7 tips for conducting your Annual General Meeting

For a seamless countdown to your AGM, refer to our checklist to streamline your preparations. Enhancing your public speaking skills and anticipating unforeseen circumstances are key elements to guarantee shareholders leave your AGM with a favorable impression, and that your business effectively addresses crucial matters without any hitches.

How to conduct an Annual General Meeting

1. Book extra rehearsal time

While many board members may excel at speaking confidently in front of a live audience, delivering a compelling and coherent address to a virtual audience presents a unique challenge. Without the cues of body language and eye contact, it can be daunting to gauge the response of the audience and speak effectively without direct visual feedback. To assist your Chair in preparing for this scenario, it is beneficial to simulate the virtual meeting set up in advance, creating a sense of familiarity, and allowing the Chair to adjust their delivery without relying on immediate audience reactions.

2. Give your Board a script 

Similarly, having a script can be a valuable tool to assist in the seamless delivery of your AGM. Not only does a script provide key talking points for discussion, but it also offers gentle prompts for your directors to engage with your shareholder base, pause for questions, or seek feedback. Just as a rehearsal helps mitigate any sense of unfamiliarity in a remote setup, a script can provide your board members with the necessary structure to articulate their thoughts effectively and deliver a speech that fosters positive sentiment and loyalty towards the business.

3. Manage questions successfully

Has your Board put in place a structured approach to handle questions from participants? Have you crafted a plan to manage activist shareholders or individuals with strong viewpoints on certain topics? Dive into our Q&A masterclass for valuable tips on executing a seamless AGM.

4. Ensure security measures are taken

To instil trust and confidence among shareholders, safeguarding the security of your meeting is paramount for all organizations. Ensuring that only eligible voters participate without the intrusion of fake shareholders is crucial. Before your event, thoroughly assess the security protocols in place; at Lumi, we implement a robust authentication process to fortify against security breaches and provide you with peace of mind.

5. Keep your audience engaged 

Captivating your audience with an engaging presentation is crucial. With shareholders tuning in from the comfort of their homes, distractions like children, work responsibilities, social media, and news updates can easily pull their attention away. To keep them engaged, it's essential to provide compelling reasons for their active participation.

Does your Chair possess exceptional speaking skills? Are they known for their sense of humor or captivating anecdotes? Perhaps they have a deep passion for a specific aspect of the business. Infusing personality into your AGM not only strengthens relationships but also ensures that your audience remains attentive and connected throughout the meeting.

6. Choose the right broadcast set-up

Instead of playing musical lamps the morning of your presentation to try to achieve the right ambiance for your meeting, consider investing in proper lighting now to avoid panic. Your organization may want to consider purchasing ring lights or soft lamps to create a professional set-up and avoid changes in the weather interfering with your visibility. Ring lights are both effective and inexpensive.

However, these can create a glare for presenters who wear glasses – in which case, use two lights, positioning one on either side of you. Alternatively, you can use a soft lamp.

Clear audio is also critical to capturing the attention of your audience. They will not be able to hear you over a noisy background or muffled voice and you risk critical messages not being delivered. As a result, it’s important to find a purpose-built room in which to host the meeting and invest in a microphone or headset to make sure your audio is crystal clear. 

7. Prepare for the unexpected

Reaching out to an external IT team who lacks insight into your AGM on the day of your meeting can be a nightmare scenario for any organization. Despite the reliability of hybrid and virtual technology, unexpected challenges may still arise. Therefore, resilience planning is crucial for the success of any AGM. With Lumi, our team of experienced operators is always available to assist before, during, and after the meeting, ensuring any unforeseen issues are promptly resolved.

It is advisable to have your IT team ready to tackle on-site hardware issues and designate a backup individual to step in if your Chair encounters connectivity issues. At Lumi, we collaborate closely with investor relations teams to guarantee a seamless meeting experience, even in the face of unexpected circumstances.

Prior preparation for your meeting is key to delivering a successful event. By adhering to these seven steps, you can approach the day with a sense of calm, deliver a concise presentation, and create ample opportunities for meaningful engagement. The Lumi team is dedicated to supporting you every step of the way, providing you with added peace of mind. To find out more about how Lumi can help you run your next AGM, get in touch today.