AGM season is fast approaching and it’s crucial that your organisation is prepared. The Covid-19 pandemic has caused many to reassess the necessity of in-person meetings and encouraged a switch to hybrid working environments.

Although public health restrictions have mostly changed, there are still many advantages to holding your AGM online.

Bring Your Shareholders Together

AGMs are an annual opportunity to decide the future of your organisation through communication. Coming together is absolutely crucial to making efficient decisions, but you must put your shareholders first. An in-person meeting can be deeply disruptive to their schedule.

The social aspect of an AGM is important and you want your shareholders to feel confident. If they have spent a long time travelling, they may be tired and unable to contribute their best ideas. By holding the meeting online, you can ensure they are relaxed and well-prepared, which will improve collaboration.

Simplify Preparation Time

AGM season is stressful enough for your administrative staff. Don’t make it any more complicated than it needs to be. When holding a virtual AGM, the administrator is able to assign meeting roles to users which simplifies permissions.

Before the meeting, a unique registration code is sent out to all shareholders with the AGM URL so they are able to register. At this point, they can view documents and resolutions, and fill out a proxy form. The meeting administrator is then sent a list of the proxy forms to align with the share registers. This means there is little chance of confusion in the meeting itself.

Promote Your Values

Your ESG concerns should be at the centre of any event you organise and an AGM is no exception. Convening remotely is an opportunity to stress your commitment to environmental and social goals.

Flying in team members from across the country (or world!) is expensive and not at all eco-friendly. You also have to consider the environmental cost of printed documents which can easily add up!

From a social point of view, it’s also worth thinking about the safety of your shareholders. Of course, many of us have gone back to working in person - but this is not true for everyone. If your AGM is a large event, you need to consider the added risks of bringing people who would not normally meet together.

Increased Support and Security

As mentioned above, ESG is crucial in organising an AGM - and the G stands for Governance! Holding an AGM online means you can receive quantifiable information on the security of your meeting and so improve your internal governance processes. 

As a data processor, the AGM software you use should not handle any of the personal data that is required to make the meeting happen. Only you or others appointed on your behalf (i.e. auditors) will have access to the personal data that is contained on the shareholder registration details, meeting attendee details, or voting audit logs.

How Can Convene Help With Your Virtual AGM?

With Convene eAGM, you can hold your meetings from the safety of your own home. Our product is one of the leading virtual AGM hosts and we recently hosted the Chartered Governance Institute’s virtual AGM. We offer unlimited support including a free dry-run of the event and ‘on-site’ support throughout the day.

Our features are dynamic and designed to support your organisation at every stage of the eAGM process. If you would like to learn more, please do not hesitate to get in contact with us!