1st Edition
Effective Financial Communication Key Concepts, Empirical Insights, and Implications for Practice
Financial communication and investor relations are strategic corporate functions, tasked with fostering relationships with financial audiences, such as investors, analysts, and journalists. These financial audiences are of critical importance to the establishment, growth, and sustainable success of corporations. This book draws on insights from finance and accounting research, economics, and psychology as well as media and communication studies to explain the role of effective financial communication in corporate disclosure, storytelling, and relationship management on capital markets.
It explores both theories of and empirical evidence for effects of financial communication on key audiences and derives principles for effective financial communication and investor relations. This book develops a distinct perspective, guiding readers through the state of research by focusing on the effects and effectiveness of financial communication. For both practice and academia, it derives evidence-based implications for the role and management of financial communication and investor relations.
This book makes a valuable resource for scholars and graduate students studying or researching investor relations and financial communication across schools of communication, finance and accounting, and business and management. Offering practical implications, it will also serve as a much-needed guide for practitioners.
1. Introduction to Effective Financial Communication Part I: Foundations of Effective Financial Communication 2. The Capital Market Arena: Capital, Human Behavior, and Stakeholder Capitalism 3. The History of Financial Communication 4. Financial Communicators and the Financial Communication Profession 5. Capital Market Participants and Financial Communication Audiences 6. The Instruments of Financial Communication Part II: Objectives and Management of Effective Financial Communication 7. The Role of Disclosure and Corporate Social Responsibility in Financial Communication 8. The Role of Narratives and Equity Storytelling in Financial Communication 9. The Role of Media Relations and Agenda Setting in Financial Communication 10. The Role of Boundary Spanning and Relationship Management in Financial Communication 11. The Effects of Financial Communication on Corporations, Capital Markets, the Media, and the Public Sphere 12. Managing Financial Communication 13. Evaluating Financial Communication 14. The Future of Financial Communication
Biography
Christian Pieter Hoffmann is Professor of Communication Management at the Institute of Communication and Media Studies at the University of Leipzig and of Political Communication at the Institute of Political Science. He is Academic Director of the Center for Research in Financial Communication and Codirector of the Center for Digital Participation.
Nadine Strauß is Assistant Professor (Tenure Track) of Strategic Communication and Media Management at the Department of Communication and Media Research at the University of Zurich. Previously, she has completed a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship at the Smith School of Enterprise and Environment (University of Oxford), focusing on the role of communication for sustainable finance.
“An important and much needed contribution. In their embrace of empirical work, their European perspective, and their addition of new concepts and frameworks, Hoffmann and Strauß make strides in the field of financial communication.”
Dr. Laura Basu, author of the book Media Amnesia: Rewriting the Economic Crisis
"Effective financial communication is absolutely fundamental if society is to achieve net zero, climate resilience, and a just transition. This new book provides a comprehensive and critical introduction into the state of financial communication and investor relations research, offering timely and important insights for researchers and practitioners alike."
Prof. Ben Caldecott, Director, Oxford Sustainable Finance Group, Lombard Odier Associate Professor of Sustainable Finance"This book significantly advances our understanding of financial communication as a strategic communication function. It provides a comprehensive overview of research-based knowledge and new insights into management aspects and evaluation effects. It is highly recommended for researchers, students, and practitioners alike."
Prof. Ansgar Zerfass, Professor of Strategic Communication and Editor, International Journal of Strategic Communication"Effective Financial Communication: Key Concepts, Empirical Insights, and Implications for Practice offers a detailed, comprehensive, and deep look into the theory and practice of financial communication. I would strongly recommend this book, especially for its exclusive knowledge of the European context based on years of dedicated research by the book’s authors."
Prof. Alexander V. Laskin, Professor of Strategic Communication“This book is at the forefront of a fast‑growing field and it is essential reading for researchers, experts and practitioners. In addition to a comprehensive overview of relevant theories and concepts, there are numerous tips that will help educators, students and practitioners to apply these theories in a practical way.”
Prof. Sophie Knowles, Associate Professor in Journalism, author of the book The Mediation of Financial Crises
