News & Media

Best practice winners honoured at awards ceremony

26 November 2008

On 25 November 2008 the IR Society hosted its largest ever Best Practice Awards Ceremony at The Royal Hospital Gardens, Chelsea, London.
 
For many, the night marked the end of a very tough year and celebrated efforts and successes in investor relations with nearly 500 guests in attendance.

Companies were invited to submit their entries for the IR Society awards. They were scored against criteria based on the IR Society's guidelines for best practice in investor communications.  The results were peer-reviewed by experienced IR Practitioners from the Society's board and the short-list was submitted to a panel of judges drawn from analysts, fund managers and users of accounts.

The judging panel for the awards comprised of:
 
John Dawson - Investor Relations Society
Peter Elwin - JP Morgan Cazenove
Anthony Hilton - Evening Standard
John Pierce - Quoted Companies Alliance
Peter Robinson - Redburn Partners
David Shapiro - Collins Stewart
Simon Thompson - Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales

We would like to thank the panel for taking the time and trouble to select all the winners.

Our congratulations go out to our deserved winners listed below:

Best Business Review
Sponsored by Hugin Group
Winner: Anglo American plc

The judges felt the business review was the most important communications tool in an annual report and it is the area where companies need to particularly focus on disseminating their strategy clearly and succinctly, providing clear links to performance, market dynamics and risks. Whilst the business review is still fairly new to many companies, the judges felt  there was plenty of scope to strengthen these links and in particular improve the use of Key Performance Indicators.

The judges reported that Anglo American plc provided excellent linkages from the Chairman and CEO's statements to the rest of the report, a clear explanation of the company and a very good overall standard. Key Performance Indicators were clearly linked to strategy and a very good description of markets and prices was evident. Risks were well handled and closely linked to the operations of the business. A deserved winner.

Best Communications of CSR
Sponsored by Richard Davies Investor Relations
Winner: RSA Insurance Group plc

Many factors comprise effective CSR communication. Whilst the annual report is not the only document for updating the market on progress in this area, it should provide a concise summary, including stakeholder engagement, data, governance and clear linkages to overall business strategy. In these criteria and others, RSA Insurance Group demonstrated itself to be the deserved winner of this category.

Most Improved Communication - Annual Report
Sponsored by Communicate magazine
Winner: Tullow Oil

This award was given for the company who in the opinion of the judges had made the biggest improvement in their annual report. A number of companies had made good progress developing their annual reports. However, Tullow Oil demonstrated the most discernable improvement with significant improvements to its strategy, use of key performance indicators and its handling of risk. A clear layout and simple descriptions were supplemented by excellent case studies highlighting company strategy and the relationship with operational risks.

Most Improved Communication - Web
Sponsored by Precision IR
Winner: VT Group plc

The judges considered design, page layout, navigation, accessibility and the use of innovative tools and content amongst other criteria when determining this year's most improved online communication. VT Group was praised for making material improvements to its website to showcase their business in an engaging manner. Their attention to the needs of investors and analysts was clear from their submission and reflected in the changes made to the site. The judges were particularly impressed with ease of access to information through simple navigation, and the quality of business descriptions and tools to make it a useful part of the company's communications tool-kit.

Best Practice Corporate Website 2008

These awards recognise the leading websites of companies in their respective FTSE indices. Key criteria include providing insightful company details, easy to access and useful financial information, proactive tools to access reports, events, conferences and other news, improved shareholder information and clear guidance on corporate governance.

Best Practice Corporate Website 2008 - FTSE 100
Sponsored by World TV
Winner: Imperial Tobacco Company plc

This was considered to be an excellent website, being investor focussed and adept in addressing the specific issues concerning the company's sector. A good section on pension funds complemented detailed financial information contributing to its overall comprehensive feel.

Best Practice Corporate Website 2008 - FTSE 250
Sponsored by Cantos Communications
Winner: Cookson Group plc

The judges commended the detail of the site's content, presented through a well structured and professional online appearance. The site explains the business clearly and included fact sheets, product profiles and substantial information on the board. It is well designed, easy to view and provides an insightful source of information on the group.

