholders. Our communication tools help gain efficiencies, cultivate goodwill toward your brand, educate and influence securityholders and increase participation. We simplify the annual meeting process by streamlining proxy communications that improve your annual meetings with solutions to efficiently, and effectively reach all of your securityholders and support your goals and priorities. We help you drive a successful proxy outcome with data-driven, predictive insights based on securityholder voting patterns. Our data and insights help you gain a greater understanding of securityholder behaviours and trends so you can make smart decisions that support good governance practices.
For more information please visit: www.broadridge.com.
Build, innovate, and grow your business with Irwin, the only investor relations platform designed with automation and reduced time-to-insight at its core. Irwin unlocks and enhances investor and shareholder relationships for your business—for various use cases, market caps, and industries—whether you have an established IR program or are just getting started.
At Irwin, we’re building a better way to manage investor relations. Legacy tools and companies in capital markets often grow stagnant, and the capacity to innovate wanes over time. This has left the majority of IR teams with two to five inefficient tools to manage their program and workflows—over time; we hope to reduce that to one. Our full-service tool suite includes powerful investor targeting, comprehensive shareholder monitoring, an intuitive CRM (with built-in email and engagement tools), timely research, estimates, and transcripts, and IR website intelligence.
To learn more, please visit www.getirwin.com.
Morrow Sodali is the leading global consultancy specializing in shareholder services, corporate governance, proxy solicitation and capital markets transactions. The firm provides corporate boards and executives with strategic advice and services relating to a broad range of activities, including: mergers and acquisitions, annual general and extraordinary shareholder meetings, dissident and contested campaigns, shareholder activist initiatives and multinational cross-border equity and debt transactions.
From headquarters in New York and London and nine offices in major capital markets, Morrow Sodali serves more than 700 corporate clients in 40 countries, including many of the world’s largest multinational corporations. In addition to listed and private companies, its clients include mutual funds, stock exchanges, membership associations and activist investors.
For more information, visit morrowsodali.com
National Bank Financial Markets (www.nbfm.ca) is the trade name of the Financial Markets division of National Bank Financial, a subsidiary of National Bank of Canada. National Bank Financial is a fully-integrated investment dealer combining retail advisory and brokerage services with institutional brokerage, investment banking, corporate finance, and securities clearing for third parties. The Financial Markets division has a major presence in Toronto, Calgary, Vancouver and Montreal, as well as operations in New York, London, Dublin and Hong Kong. Our Corporate Access Program draws on the expertise of seasoned professionals to design customized outreach strategies that connect companies to the right institutional and retail investor prospects. With a full-suite of roadshow services, our team provides comprehensive, value-add resources to the marketing process.
For more information, please visit www.nbfm.ca
Established in 1997, Newsfile is your customer-first newswire and regulatory filing team that delivers service and support you won’t find anywhere else in the industry.
Our comprehensive circuits distribute news to a worldwide audience of investors, analysts and institutions while ensuring compliance with all Stock Exchanges by reaching major broker terminals, financial databases, aggregators, media and more.
Choose Newsfile for service excellence powered by experienced professionals who make the difference.
For more information please visit www.newsfilecorp.com.
Q4 is the fastest growing cloud-based investor relations and capital market solutions to the IR Industry with over 1,200 clients. Public companies the world over (many of which are Fortune 1000 brands) look to our leading web and intelligence solutions to power successful (and award winning) IR programs — and to better connect with their investors, make more effective decisions, and understand the capital markets.
Learn more at www.q4inc.com.
Works Design is a full-service corporate communications agency and design studio. We help world-class organizations present themselves, tell their stories and build relationships with all of their stakeholders.
For more information, please visit www.worksdesign.com
Corporate Partners
Agnico Eagle is a senior Canadian gold mining company that has produced precious metals since 1957. Its operating mines are located in Canada, Finland and Mexico, with exploration activities in each of these countries as well as in the United States and Colombia. The Company and its shareholders have full exposure to gold prices due to its long-standing policy of no forward gold sales. Agnico Eagle has declared a cash dividend every year since 1983.
For more information, please visit www.agnicoeagle.com
CN is a true backbone of the economy, transporting approximately C$250 billion worth of goods annually for a wide range of business sectors, ranging from resource products to manufactured products to consumer goods, across a rail network spanning Canada and mid-America. CN – Canadian National Railway Company, along with its operating railway subsidiaries — serves the cities and ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the metropolitan areas of Toronto, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Calgary, Chicago, Memphis, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America.
For more information on CN, visit the company’s website at www.cn.ca
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:
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.
View the highlights from the 2022 awards ceremony
We’re pleased to hosting this year’s awards at:
The Ritz Carlton
181 Wellington St W
Toronto, ON M5V 3G7
Dress code
Black tie
Warning: Please note the event may contain flashing lights or sudden loud sound effects.
Accommodation:
The organizers have arranged for discounted rates at nearby hotels located a short distance away from the venue. Click here to view the hotels and rates.
We also have a preferential rate available at The Ritz Carlton, Toronto at C$525 per night. Please note this rate is valid until Friday, March 3, 2023. Click here to make your reservation at The Ritz Carlton.
Click on the button below to book your ticket.
The super early bird rate expires on February 3, 2023. After this date, the price will increase to the early bird rate of C$495 for individual seats and C$4,455 for tables of 10. The standard rate is C$695 for individual seats and C$6,255 for tables of 10.
Please note that all prices are subject to 13% HST.
If you have any questions, or would like to book 3 or more tables, please contact
Thomas Williams on [email protected] or +44 208 090 2156.
For partnership inquiries
+1 212 430 6865
For awards inquiries
+44 20 8004 4989
For all other inquiries
+44 208 090 2156