高德納諮詢公司 (IT) 2022 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, everyone. Welcome to Gartner's Second Quarter 2022 Earnings Call. (Operator Instructions) After comments by Gene Hall, Gartner's Chief Executive Officer; and Craig Safian, Gartner's Chief Financial Officer, there will be a question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions) Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded. (Operator Instructions)

大家，早安。歡迎參加 Gartner 2022 年第二季度財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）根據 Gartner 首席執行官 Gene Hall 的評論； Gartner 首席財務官 Craig Safian 將舉行問答環節。 （操作員說明）請注意，今天的會議正在錄製中。 （操作員說明）

This call will include a discussion of second quarter 2022 financial results and Gartner's updated outlook for 2022 as disclosed in today's earnings release and earnings supplement, both posted to our website, investor.gartner.com. On the call, unless stated otherwise, all references to EBITDA are for adjusted EBITDA, with the adjustments as described in our earnings release and supplement. All growth rates in Gene's comments are FX neutral, unless stated otherwise. All references to share counts are for fully diluted weighted average share count, unless stated otherwise. Reconciliations from non-GAAP numbers we use are available in the Investor Relations section of the gartner.com website.

本次電話會議將討論 2022 年第二季度財務業績和 Gartner 在今天的收益發布和收益補充中披露的 2022 年更新展望，兩者均發佈在我們的網站investor.gartner.com 上。在電話會議上，除非另有說明，所有對 EBITDA 的引用均指調整後的 EBITDA，調整如我們的收益發布和補充中所述。除非另有說明，Gene 評論中的所有增長率都是外匯中性的。除非另有說明，否則所有提及的股份數量均指完全攤薄的加權平均股份數量。我們使用的非 GAAP 數字對賬可在 gartner.com 網站的“投資者關係”部分找到。

Finally, our contract values and associated growth rates we discuss are based on '22 foreign exchange rates, unless stated otherwise. As set forth in more detail in today's earnings release, certain statements made on this call may constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements can vary materially from actual results and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those contained in the company's 2021 annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q as well as in other filings with the SEC. I encourage all of you to review the risk factors listed in these documents.

最後，除非另有說明，否則我們討論的合同價值和相關增長率均基於 22 年的外匯匯率。正如今天的收益發布中更詳細說明的那樣，本次電話會議上的某些陳述可能構成前瞻性陳述。前瞻性陳述可能與實際結果存在重大差異，並受到許多風險和不確定性的影響，包括公司 2021 年 10-K 表格年度報告和 10-Q 表格季度報告以及其他文件中包含的風險和不確定性。美國證券交易委員會。我鼓勵大家查看這些文件中列出的風險因素。

Now I'll turn the call over to Gartner's Chief Executive Officer, Gene Hall.

現在我將把電話轉給 Gartner 的首席執行官 Gene Hall。

Good morning. Thanks for joining us. Gartner had a strong performance in the second quarter. We delivered double-digit growth in contract value, revenue, EBITDA and EPS, and we continue to return excess capital to our shareholders through our buyback programs.

早上好。感謝您加入我們。 Gartner 在第二季度表現強勁。我們在合同價值、收入、EBITDA 和每股收益方面實現了兩位數的增長，並且我們繼續通過我們的回購計劃將多餘的資本返還給我們的股東。

Research continues to be our largest and most profitable segments. Gartner Research provides actual objective insight to executives and their teams across all major enterprise functions in every industry around the world. Our expert guidance and tools enable faster, smarter decisions and stronger performance on our clients' mission-critical priorities. We continue to have a vast market opportunity across all sectors, sizes and geographies, and we're delivering more value than ever.

研究仍然是我們最大和最賺錢的部分。 Gartner Research 為全球各個行業的所有主要企業職能部門的高管及其團隊提供實際客觀的見解。我們的專家指導和工具能夠在客戶的關鍵任務優先事項上實現更快、更明智的決策和更強的績效。我們繼續在所有行業、規模和地區擁有巨大的市場機會，並且我們正在提供比以往更多的價值。

The rate of change in the world is the fastest I've ever seen. Against this backdrop, Gartner continues to get even more agile. We're generating new insights to address timely and pressing issues, such as leveraging emerging technologies, optimizing costs, attracting and retaining talent in the hybrid world, managing cybersecurity risk and more. We deliver incredible value, whether our clients are thriving, struggling or somewhere in between. As a result, demand for our services remain strong.

世界變化的速度是我見過的最快的。在這種背景下，Gartner 繼續變得更加敏捷。我們正在產生新的見解以解決及時和緊迫的問題，例如利用新興技術、優化成本、在混合世界中吸引和留住人才、管理網絡安全風險等等。我們提供令人難以置信的價值，無論我們的客戶是欣欣向榮、苦苦掙扎還是介於兩者之間。因此，對我們服務的需求依然強勁。

Q2 Research revenue grew 17% in the second quarter. Total contract value growth was 15%. Retention remained very strong, and new business was near all-time highs. We're also growing our sales teams. Global Technology Sales headcount was up 9%, and Global Business Sales headcount was up 17% year-over-year. Global Technology Sales, or GTS, source leaders in their teams within IT. GTS contract value grew 14%. Global Business Sales, or GBS, serves leaders and their teams beyond IT. This includes HR, supply chain, finance, marketing, sales, legal and more. GBS contract value grew 23%.

第二季度研究收入在第二季度增長了 17%。合同總價值增長 15%。留存率仍然非常強勁，新業務接近歷史新高。我們也在壯大我們的銷售團隊。全球技術銷售人數同比增長 9%，全球業務銷售人數同比增長 17%。全球技術銷售 (GTS) 在其 IT 團隊中尋找領導者。 GTS 合同價值增長 14%。全球業務銷售 (GBS) 為 IT 以外的領導者及其團隊提供服務。這包括人力資源、供應鏈、財務、營銷、銷售、法律等。 GBS 合同價值增長 23%。

Across every function: IT, supply chain, marketing, sales, HR, finance and more, leaders and their teams benefit from our incredible value proposition. As a result, the enterprises we support see measurable progress on their mission-critical priorities.

