Sharon Merrill News Archives

2011

January 2011

President & Partner Maureen Wolff was a panelist at The Activist Investor Conference 2011 for a session titled, “Responding to Investor Activism: Running a Successful Proxy Response Campaign.”

2010

November 2010

Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian was interviewed by PR News for a featured article in its November 22 newsletter titled, “When PR and Investor Relations Collide: Not a Doomsday Scenario.” ››

November 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff was a featured panelist at the New England Chapter of the National Association of Corporate Director’s (NACD) roundtable discussion titled, “Board-Shareholder Communications: Speak Now or Forever Wish You Had”. With the passage of landmark financial reform, U.S. corporate Boards face greater investor scrutiny than at any time in history. Contentious issues including say-on-pay and proxy access promise to add an uncertainty to the 2011 proxy season, particularly for Boards that have failed to make proactive dialogue with shareholders a priority. Attendees learned what successful Board efforts have in common and how Board's can head off potential issues.

October 2010

Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian was a featured speaker at the Public Relations Society of America’s (PRSA) 2010 International Conference in Washington, D.C. on October 17. David presented on “Investor Relations for the PR Pro: Hot IR Trends.” If you are a public relations practitioner who also is responsible for investor relations, you must be well versed in SEC rules and trends. As investor relations (IR) is a specialized field, keeping up-to-date on this information can pose a significant challenge. This workshop provided best practices for dealing with new SEC rules and recent changes in proxy and Web disclosures. David showed attendees how to become familiar with the latest trends in IR, including board-shareholder communications, and how to use key value drivers to effectively communicate with investors.

September 2010

At NIRI’s Annual Introduction to Investor Relations event in Boston, President & Partner Maureen Wolff delivered a presentation with Jane McCahon, VP—Corporate Relations at Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., on “Corporate Disclosure: Issues and Best Practices”. Maureen and Jane provided the audience of more than 130 new-to-IR individuals from several countries with disclosure concepts, rules and regulations, and how those rules and concepts are enforced. Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian delivered a presentation titled, “Communicating with Wall Street”. David showed participants how to develop effective messages, create powerful communications tools and reach out to the right investors.

August 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff was a featured speaker at the NIRI Southwest Regional Conference. The annual conference was held in New Orleans from August 18 to 20. Maureen presented at a breakout session titled, “Measuring Success: IR Performance Metrics”. The old measures of successful investor relations are dead. Say goodbye to valuing your performance based on increased sell-side coverage, X-number of buy-side meetings and annual media hits. To be a prized IRO today, you must serve as your company's Chief Crisis Prevention Officer, Chief Messaging Officer and Trusted Advisor to the Board. With the risk that one Tweet could sink your valuation, your performance will be judged by your ability to think quickly, respond strategically and enhance your company's reputation against a host of new threats to credibility.

June 2010

Sharon Merrill Associates was presented two Bell Ringer Awards by The Publicity Club of New England. The first was a Gold Bell Ringer Award in the Investor/Financial Relations category for its IR program for CIRCOR International, Inc. The second was a Silver Bell Ringer Award for its corporate blog, The Podium, in the Corporate or Agency Blog category. The Publicity Club of New England's Bell Ringer Awards recognize and honor excellence and achievement in the communications and public relations professions.

June 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff and EVP & Partner David Calusdian were featured speakers at the 2010 NIRI Annual Conference in San Diego, California. Maureen spoke on a panel titled, “How to Icahn-Proof Your Board.” With the rise of shareholder proposals, “say on pay” initiatives and a push for proxy access, the trend has been clear for some time: shareholders are demanding more input in the boardroom. The market meltdown is likely to intensify these demands, and boards need to be prepared. Maureen also moderated a panel titled, “Providing Guidance: Trends, Positives, Negatives and Ramifications.” The financial uncertainty of the past 18 months has resulted in companies questioning their earnings guidance policies. Will the Street penalize companies that “go dark” and stop providing guidance? On the flip side, not providing guidance can keep a company from being boxed in and having to live up to certain targets. Not providing guidance can also result in wild and diverse analyst estimates.

