Company: MWW Group, East Rutherford, NJ
Company Description: FRB is one of America's leading investor relations and financial communications firms with expertise in corporate positioning and communication, investment community targeting, media relations, shareholder management services and valuation analysis.
Nomination Category: Individual Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Best Executive – Service Businesses – up to 100 Employees

Nomination Title: Claire Koeneman, President, Financial Relations Board

Describe for the judges the activities and accomplishments of the nominated executive during the eligibility period (up to 500 words):

As president of Financial Relations Board (FRB), an MWW Group company, Claire
Koeneman is the epitome of unwavering commitment to both her clients and her
team.  Claire counsels companies on how strategic public and investor relations
can positively impact valuation and enhance corporate reputation.  Claire
applies her skill-sets to a broad range of scenarios including IPO’s, M&A
transactions and corporate re-branding and across a spectrum of industries such
as real estate, technology and consumer brands; consistently achieving superior
results for her clients.  In today’s trying times, Claire has also proven
herself a thought leader, authoring white papers and acting as an industry
spokesperson, quoted frequently in financial and trade press. She has achieved
this while working to mentor younger professionals across the agency and
oversees client program growth and executive development across the agency. 

Despite limited transaction activity in the capital markets, Claire worked on
several high profile IPO’s including American Water, whose $1.25 billion capital
raise made it the second largest IPO of 2008.  In the last 18 months, she
directed more than $12 billion in mergers and acquisitions activity.  Further,
Claire hosted approximately 30 private real estate executives from China at a
Real Estate Forum in New York, in partnership with Nanjing Cornerstone
Investment Management and Tsinghua University in Beijing; fostering a greater
understanding of how foreign executive can access the U.S. capital markets.
Claire also continues to drive FRB’s restructuring practice to develop and
implement communications strategies to align stakeholders behind the client’s
company plan.

Claire partners with company management teams to help maximize their valuation
and enhance their corporate reputation and has the unique ability to approach
each situation with a fresh set of eyes.  She constantly looks for novel ways to
resolve a challenge – such as pitching a story in several ways to align client
goals with those of reporters or working with design teams to offer clients
varying creative approaches.  Claire uses this creativity selectively, applying
it appropriately in delicate situations such as employee communications during a
corporate merger or workforce downsizing. 

In addition to these accomplishments, Claire also excels in her management of
all five FRB offices located throughout the U.S., recently taking on the added
role of general manager of MWW Group’s Midwest region.  She continues to lead an
Investor Relations 101 course to proactively educate key constituencies within
the Interpublic Group (IPG) network of companies on financial related trends,
activities and skills. Claire has won numerous awards for her clients, and
personally has been a finalist in PRWeek’s “Investor Relations Professional of
the Year”.  Additionally, she is a leading spokesperson for the industry, quoted
frequently in financial and trade press.

These qualities, combined with her ability to develop and mentor a strong team,
are what make Claire Koeneman a natural choice for The Stevie Award for the
Women in Business.

List the URLs (web addresses) of any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that you would like the judges to see that support your entry. IMPORTANT: List each URL on a separate line, begin each URL with http://, and enclose each URL in square brackets. For example, [http://www.yourcompany.com/pressrelease.html]:

http://mww.com/images/thought_leadership/May_Market_Maker.pdf
http://mww.com/images/thought_leadership/FRB_failure_to_launch.pdf
http://mww.com/images/thought_leadership/MWW_SelectingGuide.pdf
http://mww.com/images/thought_leadership/MWW_OpEd.pdf
http://www.frbir.com/pressroom/pressreleases.php?task=getRelease&id=10
http://www.frbir.com/pressroom/pressreleases.php?task=getRelease&id=9
http://www.frbir.com/pressroom/pressreleases.php?task=getRelease&id=8

Provide a brief biography of the nominated executive (up to 100 words):

Claire Koeneman, President of the Financial Relations Board, an MWW Group
company, has focused her career on helping public and private clients achieve
financial, strategic and business goals. She is known for her sophisticated
C-suite advice, refined people skills and deep expertise in financial and
corporate communications, public relations and media.  She oversees client
program growth and executive development across the agency. Additionally, she is
a leading spokesperson for the industry, quoted frequently in financial and
trade press.

Koeneman holds an M.B.A. in finance from the University of Chicago, a B.A. from
Smith College and is a member of the Economics Club of Chicago, Executives’ Club
of Chicago, NAREIT, University of Chicago CEO Roundtable and Seven Sisters
Consortium.