New Resources Help Companies Develop More Transparent and Easier-to-Digest 2019 Proxy Statements
WASHINGTON, Nov. 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), the authority on boardroom practices representing more than 19,000 board members, recently released a toolkit to equip companies and boards as they prepare for the 2019 proxy season.
New NACD research shows that companies are proactively enhancing the value of their proxy statements by including more information and making the proxy statement format more engaging. As such, NACD has curated a list of practical new resources for directors, general counsel, and investor-relations staff.
New resources include these:
- NACD’s updated Director Essentials: Preparing for Proxy Season offers a primer on proxy season fundamentals, including topics such as proxy voting, proxy access, and proxy advisors.
- NACD’s 2018 Benchmarks on Board-Shareholder Engagement uses data from the forthcoming 2018–2019 NACD Public Company Governance Survey. The benchmark report provides insights into the current state of board-shareholder communications among public companies of varying sizes.
- NACD’s refreshed Director Essentials: Preparing the Board for Shareholder Activism shares information about the latest trends in activist campaigns, types of investors and their methods of influence, and the board’s role in preparing for and responding to an activist.
- NACD recently published The CEO Pay Ratio: Data and Perspectives from the 2018 Proxy Season—a report authored by compensation consulting firm Pearl Meyer—which offers key takeaways gleaned from the first crop of CEO-pay-ratio disclosures.
- Earlier this year, NACD announced the NXT Initiative—a multiyear project created in partnership with Deloitte—which calls for a greater focus on boardroom diversity, inclusion, and innovation. As part of the initiative, NACD launched two practical tools to improve investor engagement around board diversity: Investor Perspectives on Board Diversity and Director Tip Sheet: Discussing Boardroom Diversity With Major Shareholders.
“As NACD’s new data reveals, proxy statements are undergoing important and dynamic changes,” said Peter R. Gleason, president and CEO of NACD. “We’ve produced and curated these tools to equip directors with actionable information they need as they seek to transform investor communications about their board practices.”
Data from NACD’s forthcoming 2018–2019 NACD Public Company Governance Survey shows that boards have made substantial changes to investor communications over the past two years, including expanding information in the Compensation Discussion & Analysis, also known as the CD&A (60%), changing the format of information in the proxy statement (54%), and expanding information about board composition, board diversity, and director skills and experiences in proxy statements.
For more information, visit NACD’s Preparing for Proxy Season Resource Center at www.NACDonline.org/ProxyCenter, and explore NACD’s 2019 proxy season toolkit here.
About NACD
The National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) empowers more than 19,000 directors to lead with confidence in the boardroom. As the recognized authority on leading boardroom practices, NACD helps boards strengthen investor trust and public confidence by ensuring that today’s directors are well prepared for tomorrow’s challenges. World-class boards join NACD to elevate performance, gain foresight, and instill confidence. Fostering collaboration among directors, investors, and corporate governance stakeholders, NACD has been setting the standard for responsible board leadership for 40 years. To learn more about NACD, visit www.NACDonline.org.
Contact: Susan Oliver
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703-216-4078
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