Preparing for your annual shareholder meeting

Preparing for the annual shareholder meeting at a given company is a huge undertaking. Many preparations must be attended to before the meeting can ever take place. Some companies have specific laws that direct when a shareholder meeting must take place. Companies must also prepare the necessary documents for their meeting. No matter what the specifics are regarding the annual shareholder meeting, companies should be sure that they are completely prepared for the event. Here are a few parts of the preparation process companies should be sure not to overlook.

Notify Shareholders

Companies who have specific bylaws or policies regarding when a shareholder meeting must be held should consult their specific laws and policies to ensure that they hold their meeting in the allotted time period. Similarly, the company may also have rules concerning the amount of time prior to a shareholder meeting they need to advise the shareholders of the meeting. It is important that companies stick to their policies and bylaws when planning the time of their meeting and advising shareholders of the event.

Prepare a Letter

Before the shareholders ever make it to the meeting, companies should be sure to send them a letter informing them of different aspects of the meeting. The letter may include the history of the company, elections that will take place, the current position of the company, or the strategy of the company for future growth or positioning. It is important to inform shareholders of this information so that they can come to the meeting informed and ready to vote in committee elections.

Shareholders should also be informed of places to stay while they are in town for the meeting. Companies may also include a list of attractions for their guests to entertain themselves while they are not in the meeting. This can be a good way to ensure that your shareholders show up for the meeting.

Voting Information

The shareholders should be informed about the people who are in the running for selection to a position on a given committee. Companies should compile information regarding the candidates' background including a bio, accomplishments, and plans for the future. This information is vital to help shareholders understand who their choices are in a given election since many of them probably attend more than one shareholder meeting each year.

Create an Agenda

Before the meeting can take place, companies need to assemble a meeting agenda for the meeting. Some shareholders will travel long distances to the meeting, and they will want not want their time to be wasted. Make sure that the agenda leaves time for voting, bylaws, and a speaker. The speaker is usually the person who has served as the chair of the shareholders during the previous year.

Take Minutes

Companies should be sure that someone is at their shareholder meeting to take minutes. Some companies may elect to have their secretaries take minutes, while others may choose to hire a private company to come in an not only take notes, but also assemble the other documents necessary for the meeting. Minutes are important for companies, especially since many companies are required to log minutes by law.

Annual shareholder meetings can be a huge undertaking. Even if a company chooses to hire an outside source to help them assemble the necessary documents and notify their shareholders of the meeting, they should still play a role in the planning of the meeting. Shareholders need to be informed of the meeting in a timely manner, and they also need to receive the necessary documents before hand, so that they can be prepared when they arrive for the meeting.