在每個職能部門：IT、供應鏈、營銷、銷售、人力資源、財務等，領導者及其團隊都受益於我們令人難以置信的價值主張。因此，我們支持的企業在其關鍵任務優先事項上看到了可衡量的進展。

Leveraging the extraordinary value of our research insights. Our Conferences business brings the power of Gartner to life for an engaged and highly qualified audience. During Q2, we delivered our first in-person destination conferences since the start of the pandemic. This conference has covered IT, finance and supply chain in Europe, Australia and the U.S. Attendee feedback has been resoundingly positive. They deeply value the opportunities to connect, engage and learn in person.

利用我們研究見解的非凡價值。我們的會議業務將 Gartner 的力量帶入生活中，吸引高素質的觀眾。在第二季度，我們舉辦了自大流行開始以來的第一次面對面的目的地會議。本次會議涵蓋了歐洲、澳大利亞和美國的 IT、金融和供應鏈，與會者的反饋非常積極。他們非常重視親自聯繫、參與和學習的機會。

Bookings continue at a strong pace for both exhibitors and attendees. Gartner Consulting is an extension of Gartner Research. Consulting helps clients execute their most strategic technology initiatives through deeper, extended project-based work. Consulting had a strong quarter, with revenue up 20%. Bookings were also strong, driving backlog up 45%.

參展商和與會者的預訂繼續保持強勁勢頭。 Gartner Consulting 是 Gartner Research 的延伸。諮詢幫助客戶通過更深入、擴展的基於項目的工作來執行他們最具戰略意義的技術計劃。諮詢業務季度表現強勁，收入增長 20%。預訂量也很強勁，推動積壓增長了 45%。

In closing, we saw strong growth across the business. We continue to generate significant free cash flow well in excess of net income. We returned excess capital to shareholders, which reduced our shares outstanding. Looking ahead, we are well positioned for strong double-digit top line growth.

最後，我們看到了整個業務的強勁增長。我們繼續產生遠遠超過淨收入的大量自由現金流。我們將多餘的資本返還給股東，這減少了我們的流通股。展望未來，我們為強勁的兩位數收入增長做好了準備。

Our underlying margins are in the low 20s, well above pre-pandemic levels, and we expect them to modestly increase over time. And we continue to generate free cash flow well in excess of earnings, which we will deploy to further drive shareholder value.

我們的基本利潤率在 20 多歲，遠高於大流行前的水平，我們預計它們會隨著時間的推移適度增加。我們將繼續產生遠遠超過收益的自由現金流，我們將利用這些現金流進一步推動股東價值。

With that, I'll hand the call over to our Chief Financial Officer, Craig Safian. Craig?

有了這個，我將把電話轉給我們的首席財務官 Craig Safian。克雷格?

Thank you, Gene, and good morning. Second quarter results were strong, with double-digit growth in contract value, revenue and adjusted EPS. With results above our expectations, we are again increasing our 2022 guidance. The improved outlook reflects the better-than-expected second quarter top line results, strong demand for second half conferences and a successful balance between cost discipline and investing for future growth. .

謝謝你，吉恩，早上好。第二季度業績強勁，合同價值、收入和調整後每股收益均實現兩位數增長。由於結果超出我們的預期，我們再次提高了 2022 年的指導。改善的前景反映了好於預期的第二季度營收結果、對下半年會議的強勁需求以及成本紀律與未來增長投資之間的成功平衡。 .

Second quarter revenue was $1.4 billion, up 18% year-over-year as reported and 22% FX neutral. In addition, total contribution margin was 69%, down 70 basis points versus the prior year as costs return towards normal. EBITDA was $389 million, up 10% year-over-year and up 14% FX neutral. Adjusted EPS was $2.85, up 27%, and free cash flow in the quarter was $395 million.

第二季度收入為 14 億美元，同比增長 18%，外匯中性增長 22%。此外，隨著成本恢復正常，總邊際貢獻率為 69%，較上年下降 70 個基點。 EBITDA 為 3.89 億美元，同比增長 10%，外匯中性增長 14%。調整後每股收益為 2.85 美元，增長 27%，本季度自由現金流為 3.95 億美元。

Adjusting for insurance proceeds received last year, free cash flow was down 2% year-over-year for the quarter and up 5% on a rolling 4-quarter basis. Research revenue in the second quarter grew 14% year-over-year as reported and 17% on an FX-neutral basis, driven by our strong contract value growth. Second quarter Research contribution margin was 74%, about in line with 2021.

調整去年收到的保險收益後，本季度自由現金流同比下降 2%，連續 4 個季度增長 5%。在我們強勁的合同價值增長的推動下，第二季度的研究收入同比增長 14%，在外匯中性基礎上增長 17%。第二季度研究貢獻率為 74%，與 2021 年基本持平。

Higher-than-normal contribution margins reflect improved operational effectiveness, increased scale, continued temporary avoidance of travel expenses and continuing to catch up on headcount to support the Research business. Contract value, or CV, was $4.3 billion at the end of the second quarter, up 15% versus the prior year. As we discussed previously, CV reflects our decision to exit the Russian market, which contributed about $13 million in the second quarter 2021 number. This reduced the headline growth by about 40 basis points. Quarterly net contract value increase, or NCVI, was $97 million. Quarterly NCVI is a helpful way to measure contract value performance in the quarter, even though there is notable seasonality in this metric. The sequential increase in CV of $97 million was driven by the combination of continued strong retention rates and near record new business of close to $250 million.

