As the Covid pandemic continues to make in-person shareholder meetings a poor choice for most widely-held companies, most of last year’s VSM users - and a large number of companies that used “strong keep-away rules” last year instead - have been lining up extra early, to assure the availability of top-flight service providers at convenient dates and times.
Early returns from the CT Hagberg LLC Inspector of Elections Team indicate a “return rate” for VSMs of nearly 90%. And we are betting that new adopters this year will more than offset the number of companies (mostly very small ones) that decide to hold their meetings at their law firms, or in some other small space…by a significant margin.
The biggest former naysayers and pooh-poohers where VSMs are concerned have dramatically changed their tune in the face of 2020 VSM statistics - which show larger turnouts, more shareholder voting and - at the best-run meetings - more and better shareholder questions at VSMs than most public companies have seen at their in-person meetings in years. And yes, while we know many companies that actually love their in-person shareholder meetings - and get good value out of them - and will indeed return to having an in-person component when it’s safe to do so - VSMs are decidedly here to stay.
But readers, please note well: As we have been saying over and over, investors of every size and description are raising the bars significantly in terms of what they expect from VSMs. If your company is perceived as a laggard in terms of your technology - and especially in your ability to provide a “virtual experience” that is as close as possible to an in-person meeting experience - watch out. Expect to be pilloried and soundly called-out in the press and - far more damaging, for sure - in social media.
The OPTIMIZER has developed quite a long list of practical tips, important dos and don’ts, a long list of best practices - and some brief but comprehensive reports on the very best VSMs of 2020 for you to learn from as you gear up for your 2021 shareholder meeting…
A summary of our best info - with hot-links to the articles themselves - is directly below:
Active Links To All Our Best Advice On “Acing Your VSM”
“ACE YOUR VIRTUAL MEETING” (Passcode: h5%gt!Gk): This is a rebroadcast of a “virtual presentation” the OPTIMIZER’s editors put together with and for the SSA. It focuses on the 2020 General Motors Meeting and features the two leading lights behind the technology and the “overall run-of-show” that made the GM meeting the best by far in 2020.
As an extra reason to watch, the SSA is offering non-member viewers a 20% discount to our OPTIMIZER followers. Simply include the Discount Code SSA2021 in the Comments section of your membership application. We consider this the best membership for any public company to have, given the high dollar-value of the very practical info they provide.
- The Five Best VSMs To Review – And To Learn From… The Most Noteworthy Feature Of The Very Best VSMs? Women! | Optimizer Online
- Our Short-List Of Must-Listen VSMs | Optimizer Online
- The Biggest VSM Blooper To Avoid: Lost Connectivity Here’s How To Get Set For 2021 – And To Prepare For The Worst Things That Can Happen With Your Meeting Technology | Optimizer Online
- Several Serious “Bloopers” In The 2020 Q&A And Voting Periods That Are Very Easy To Fix For 2021 | Optimizer Online
- The Virtual Shareholder Meeting Q&A – and How to Tackle It | Optimizer Online
- A Word To The Wise: Big Brother Is Watching – And Listening To Your VSMs… Taking Notes… and Gearing Up To Push Back | Optimizer Online
- Inspectors of Election - More Important Than Ever
- Here’s Another Useful Development To Smooth The Way At Your VSM: IROs Finally Get A Prime Seat At The AGM Table | Optimizer Online
- Some Timely Reminders On Meeting Etiquette – At In-person And Virtual Meetings | Optimizer Online
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