From the NIRI '25 Annual Conference
Insights from “Perception to Reality: Involving the Investor Perspective in Corporate Strategic Planning”.
We’re continuing our popular recap series from the NIRI 2025 Conference. This session, was well-attended,
and I thought the nuggets are worth sharing. So let’s dive in!
The panel featured moderator Mark Hayes (Partner, Breakwater Strategy) and senior IROs Amy Wakeham (Solventum), Debbie Hancock (Lamb Weston), and Mark Macaluso (ITT). Their practical guidance offered clear ways to consider and incorporate investor insights effectively into corporate strategy.
We’ll unpack the session below, but here are the key takeaways up front:
Key Takeaways:
Systematically integrate investor insights into strategic planning.
Translate strategy into investor-friendly language focused on value drivers.
Position IR as the authentic voice of investors in strategic discussions by translating insights internally
and externally.
Now, let’s explore the themes that emerged at this panel.
Why Investor Feedback Matters
Debbie Hancock underscored that internal stakeholders, especially financial teams like CFOs, FP&A, and data analytics, genuinely value investor feedback. These teams regularly feed numbers to investors and are naturally curious about how those numbers and strategies resonate externally.
Amy Wakeham described investor feedback as “capital market intelligence,” emphasizing its strategic value beyond IR. She highlighted her formal processes to collect, translate, and systematically share investor insights internally, ensuring IR consistently contributes to business strategy.
Capturing Meaningful Investor Feedback
Debbie Hancock emphasized detailed note-taking during investor interactions as a fundamental method.
She suggested leveraging secure AI tools in the future could offer structured ways to efficiently summarize and organize critical insights.
Mark Macaluso shared a straightforward yet highly effective approach: consistently talk to your top 25 investors. Regular, proactive conversations build trusted relationships and provide ongoing intelligence. He also conducts structured engagements with investors in the proxy offseason (August–November), especially valuable for decisions around CEO compensation and retention.
Amy Wakeham described her method as rigorous and structured, embedding notes directly into a CRM system. This allows segmentation by investor type and easier identification of key themes, offering rich data insights for strategy.
Filtering Feedback: What Truly Matters
The panel advised filtering investor feedback based on two critical factors: the source and the motivation behind the feedback. Understanding investors’ specific investment strategies and rationales is essential to prioritize input appropriately.
Practical wisdom emerged clearly: when investor opinions conflict, IR teams must ultimately guide leadership toward decisions best aligned with your company’s long-term business interests.
Real-world Impact: The ITT Example
Mark Macaluso shared how ITT’s recent decision to sell an automotive business was informed by regular conversations with investors. Over 18 months, Mark listened carefully and learned that investors preferred ITT to shift away from automotive segments and focus on other areas. So, when ITT leaders asked the IR team how investors might react to the sale, Mark was confident they’d support the move—and they did.
Mark believes IROs should always have a clear opinion on how investors view key strategic moves. When a business leader asks, “What would investors think about this?” an IRO needs to have a confident perspective, even if it might not always be perfectly accurate.
Poll Insights: Here’s what session attendees shared when polled on questions related to this topic.
I. Investor Feedback Incorporation:
43% of IR practitioners don’t explicitly integrate investor insights into strategic planning.
Opportunity: Formalize and consistently incorporate investor insights.
Example: When we participated in strategic planning at a Fortune 500 company, our Global Situation Assessment included investor perspectives alongside macroeconomic, consumer, and competitive analyses.
II. Capturing and Sharing Feedback:
60% currently share investor feedback informally.
Opportunity: Formalize feedback sharing for consistent impact.
Tip: Some IROs package investor feedback even biweekly, creating a regular habit for leadership to inform their decision-making.
III. Strategic Planning Usage:
41% use investor insights primarily for messaging and narrative, while 37% use them for capital allocation decisions.
Insight: These key strategic areas are already benefiting from investor input.
To sum it up…
Another great session where hearing directly from seasoned IROs made all the difference. What stood out wasn’t a playbook or a list of black-and-white rules. It was the nuance. The judgment. The reminder that IR is often about first principles, curiosity, and having a clear POV.
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