高於正常水平的邊際貢獻反映了運營效率的提高、規模的擴大、持續暫時避免差旅費用以及繼續追趕支持研究業務的員工人數。第二季度末，合同價值或 CV 為 43 億美元，比去年同期增長 15%。正如我們之前所討論的，CV 反映了我們退出俄羅斯市場的決定，該市場在 2021 年第二季度的數字中貢獻了約 1300 萬美元。這使整體增長減少了約 40 個基點。季度淨合同價值增加（NCVI）為 9700 萬美元。季度 NCVI 是衡量該季度合同價值表現的一種有用方法，即使該指標存在明顯的季節性。 CV 連續增長 9700 萬美元是由持續強勁的留存率和接近 2.5 億美元的新業務創造的。

We saw broad-based CV growth across all of our practices. Our technology practice grew 14%, and all of our business practices grew at double-digit growth rates, with many of them growing more than 20% year-over-year. From an industry perspective, retail, media and manufacturing led our CV growth. Global Technology Sales contract value was $3.4 billion at the end of the second quarter, up 14% versus the prior year. GTS had quarterly NCVI of $60 million, driven by strong retention and near record levels of new business for our second quarter. While retention for GTS was 107% for the quarter, up about 530 basis points year-over-year and near record levels. GTS new business was down 1% versus last year, up against a very tough compare.

我們在所有實踐中都看到了基礎廣泛的簡歷增長。我們的技術實踐增長了 14%，我們所有的業務實踐都以兩位數的速度增長，其中許多業務的年增長率超過 20%。從行業角度來看，零售、媒體和製造引領了我們的簡歷增長。第二季度末，全球技術銷售合同價值為 34 億美元，比去年同期增長 14%。 GTS 的季度 NCVI 為 6000 萬美元，這得益於我們第二季度的強勁保留和接近創紀錄水平的新業務。雖然本季度 GTS 的保留率為 107%，但同比增長約 530 個基點，接近創紀錄水平。 GTS 新業務與去年相比下降了 1%，這是一個非常艱難的比較。

The 2-year compound annual growth rate was about 16%. GTS quota-bearing headcount was up 9% year-over-year. We are on track to get to double-digit growth by the end of 2022 as we have successfully brought turnover down and our investments in recruiting are delivering results. We will continue to invest in our sales team to drive long-term sustained double-digit growth while also delivering strong margins. Our regular full set of GTS metrics can be found in the appendix of our earnings supplement.

2年復合年增長率約為16%。 GTS 配額員工人數同比增長 9%。我們有望在 2022 年底之前實現兩位數的增長，因為我們已經成功降低了營業額，而且我們在招聘方面的投資正在取得成果。我們將繼續投資於我們的銷售團隊，以推動長期持續兩位數的增長，同時實現強勁的利潤率。我們常規的全套 GTS 指標可以在我們的收益補充附錄中找到。

Global Business Sales contract value was $936 million at the end of the second quarter, up 23% year-over-year, which is above the high end of our medium-term outlook of 12% to 16%. GBS CV increased $37 million from the first quarter. Wallet retention for GBS was 115% for the quarter, up about 5 percentage points year-over-year. GBS new business was up 3% compared to last year, reflecting robust growth across the full portfolio and against a very strong compare. The 2-year compound annual growth rate for new business was 35%. GBS quota-bearing headcount increased 17% year-over-year. Headcount we hire in 2022 will help to position us for sustained double-digit growth in the future. As with GTS, our regular full set of GBS metrics can be found in the appendix of our earnings supplement.

第二季度末全球商業銷售合同價值為 9.36 億美元，同比增長 23%，高於我們中期預期 12% 至 16% 的高端。 GBS CV 比第一季度增加了 3700 萬美元。本季度 GBS 的錢包留存率為 115%，同比增長約 5 個百分點。 GBS 新業務與去年相比增長了 3%，反映了整個投資組合的強勁增長以及非常強勁的對比。新業務的兩年復合年增長率為 35%。 GBS 配額員工人數同比增長 17%。我們在 2022 年招聘的員工人數將有助於我們在未來實現持續兩位數的增長。與 GTS 一樣，我們的常規全套 GBS 指標可以在我們的收益補充附錄中找到。

Conferences revenue for the second quarter was $114 million, ahead of our expectations as attendees and exhibitors enthusiastically return to in-person. Contribution margin in the quarter was 65%. We held 6 in-person conferences and 8 virtual conferences in the quarter. We held Evanta meetings in both virtual and in-person formats. We plan to run 19 in-person conferences for the balance of the year.

第二季度的會議收入為 1.14 億美元，超出了我們的預期，因為與會者和參展商熱情地返回現場。本季度的貢獻率為65%。我們在本季度舉行了 6 場面對面會議和 8 場虛擬會議。我們以虛擬和麵對面的形式舉行了 Evanta 會議。我們計劃在今年餘下時間舉辦 19 場面對面的會議。

Second quarter Consulting revenues increased by 14% year-over-year to $121 million. On an FX-neutral basis, revenues were up 20%. Consulting contribution margin was 42% in the second quarter, up 120 basis points versus the prior year with better-than-expected revenue, higher utilization rates and a mix benefit from strong growth in contract optimization. Labor-based revenues were $95 million, up 11% versus Q2 of last year and up 18% on an FX-neutral basis.

第二季度諮詢收入同比增長 14% 至 1.21 億美元。在外匯中性的基礎上，收入增長了 20%。第二季度的諮詢貢獻率為 42%，比上年同期增長 120 個基點，收入好於預期，利用率更高，並且受益於合同優化的強勁增長。基於勞動力的收入為 9500 萬美元，比去年第二季度增長 11%，在外匯中性的基礎上增長 18%。

Backlog at June 30 was $152 million, increasing 45% year-over-year on an FX-neutral basis with another strong bookings quarter. The inclusion of multiyear contracts, a change we described last quarter, contributed about 12 percentage points to the year-over-year growth rate.

6 月 30 日的積壓訂單為 1.52 億美元，在外匯中性的基礎上同比增長 45%，另一個季度的預訂量強勁。包含多年期合同，我們在上個季度描述的變化，為同比增長率貢獻了約 12 個百分點。

Our contract optimization business was up 28% as reported and 31% on an FX-neutral basis versus the prior year. As we have detailed in the past, this part of the Consulting segment is highly variable. Consolidated cost of services increased 21% year-over-year in the second quarter as reported and 25% on an FX-neutral basis. The biggest driver of the increase was higher headcount to support our continued strong growth and the return to in-person destination conferences.

