The cream of continental investor relations will be celebrated when the IR Magazine Awards – Europe return to London next month, with Barco, HUGO BOSS and Unilever among the dozens of nominees announced.
A record number of entries were submitted and judges spent weeks scrutinizing submissions to come up with the short list, the benchmark for sector-wide excellence across Europe. The prizes will be presented in person at a black-tie gala dinner and ceremony in London on June 22.
Among the nominees to watch are Barco, the €2.3 bn ($2.5 bn) Belgian technology company nominated for best investor event (mid-cap), best ESG reporting (mid-cap) and best investor relations officer (mid-cap).
The €4.5 bn German fashion house HUGO BOSS is a rival for best investor event (mid-cap) and is also nominated for best annual report (mid-cap) and best use of multimedia for IR. Elsewhere, Unilever, the £104 bn ($129 bn) UK multinational consumer goods giant, is nominated for best investor event (large cap), best ESG reporting (large cap) and best IR website.
Household brands
Other major corporate players in the running include adidas for best annual report (large cap), Allianz for best overall investor relations (large cap), Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings for best annual report (mid-cap), BP for best IR during a corporate transaction, Iberdrola for best use of multimedia for IR and Shell for best innovation in shareholder communications.
Banco Santander, the €53 bn financial services provider, is among the heavyweights returning to defend past victories, with the Spanish bank nominated for best annual report (large cap), best innovation in shareholder communications, best use of multimedia for IR, best investor relations officer (large cap) and rising star.
Companies from Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the UK are represented. Find out who is in the running here.
How the nominees are selected
As is tradition, IR Magazine will present two types of award categories: researched and nominated. Researched categories are decided by a survey of buy-side and sell-side analysts and portfolio managers, while nominated categories are decided by a panel of judges.
This year, the panel of judges consists of:
– Mike Allen, head of research, Zeus Capital
– James Beech, editor-in-chief, IR Magazine
– Heinrich Ey, director and co-CIO for German and European mid/small caps, Allianz Global Investors
– Simon Gleadhill, corporate reporting & IFRS technical controller, Howden Joinery Group
– Madeleine Szeluch, investor relations ESG director, Novartis
– Gervais Williams, head of equities, Premier Miton Investors.
The winners in each category will be announced at a glittering, gala awards ceremony at the historic 8 Northumberland Avenue, London on June 22. Book your place here.
Earlier on the same day, the IR Magazine Think Tank – Europe will be held in person at Bank of America’s offices in London. This invitation-only event is free to attend and exclusively for senior IR practitioners. Participants will openly discuss – in confidence – the issues affecting the IR community, share ideas and best practices and network extensively.
Discover more about the think tank here.
Keep visiting IRmagazine.com for ongoing coverage of the Europe Think Tank and Europe Awards 2023.
