Online and hybrid annual general meetings: Embracing the evolution

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Abstract

Annual general meetings (AGMs) are evolving rapidly due to, among other things, multiple new digital solutions (Randøy et al., 2022), the COVID-19 pandemic, and legislative/regulatory changes (Nili & Shaner, 2022; Härmand, 2021). This paper aims to analyze stakeholders’ experience with AGMs in 2021 and 2022, the challenges and opportunities of online and hybrid AGMs, and stakeholders’ expectations for the future format of AGMs. The research employs two questionnaire-based surveys of Icelandic-listed companies’ shareholders, board members, chief executive officers (CEOs), and compliance and investor relations officers. All stakeholder groups consider hybrid and online AGMs efficient and environmentally friendly. Technical difficulties with voting processes are of no significant concern. Hybrid and online AGMs are considered to lead to broader attendance by a diverse group of shareholders, but not necessarily of small shareholders. Concerns exist regarding the adequate discussion of contentious proposals, management oversight, and fulsome interaction between attendees. The originality of the research stems from analyzing the views of four stakeholder groups, i.e., shareholders, board members, CEOs, and compliance and investor relations officers, regarding online and hybrid AGMs. This approach allows for a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities of these AGM formats.

Keywords: Annual General Meetings, Corporate Governance, Digital Transformation, Online AGMs, Hybrid AGMs

Authors’ individual contribution: Conceptualization — T.O.S., A.A.A., and S.W.; Methodology — A.A.A.; Formal Analysis — A.A.A.; Investigation — T.O.S.; Resources — T.O.S. and S.W.; Writing — A.A.A. and S.W.; Visualization — S.W.; Project Administration — T.O.S., A.A.A., and S.W.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

JEL Classification: G3, K4, M140, O3

Received: 09.11.2023
Accepted: 05.06.2024
Published online: 07.06.2024

How to cite this paper: Sigurjonsson, T. O., Arnardottir, A. A., & Wendt, S. (2024). Online and hybrid annual general meetings: Embracing the evolution [Special issue]. Journal of Governance & Regulation, 13(2), 366–373. https://doi.org/10.22495/jgrv13i2siart12