與去年相比，我們的合同優化業務增長了 28%，在外匯中性基礎上增長了 31%。正如我們過去詳述的那樣，諮詢部門的這一部分是高度可變的。據報導，第二季度綜合服務成本同比增長 21%，在外匯中性基礎上增長 25%。增長的最大推動力是員工人數增加，以支持我們持續強勁的增長和回歸面對面的目的地會議。

SG&A increased 24% year-over-year in the second quarter as reported and 27% on an FX-neutral basis. SG&A increased in the quarter as a result of increased hiring and sales and G&A functions, higher commission expense following strong CV growth in 2021 and the $12 million onetime real estate charge. We expect SG&A expenses to increase as a percentage of revenue over the near term as our catch-up hiring continues.

據報導，SG&A 在第二季度同比增長 24%，在外匯中性的基礎上增長 27%。由於招聘、銷售和 G&A 職能增加、2021 年 CV 強勁增長導致佣金支出增加以及一次性房地產費用為 1200 萬美元，本季度 SG&A 有所增加。隨著我們繼續追趕招聘，我們預計短期內 SG&A 費用佔收入的百分比將增加。

EBITDA for the second quarter was $389 million, up 10% year-over-year on a reported basis and up 14% FX neutral. Second quarter EBITDA upside to our guidance reflected revenue exceeding our forecast and expenses at the low end of our expectations. Depreciation in the quarter of $23 million was down modestly versus 2021.

第二季度的 EBITDA 為 3.89 億美元，在報告的基礎上同比增長 10%，外匯中性增長 14%。第二季度 EBITDA 高於我們的指引反映了收入超過了我們的預測，而支出處於我們預期的低端。與 2021 年相比，本季度 2300 萬美元的折舊略有下降。

Net interest expense, excluding deferred financing costs in the quarter, was $29 million, up $2 million versus the second quarter of 2021 due to an increase in total debt balances. The Q2 adjusted tax rate, which we use for the calculation of adjusted net income, was 25.7% for the quarter. The tax rate for the items used to adjust net income was 25% for the quarter.

由於總債務餘額增加，本季度不包括遞延融資成本的淨利息支出為 2900 萬美元，比 2021 年第二季度增加 200 萬美元。我們用於計算調整後淨收入的第二季度調整後稅率為 25.7%。本季度用於調整淨利潤的項目的稅率為 25%。

Adjusted EPS in Q2 was $2.85, growth of 27% year-over-year. The average share count for the second quarter was 81 million shares. This is a reduction of about 5.6 million shares or about 6.5% year-over-year. We exited the second quarter with about 80 million shares outstanding on an unweighted basis.

第二季度調整後每股收益為 2.85 美元，同比增長 27%。第二季度的平均股票數量為8100萬股。同比減少約 560 萬股或約 6.5%。我們在未加權基礎上以約 8000 萬股流通股退出了第二季度。

Operating cash flow for the quarter was $416 million. Adjusting for the insurance proceeds we received in the second quarter of 2021, operating cash flow was down 2% compared to last year. CapEx for the quarter was $21 million, up 76% year-over-year as a result of an increase in capitalized software, laptops and other infrastructure.

本季度的經營現金流為 4.16 億美元。調整我們在 2021 年第二季度收到的保險收益後，經營現金流量比去年下降了 2%。由於資本化軟件、筆記本電腦和其他基礎設施的增加，本季度的資本支出為 2100 萬美元，同比增長 76%。

Free cash flow for the quarter was $395 million. Free cash flow growth continues to be an important part of our business model, with modest CapEx needs and upfront client payments. As many of you know, we generate free cash flow well in excess of net income. Our conversion from EBITDA is very strong with the differences being cash interest, cash taxes and modest CapEx, partially offset by strong working capital cash inflows.

本季度的自由現金流為 3.95 億美元。自由現金流增長仍然是我們商業模式的重要組成部分，資本支出需求和客戶預付款需求不大。正如你們許多人所知，我們產生的自由現金流遠遠超過淨收入。我們從 EBITDA 的轉換非常強勁，差異在於現金利息、現金稅和適度的資本支出，部分被強勁的營運資金現金流入所抵消。

Adjusting for the insurance proceeds we received last year, free cash flow as a percent of revenue or free cash flow margin was 21% on a rolling 4-quarter basis. On the same basis, free cash flow was 81% of EBITDA and 146% of GAAP net income. At the end of the second quarter, we had $360 million of cash. Our June 30 debt balance was $2.5 billion. Our reported gross debt to trailing 12-month EBITDA was under 2x. Our expected free cash flow generation, unused revolver and excess cash remaining on the balance sheet provide ample liquidity to deliver on our capital allocation strategy of share repurchases and strategic tuck-in M&A.

調整我們去年收到的保險收益後，自由現金流佔收入的百分比或自由現金流利潤率為 21%，連續 4 個季度。在相同的基礎上，自由現金流為 EBITDA 的 81% 和 GAAP 淨收入的 146%。在第二季度末，我們有 3.6 億美元的現金。我們 6 月 30 日的債務餘額為 25 億美元。我們報告的過去 12 個月 EBITDA 的總債務低於 2 倍。我們預期的自由現金流產生、未使用的左輪手槍和資產負債表上剩餘的多餘現金提供了充足的流動性，以實現我們的股票回購和戰略性併購的資本分配戰略。

We repurchased around $930 million of stock through the first half of this year. We had about $700 million remaining on our authorization at the end of June. We expect the Board to continue to refresh the repurchase authorization as needed going forward.

今年上半年，我們回購了大約 9.3 億美元的股票。截至 6 月底，我們的授權剩餘約 7 億美元。我們預計董事會將根據需要繼續更新回購授權。

Since the end of 2020 through the end of this June, we have reduced our shares outstanding by 9 million shares. This is a reduction of 11%. As we continue to repurchase shares, we expect our capital base will shrink. This is accretive to earnings per share, and combined with growing profits, also delivers increasing returns on invested capital over time.