David led a workshop titled, “IR Presentations: How to Give Life to Your Investor Presentation…and Your CEO’s Delivery.” The workshop focused on the development and delivery of investor presentations. As IROs communicate with the investment community, their PowerPoint presentations are an important component of their communication. For a presentation to be well received, the slides must effectively convey the company's story, and the speaker's delivery must be dynamic and persuasive. The workshop included real-world examples of effective and ineffective uses of PowerPoint. From these examples, attendees were able to apply effective slide graphics and messaging strategies to their own investor presentations. The workshop also included practical strategies to improve presentation delivery. The workshop covered the effective use of body language and voice to convey messages effectively, and provided strategies for IROs to train their CEOs and CFOs to deliver a dynamic presentation.

May 2010

EVP & Partner David Calusdian was interviewed by Broc Romanek of TheCorporateCounsel.net for his analysis of how Google created a “recognized channel” under Regulation FD. Google recently issued an “advisory” news release, providing investors with a link to its investor relations website to access the full-text earnings release, rather than issuing the full text release over a newswire. David provides insight for those that are considering doing something similar and what issues should they analyze before taking action. Listen to the podcast here.

May 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff was a featured speaker for a panel hosted by the Minnesota Chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) in Minneapolis, Minnesota titled, “We Need to Talk!,” on effective shareholder communications. The economic crisis and its impact on so many companies have brought Boards and their central role in corporate governance sharply into focus. In addition to its role of management oversight, the Board represents shareholders in a legal corporate governance triangle. Panelists discussed what the new rules are around shareholder communications and what important long-term shareholders should expect of their representatives — the Directors.

May 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff was a featured speaker at NYSE Euronext’s “Building Blocks for Successful Investor Relations” seminar in San Francisco, CA. The seminar was created specifically for senior executives of growth companies, to provide an in-depth view of the essential building blocks for a successful investor relations program. Maureen provided proven techniques for investor outreach, as well as best practices and guidance for developing investor days and company-sponsored roadshows.

April 2010

Executive Vice President & Partner Jim Buckley served on a panel hosted by The Publicity Club of New England titled, “Investor Relations 101 for PR Pros.” The panel discussion covered topics that PR professionals should know about investor relations, what IR professionals like their PR colleagues to understand, and the ABCs and 123s of the SEC, IPOs and quarterly earnings communications.

March 2010

Senior Associate & Social Media Specialist Dennis Walsh served on a panel hosted by the NIRI Connecticut/Westchester chapter titled, “Investor Relations and Twitter—To Do or Not to Do?” Panelists discussed the pros and cons of incorporating Twitter into an investor relations outreach strategy.

March 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff was a guest speaker at the Harvard Business Extension School’s Writing for Public Relations & Marketing class. Maureen spoke about the importance of customizing your writing to your audience and recent trends in annual report development, including interactive and video reports.

March 2010

President & Partner Maureen Wolff spoke at an event sponsored by the NIRI Cincinnati Tri-State chapter titled, “Corporate Storytelling in IR: Logic, Passion and the Power of Persuasion.” Whether you’re on the phone with the media or in a room full of shareholders, being a powerful storyteller is as important as knowing your company's ROI. At the event, Maureen provided tips for using a strategic narrative and non-verbal communication to break through the noise.

February 2010

Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian was interviewed at TheCorporateCounsel.net by Broc Romanek on the importance of investor perception studies. In the audio podcast, David discusses what type of companies should conduct an investor preception study, how a study is conducted, and what a company should do with the findings.

January 2010

President and Partner Maureen Wolff moderated a panel discussion hosted by the Boston chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) titled, “The Dissident Time Bomb is Ticking. Is Your Board Prepared to Communicate with Shareholders?” With the rise of shareholder proposals, “say on pay” initiatives and a push for proxy access, the trend has been clear for some time: shareholders are demanding more input in the boardroom. The market meltdown is intensifying these demands, and boards need to be prepared. Panelists provided a variety of perspectives on how boards can better understand shareholder concerns, how to manage board-shareholder communications, what the best practices are and more.

