Without much of a background in high finance, I have taken to working as a proxy solicitor for Georgeson Financial Services and D.F. King Teleservices. I have learned about annual meetings, prospecti and such, but mainly I just solicit votes from shareholders. It is my job to make the case for the point of view of the board of directors, but shareholders can vote any way they please.
This link provides a good primer for the process:
http://www.sewkis.com/pubs/xprPubDetail.aspx?xpST=PubDetail&pub=181
