Attract, engage and retain investors

Phua Koon Kee

Phua Koon Kee, CEO of Aquarius Vietnam, has spent 20 years in Vietnam having held board and senior leadership positions at American Standard, ICI Paints and DQ Glass. He tells VIR that it is imperative for companies to engage with existing shareholders and connect with new investors.

Can you describe Aquarius in one sentence?

As a professional corporate communications provider, Aquarius Vietnam helps companies to attract, engage and retain their investors, through our corporate profile, prospectus and annual report services.

With the bear market, should companies pursue austerity measures and reduce spending?

Irrespective of a bull or bear market, inaction is not an option. Companies must protect or grow their market-share, even during gloomy times, in order to benefit from the inevitable market recovery. Companies must continue to enhance capabilities to support their organic growth. They must also manage their investor relations to reach out to investors, engage with them and build trust. Notably, spending on demand generation, capability building and investor relations are “untouchables” in order to drive sustainable growth.

Which key aspects of investor relations should a company focus on?

Focus on the 3Ms, namely, the message, market and media. Let’s start with the message. The company must be clear on what message to communicate with its investors. What issues reflect the company’s strategy, strengths and accomplishments the most and, therefore, should be highlighted? For instance, if the company is profitable, the message could involve its expected earnings growth. Otherwise, the message could focus on revenue or market-share or distribution coverage.

Next, the company must decide on which capital market segment to communicate with. Should the company communicate with existing shareholders to maintain current investment or raise a rights issue?  Should the company communicate with prospective investors, strategic partners, or private equity funds to issue bonds or equity?

Finally, the company must choose the communications media to reach its audience. Depending on its investor base, a different mix of communications media may be required. Some companies would update their investors exclusively through annual reports. Some would supplement that by disseminating regular information via electronic media such as e-mail and the internet. Others may prefer to communicate with their investors through group settings such as site visits, investor seminars and road shows. Then, there are companies that find it more effective through one-on-one meetings with investors. In practice, most companies would choose a combination of different communications media to reach their investors.

Suffice it to say, the company must embrace a proactive investor relations outreach to deliver the right message to the right market through the right media.

What makes a professional annual report?

The annual report is a tangible means by which a shareholder or prospective investor evaluates a company. It is an important investor relations tool linking the company’s business strategy and key performance drivers.

There are three dimensions to a professional annual report. Firstly, the annual report must communicate key messages that reflect the company’s vision, strategy, strengths and accomplishments. It has to tell the story behind the numbers. Secondly, the annual report must also engage in a balanced discussion of strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and risks, and challenges and successes. This helps the company gain credibility and trust. Thirdly, the annual report must appeal to the reader. The company should invest in purposeful creativity that includes, inter alia, a strategy-led concept, great design and professional photography. This helps the company’s annual report stand out amongst other annual reports, and at the same time, deliver the key messages with a stronger impact.

Aquarius has won many annual report awards locally as well as on the world stage. Can you share some insights into this?

Indeed some of the annual reports we developed for our clients won multiple awards at HOSE Annual Report Awards, LACP Vision Awards and Mercomm ARC Awards over the past two years. Remarkably, the accolades include the Top 100 Annual Report in the World, Top 50 Annual Report in Asia-Pacific, Special Achievement Annual Report in Vietnam, Top 10 Annual Report in Vietnam, as well as a number of top global, regional and local annual reports in the respective sectors/categories.

We are proud of our achievements in winning those prestigious national and international annual report awards.