Moderator: Ben Ashwell, editor, IR Magazine
Ben Ashwell is the editor at IR Magazine and Corporate Secretary, covering investor relations, governance, risk and compliance. Prior to this, he was the founder and editor of Executive Talent, the global quarterly magazine from the Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants. Before moving to the US, Ben was the vice president and editor at Executive Grapevine, overseeing a daily news website, ten annual supplements and HR Grapevine, the UK’s leading HR and talent management magazine. In his spare time, Ben writes fiction, poetry and arts and culture reviews. Eyewear Publishing recently named him in their list of the Best New British and Irish Poets.
Tim Daubenspeck, partner, Brunswick Group
Tim has 20 years of buy and sell side equity investment experience with both public and private companies in North America, Europe and Asia. He joined Brunswick from ClearBridge Investments, the largest equity manager of Legg Mason. At ClearBridge, he was a portfolio manager and previously a senior analyst covering the technology and telecommunications sector. During his time there, Tim also acted as Chairman of the ClearBridge Proxy Committee, which involved extensive CEO and board level consultation for a $140+ billion asset manager. Prior to joining ClearBridge, Tim was a senior sell side analyst covering the IT Hardware industry for Pacific Crest Securities in the United States and before that for SG Cowen Securities in London. Tim has been quoted in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Barron’s while also appearing on CNBC, Bloomberg Television and other networks. He began his career as a technical software consultant at IBM Global Services. He holds an MBA in Finance from Columbia Business School and a BA in History from Franklin and Marshall College.
Sonal Patel, partner, MerchantCantos
As an award winning Executive Producer, Sonal leads the Film team, film projects and integrated Brunswick and MerchantCantos campaigns, providing senior leadership at every stage.
Sonal has been writing, producing and directing in television and film for 20 years. Her expertise encompasses executive interviews, deal work, investor documentaries, corporate films and employee engagement. She advises clients at Board level and is an effective advocate for powerful storytelling around business strategy.
Sonal’s current clients include Apax Partners, BBA Aviation, Dairy Crest, Edrington, HSBC and Puma Energy. She also provides on-camera media training for senior executives.
Sonal began her career in New York as a broadcast journalist for PBS, WNBC, New York 1 and MTV. She has a Master’s degree in Broadcast Journalism from the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, an Internal Communications Diploma from the CIPR, and a Certificate in IR from the Investor Relations Society.
Lowell Singer, senior vice president of investor relations, The Walt Disney Company
Lowell Singer was named senior vice president, Investor Relations, The Walt Disney Company in May 2007. In this role, he serves as Disney's information liaison to the investor community, while working as a key advisor and resource to Disney's senior management team. Mr. Singer’s responsibilities include establishing and expanding the company's relationships with sell-side and buy-side investment analysts, industry analysts, and investors worldwide. He also provides input on the company's financial reporting activities, manages stock share administration, and manages the company’s proxy process, as well as other shareholder relations activities as part of a comprehensive investor relations program. Prior to his role with Disney, Lowell worked for Cowen and Company, LLC, where he served as a senior research analyst and managing director. In this position, Lowell provided sell-side research coverage of the entertainment, video games and cable sectors. Prior to that, he was a senior research analyst with Robertson Stephens, Inc. where he led the firm's equity research of the entertainment, cable, internet and interactive TV sectors. Previously, Lowell was a Brand Manager with Kraft Foods, Inc. where he led the Stove Top and Kraft Salad Dressing businesses. He began his career with J.P. Morgan & Co., Inc. as an associate in corporate finance with an emphasis on media and entertainment. Lowell is a graduate of Duke University and has an M.B.A. from Stanford's Graduate School of Business.
Lynn Antipas Tyson, executive director of investor relations, Ford Motor Company
Lynn’s career spans over 25 years of leadership roles in treasury, international corporate finance, corporate communications and investor relations serving in senior level positions at Ford, PepsiCo, Dell and other leading companies. Lynn has also provided strategic communications consulting services to companies looking to enhance the effectiveness of their investor relations programs. Specialty areas include leveraging investor relations as a competitive advantage, strategic communications, IPOs, and crisis communications. Lynn's capabilities have been recognized by the equity market across several sectors for building and leading world-class investor relations functions and she is also a recipient of the Silver Anvil Award for excellence in crisis communications from the Public Relations Society of America.
Lynn is currently Executive Director, Investor Relations for Ford Motor Company where she is responsible for leading all of Ford’s investor relations initiatives, including representing the company to equity and fixed income investors and rating agencies, and providing strategic counsel to support value creation and risk mitigation. Lynn’s career includes 14 years of finance and strategic communications experience with PepsiCo, where she ultimately served as Senior Vice President, Investor Relations, and 10 years at Dell, where she led Investor Relations and Global Corporate Communications. Prior to Dell, Lynn led Investor Relations for YUM! Brands, where she was involved in its spin-off from PepsiCo in 1997.
Lynn holds a bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the City College of New York and an MBA in finance and international business from the Stern School of Business at New York University.
Lynn is a long-standing member of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI), serving as a board member from 2004-2008. During her tenure on the board, Lynn Co-Chaired the Audit Committee and Chaired the CEO Search Committee. In 2019, Lynn Chaired the NIRI Think Tank that produced the white paper: "The Disruption Opportunity: A Report on the Future of Investor Relations".