2009

December 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff moderated a National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) panel, which discussed what IR practitioners believe is on the horizon for 2010. Panelists provided insight on changes they expect to make to their IR plan in light of current economic conditions.

November 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff presented at the annual Deloitte Tech-Venture “IPO Boot Camp.” This half-day boot camp provided the concise information needed to navigate the corporate governance, accounting, regulatory and communications challenges in preparing for the public markets. Attendees recieved tips from industry experts who have successfully guided hundreds of companies through the transition from private- to public-company life.

November 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff and Executive Vice President and Partner David Calusdian presented at the New York Stock Exchange’s (NYSE) Small Cap Investor Conference. The comprehensive seminar was created specifically for senior executives of small cap companies and provided an in depth view of the essential building blocks of a successful investor relations program. Maureen and David presented on “Navigating the New Proxy Access Rules.”

October 2009

Executive Vice President and Partner Jim Buckley served on a panel hosted by the Publicity Club of New England, which discussed crisis communications in public and investor relations. The panel, titled “An Inside Look at Crisis Communications,” brough together industry executives to provide real life examples for dealing with a crisis.

September 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff served on a panel during the Bulldog Reporter’s IR University webinar titled, “Best Practices in Creating Superior Investor Days and Road Shows: IR Executives Share Proven Strategies, Tips and Techniques.” Participants in the webinar learned how to plan stellar investor days and road shows that deliver measurable results.

September 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff and Executive Vice President and Partner David Calusdian delivered a presentation titled, “Corporate Disclosure: Issues and Best Practices” at NIRI’s Intro to Investor Relations seminar in Boston. During the presentation, Maureen and David discussed topics such as disclosure concepts, rules and regulations, and SEC enforcement and oversight.

September 2009

Senior Associate Alexia Taxiarchos has been selected by the Boston Chapter of NIRI to serve on the Board of Directors as President-Elect for the 2009-2010 term. Alexia will serve as President of the Chapter for the 2010-2011 term.

September 2009

Associate Christopher Ranjitkar has been elected by the Publicity Club of New England to serve on the Board of Directors as Vice President, Media Relations for the 2009-2010 season. As VP, Media Relations Christopher will be responsible for all media communications for the Publicity Club of New England.

August 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff authored an article for the August 2009 edition of IR Update, a monthy publication from The National Investor Relations Institute, titled, “Meeting Challenges in 2009 Capital Markets.” In the article, Maureen offered advice to small-cap companies faced with answering the following question for potential investors: “Why would I buy a risker unknown company when I could buy a billion-dollar company at a similiar cost, but that I can easily sell if something goes wrong?” To answer that question, Maureen provides a three-step plan to help small-cap companies get noticed and cultivate positive investor relationships. Click here to read the article.

July 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff was quoted in an article for CFO Magazine titled, “Investors Reward Guidance, Even if News is Bad.” The article was based on a White Paper that Sharon Merrill Associates published with eventVestor, which found that companies that preannounced financial results when they expected to miss guidance enjoyed better returns than those that failed to announce an earnings miss beforehand. Click here to read the article at CFO.com.

June 2009

IntelliBusiness, Inc. and Sharon Merrill Associates, Inc. announced the availability of a study that provides new insights into the benefits of greater transparency. The results of the study are now available in a white paper, “Hit or Miss—Transparency is Key: Companies that Provide Earnings Guidance and Pre-Announce Their Earnings Surprises Realize Superior Stock Price Returns.” The study was based on an analysis of the financial guidance practices and actual results reported by more than 1,000 publicly traded companies during the first quarter of 2009 using the IntelliBusiness eventVestor analytics platform. For more information on the study, click here.

June 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff led a session at the National Investor Relations Institute’s (NIRI) 2009 Annual Conference titled, “Developing and Refining Your IR Plan.” During the IR Essentials workshop, Maureen provided tips for creating an effective plan—a key to IR success. Participants of this session received practical tips related to crafting an effective messaging strategy, applying competitive intelligence to set IR goals, budgeting, measuring results and using IR tools. The NIRI Annual Conference is being held from June 7—10 at the Westin Diplomat in Hollywood, Florida. For more information, click here.

