For the 20th anniversary edition, a selection of communications from some of IR Magazine's long-standing contacts.
From: Donald Black, vice president of marketing, Barron’s
To: IR magazine
Subject: 20th anniversary
IR magazine has had an enormously beneficial effect on the industry. The launch of the magazine was a critical milestone in the evolution of investor relations to the specialized, highly regarded function it is today. In addition, the growth of the magazine’s awards series contributed beyond measure to the prestige of the position - first in Europe and the US, and now around the world.
From: Fred Stone, head of business development, Sage Holdings
To: IR magazine
Subject: 20th anniversary
The history of IR magazine very much reflects the history of IR itself. As corporate reporting went electronic, so did IR magazine. As Russian companies realized the need for IR, so the magazine was published in Russian. And just as companies look to the US as the world’s largest capital market, we might have predicted the magazine would see such strong demand from the US for an idea born in the UK.
And what were the magazine’s best predictions for IR that did not pan out? Among my favorites was one from the late 1980s forecasting the imminent demise of American depositary receipts: 20 years later, they’re still alive and well.
Another predicted the end of roadshows as video conferencing took over. After managing a roadshow that covered 55 institutions in 12 cities in four days just a couple of years ago, I was wishing the last prediction had been right, but there’s no substitute for real meetings.
IR magazine serves the worldwide IR community extremely well. Enjoy this special year, and here’s to many more.
From: Lou Thompson, managing director, Kalorama Partners
To: IR magazine
Subject: 20th anniversary
My heartiest congratulations to IR magazine on its 20th anniversary. For most of the 24 years I served as president and CEO of NIRI, IR magazine was a beacon for the global expansion of investor relations. Initially it focused on IR trends and developments in the US, UK and Canada; later, as investor relations took hold, it moved into Europe.
IR magazine was also an important catalyst in IR’s expansion by reporting on what IR professionals were doing, why they were doing it and what worked in a variety of equity market circumstances.
Through its sponsorship of conferences illuminating best practices in a young and growing profession, IR magazine has been the ‘go to’ publication for practitioners around the world. And, as IR expanded to Australia, South America, Mexico and Asia, IR magazine was there to chronicle those developments. It has also played a special role in promoting the best of the profession through its IR Magazine Awards program.
From: BONY Mellon ADR team partners
To: IR magazine
Subject: 20th anniversary
As the depositary bank for depositary receipt issuers across the globe, we see first-hand the market success that can be brought about by carefully crafted investor outreach initiatives.
To keep up to date on IR developments and trends, we turn to IR magazine – and have done for years. We congratulate the publication on 20 years of good service to the global IR community.
