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About the awards

The IR Magazine Awards – US honors excellence in the investor relations profession. Since the annual event first launched in 1996, tens of thousands of analysts and investors have voted in the surveys behind the awards. The result: vital bench-marking information on which companies do the best IR.

Over the last two decades the awards program has expanded to recognize more aspects of investor relations, particularly the contributions of senior management, as well as to identify the best IR by sector. In addition, the research now covers the perspective of winning companies in addition to the views of analysts and investors.

We present 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 the US. 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 do the best IR in the US.

In our nominated categories, companies have the opportunity to nominate themselves or other publicly listed companies, free of charge, for aspects of IR that complement our researched categories. More information on the categories and how winners are chosen can be found below.

Further details about the 2021 awards ceremony will follow in due course, including confirmation of the virtual platform and timings.

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 members.

OPEN FOR ENTRIES

We are now accepting entries for 2021! Please click here to access the entry form. The deadline for submissions is midnight (ET) on Friday, January 8, 2021.

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 entire list of 2020 nominees and winners

Nominated categories
How the winners are chosen

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.

Best ESG reporting

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?

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.

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.

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.

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.

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 five years and has less than 10 years of professional experience.

Lifetime Achievement

The winner of this award is selected by the panel of judges. If you would like to make a suggestion of a worthy winner, please email Ben Ashwell, editor of IR Magazine at [email protected].

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 members.

The judging process is made up of three simple phases:

Phase one: The IR Magazine editorial team reviews the entries and produces the short list.

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

Phase three: The judges come together for a discussion to select the winners.

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.

Past attendees say

"The show and the entire process was fantastic. Your team does a great job bringing the IR community together to celebrate accomplishments and learn from each other, despite the unusual circumstances!"

MSA Safety

"Beautiful Venue"

The AES Corporation

"Always excellent format and venue. LOVED the elementary school drum line!"

DFIN

"Great networking with the best of the best"

Blackbaud

"Amazing award show. Organized and executed very professionally and a lot of fun to attend."

Ally Financial

"IR Magazine always puts on an excellent event. I look forward to attending each year. I really appreciated the opportunity to submit a self nomination and liked the addition of a judging panel. I believe there are a lot of companies doing great IR that don't get named in the other categories. You do a great job. Keep it up!"

Zillow Group, Inc.

"Overall it is a great evening and very well organized."

Chubb Limited

"Charming and quick - especially given the number of awards, IR Magazine are doing great!"

GBIR

"This is a great networking event that's also a lot of fun. I really enjoyed it."

Ubiquiti Networks

"Great opportunity for networking in an amazing place and with an unexpected very entertaining gala."

Enel

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 the US. 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.

How do I submit a list?

Please send an Excel file with the names, firm, direct telephone numbers and email addresses to [email protected].

If you have any questions on this process or wish to access our data sharing agreement, please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page.

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 entire list of 2020 nominees and winners

Researched Categories
How the winners are chosen

Best overall investor relations

Best investor relations officer

Best IR by a senior management team

Best financial reporting

Best use of technology for IR

Best IR by a non-US company in the US market

Best in sector: communications

Best in sector: consumer discretionary

Best in sector: consumer staples

Best in sector: energy

Best in sector: financials

Best in sector: healthcare

Best in sector: industrials

Best in sector: materials

Best in sector: real estate

Best in sector: technology

Best in sector: utilities

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 2020: 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 Markets list of US investment community contacts to produce a total of around 50,000 investors and analysts.

September – November 2020: 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. 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 2020: 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.

December 2020: Short list compiled

IR Magazine receives the results in December 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.

March 25, 2021: Winners announced

And finally… the winners are announced live at the awards presentation.

March 2021: Report published

Shortly after the awards, the Investor Perception Study – US 2021 report is published and made available to IR Magazine subscribers.

Inquire about partnership

Our Partners

Become a partner

Why partner with us?

Our awards provides a unique opportunity to get in front of some of the most influential people in the US 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 about how we can help, contact Ian Richman or call on +1 212 430 6865.

Register your interest to attend

Please fill in the form below to receive updates about the US Awards 2021. We will confirm further details about the event shortly, including location and timings.

If you have any questions, please contact Priscilla Lim at [email protected] or +44 20 8004 4989.

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Virtual awards highlights

Who Attends?

Attendees at this event are leading IR practitioners from across the US. 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:

Job title	Company	Job title	Company
Director	Hersha	SVP, investor and public relations	Tractor Supply Company
Director – global CSR reporting & insights	AT&T	SVP, investor relations	CVS Heathcare
Director finance	Casella Waste Systems	SVP, IR	Salesforce
Director of investor relations	Boston Private Financial Holdings	US chief representative officer	Samsung Life Insurance
Director of investor relations	Fifth Third Bank	Vice president	Edelman
Director of IR	Caterpillar	Vice president	JP Morgan
Director, corporate communications and investor relations	Reata Pharmaceuticals	Vice president	W2O Group
Director, corporate responsibility	Intel Corporation	Vice president – investor relations	Honeywell
Director, head of investor relations	Lazard	Vice president investor relations	Marriott Vacations Worldwide
Director, investor relations	Callon Petroleum	Vice president, corporate access & client services	Baird
Director, investor relations	The Home Depot	Vice president, finance	Stripes Group
Director, investor relations and corporate development	Stoneridge	Vice president, head of investor relations	Medtronic
Director, investor relations and FP&A	Visteon	Vice president, investor communications	General Electric Company
Managing director	Haller Financial Magazine	Vice president, investor relations	Best Buy
Managing director of market research	Envestnet	Vice president, investor relations	Etsy
MD	RD:IR	VP investor relations	Hilton
President	In Touch US	VP marketing & IR	DistributionNOW
President & CEO	Kansas City Southern	VP treasurer & IR	CMS Energy
President & chief executive officer	Codexis	VP, investor relations	Discovery
Sr. director, investor relations	Xylem	VP, investor relations	Newmont
Sr. investor relations analyst	Xcel Energy	VP-IR & treasurer	LendingTree
Sr. investor relations specialist	Central Garden & Pet

Request full past attendee list

IR Magazine Awards – USCelebrating IR Excellence

Thursday, March 25, 2021

About the awards

Awards by Nomination