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An Essential Guide to Solving Annual General Meeting (AGM) Challenges
A company’s annual general meeting (AGM) is a critical corporate governance event. It brings together issuers and their shareholders for transparency, accountability, and decision-making. However, corporations face mounting challenges in carrying out AGMs successfully.
For example, meeting announcements often arrive to investors late—50% later than issuers anticipate in some cases, The Value Exchange reports. Investors cite problems with formatting (63%), data quality (56%) and providers’ system limitations (84%), according to the same report. These problems can jeopardise investors’ ability to attend and vote in a timely and informed way.
As we approach the proxy season, this guide explores the fundamentals of an AGM, common challenges, and how technology is transforming this critical corporate event.
Challenges facing modern annual general meetings
Legacy systems for administering annual general meetings rely on fragmented, often manual processes that create inefficiencies throughout the chain of investor communications. These outdated systems are often at the root of delays, transparency issues, and reduced participation.
As a result, companies face common challenges when preparing and executing their annual general meetings. Potential issues include:
1. Legal and compliance issues, such as:
• Meeting notice inaccuracies and distribution delays
• Inadequate disclosures to shareholders (e.g., AGM agendas)
• Incomplete information from shareholders (e.g., attendance plans)
• Quorum shortfalls due to lack of participation or attendance
2. Organisational issues, such as:
• Complex logistics for venue selection and event planning
• Challenges in gathering and managing investor data for issuer communications
• Difficulties in preparing and distributing required documentation to shareholders
• Complications for intermediaries and investors in managing power of attorney (POA) for voting purposes
3. Engagement and Transparency Issues, such as:
• Lack of visibility into meeting detail receipt and vote confirmation
• Delayed shareholder disclosure processing hindering issuer-investor engagement
• Managing activist campaigns and potential meeting disruptions
4. Technical Issues, such as:
• Voting discrepancies due to inadequate time to vote, over or under-voting, and others
• Technology complications leading to low participation and quorum risks
Opportunities with centralised real-time communications platforms
Centralised digital platforms offer the most effective solutions to these challenges. They connect issuers and investors directly through secure technologies, eliminating information gaps, minimising delays, and improving how issuers anticipate and capture votes. They can streamline the process from announcement to voting for a more transparent and efficient experience.
Proxymity’s solutions for digital investor communications
Proxymity’s digital investor communications platform offers end-to-end connectivity, providing companies and shareholders with enhanced accuracy, transparency, and efficiency. The platform connects issuers directly with investors through a secure digital pathway, eliminating common delays while maintaining regulatory compliance.
With Proxymity Vote Connect, meeting and voting information moves across the custody chain in real-time while ensuring full visibility into the process to all participants.
Our intuitive Investor Portal allows institutional investors to vote effortlessly for all their upcoming meetings. The platform’s reminder mechanisms ensure maximum participation in all general meetings.
The Shareholder Insights suite helps solve engagement challenges. Issuers can gain real-time insights into their shareholder base and voting patterns. This intelligence allows companies to identify concerns early, engage key stakeholders proactively, and adjust communication strategies accordingly.
Issuers can leverage early voting data through Proxymity Vote Insights to shape their shareholder communications, particularly valuable for addressing controversial agenda items or activist campaigns.
Overall, the real-time connectivity of the Proxymity platform increases the voting window which can boost virtual and in-person participation rates at annual general meetings.
The future of annual general meetings
The annual general meeting is evolving through hybrid formats, digital voting, and technologies that improve compliance, transparency, and participation. As companies adapt to changing shareholder expectations and regulatory requirements, secure, efficient, and centralised communications will become more essential.
Learn how Proxymity can work for you
Discover how Proxymity can transform your annual general meeting experience with its comprehensive suite of digital solutions. Contact one of our experts today to get started.
Frequently asked questions about annual general meetings
What is an annual general meeting?
The annual general meeting is a mandatory yearly gathering of a company’s shareholders, directors, and management to discuss performance, approve financial statements, elect board members, and vote on corporate matters.
What is the purpose of an annual general meeting?
The annual general meeting extends beyond compliance requirements to serve as a cornerstone of corporate governance, providing shareholders with their fundamental right to participate in major company decisions. Annual general meetings are especially important as shareholder and regulatory scrutiny become more stringent.
Who can attend an annual general meeting?
While all shareholders generally have the right to attend, participation typically includes board members, senior management, the company secretary, external auditors, legal counsel, and both institutional and retail investors.
What are some legal requirements for an AGM?
Common legal requirements include holding an annual general meeting within a specified timeframe after the financial year-end, providing sufficient notice to shareholders, and ensuring shareholder participation through voting and questions. Thesey requirements are usually covered through the following parts of an AGM:
• Meeting notice
• Quorum
• Proxy voting
• Shareholder proposals
• Filing and regulatory compliance
• Financial and other reports
• Election of directors
What do you need to keep in mind when preparing for an AGM?
Key considerations include setting the date and venue in advance, drafting a comprehensive agenda, preparing financial reports, organising voting procedures, and ensuring all supporting materials are ready for shareholders.
Other considerations include early engagement with shareholders, adoption of seamless proxy voting and communications technology, monitoring local market regulations and clear tracking of meeting events and voting trends.
What is the difference between an AGM and an Annual meeting?
An AGM is a formal, mandatory meeting for public companies governed by corporate law; an annual meeting is a general term that can apply to yearly gatherings determined by the issuer.
What technology solutions can be useful when conducting virtual/hybrid AGMs?
Useful technology solutions include secure video conferencing platforms with voting capabilities, document sharing features, and specialised software offering real-time vote tabulation and compliance reporting.