A Tribute To Bob Schifellite From The Optimizer’s Senior Editor
I first met Bob in 1985, when he was with IECA - the Independent Election Corporation of America – when he came to call on us at the old Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company to explain what the newly formed IECA was all about. His smiling face, his calm, thoughtful and...
Shareholder Votes Have Value – Please Do Not Let Your Votes Go To Waste!
©2023 by Carl T. Hagberg and Associates. All rights reserved. This publication may not be copied or made available to readers over the Internet without the express permission of the copyright holder. (The letter below can be generic - or personalized with issuers’...
Troubling News For Corporate Governance Professionals from Broadridge’s 2023 Review
Expectations of directors are increasing. Fewer directors stood for election this past season (23,829) than in 2022 season, but more failed to attain majority support (654) than at any time in the last 5 years. Support has declined for Say-on-Pay. 131 say-on-pay...
Holders Coalition Fights Threats By Unclaimed Property “Auditors” To Change State Laws At The Expense Of Share-Owners
Here’s an email we got recently from Jen Borden – whom we consider to be the world’s top expert on all things concerning unclaimed property. It updates the article she did for our year-end magazine, 2022 Unclaimed Property Year-End Round Up, and provides some truly...
Highlights Of The 2023 Meeting Season Through June
The 2023 Shareholder Meeting Season to date has been “one for the books” for sure – and we are happy to report that most of the predictions and early warnings we posted in late 2022 and early 2023 were very much on the money: While there has been a modest return to...
Best Statements In Opposition To Shareholder Proposals
In our last issue we recommended that readers take time to review what we found to be the “Most Engaging” Shareholder Meeting Materials of the 70-odd sets we reviewed with care - and we promised to disclose the MOST CONVINCING EXAMPLES OF CORPORATE RESPONSES to...
No Quorums At Meetings Because Directors Failed To Vote: Our Tips To Fix
As noted here earlier, there was a very noticeable decline in the number of companies that had to adjourn their Shareholder Meetings in first-half 2023 for lack of a quorum on the appointed date and time. At two of the Meetings where our Inspectors of Election served,...
An Unusual – And Disturbing Trend This Season – Failing To Name The Auditor Up-front – And, For Shame – On Your Proxy Card
Through mid-April we’ve noted at least three instances where the Audit Firm’s name was omitted in both the summary of items on the ballot in the Proxy Statement – and on the Proxy Card itself. This is a totally unacceptable thing to do in our opinion – and makes us...
Here Are The Three “Most Engaging Proxy Materials” From The Two-Dozen “Packages” We Received Through Mid-April
PEPSICO’s ANNUAL REPORT - Tops to date – and one of the two or three most engaging sets of reports over our 30+ years of reviewing proxy materials. Packed FULL of engaging soundbites, like the theme – “Winning with pep+” (which we have been doing for 30+ years) plus...
Big News For Issuers On “Retail Engagement” – Vow Now To Do Better Next Year
Big and important news from Broadridge’s 5th annual CX [Customer Experience, we figured out] and Communications Consumer Insights report, “capturing the responses of 4,000+ consumers across North America regarding their preferences for different communication...
Podcast Alert: Annual Meeting Season 2026 — Expert Advice from Carl & Peder Hagberg
Carl and Peder Hagberg of The Shareholder Service OPTIMIZER join Meredith Ervine from TheCorporateCounsel.net to discuss proxy season risks, virtual meetings, and shareholder engagement for 2026.
Listen to hear their insights on this year’s annual meeting season.