Hedge Fund ActivismCorporations & Activist Hedge FundsThe Conference Board Working Group on Hedge Fund Activism has released its final recommendations for those corporations and institutional investors that may find themselves involved in an activism campaign mounted by hedge funds.The recommendations were formulated by a heterogeneous group of high-level corporate and investor representatives, instituted under the auspices of The Conference Board Governance Center. They include guidelines on monitoring securities holdings, responding to requests for change, ensuring voting integrity, and overseeing hedge fund management. Working Group members include:• Major pension funds and asset management firms, including TIAA-CREF, Florida State Board of Administration, and Barclays;• Corporations at the forefront of corporate governance developments, including Pfizer, American Express, and The Coca-Cola Company; and• Industry associations and service providers such as Managed Funds Association, the National Investor Relations Institute, ISS-RiskMetrics Group, Standard ...

We recently had a chance to interview Maureen Wolff-Reid (bio at the end of the article), a pioneer in the investor relations and corporate communications industry.  She is a past chairman of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) and President and Partner of Sharon Merrill Associates in Boston.  This post originally appeared on New Rules of Investing.

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It seems in regard to newer channels of communication, Reg FD has led to a diminishing in frequency of communications.  In spite of leveling the investment playing field, is this a long-term good for investors? Maureen Wolff-Reid, President: Reg FD has largely succeeded in leveling the playing field while maintaining the frequency of communications between companies and the investment community.  This is a long-term good as investors have a higher degree of confidence that they can make educated investment decisions with access to the same information as any other investor.

What’s the communication plan

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