The Changing Look of AGMs: Hybrid Meetings are Taking Over

Gathering diverse, international shareholders to meet traditionally involves travel time and a physical venue. The pandemic caused disruptions such as social distancing and travel restrictions that made it nearly impossible to run in-person AGMs. Many companies switched to virtual shareholder meetings in 2020 and 2021.

The emergence of virtual AGMs, however, came with new meeting requirements that also changed the way companies engage with shareholders. Some even had to refresh their board narratives given the new meeting format, highlighting a value-creation story and sharpened company strategy.

As pandemic protocols eased down, companies are starting to bring back in-person AGMs. Learn how physical meetings are back on the scene, and why hybrid AGMs are the new go-to format.

A Strong Return of In-Person AGMs

After an almost 2-year hiatus, in-person meetings are reentering the AGM landscape. Despite the option to hold virtual meetings, companies must maintain transparency and engagement in in-person meetings. A market insight report shows that in-person meetings are, once again, the most common format in 2022 AGMs — 57% of FTSE 100 and 81% of FTSE 250 companies run physical meetings.

In the 2023 Global Meetings and Events Forecast, 61% of companies in the Asia-Pacific region believe the number of in-person attendees will increase in the next two years. At the same time, companies in Singapore can now return to physical AGMs following the announcement of the Ministry of Law regarding the revocation of the legislation allowing electronic meetings.

In-person meetings are said to be most effective in maintaining shareholder engagement but come with multiple downsides along the way. Besides the expensive travel and venue rental, traditional in-person meetings involve the printing of meeting materials and manual ballot counting — all of which are time-intensive and prone to human error.

While physical meetings offer a meaningful engagement between shareholders and companies, hybrid meetings are playing a bigger role in the evolution of AGMs. Find out more about why the hybrid format is the best practice for shareholder meetings today.

Hybrid Meetings are Taking Over

Hybrid meetings offer new ways for companies to engage with shareholders and meet their expectations. Contrary to pervasive beliefs, hybrid formats require less work and reduced costs than physical meetings. And most importantly, it allows shareholder rights in a modern, flexible way.

Hybrid meetings are known to offer the best of both worlds — physical and virtual formats — which include:

• Maximise the attendance of geographically dispersed shareholders to attend the meeting in person or virtually.
• The use of a digital AGM platform like ConveneAGM allows for an automated meeting process, which also means convenient digital registration and voting processes for all attendees.
• Drive better engagement for both physical and virtual attendees through live polls, discussion and chat rooms, and live Q&A sessions.

As the Singapore Exchange Regulation requires live engagement and live voting at AGMs, hybrid meetings seem to be the best option for companies today. It rules out limited shareholder participation.

Additionally, the Society of Remisiers (Singapore) encourages listed companies to run hybrid AGMs, while the Securities Investors Association (Singapore) (SIAS) said it should be mandatory to uphold shareholder engagement. According to a report, such recommendations eventually came easily as more companies are now opting for the hybrid format.

In the 2023 Global Meetings and Events Forecast, 47% of companies in the Asia-Pacific region are expected to stick with the hybrid format for meetings in 2023. Globally, hybrid AGM is being introduced as best practice and an available option for companies with diverse, international shareholders.

As more regulations now allow hybrid meetings, many companies are switching to the format to bring in diverse shareholders and provide flexibility. At the same time, these companies are starting to invest in AGM solutions to help them remain compliant.

ConveneAGM: A Proven Tool for Hybrid Meetings

Meeting with geographically dispersed members has always been a challenge for many companies. Hybrid AGMs are introduced to make this easier. This format offers the flexibility of both in-person and virtual meeting attendance without compromising shareholder engagement. Using a platform enables attendees to not only connect but also exercise their rights to ask questions and vote.

ConveneAGM is a leading AGM software that offers digital proxy and electronic voting features for strict regulatory compliance. The solution is designed to help companies run their AGMs efficiently and smoothly, without compromising strict governance, audit, and security procedures. Its other eAGM features include live two-way webcast, live voting, live Q&A, audit trail, and reporting — all safeguarded with sophisticated security features.

Request a demo today and experience how ConveneAGM can transform your meetings!