I firmly believe that there is both a right way and a wrong way to go about the process of inviting, selecting, appointing and ultimately working with banks that lead an initial public offering (IPO). Unfortunately, many corporates fail to understand how investment banks function, what makes them and their executives tick, and to what extent they could make their lives so much easier by being even slightly more directive in their dealings with financial institutions, saving themselves much pain and misery in their run up to listing on a stock exchange. 

 As an equity capital markets investment banker, I spent a lot of time pitching for new mandates. Among these were many IPOs, either large privatizations or private sector flotations of all sizes on behalf of families, or institutional or private equity shareholders. Sometimes these pitches were well rehearsed and followed a strict protocol, down to a very precise script for each of the members of the presenting team. In some cases they featured what were (back in those days) innovative devices, such as the playing of video segments featuring colleagues who could not – for compliance reasons or otherwise – be present on that day, and who chimed in to express their enthusiasm for the proposed offering. On other occasions, these were very much last minute affairs as my employer and I desperately tried to elbow our way into a deal for which other houses had already been engaged. 

我坚信，邀请，选择，任命并最终与领导首次公开募股（IPO）的银行合作的过程既有正确的道路，也有错误的道路。不幸的是，许多公司无法理解投资银行的运作方式，是什么使他们和他们的高管跳槽，以及在多大程度上可以通过与金融机构打交道的指导更加轻松地生活，从而减轻很多痛苦，他们在证券交易所上市前的苦难。

作为股票资本市场投资银行家，我花了很多时间来准备新任务。其中包括许多IPO，代表家族，机构或私人股本股东的大型私有化或各种规模的私有部门发行。有时，这些音调会经过精心排练并遵循严格的协议，直到每个演示团队的成员都需要非常精确的脚本。在某些情况下，他们会展示当时（当时）的创新设备，例如播放视频片段，这些片段的同事在当天（出于合规原因或其他原因）无法出席会议，并鼓起勇气表达对以下内容的热情建议的发行。在其他情况下，这些事情几乎是最后一刻的事情，因为我的雇主和我拼命试图弯腰达成其他房屋已经参与的交易。