June 2009

Sharon Merrill Associates was honored by the Publicity Club of New England with two 2009 Bell Ringer Awards for its Investor Relations and Media Relations counsel. Since 1969, the Publicity Club of New England’s Bell Ringer Awards recognize public relations and communications excellence in every field and industry, and across all media. SMA won the award in the Investor/Financial Relations category for its investor relations program for an environmental and hazardous waste management client. SMA’s Media Practice was recognized for its media visibility work with an award for outstanding Byline Article Placement for a UK-based pharmaceutical client. To read the news release, click here.

May 2009

President and Partner Maureen Wolff participated in a webcast panel discussion titled “Informal Corporate Disclosure in the Age of Twitter,” sponsored by McDermott Will & Emery LLP.

Maureen and members of McDermott’s Public Companies Group brought their collective experience to assist public companies in adapting their disclosure policies and practices to the new communications environment and SEC rules. This wide-ranging discussion covered informal corporate disclosure issues, including updates on best practices for compliance with Regulation FD and safe harbor statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 in light of the SEC guidance; recent developments in insider trading law; and SEC guidance regarding trading plans adopted under SEC Rule 10b5-1.

May 2009

Senior Associate Alexia Taxiarchos hosted NIRI Boston’s Knowledge and Development Series titled, “An IRO’s Guide to Successful Investor Day and Roadshow Planning.” During the seminar, Alexia provided tactical tips for how to successfully plan and host investor days and take management to meet investors in money centers across the country.

February 2009

President & Partner Maureen Wolff participated on a panel hosted by the Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals Hartford Chapter regarding the SEC’s recent guidance to public companies on enhanced use of websites for corporate disclosures.

February 2009

President & Partner Maureen Wolff authored an article for Directors Monthly, a NACD publication, in which she outlines 10 steps a company should take during the pre-IPO stage.

February 2009

President & Partner Maureen Wolff moderated and participated on a panel for the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) NE Chapter on Board/Shareholder Communications.

2008

December 2008

Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian was featured in the “Advice” section of IR Magazine, offering counsel on delivering effective investor presentations.

November 2008

President & Partner Maureen Wolff spoke on preparing for an IPO at the Deloitte “IPO Bootcamp” at the TechVenture Center in Waltham, Mass.

September 2008

President & Partner Maureen Wolff spoke on Corporate Disclosure at NIRI’s Annual Introduction to Investor Relations seminar. The session focused on disclosure rules, regulations and objectives; best practices; the role of the IRO in corporate governance; providing guidance; SEC hot buttons; and communicating with the Street.

September 2008

Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian addressed attendees at NIRI’s Annual Introduction to Investor Relations seminar in Boston during a session titled, “Communicating with Wall Street.”

September 2008

President & Partner Maureen Wolff served on a panel at DolmatConnell & Partners’ Fall Conference entitled, “Executive Compensation Challenges and Solutions.” Topics discussed included trends and best practices in executive compensation, financial reporting and using the CD&A as a proactive investor relations tool.

June 2008

Chairman & CEO Sharon Merrill received the prestigious Certificate of Director Education from the Corporate Directors Institute of the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD). Sharon completed an intensive two-day Director Professionalism course, which included curriculum on current regulatory requirements, leading governance practices for board and committee effectiveness, research findings, and the experiences and recommendations of staff and NACD Blue Ribbon Commissions.

June 2008

President and Partner Maureen Wolff served as a panelist during the National Investor Relations Institute’s (NIRI) 2008 Annual Conference at an IR essentials workshop titled, Communications Basics. Attendees at the workshop learned how to define audiences and select the right media to effectively communicate company messages through various materials, including: annual reports, quarterly reports, fact sheets, news releases, SEC filings, investor presentations, one-on-one meetings and roadshows, conference calls and webcasts.

