S3E10: Kiley Rawlins from Ulta Beauty on How to Effectively Prepare For and Manage Shareholder Activism

With shareholder activism rates continuing to rise and defense strategies becoming more complex, how can IR and management teams be better prepared for activist situations? In this episode of Winning IR, Kiley Rawlins, Vice President - Investor Relations at Ulta Beauty, draws on her 25 years of experience in IR and shares insights on activism readiness and how investor relations officers should prepare for and approach potential activist campaigns.

Listen to the full episode to learn more about:

• Activism readiness: understanding the key issues and vulnerabilities that drive shareholder activism
• Communication strategies with your board and management team
• Preparing for potential activist campaigns
• Monitoring performance and comparisons with peer groups
• The importance of your advisor team and scenario planning
• Engaging with activists and shareholders
• Balancing threats and opportunities from activism

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Chapters

• 0:00 Kiley Rawlins 2
• 0:59 Introduction to Activism Readiness
• 1:48 Understanding Key Issues and Vulnerabilities
• 2:50 Building Relationships and Gathering Feedback
• 3:32 Communicating with the Board and Management Team
• 4:00 Frequency of Risk Discussions at the Board Level
• 4:22 Monitoring Performance and Comparing with Peer Groups
• 6:31 Preparing for Potential Activist Campaigns
• 7:27 Importance of Advisor Team and Scenario Planning
• 8:31 Activist Preparedness Strategy
• 12:40 Identifying Company Characteristics that Attract Activism
• 15:15 Engaging with Activists and Shareholders
• 17:32 Monitoring Activist Campaigns Among Peers
• 20:51 Balancing Threats and Opportunities from Activism
• 25:06 Final Advice on Dealing with Activism
• 27:29 Conclusion