自 2020 年底到今年 6 月底，我們已將流通股減少了 900 萬股。這減少了 11%。隨著我們繼續回購股票，我們預計我們的資本基礎將會縮減。這會增加每股收益，再加上不斷增長的利潤，隨著時間的推移，投資資本的回報也會不斷增加。

Our medium-term outlook is for double-digit revenue growth. While margins have been very strong in the past 2 years, we are continuing to catch up hiring and to resume travel spending. We estimate our underlying margins to be in the low 20s, well above pre-pandemic levels, and we expect them to increase modestly over time. We will give 2023 specific guidance in February, consistent with our usual practice.

我們的中期前景是兩位數的收入增長。儘管過去 2 年的利潤率非常強勁，但我們仍在繼續趕上招聘步伐並恢復差旅支出。我們估計我們的基本利潤率在 20 多歲，遠高於大流行前的水平，我們預計它們會隨著時間的推移適度增加。我們將在 2 月份給出 2023 年的具體指導，這與我們通常的做法是一致的。

Strong top line growth, modest margin expansion, low capital intensity and working capital as a source of cash will allow us to deliver strong free cash flow now and in the future. We are increasing our full year guidance to reflect strong Q2 performance and an improved outlook for the second half despite incremental FX headwinds. We now expect an FX impact to our revenue growth rates of about 370 basis points for the full year. This is up from 260 basis points based on rates when we guided in May.

強勁的收入增長、適度的利潤率擴張、低資本密集度和作為現金來源的營運資本將使我們能夠在現在和未來提供強勁的自由現金流。儘管外匯逆風增加，但我們正在增加我們的全年指導以反映強勁的第二季度業績和下半年前景的改善。我們現在預計外匯對我們全年收入增長率的影響約為 370 個基點。這高於我們在 5 月份指導時基於利率的 260 個基點。

As we discussed in the last 2 quarters, 2021 Research performance benefited from several factors, including QBH tenure mix and CVI phasing within the quarters and the year, record retention rates and strong non-subscription growth. We continue to assume that those benefits do not persist at the same levels through 2022. The growth compares will continue to be challenging as we move through the year. We continue to take a measured approach based on historical trends and patterns, which we've reflected in the updated guidance.

正如我們在過去兩個季度中所討論的，2021 年的研究業績受益於幾個因素，包括 QBH 任期組合和季度和年度內的 CVI 階段、創紀錄的保留率和強勁的非訂閱增長。我們繼續假設，到 2022 年，這些好處不會保持在相同的水平。隨著我們度過這一年，增長比較將繼續具有挑戰性。我們將繼續根據歷史趨勢和模式採取衡量方法，我們已在更新的指南中反映了這一點。

For Conferences, we assume we will be able to run all the in-person conferences as planned. Consistent with our commentary the past couple of quarters, our assumptions for consolidated expenses continue to reflect significant headcount increases during the year to support current and future growth. We have modeled higher labor costs and T&E well above 2021 levels, as we've previously indicated. We also have higher commission expense during 2022 due to the very good selling performance we delivered in 2021.

對於會議，我們假設我們將能夠按計劃舉辦所有面對面的會議。與我們過去幾個季度的評論一致，我們對合併費用的假設繼續反映出年內員工人數的顯著增加，以支持當前和未來的增長。正如我們之前所指出的，我們已經模擬了更高的勞動力成本和遠高於 2021 年水平的 T&E。由於我們在 2021 年交付的非常好的銷售業績，我們在 2022 年的佣金費用也更高。

Finally, we continue to invest in our tech, both client-facing and internal applications, as part of our innovation and continuous improvement programs. Our updated guidance for 2022 is as follows. We expect Research revenue of at least $4.575 billion, which is FX-neutral growth of about 15%. The FX-neutral growth is up about 120 basis points from our prior guidance due to strong NCVI performance in the second quarter.

最後，作為我們創新和持續改進計劃的一部分，我們將繼續投資於面向客戶和內部應用程序的技術。我們對 2022 年的更新指導如下。我們預計研究收入至少為 45.75 億美元，即外匯中性增長約 15%。由於第二季度的強勁 NCVI 表現，外匯中性增長比我們之前的指導高出約 120 個基點。

We expect Conferences revenue of at least $335 million, which is growth of about 63% FX neutral. We expect Consulting revenue of at least $440 million, which is growth of about 11% FX neutral. The result is an outlook for consolidated revenue of at least $5.35 billion, which is FX-neutral growth of almost 17%. The FX-neutral growth is up about 290 basis points from our prior guidance due to strong performance in the second quarter.

我們預計會議收入至少為 3.35 億美元，外匯中性增長約 63%。我們預計諮詢收入至少為 4.4 億美元，外匯中性增長約 11%。結果是合併收入的前景至少為 53.5 億美元，即外匯中性增長近 17%。由於第二季度的強勁表現，外匯中性增長較我們之前的指引高出約 290 個基點。

Without the strengthening U.S. dollar since May, our revenue guidance would have been about $138 million than previous guidance. We now expect full year EBITDA of at least $1.235 billion, up $100 million from our prior guidance and an increase in our margin outlook as well. Without the strengthening U.S. dollar since May, our EBITDA guidance would have been about $120 million higher than previous guidance.

如果沒有自 5 月以來美元走強，我們的收入指引將比之前的指引高出約 1.38 億美元。我們現在預計全年 EBITDA 至少為 12.35 億美元，比我們之前的指導增加 1 億美元，我們的利潤率前景也有所增加。如果沒有自 5 月以來美元走強，我們的 EBITDA 指引將比之前的指引高出約 1.2 億美元。

We now expect 2022 adjusted EPS of at least $8.85. For 2022, we now expect free cash flow of at least $985 million. Our guidance is based on 81 million shares outstanding, which reflects year-to-date repurchases. All of the details of our full year guidance are included on our Investor Relations site.

