Board & Special Situations Advisory
Harkins & Co. provides independent shareholder intelligence and decision support to boards and management teams confronting rapidly developing situations. Working alongside legal and financial advisors, we establish the relevant ownership, voting and market facts, assess likely investor response and proxy advisory firm positioning, and translate that analysis into practical options for consideration by boards and management teams.
Decision support when timing and judgment matter.
Boards and management teams—working with their legal and financial advisors—engage Harkins & Co. when a shareholder matter is developing quickly and the facts, the likely investor response and the available options are not yet clear.
We are often engaged before a solicitation begins, before a response strategy has been chosen and before a matter has become a formal contest, when an independent, fact-based read of shareholder dynamics is most valuable.
What we establish, analyze and present.
Rapid Situation Assessment
A rapid, structured assessment of the shareholder and market facts as a situation develops.
Ownership, Voting & Market Analysis
Analysis of ownership, voting behavior and market activity, together with an assessment of investor priorities.
Investor Response & Proxy Advisory Firm Positioning
Assessment of investor response and likely proxy advisory firm positioning under each scenario.
Scenario & Strategic-Option Analysis
Scenario analysis and evaluation of the practical strategic options available to boards and management teams.
Board & Management Presentations
Clear, decision-ready presentations to directors and senior management, developed in coordination with legal and financial advisors. Our materials distinguish confirmed facts, working assumptions and scenario-dependent judgments so decision-makers can evaluate the alternatives on a clear analytical basis.
Decision & Implementation Planning
Translating the selected course of action into a coordinated plan for engagement, communications, negotiation or solicitation.
From assessment to execution.
Harkins & Co. rapidly establishes the shareholder and market facts, identifies likely investor responses and frames the practical choices available to boards and management teams. We present clear, decision-ready analysis to directors and senior management, work alongside legal and financial advisors, and remain involved as the matter moves from assessment to engagement, negotiation or solicitation.
Establish the Facts
We rapidly establish the relevant ownership, voting and market facts.
Assess Response
We assess likely investor response and proxy advisory firm positioning.
Frame the Choices
We frame the practical strategic options available to boards and management teams.
Board & Management Briefings
We present clear, decision-ready analysis to directors and senior management.
Continuity into Execution
We remain involved as the matter moves into engagement, negotiation or solicitation.
Helping decision-makers act on facts.
The purpose of the work is to help boards and management teams—working alongside their legal and financial advisors—to understand the shareholder situation, evaluate realistic alternatives and select an informed course of action.
- Understand the shareholder situation
- Separate assumptions from verifiable facts
- Identify emerging risks
- Evaluate realistic alternatives
- Anticipate investor response
- Select an informed course of action
- Prepare for engagement, negotiation or solicitation
- Maintain continuity into execution
If the matter develops into an activist campaign, transaction vote or formal solicitation, the same team carries the analysis and strategic direction into the relevant execution workstream.
Where the work often leads.
Shareholder Activism
Preparedness, defense and campaign strategy for contested and activist-driven situations.
→Mergers & Acquisitions
Shareholder-approval strategy and solicitation support for transactions requiring investor approval.
→Market Intelligence & Stock Surveillance
Ownership analysis, vote modeling and ongoing market monitoring to inform shareholder strategy.
→Annual & Special Meetings
Strategy and execution for annual meetings, special meetings and consent solicitations.
→Discuss Your Next Shareholder Matter
Contact us with a brief overview of the matter. A member of our team will respond to arrange a discussion.