A seat at the table

The other day, I got an inquiry from a reporter who wanted to know how IROs get “a seat a table.”  It’s a fair question… but it made me wonder, “Why are IROs still wondering how to get a seat at the table?”

It’s not as if this topic has never been addressed. NIRI has given this topic plenty of airtime over the years.  Rivel Research recently did a wonderful CEO study that, among other things, clearly details what CEOs are looking for in their IROs.

To paraphrase the intro to The X Files, “The answer is out there.”

Clearly, there are no short cuts to earning a seat at the table with senior management - it takes time to build the requisite credibility. The problem, as I see it, is that most IROs do little to build this requisite credibility.

Try this, spend a little less time talking like a travel agent about the schedule for this roadshow trip to New York and the schedule for that roadshow trip to Dallas, and spend a little more time talking like a trusted advisor by proactively provide sound, objective, candid input on disclosure issues and expectations gap (i.e., what the company is doing vs. what the Street is expecting).  My guess is that, by doing so, your senior management team will come to recognize your contributions to the discussion and actively seek you out (thus, a seat at the table).

In other words, if you want to a consigliore to the CEO then stop acting like his/her concierge.

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