我們現在預計 2022 年調整後的每股收益至少為 8.85 美元。我們現在預計 2022 年的自由現金流至少為 9.85 億美元。我們的指導基於 8100 萬股流通股，反映了年初至今的回購。我們全年指導的所有細節都包含在我們的投資者關係網站上。

Finally, for the third quarter of 2022, we expect to deliver at least $255 million of EBITDA. Our strong performance in 2022 continued in the second quarter with momentum across the business. Contract value growth was very strong at 15%. Adjusted EPS grew 27%, fueled by the significant reduction in shares over the past year. We repurchased around $930 million in stock this year through June and remain committed to returning excess capital to our shareholders.

最後，在 2022 年第三季度，我們預計將提供至少 2.55 億美元的 EBITDA。我們在 2022 年的強勁表現在第二季度繼續保持，整個業務發展勢頭良好。合同價值增長非常強勁，達到 15%。在過去一年股價大幅下跌的推動下，調整後的每股收益增長了 27%。今年截至 6 月，我們回購了約 9.3 億美元的股票，並繼續致力於將多餘的資本返還給我們的股東。

Looking out over the medium term, our financial model and expectations are unchanged. With 12% to 16% research CV growth, we will deliver double-digit revenue growth. With gross margin expansion, sales costs growing in line with CV growth and G&A leverage, we can modestly expand margins. We can grow free cash flow at least as fast as EBITDA because of our modest CapEx needs and the benefits of our clients paying us upfront. And we'll continue to deploy our capital on share repurchases, which will lower the share count over time and on strategic, value-enhancing tuck-in M&A.

展望中期，我們的財務模式和預期保持不變。隨著 12% 到 16% 的研究簡歷增長，我們將實現兩位數的收入增長。隨著毛利率的擴大、銷售成本的增長與 CV 的增長和 G&A 槓桿作用相一致，我們可以適度擴大利潤率。由於我們適度的資本支出需求和客戶預付給我們的好處，我們的自由現金流增長速度至少可以與 EBITDA 一樣快。我們將繼續將我們的資本用於股票回購，這將隨著時間的推移減少股票數量以及戰略性的、增值的併購。

With that, I'll turn the call back over to the operator, and we'll be happy to take your questions. Operator?

有了這個，我會把電話轉給接線員，我們很樂意回答你的問題。操作員？

(Operator Instructions) Our first question is from Jeff Meuler with Baird.

（操作員說明）我們的第一個問題來自 Baird 的 Jeff Meuler。

Just first, a clarifying question on the underlying margin. So when you say low 20s, could that include like 21 or 22, you're not saying like low 20.x percent? And if we will have a recession at some point, would you expect to be able to at least maintain those underlying margins through a recession again as well?

首先，關於基礎保證金的澄清問題。所以當你說低 20 歲時，可能包括 21 或 22，你不是說低 20.x%？如果我們將在某個時候出現衰退，您是否期望至少能夠再次在衰退中保持這些潛在利潤率？

Jeff, thanks for the questions. In terms of the underlying margin, no, it wasn't locked in on 20.0 at low 20s. As we've looked at the business over the last few years, we've learned a lot through the pandemic, et cetera. And so we're now comfortable that the underlying margins of the business are in the low 20s.

傑夫，謝謝你的提問。就基本保證金而言，不，它沒有在 20 年代低點鎖定在 20.0。當我們在過去幾年中審視業務時，我們通過大流行等學到了很多東西。因此，我們現在對業務的基本利潤率處於 20 多歲的低水平感到滿意。

And again, we can grow the top line double-digit growth rates into the future, and we can modestly expand margins from that point as well. In terms of the -- yes, go ahead.

再一次，我們可以在未來將收入保持兩位數的增長率，並且我們也可以從那時起適度擴大利潤率。就 - 是的，繼續。

Yes. I was just going to say, including maintain at least that margin in a recession?

是的。我只是想說，包括在經濟衰退中至少保持這個利潤？

Yes. So that was the second part of the question. So again, the way we are thinking about running the business is, again, we believe that there still is a huge untapped market opportunity. We believe one of the ways that we go capture that untapped market opportunity is by continuing to grow the sales force and again, making sure we've got the right insights and the right number of analysts and advisers, et cetera. If there were to be a recessionary impact on the business, we would toggle the investment growth rates in each of those areas to ensure that we could deliver those underlying margins and also ensure that we could drive modest margin expansion into the future as well.

是的。這是問題的第二部分。因此，我們再次考慮經營業務的方式是，我們相信仍然存在巨大的未開發市場機會。我們相信，我們抓住未開發的市場機會的方法之一是繼續擴大銷售隊伍，並確保我們擁有正確的洞察力以及正確數量的分析師和顧問等等。如果對業務產生衰退影響，我們將調整每個領域的投資增長率，以確保我們能夠提供這些基本利潤率，並確保我們能夠在未來推動適度的利潤率擴張。

Got it. And then I think you're being anticipatory on the commentary around the new business giving us the 2-year CAGRs and such. But just any comments on what you're seeing in real time from a macro perspective, whether it's pipeline build and conversion in June and July or the topics of client content demand. Just any other business kind of metrics just given the "near record" when we are, I guess, use the fresh records from the growth company that Gartner is.

知道了。然後我認為你正在期待圍繞新業務的評論給我們 2 年的複合年增長率等。但只是對您從宏觀角度實時看到的內容的任何評論，無論是 6 月和 7 月的管道構建和轉換，還是客戶內容需求的主題。我猜，當我們處於“接近記錄”時，任何其他商業類型的指標都使用來自 Gartner 的成長型公司的最新記錄。

Jeff, it's Gene. So the selling environment has been quite, I think, stable and good compared to Q1. Again, as you said, we had near record new business levels. We had near record retention levels. Our Conferences booking for both the exhibitors and attendees was very strong. That's been reflected in our guidance going forward.

