Award-winning IRO returns to agency roots at Edelman

Deb Wasser, a former winner of the best small-cap IRO trophy at the IR Magazine Awards – US, has joined Edelman Public Relations after 17 years as head of IR at clean technology company Veeco Instruments.

‘Our financial communications practice is growing rapidly with a substantial team of specialized professionals in the US who help clients navigate sensitive issues related to the capital markets,’ says Lex Suvanto, managing director of financial communications and special situations at Edelman, in a press release welcoming Wasser to the company.

Deb Wasser, Edelman

‘Her arrival builds on other recent hires Edelman has made to expand its financial communications practice,’ states the firm. These include Brett Philbin, former reporter at the Wall Street Journal; Rebecca Kral, former proxy solicitor at DF King & Co; and Chad Tendler, former communications director at Dow Jones Asia and Brunswick.

Speaking to IR Magazine, Wasser, who now heads up Edelman’s IR practice from New York and reports to Suvanto, says she is ‘already incredibly impressed with the team and its capabilities’ despite ‘only [being] in the job a week.’

‘Edelman’s financial communications is doing a lot of very strategic work – from IPOs to corporate M&A, capital markets PR, spin-offs and shareholder activism,’ explains Wasser, saying that her ‘added perspective as someone who served for many years as a senior IR officer’ will benefit the company’s goal ‘to be an added resource to the CEO, CFO and IRO.

‘While most companies have very competent in-house IR experts, Edelman is extremely well positioned to serve as an expert external strategic communications counsel during periods of change, crisis, growth or other corporate milestones.’

Part of what attracted Wasser to the new role was the opportunity to return to her agency roots, she says (she started her career at Dewe Rogerson after college). She also has ‘strong relationships at Edelman’. Putting this relationship into perspective, Veeco has retained Edelman to handle its investor relations until a new head of IR has been named.

‘What excited me most about the role was the chance to help grow a boutique financial practice within the framework of the largest PR firm – with all of the expertise and resources that go along with that,’ Wasser concludes.