June 2008

Sharon Merrill Associates received the 2008 Bell Ringer Award for Investor/Financial Relations from the Publicity Club of New England. At the ceremony honoring winners of the 39th Annual Bell Ringer Awards competition, SMA won top honors in the Investor/Financial Communications category for its 2008 investor relations program for Cynosure, Inc. Sharon Merrill Associates, in association with Raytheon Company, received the 2008 Silver Anvil Award of Excellence for investor relations from the Public Relations Society of America. Since 1946, the Silver Anvil Awards have been recognizing the profession’s best in public relations strategy and implementation.

May 2008

Chairman & CEO Sharon Merrill was elected to the position of Secretary of the Board of Financial Executives International, Boston Chapter. She also was re-elected to the board of the National Association of Corporate Directors, New England Chapter.

April 2008

EVP & Partner David Calusdian moderated a National Investor Relations Institute e-learning seminar on managing investor relations in a volatile economic climate.

March 2008

President Maureen Wolff participated in two panel discussions as part of a Choate Hall & Stewart LLP seminar entitled “Street Smarts: Communication Essentials for Public Companies.” The panel discusions focused on crisis communications.

March 2008

Alexia Taxiarchos was appointed to the board of directors of the Boston Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute. Alexia brings valuable international investor relations experience and perspective as well as research expertise to Sharon Merrill Associates. Previously, Alexia worked at TIM Hellas Telecommunications S.A., in Athens, Greece, as the company’s investor relations research and reporting manager.

February 2008

Executive Vice President David Calusdian spoke on “Writing for Investor Relations” at the Publicity Club of New England’s 2008 Writing Workshop.

January 2008

President and Partner Maureen Wolff was quoted in an article in CFO Magazine entitled, “Conference Confidential” about investor conferences. The article appears in the January edition of the publication.

2007

October 2007

President and Partner Maureen Wolff spoke on “Preparing for Success: Laying the Groundwork for Your IPO” at the “Ready, Set, IPO: Deloitte & Touche Tech-Venture Center IPO Boot Camp.”

October 2007

Maureen Wolff was a panelist for the NIRI Virtual Chapter’s webcast program entitled, “Measuring Your IR Program and IR Plan Development.” Maureen focused on various ways to evaluate the success of an investor relations program.

August 2007

Senior communications executive Paul J. Sagan has joined the firm as a vice president. Sagan will strengthen the firm’s strategic media relations and financial communications practice in addition to counseling clients on investor relations and transaction communications issues.

Sagan returns to Sharon Merrill Associates after five years as a senior consultant at several leading New England financial media and public relations firms, where he garnered national media coverage for clients in the investment banking, asset management and corporate retirement sectors.

Sagan has nearly 20 years of experience in investor relations and corporate communications, including senior communications positions at Thermo Electron Corporation, Allmerica Financial and Camp Dresser & McKee. At Thermo Electron, Sagan helped develop the IPO communications strategy for eight subsidiary companies involved in the analytical instrumentation market. At Allmerica Financial, Sagan was a member of the communications team for one on the nation’s first insurance company demutualizations. His prior work at Sharon Merrill Associates included three years counseling companies and developing strategic investor relations programs for clients in the life science, high technology and industrial and capital goods sectors.

July 2007

Anne Marie K. Schwartz, a former software analyst for Adams, Harkness & Hill, has joined the agency as a vice president.

Before joining Sharon Merrill Associates, Schwartz served as director of investor relations for Open Text Corp. with specific focus on building the Canadian software company’s presence within the U.S. investment community. Prior to that, she spent 10 years as an equity analyst, including three years covering application and platform software for Adams, Harkness & Hill (now Canaccord Adams) in Boston and five years covering special situation healthcare and medical devices for John G. Kinnard & Co in Minneapolis. Schwartz is a member of the National Investor Relations Institute. She holds a bachelor of arts in economics from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and an MBA from the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management.

June 2007

President Maureen Wolff spoke on a panel entitled, “Small Cap Resources: 10 Ways to Maximize Yourself and your IR Program” at the 2007 NIRI National Conference.