傑夫，是吉恩。因此，與第一季度相比，我認為銷售環境相當穩定且良好。同樣，正如您所說，我們的業務水平接近創紀錄的新水平。我們的保留率接近創紀錄水平。我們為參展商和與會者預訂的會議非常強勁。這反映在我們未來的指導中。

I believe our Consulting business had one of the best quarters we've ever had with revenues up 20%, backlog up 45%. And there's kind of nothing, if we look under the covers, that lead you to believe in Q2 that anything other than selling [and perhaps was] quite robust.

我相信我們的諮詢業務是有史以來最好的季度之一，收入增長了 20%，積壓增長了 45%。如果我們在幕後觀察，沒有什麼能讓你相信第二季度除了銷售之外的任何東西[也許是]相當強勁。

And Jeff, I would just echo, having read briefly your report earlier this morning. The compares are super tough in Q2, and they remain pretty tough throughout the balance of the year. We're still growing CV at a great growth rate. You heard some of the other metrics around our underlying businesses in Conferences and Consulting as well. And so very tough compares for the balance of this year, but we still feel good about the momentum of the business.

Jeff，我只是附和一下，今天早上早些時候簡要閱讀了你的報告。第二季度的比較非常艱難，並且在今年餘下的時間裡仍然非常艱難。我們仍在以極快的速度增長 CV。您還在會議和諮詢中聽到了有關我們基礎業務的一些其他指標。與今年的餘額相比非常艱難，但我們仍然對業務的發展勢頭感到滿意。

Our next question comes from Heather Balsky with Bank of America.

我們的下一個問題來自美國銀行的 Heather Balsky。

I guess on the topic du jour in terms of what happens in the downturn, can you talk a little bit more about how your business today is more resilient in the downturn when you look back to, I guess, other periods of macro decline, maybe a COVID crisis or even going further back the financial crisis? And kind of how you feel about the sales line going into something potentially happening near term?

我想關於低迷時期會發生什麼的話題，你能多談談當你回顧其他宏觀衰退時期時，你今天的業務如何在低迷時期更有彈性一場新冠病毒危機，還是更進一步的金融危機？您對銷售線進入近期可能發生的事情有何看法？

Heather, it's Gene. So we're very cognizant always of the environment around us, and we try to make sure that we're, as a business, prepared for kind of where the world is going. And clearly, being concerned about the macroeconomic downturn is one of those things.

希瑟，是吉恩。因此，我們始終非常了解我們周圍的環境，我們努力確保我們作為一家企業，為世界的發展方向做好準備。顯然，關注宏觀經濟衰退就是其中之一。

And first thing is, at any given point in time, we have clients that are growing, clients that are shrinking and clients in between. So we always have clients that are struggling. What we see in the macroeconomic downturn is just more of those clients, but we do it all the time.

首先是，在任何給定的時間點，我們的客戶都在增長，客戶在萎縮，客戶介於兩者之間。所以我們總是有客戶在苦苦掙扎。我們在宏觀經濟衰退中看到的只是更多的客戶，但我們一直都在這樣做。

Now as I mentioned earlier, we constantly adjust to try and make sure we are prepared for whatever economic environment comes. And we do this in a number of ways. One of them is we actually do surveys for our clients to understand kind of where their mindset is, what they're concerned about. In fact, in July, we did a survey of more than 150 Chief Financial Officers of our clients to see what was on their line and therefore, how we should respond.

現在，正如我之前提到的，我們不斷調整以嘗試確保我們為任何經濟環境的到來做好準備。我們通過多種方式做到這一點。其中之一是我們實際上為我們的客戶做調查，以了解他們的心態在哪裡，他們關心什麼。事實上，在 7 月，我們對客戶的 150 多位首席財務官進行了一項調查，以了解他們的情況以及我們應該如何應對。

We have 3 priorities. One was securing talent. They're still seeing that it's hard to hire talent and they're concerned about the wages for their talent. The second one is they want to keep accelerating digital even in a downturn. In fact, we ask the CFOs, what are they going to do in the downturn? 69% said they are going to continue to increase spending on technology in a downturn, 28% said they're going to maintain it and 3% said they're going to decrease it. So this continued investment in technology to improve the economics of the business continues on.

我們有 3 個優先事項。一是確保人才。他們仍然看到很難僱用人才，他們擔心人才的工資。第二個是即使在經濟低迷時期，他們也希望繼續加速數字化。事實上，我們問首席財務官，他們在經濟低迷時期會做什麼？ 69% 的人表示他們將在經濟低迷時期繼續增加技術支出，28% 的人表示他們將維持這一水平，3% 的人表示他們將減少支出。因此，這種持續的技術投資以提高企業的經濟性仍在繼續。

The third priority was to manage spending on things like operations, real estate, travel to pay to hire people and pay higher wages as well as to do these investments in digital. So what we're doing is we're taking our research content and aligning it with those kinds of priorities, help the clients making sure they can secure talent and manage wage inflation, making sure that can continue to accelerate the digital impact on their business.

第三個優先事項是管理運營、房地產、差旅等方面的支出，以支付僱用人員和支付更高的工資，以及在數字領域進行這些投資。因此，我們正在做的是我們正在獲取我們的研究內容並將其與這些優先事項保持一致，幫助客戶確保他們能夠獲得人才並管理工資上漲，確保能夠繼續加速數字化對其業務的影響.

And thirdly, most importantly maybe, helping them to manage spend. That's a big part of our business all the time. And we recently updated our what we call cost optimization work to make sure we can help when needed. So we've updated our research based on -- and I gave you the CFO survey. We do surveys on all 3 levels of executives to understand what their individual priorities are.

第三，最重要的可能是幫助他們管理支出。這一直是我們業務的重要組成部分。我們最近更新了我們所謂的成本優化工作，以確保我們可以在需要時提供幫助。所以我們更新了我們的研究——我給了你 CFO 調查。我們對所有 3 個級別的高管進行調查，以了解他們的個人優先事項。

We then update our research to make sure it's on those [most contrary] topics. And then, in fact, in July, we went and trained all of our salespeople and our service people in terms of what are the most important issues today with clients, like the things I just mentioned and how has our research changed so that we can match those needs.

