Investor relations professionals are seeing their roles expand and their statuses rise
Private equity investor relations roles have evolved significantly due to changing market dynamics. Amidst COVID-19, IR teams adapted to online communication, followed by a surge in fundraising activity and now face prolonged challenges in attracting capital.
Debbie Eidelman, Head of IR and Fundraising, recently spoke to Private Equity International (PEI) regarding this evolution.
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“We are seeing some musical chairs at mid-level positions. Firms are increasingly looking to identify people who want to continue in project management and elevate them to more senior positions.”
Creating structure
Debbie Eidelman, Head of IR & Fundraising, has observed a shift in IR team structures, with roles becoming more delineated and project management gaining importance alongside relationship management. She states, “IR teams have become much more structured over the past few years. We now often see a clear distinction between sales and distribution roles, and broader investor relations and investor services. We’re also seeing some firms take on IR people to manage some of the secondary elements, such as co-investments, continuation vehicles and GP stake sales. They are helping manage the process on the LP side alongside the investment teams executing the deals.”
In larger IR teams, there's a growing divide between those handling relationships (coverage) and those managing projects. “We are seeing some musical chairs at mid-level positions,” Debbie says. “Firms are increasingly looking to identify people who want to continue in project management and elevate them to more senior positions.” This is the result of both the broadening product pool and growing investor needs. “Firms need people with managerial expertise to organise these growing teams and to drive strategic product development. It’s now possible to make partner as an IR project manager – firms are starting to create this as a career opportunity to up-and-coming talent.”
Going local
Geographically, there's a move towards establishing local IR teams to deepen connections with investors, influenced by both global investment trends and regulatory factors like Brexit. Despite the rise of hybrid communication methods, face-to-face interactions remain crucial for building trust and understanding investor needs.
Debbie argues that "the trend towards localised IR teams is also partly driven by the need for firms to make deeper connections with their investors.”
Debbie argues that "the trend towards localised IR teams is also partly driven by the need for firms to make deeper connections with their investors.”
What’s next?
Looking ahead, the democratisation of the asset class is expected to bring about significant changes. This will lead to the development of new product sets and a different approach to managing relationships with investors. “This will create a whole new division within IR teams,” says Debbie. “Many firms are going through the learning process of what this will mean and where talent will come from.” This will consequently necessitate a focus on talent development to meet evolving demands.
Click below to read Debbie's profile and find her contact details.
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Debbie's profile
