National Investor Relations Institute Announces Retirement of Louis M. Thompson, Jr. as President and CEO

Business Wire, Jan 4, 2006

VIENNA, Va. -- The National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) today announced that Louis M. Thompson, Jr. plans to retire from the position of president and CEO he has held since 1982. Thompson, a nationally recognized expert in corporate disclosure and governance and a long-time advocate of the investor relations officer's role with corporate boards of directors, has agreed to remain in the position until his successor has been elected and an appropriate transition period has been completed. NIRI is conducting a national search for a new president and CEO.

"Lou Thompson will long be remembered not only for leading NIRI through a period of unprecedented growth, but also for profoundly influencing the practice of investor relations," said NIRI's Chairman Mary Dunbar. "During more than two decades at NIRI's helm, Lou helped pioneer the concept of strategic integrated corporate communication, and tirelessly promoted the use of non-financial performance measures as a means of providing investors with a more comprehensive valuation picture of public companies. At the same time, NIRI's membership grew nearly six-fold, and the organization greatly strengthened its reputation as a source of powerful ideas and insights for the investor relations and corporate communications practice."

"We extend our heartfelt appreciation to Lou for his vision, leadership, and dedication to the investor relations profession, and wish him every success in the next phase of his career," said Dunbar.

"The past 23 years have been an unparalleled and rewarding experience for me," said Thompson. "I am honored to have had the opportunity to help lead NIRI to where it is today, and to assist the organization in gaining recognition from our external constituencies of the importance of investor relations. I could not have accomplished this without the support of our boards of directors and an extraordinarily dedicated and competent staff. Along the way, I've had the opportunity to get to know many IR professionals, along with regulators and members of the investment and legal communities who are truly passionate about what they do. Many have become great friends, and I look forward to sustaining these relationships in the years ahead."

Thompson is planning to launch a second career in the investor relations profession. In his capacity as president and CEO, he authored NIRI's Standards of Practice for Investor Relations, and wrote extensively for publications on investor relations, governance and regulatory issues. Thompson expects to continue writing on these issues, while exploring consulting and board opportunities.

During Thompson's tenure as NIRI president and CEO:

--  Thompson raised the visibility of NIRI among organizations
        such as the American Bar Association, Business Roundtable, CFA
        Institute, Conference Board, Financial Executives
        International, National Association of Corporate Directors and
        Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals.

        --  He put together coalitions over the years involving these
            organizations and NIRI to address issues of mutual
            interest.

        --  In 1995, he created a task force involving NIRI and the
            CFA Institute (then AIMR) that resulted in NIRI's first
            Standards for Corporate Disclosure. As a result of
            Thompson's efforts, the CFA Institute joined NIRI in
            creating the Best Practice Guidelines Governing
            Analyst/Corporate Issuer Relations, published in 2005.

        --  Thompson served as media spokesperson for the business
            coalition that helped bring about the 1995 Private
            Securities Litigation Reform Act and testified before
            Congress supporting the Shareholder Communications Act of
            1985.

    --  As a member of SEC Chairman Arthur Levitt's advisory
        committee, he helped shape Regulation Fair Disclosure as a
        rule that corporations could live with and that would serve
        the best interests of investors.

    --  Thompson has written extensively on corporate governance,
        Regulation FD, corporate disclosure and strategic investor
        relations issues. His writings have been published in
        Directors and Boards magazine, Wall Street Lawyer, Treasury
        and Risk Management magazine, Boardroom Briefing, among
        others.

    --  He is serving a second term on the New York Stock Exchange
        Individual Investor Advisory Committee and was a member of the
        Harvard University New Foundations Working Group on Corporate
        Governance. He recently served on the board of directors for
        the National Council for Economic Education.

In 2000, Thompson was the first recipient of the lifetime achievement award in investor relations by IR Magazine and Barron's. He was the 2001 recipient of the James W. Schwartz Award for Distinguished Service in Journalism and Communication conferred by the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication at Iowa State University.