In 2023, Kip Rupp, IRO for Quanta Services, an energy contractor that has benefitted from rising demand for engineering and construction of renewables, celebrates another year ranked first in his sector by sell- and buy-side participants of the annual Institutional Investor All-America executive team survey. The latest ranking puts Rupp at third place in the II Hall of Fame, with nine first place votes over the years.While there are fewer than a thousand investor relation officers in the US, there are a handful of places on II’s Hall of Fame for the memorable executives that have served their company for many years. For a second year Jeff Kotkin from Eversource Energy sits at the top of the all-time rankings with 11 first place votes, despite his retirement in 2023. “I never wanted to hear that a potential investor took a pass on us because they couldn’t obtain the information they required, even though it was publicly available,” Kotkin said. Two of the top five in II’s Hall of Fame highlight the importance of serving the customer. Randy Burkhalter said that after 21 years working as an IRO for Texas-headquartered gas and oil pipeline company Enterprise Products Partners, and 32 years as an IRO in the energy sector, that respecting all customers, regardless of the size of their investment, has been key to his success. Burkhalter, who will retire in April after four decades in the energy business, is in second place on II’s IRO Hall of Fame. He said IROs need to remember that all customers should be treated equally, including sell-side analysts, whose research touches a broad community of high-net worth investors and institutional clients. Ann Scott at Ball Corp tied for fourth, adding an eighth first place ranking in 2024. She echoes Burkhalter’s sentiment that positivity and politeness are qualities of successful IROs, and believes in listening to all customers. “Sometimes you learn the most from those you may disagree with,” she said. “Avoiding a difficult conversation never solves a misunderstanding.” The IROs in the top five are experts on their company and its strategy – but they must also take a role in shaping the investor community and getting the right people on board. Burkhalter said in his career at five different companies, he’s learned that an IRO must understand the idiosyncrasies and expectations of the job at each company, often going beyond simple relationships with the chief financial officer and a solid knowledge of the accounts. The best IROs help CEOs nurture relationships with investors. Those at the very top say the diversity in the role makes for a thrilling career, involving international travel, enco…