April 2007

Executive Vice President and Partner Jim Buckley spoke to the Public Relations Student Society of America on the latest trends in investor relations.

March 2007

President and Partner Maureen Wolff spoke on “The Future of Investor Relations: Changes and Trends Affecting the Profession” to the St. Louis Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute.

January 2007

Chairman and CEO Sharon Merrill participated in a seminar jointly sponsored by Financial Executives International (FEI) and the Boston chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute. Moderated by Alix Stuart of CFO Magazine and Mike Nikitas of NECN, the seminar addressed the topic of Corporate Ethics and Governance from legal, ethical and practical perspectives.

January 2007

Sharon Merrill Associates President and Partner Maureen Wolff was quoted in CFO Magazine on how CFOs are managing the demand for face-to-face investor meetings.

2006

October 2006

Sharon Merrill Associates President and Partner Maureen Wolff was featured in a Financial Week article titled, “Latest Trend in Earnings Guidance: Don’t Ask,’t Tell.”

September 2006

Sharon Merrill Associates Executive Vice President & Partner Jim Buckley was a featured speaker for the Massachusetts North Technology Council’s September meeting. Jim spoke on the the latest trends in the practice of investor relations.

July 2006

Sharon Merrill Associates Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian was elected as president of the Boston Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute. Calusdian has served on the Chapter’s board of directors for the past three years.

June 2006

Sharon Merrill Associates was awarded its third-consecutive Bell Ringer Award for Investor Relations from the Publicity Club of New England. The Bell Ringer Awards honors outstanding achievements by New England-based public relations and communications professionals.

April 2006

President Maureen Wolff appeared on CNBC’s “Street Signs” and was quoted in a Dow Jones article on NIRI’s survey on earnings guidance trends.

March 2006

President Maureen Wolff was announced as the new chairman of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI). She has served on the organization’s board of directors for the past three years. “Maureen embodies the highest standards of our profession, and NIRI is extremely fortunate to have her as its chairman,” said Louis M. Thompson, Jr., president and chief executive officer of NIRI. “Maureen’s counsel on issues such as corporate disclosure, business strategy and crisis communications is highly regarded by senior executives of public and pre-IPO companies throughout the United States. Her experience in strategic planning and financial communications will be invaluable to NIRI over the next year.”

March 2006

Executive Vice President & Partner David Calusdian was quoted in a Boston Business Journal article on the demand for investor relations professionals in the New England area.

March 2006

President & Partner Maureen Wolff moderated a NIRI e-learning panel discussion on mergers & acquisitions. The panel of experienced IROs shared tips for a successful transition of a merger or acquisition.

February 2006

Chairman & CEO Sharon Merrill moderated a NIRI Boston panel discussion on board communications. The panel discussed proven methods for investor relations officers to gain visibility and credibility with their boards of directors.

January 2006

Sharon Merrill Associates announced that Jim Buckley and David Calusdian have been named partners of the firm. For more information, please click on “SMA News Releases” to the left.

January 2006

President & Partner Maureen Wolff moderated a NIRI Boston panel on investor relations planning. A panel of IROs discussed how they develop and implement their strategic investor relations plans.

2005

December 2005

Chairman and CEO Sharon Merrill participated on a National Association of Corporate Directors panel discussion entitled “Managing Crises: The Different Perspectives.” Also on the panel was Pam Reeve, founding principal of Kairos Group and Boston University Professor Lou Ureneck. Jim Grasso, CEO of The Grasso, moderated the panel discussion.

November 2005

President Maureen Wolff was quoted in a CFO Magazine article about the Independent Research Network and the National Research Exchange, two organizations that serve as matchmakers between issuers and research providers.

May 2005

Sharon Merrill Associates was featured in a CFO Magazine article about how companies without sell-side research coverage can enhance shareholder value with a proactive investor relations program.

September 2005

Executive Vice President David Calusdian was the featured speaker at an AeA seminar entitled, “Driving Corporate Valuation with a Dynamic Investor Presentation.” Calusdian offered tips to make investor presentations more dynamic and effective.

