9 IR Organziation
In a Nutshell
Various people and functions are engaged in IR tasks within a company, starting with the chair of the board of directors and the CEO and including the chief financial officer, the IRO, the head of communications and, if need be, external consultants.
The IRO plays the central role, frequently at smaller companies as a sub-task together with another function, such as the CFO, secretary general or head of communications. At large companies, in contrast, IROs manage their own teams.
Communication with investors and analysts calls for very specific knowledge and skills, some of which are very different from those of a good head of communications, for example.
The majority of companies employ their own resources to perform the most important IR activity, the direct interaction with the institutional investors and analysts. Nevertheless, there are good reasons for involving external support