Innovating with earnings calls
Companies continue to innovate with their earnings call format, looking for ways to help their messages land effectively and communicate in the most effective way. We speak to companies to find out their best-in-class approach to this staple task of the IR role.
The earnings call is undoubtedly one of the most regular and established occasions in a company’s calendar of events. This opportunity for multi-faceted engagement between senior management and investors, analysts and the media plays a vital role in opening and maintaining dialogue with the financial community. Analysts use information from an earnings call to determine their fundamental analysis of the company, and information disseminated at an event also influences how successful investors judge their investment to be, influencing the likelihood of new, or continued, investment. As the media often reports on earnings calls information, that can also affect a firm's press presence and reputation.
In addition to delivering and discussing financial results for the given reporting period, earnings calls provide senior management members with the opportunity to bolster confidence in shareholders regarding the direction of the company. This can be achieved by presenting an overview of upcoming plans, activity and potential areas of risk and how these will impact on the company’s future financial performance.
For many companies, the earnings call will often follow a tried and tested process that rarely strays from the beaten path. Others look to innovate and offer analysts and investors something new and different. Here, we find out more about how today’s leading IR practitioners are tackling their earnings call activity.
