IR Monitor – 3 September 2025

In this week’s newsletter:

• CEOs want to sense how investors will react: PR firms are broadening advice on this
• Taylor Swift’s engagement and what it means for Investor Relations teams: apologies to our readers but it seems that there is no escape from this story
• Many boards don’t want to change CEO mid-storm, especially when investors and analysts are comfortable. But don’t play it too safe in choosing the right CEO
• Female CFOs generate greater returns for investors according to CityAM
• Retail investors as the new activists? A band of retail investors powered the meme-stock rally but now they’re flexing their muscles reports the Wall Street Journal
• And finally … valuable time saving or pointless gimmick? Matt Levine of Bloomberg explores what happens when a robot does the earnings call

This week’s news

Boards are needier than ever – FT

London’s IPO market has slowed to its weakest point in three decades. This, the FT writes, is forcing corporate PR and advisory firms to reinvent themselves. No longer just “financial PRs”, they now act as strategic partners to boards, offering guidance on investor engagement, crisis management, ESG, geopolitical risk, and digital reputation. For IR professionals, this shift underscores a new reality. Executive boards are “needier than ever for advice”, as more is demanded of businesses and their leaders. Boards are leaning heavily on advisers to help shape narratives that resonate with increasingly diverse audiences, from activist shareholders, policymakers, NGOs, and customers. For IR professionals, the takeaway is clear: corporate communications is no longer about “spinning the story”, but about building trust through integrated, multi-stakeholder storytelling that adapts to volatile economic and political shifts. 

What Taylor Swift’s engagement means for IR teams – IR Magazine

Taylor Swift’s engagement to NFL star Travis Kelce may seem like celebrity gossip, but market reactions following the announcement demonstrate how far pop culture moments can move capital markets, IR Impact writes. Swift’s influence, from her $1.6bn net worth to the so-called “Swiftonomics” of her Eras Tour, translated the personal news into a market-sensitive event. Signet Jewellers’ shares rose nearly 9% following coverage of her ring, while Ralph Lauren and American Eagle gained on brand associations.  For IR teams, such episodes highlight the unpredictable ways pop culture intersects with markets, creating short-term volatility and shifts in investor sentiment. As Computershare Georgeson’s CEO Ann Bowering suggests, the lesson for IR teams is not to chase headlines, but to respond to shocks (no matter how positive) with consistency, and remain available to investors who seek clarity during unexpected moments.  

Don’t play it too safe in choosing the right CEO – Harvard Business Review

Executive research firm Spencer Stuart’s recent study of CEO transitions across U.S. & European indexes shows boards are increasingly mishandling succession in today’s complex business environment, choosing stability over adaptability (and encouraged in this choice by investors). Since 2020, CEO transitions in the S&P 500 are down 13%, with many boards delaying change or keeping outgoing CEOs on as executive chairs, a practice that has doubled since 2015. Others are relying on safe bets, with one fifth of S&P 500 firms reappointing experienced or even “boomerang” CEOs, despite evidence that first-time leaders often outperform thanks to adaptability and fresh thinking. The Harvard Business Review argues that experienced CEOs can rely too heavily on established playbooks, resulting in “cultural calcification” where inherited processes, assumptions, and organizational behaviours persist. HBR also notes that firms increasingly cultivate effective leaders by placing high-potential individuals in diverse roles and unfamiliar contexts to build resilience and agility. In today’s complex business environment, past accomplishments need to come alongside an innovation mindset and a capacity to navigate future challenges.

Female CFOs generate greater returns for investors – research by CityAM

According to a study reported in City AM, female CFOs in the UK are routinely delivering an average total return 1.5% above industry benchmarks. Additionally, UK companies saw, on average, a 13% improvement in total shareholder returns following the appointment of a female CFO, when comparing to the previous CFO’s performance.  The study also found that it takes, on average, 18 years for women to reach a CFO role, 3 years longer than their male colleagues. Female CFOs attributed slower progression to structural barriers such as economic downturn, mentorship access, difficulty with managing a healthy work-life balance, and workplace politics. Finally, the study showed that almost 40% of female CFOs had a non-linear background, enabling them to draw from experience outside of the financial sector that many other CFOs remain within throughout their career, bringing a broader perspective on company operations, financial strategy and planning skills so vital for financial management.  

Retail investors as the new activists?  

The WSJ recently wrote that retail investors are increasingly exerting activist-level influence on public companies, with Opendoor Technologies the latest to become a meme stock target over the summer. Led by hedge fund manager Eric Jackson, who disclosed his stake on social media, retail investors sent the stock soaring above $5 in August, up from $0.51 in June. While management welcomed the increased interest in Opendoor, investors were left unimpressed by the company’s earnings and used social media to call for CEO Carrie Wheeler’s removal after it was revealed that she had sold her shares for under $1. The Opendoor board then asked Wheeler to resign, showing that retail investors’ impact is increasingly akin to traditional activist investors. Accounting now for approximately 18% of total US equity trading (double 2010 levels), retail investors create a new challenge for IR teams: how to communicate effectively with a larger, more vocal, and less predictable investor base. The conclusion is clear: monitoring online sentiment and engaging more proactively with retail is now a must if a company wants to balance benefits with increased reputational risks. 

And finally … Matt Levine on what happens when a robot does the earnings call

Australian retailer Kogan.com made headlines after delivering its latest earnings call using AI-generated voices of CEO Ruslan Kogan and CFO David Shafer. The management team inputted hours of previous recordings, which the system was able to use to replicate their voices. Bloomberg’s Matt Levine agreed that the AI platform saved time that would be spent drafting the script but also questioned the value of having it being read out on a call, given that reading the script themselves wouldn’t have taken much longer. Analysts frequently scrutinise the tone and delivery of earnings calls to assess the management team’s confidence levels. Outsourcing the reading of scripts to AI makes this assessment more opaque and, while IR teams can save hours, this could also risk undermining trust if investors feel that leadership is using technology to mask sentiment. The challenge remains to balance efficiency with authenticity, using AI to enhance the quality of communication without impacting transparency.