In a time of crisis and confusion, shareholders are more eager
than ever to get answers from their boards and management. Yet
holding traditional AGMs is nearly impossible.
Postponing them may also not be a good option. Advisors,
analysts, shareholders, investors, employees and all other
stakeholders are all eager to understand their companies' way
forward in such troubled times, and the AGM offers the best way to
address this. Postponing the AGM, even for good reasons, sends a
bad signal to the markets at the very time when addressing investor
and broader social concerns is critical.
For example, many companies are considering reducing dividends due to the
challenging economic conditions, yet CEO pay reductions are not on
the AGM agendas. CEO pay continues to rise, regardless of
performance. The top 35 highest-paid CEOs on the S&P 500
received a combined Total Realized Compensation (TRC) of almost $3
billion in 2019, yet pay-for-performance alignment is badly skewed