Best Practice Corporate Website 2008 - Small Cap & Aim
Sponsored by The Investor Relations Society
Winner: GlobeOp Financial Services

GlobeOp Financial Services' website details financial information for shareholders and more general viewers. Plenty of company information complements an intuitive feel. The judges were particularly impressed to find more detailed preliminary results information than would often be found on a larger company's web-site.

Best Practice Corporate Website 2008 - International
Sponsored by CLS Communication
Winner: Nyrstar

This website clearly and succinctly explains its operations and strategy. It makes excellent use of space and is well laid out. The investor centre provides necessary detail and contacts. The website leaves the viewer and investor in no doubt as to what the company does and provides good tools to encourage repeat visits.

Best Practice Communication Through The Annual Report 2008
(Printed and Online) - FTSE 100
Sponsored by Black Sun
Winner: Legal & General Group plc

Legal and General won this award for providing the best balance between the printed and online annual reports. The company's position in a complex sector was well explained. The online environment was commended by the judges for making the best use of online tools to enhance the experience of investors reviewing the annual report. The use of management interviews, closely tied to the content of the report itself, together with strong linkages and enhanced tools, were considered by the judges to effectively enhance disclosure and the online functionality was seen as beneficial for broader stakeholders as well as investors.

Best Practice Communication Through The Annual Report 2008
(Printed and Online) - FTSE 250
Sponsored by Deutsche Bank
Winner: Premier Farnell

The judges felt Premier Farnell addressed corporate strategy, Key Performance Indicators and risks well in the printed report, and was a close runner up in that category as well. However, the website provided additional functionality, with useful case studies online tools that allowed users to get much more out of the online environment.

Best Practice Communication Through The Annual Report 2008
(Printed and Online) - Small Cap & Aim
Sponsored by IR Magazine
Winner: Robert Wiseman

The judges were particularly impressed with the comprehensive detail in the annual report addressing industry developments and issues. The website was of a very good standard with the interactive report an excellent tool. Simple, yet effective; this was impressive communication all-round.

Best Practice Communication Through The Annual Report 2008
(Printed and Online) - International
Sponsored by Bank of New York Mellon
Winner: BASF SE

BASF's annual report stood out in this category and demonstrated the company's commitment to investor communications.  In the printed and online reports, goals and Key Performance Indicators were clearly defined with every part of the business analysed in detail. A user of this report would have very few gaps left in their understanding of the business.

Thomson Reuters Extel Awards

The awards from the Thomson Reuters Extel Surveys were based solely on the weighted votes of fund managers and brokerage analysts covering UK stocks.

In total 309 buyside/sellside institutions participated in the Survey, giving rankings for IR excellence for FTSE100 and FTSE250 companies.

In each of those main categories, participants were asked to rank the leading overall company for IR, the Leading CFO, the best IR website and the best annual report.

In total across the Survey, 292 firms and 270 individuals received nominations.

The votes received were weighted, fund managers votes weighted by assets under management and brokerage votes by their raking in Extel's 2008 Pan-European Survey.

This was the first Thomson Reuters Extel/IRS UK Investor Relations Study, and builds up on the similar market work Extel has undertaken running IR excellence for DIRK in Germany, as well of course, as the main Thomson Reuters Extel IR rankings for Pan-Europe and Pan-Asia.
For further details please contact Thomson Reuters directly: http://www.thomsonreuters.com/

Best IR Website For Investors - FTSE 100
Winner: BT Group

Best IR Website For Investors - FTSE 250
Winner: Aveva

Best Annual Report For Investors - FTSE 100
Winner: BG Group

Best Annual Report For Investors - FTSE 250
Winner: Provident Financial

Best CFO at IR - FTSE 100
Winner: David Keens, Next

Best CFO at IR - FTSE250
Winner: Peter Williams, Daily Mail and General Trust

Best Overall IR for a UK Company - FTSE 100
Winner: Tesco

Best Overall  IR for a UK Company - FTSE 250
Winner: Home Retail Group