September 2005

Executive Vice President David Calusdian delivered a presentation entitled, “Keeping Your Board of Directors Informed: Enhancing Corporate Governance Through Investor Relations” at a Bentley College two-day forum on corporate governance.

September 2005

Maureen Wolff served as the moderator on September 13 for the National Investor Relations Institute’s Introduction to Investor Relations (NIRI) seminar held at the Fairmont Copley Hotel in Boston. Maureen is on the national board of directors of NIRI.

August 2005

An article about Sharon Merrill Associates was featured in the Small Business Growth Tools section of the Boston Business Journal. The article, entitled “Beyond the Bubble: Investor relations firm bounces back after tech market crash,” discussed the agency’s successful growth strategy following the burst of the tech bubble.

August 2005

Sharon Merrill Associates President Maureen Wolff was named as one of the “Top Ten PR Specialists in Boston” by the readers of Women’s Business.

July 2005

Sharon Merrill Associates Executive Vice President David Calusdian was named as President-Designate of the Boston Chapter of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI Boston). Calusdian has served on the board of NIRI Boston for the past two years.

June 2005

Sharon Merrill Associates received the 2005 Bell Ringer Award for Investor/Financial Communications from the Publicity Club of New England. At the ceremony honoring winners of the 36th Annual Bell Ringer Awards competition, SMA won top honors in the Investor/Financial Relations category for its 2004 investor relations program for LeCroy Corporation. A year ago, SMA received the Super Bell Award, which signifies best of show, and top honors in the Investor/Financial Relations category for its investor relations program for OXiGENE, Inc. at the 35th Annual Bell Ringer Awards ceremony. As the 2004 Super Bell Award winner, SMA Executive Vice President David Calusdian presented the 2005 Super Bell Award at the ceremony.

June 2005

Chief Executive Officer Sharon Merrill chaired the Financial Executives International (FEI) Board Resource Committee’s meeting, which included a panel discussion titled, “The Whys and Hows of Joining the Board of a Public or Privately Held Company.”

June 2005

Executive Vice President Jim Buckley participated on a panel evaluating student team presentations on corporate valuations as part of the Strategic Corporate Investments course for Babson College’s MBA program.

May 2005

Chief Executive Officer Sharon Merrill chaired the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Annual Meeting of Sponsors. The group of 10 sponsoring corporations discussed its strategy and tactics for promoting good corporate governance for the upcoming year.

May 2005

Executive Vice President David Calusdian was a featured speaker at an event sponsored by the Publicity Club of New England titled “Meet the PR Experts.” David presented a case study of the firm’s “Super Bell” winning entry from the 2004 Bell Ringer Awards. The Super Bell is presented yearly to the Best in Show at the prestigious awards held by the Publicity Club. Sharon Merrill Associates also won the Bell Ringer award for the Investor Relations category.

May 2005

President Maureen Wolff moderated a National Investor Relations Institute E-Learning Forum entitled, “Best Practices in IR: Targeting the Buy-side.” A panel of experts discussed such questions as, “How do I target the buy side when I have no hard news and no analyst coverage?” “Should I be spending my time meeting with hedge funds?” and “How do I maximize my relationship with our bankers to best manage the company’s shareholder base?” On the panel was Catherine Forte, associate director, investor relations, Genzyme Corporation; Andrew Kramer, director of investor relations, Interactive Data Corporation; and Pam Murphy, vice president of investor relations and corporate communications, Incyte Corporation.

Maureen is on the National Investor Relations Institute’s board of directors. Sharon Merrill Associates provides comprehensive targeting services to companies from micro-cap firms with little following to large-cap organizations with broad shareholder bases.

March 2005

Sharon Merrill Associates Chairman and CEO Sharon Merrill moderated a panel discussion for the National Association of Corporate Directors New England Chapter entitled, “How Risky Is It To Be A Director Today: Do Changing Risks Equal Today’s Rewards?” The panel included Roger W. Raber, president and CEO of the National Association of Corporate Directors, and Joan L. Goldberg, managing director of Marsh.

