London, 21 June 2017
 
Gary Leibowitz and Evan Davis awarded IR Society Fellowships

Yesterday at its annual conference, the Investor Relations Society ('IR Society' or 'the Society') announced the recipients of its 2017 Fellowship awards: Gary Leibowitz, senior advisor, McKinsey; and Evan Davis, author, broadcaster and journalist.

The IR Society Fellowship Programme was launched in 2011 to recognise outstanding individuals who have made a significant contribution to the IR industry and IR Society, either through their own work or by developing others in their organisations and beyond.

"The IR Society is delighted to honour our 2017 Fellows, Gary Leibowitz and Evan Davis. They are both leaders in their own fields and have been staunch supporters of Investor Relations.  We now recognise them for their significant support and contribution in raising the profile of the IR Society," said David Lloyd-Seed, Chair of the IR Society.

"Gary was a long-serving IR Society Board member, is highly regarded by the IR community for his innovative approach and is credited with getting his former IR team behind Society initiatives. Today, Gary is working at McKinsey as a senior adviser and we look forward to his continued association with the Society."

David continued: "In many ways, Evan has become a feature of the annual conference with a popular and inimitable style that resonates well with our members and the IR community. Evan's participation has helped raise the profile of the conference. We owe a debt of gratitude to each of them."

The IR Society's 31^st annual conference, held yesterday, was entitled 'A new World Order: The Ascent of IR.' With an attendance of over 350 delegates, keynote speakers included Lady Barbara Judge, Chairman of the IOD and Anne Richards, Chief Executive, M&G Investments, as well as other speakers from the investment community. The IR Society was delighted to welcome back Evan Davis as conference host for the seventh year running. Throughout the day, we featured the prevailing theme of change, its impact on IR best practice and the response from the C-suite, the Boardroom and IROs, as well as the buy- and sell-sides. The big topics included a critical assessment of the changing regulatory environment we face and other pressing issues, from pay and performance to the imperative of responsible investing in UK plc.
For further information contact:
 
The Investor Relations Society
John Gollifer - General Manager                                             020 7379 1763
Laura Hayter - Head of Policy and Communications          020 7379 1763
 
 
Notes for editors:
 
The Investor Relations Society
The Investor Relations Society (IR Society) is a membership organisation that exists to promote best practice investor relations in the UK and beyond. It is run by IR professionals for IR professionals. Established in 1980, the IR Society's mission is to promote best practice in investor relations; to support the professional development of its members; to represent their views to regulatory bodies, the investment community and government; and to act as a forum for issuers and the investment community.

The Society has over 800 members from the UK, Europe and beyond, including representatives from most of the FTSE 100, a large number of FTSE 250 companies and a number of AIM and smaller companies as well as IR advisers and service providers. For more information visit www.irs.org.uk or connect with us on Twitter (@IRSocietyUK) or LinkedIn