January 2005

An article by Executive Vice President David Calusdian titled “Delivering an Effective Corporate Presentation” appeared in Mass High Tech. David regularly conducts training sessions for executives seeking to deliver more dynamic presentations for investor conferences, board meetings and other important events.

January 2005

President Maureen Wolff was featured in an article in Compliance Week titled “Gap Between Earnings Releases, Quarterly Reports Narrows.” The article focused on the trend toward companies distributing quarterly news releases to coincide with their 10Q filings.

2004

October 2004

An article by President Maureen Wolff titled “Investor Relations as Intelligence Link” appeared on DisclosureResource.com. To read the article, please visit the “Published Materials” section of this website.

September 2004

Chairman and CEO Sharon Merrill was appointed chair of the Sponsorship Committee of the Boston Chapter of the National Association of Corporate Directors and as the chair of the Board Resource Committee of the Boston Chapter of Financial Executives International. In addition to serving on the baords of those two organizations, Sharon is a member of the national Steering Committee of the National Investor Relations Institute’s Senior IR Roundtable.

September 2004

President Maureen Wolff served as a moderator during the National Investor Relations Institute’s “Intro to IR” conference held in Boston.

September 2004

Executive Vice President David Calusdian was a featured speaker at a symposium held by Marsh New England titled “Managing Expectations.”

August 2004

President Maureen Wolff was interviewed in Compliance Week on potential changes in sell-side research resulting from the $1.4 billion indepependant research settlement.

June 2004

President Maureen Wolff co-chaired the National Investor Relations Institute’s annual conference held in Phoenix, Arizona. The theme of the conference was “Earning a Seat at the Table” and was attended by more than 1,500 investor relations professionals from around the world.

June 2004

Sharon Merill Associates won The Publicity Club of New England’s prestigious 2004 Super Bell Award and a Bell Ringer Award for its work in the field of investor relations. The 35th Annual Bell Ringer Awards honored outstanding achievement by New England-based public relations and communications professionals. SMA earned the Super Bell Award, recognizing the “Best in Show” from the 16 campaign categories, and its 11th Bell Ringer Award for its financial/investor relations campaign entry, which highlighted the agency’s work in the biotechnology industry.

May 2004

President Maureen Wolff was interviewed on WBIX Business Radio’s program Market Wrap with Mark Mills on annual meeting and corporate governance trends.

May 2004

Executive Vice President David Calusdian spoke at a symposium sponsored by Business Wire titled, “The Return of the IPO?” on the critical preparations that private companies need to make prior to going public.

May 2004

President Maureen Wolff authored IR Update’s cover story entitled, “What’s up with the Analysts?” The article discussed the recent trends occurring in sell-side analyst research.

March 2004

President Maureen Wolff was named chair of the Membership and Chapter Development Committee of the National Investor Relations Institute’s Board of Directors. Maureen also serves on the Professional Development and Executive Committees.

2003

September 2003

Executive Vice President David Calusdian was named to the Board of Directors of the National Investor Relations Institute’s (NIRI) Boston Chapter.

August/September 2003

President Maureen Wolff moderated a three-session NIRI National seminar on investor targeting. The three sessions, entitled, “How Do Investors View Our Company?”, “Who Do We Want to Own Our Company?” and “How Do We Find the Investors We Want?” provided a comprehensive look at investor targeting methods and practices.

August 2003

A byline article by Sharon Merrill Associates Chairman and CEO Sharon Merrill entitled “Positioning by Capturing the Essence of Your Business to Drive Growth,” was featured in the August 2003 issue of Boston Women’s Business. The article discussed how to effectively position private and public companies with key audiences.

June 2003

President Maureen Wolff authored a bylined article in the June 18 edition of Compliance Week entitled, “Lessons From the Floor of the NIRI Annual Conference.”

June 2003

Executive Vice President David C. Calusdian delivered a presentation to the NASDAQ’s BBXchange Conference in Boston entitled “Building the Investor Relations Program”