然後我們更新我們的研究，以確保它是關於那些[最相反的]主題。然後，事實上，在 7 月，我們去培訓了我們所有的銷售人員和服務人員，了解當今與客戶最重要的問題是什麼，比如我剛才提到的事情以及我們的研究發生了怎樣的變化，以便我們能夠滿足這些需求。

And then -- and we'll continue to do that going forward. And so this wasn't kind of a onetime thing we do once, we do this on an ongoing basis. So part of our strategy is to make sure our content is always on the topics people find important. Now clearly, one of those things is going to be how to manage costs, and we will help them with that. But then making sure that all of our sales and service people are equipped to have conversations with people executives on how we can help them with those priorities. And this agility is a core part of our business.

然後 - 我們將繼續這樣做。所以這不是我們一次做的一次性事情，我們會持續做這件事。因此，我們策略的一部分是確保我們的內容始終圍繞人們認為重要的主題。現在很明顯，其中一件事就是如何管理成本，我們將幫助他們解決這個問題。但隨後確保我們所有的銷售和服務人員都有能力與人事主管就我們如何幫助他們處理這些優先事項進行對話。這種敏捷性是我們業務的核心部分。

We also do structural things in our business. Like if you -- the share of multiyear contracts we have is quite high and the strategy to grow that over time. And so it's those 2 things that's making sure our content is great, our salespeople prepared and making sure the underlying structural back to leading control are also there. That is -- if you look over time, we perform better and better each downturn. And so the -- we're certainly aware that might be downturn and are preparing.

我們還在我們的業務中做結構性的事情。就像你一樣——我們擁有的多年合同份額非常高，並且隨著時間的推移增加這一比例的策略。因此，正是這兩件事確保了我們的內容很棒，我們的銷售人員做好了準備，並確保了基本的結構回到領先的控制權也在那裡。那就是——如果你隨著時間的推移來看，我們在每次低迷時期的表現都會越來越好。所以 - 我們當然知道這可能是經濟低迷並且正在做準備。

Great. And another player, I guess, in the space recently mentioned longer contract cycles. Are you seeing anything like that in your market?

偉大的。我猜，另一位玩家最近提到了更長的合同周期。你在你的市場上看到過類似的東西嗎？

So I think we have seen longer contracting cycles. I would say we see escalations, it's more likely that a contract will be reviewed by a CFO than it was a year ago. We train our salespeople so that's likely to happen, and you'd be prepared for it and to both prepare our media clients, [unlike you left] the Chief HR Executive and Chief Innovation Officer. But they might have to go to their CFO and review it and make sure they have what we call a CFO-ready package.

所以我認為我們已經看到了更長的合同周期。我想說我們看到升級，與一年前相比，CFO 更有可能審查合同。我們培訓我們的銷售人員，以便有可能發生這種情況，您將為此做好準備，並為我們的媒體客戶做好準備，[不像你離開]首席人力資源執行官和首席創新官。但他們可能不得不去找他們的 CFO 並對其進行審查，並確保他們擁有我們所說的 CFO 就緒包。

Our next question comes from George Tong with Goldman Sachs.

我們的下一個問題來自高盛的 George Tong。

The performance in GBS was noticeably stronger than GTS. If you look at CV growth, it was 23% GBS; 14% GTS. And the headcount growth was faster at 17% of GBS compared to 9% at GTS. Does this difference in growth between the 2 businesses reflect priorities internally? Or does it reflect customer demand that might be different between GTS and GBS?

GBS的表現明顯強於GTS。如果您查看 CV 增長，則為 23% GBS； 14% GTS。與 GTS 的 9% 相比，GBS 的員工人數增長更快，為 17%。兩家企業之間的增長差異是否反映了內部優先事項？或者它是否反映了 GTS 和 GBS 之間可能不同的客戶需求？

Yes. George, I think it reflects the investments that we've made more than anything else. So if you go back 5 years ago, we began investing pretty heavily in areas outside of IT. So think marketing, supply chain, finance, HR, legal, sales, those were areas that hadn't traditionally been strong for us. We were in a couple of them that had been strong. We upped our investment significantly, both buying CEB and then after bought CEB with investments. And what we're seeing in the accelerated growth rate in GBS now is the outcome of those investments.

是的。喬治，我認為這反映了我們所做的投資比其他任何東西都多。所以如果你回到 5 年前，我們開始在 IT 以外的領域進行大量投資。所以想想市場營銷、供應鏈、財務、人力資源、法律、銷售，這些都是傳統上對我們來說並不強大的領域。我們在其中幾個一直很強大。我們大幅增加了投資，既購買了 CEB，又購買了 CEB。我們現在在 GBS 的加速增長中看到的是這些投資的結果。

We kind of invested upfront. There's a lot of discussion about it at the time, and we increased sales capacity, increased research capacity, service capacity, developed a lot of content, and we're seeing the benefits of those. And so I think that's the first piece.

我們有點預先投資。當時有很多討論，我們增加了銷售能力，增加了研究能力，服務能力，開發了很多內容，我們看到了這些好處。所以我認為這是第一部分。

The second piece is one of the major factors for our business clearly, with this huge market opportunity, is growing our sales headcount. And while we increased sales productivity, we've had some good increases in productivity, growing sales headcount is essential. And so the fact that we've grown our GBS sales headcount faster over time, [not we grew] this quarter, but if you look at like over the last -- since '19, we've grown our GBS sales at a compound growth rate of about 16% a year -- I'm sorry, about 5% a year. And that has -- which is faster than GTS, which is about flat. And so that's allowed the growth to be a lot higher in GBS. So those 2 things, the combination of the investments and the growth in sales force, is what's really powered the faster CV growth.

第二部分顯然是我們業務的主要因素之一，在這個巨大的市場機會下，我們的銷售人數正在增加。雖然我們提高了銷售生產力，但我們的生產力也有了不錯的提高，增加銷售人數是必不可少的。因此，事實上，隨著時間的推移，我們的 GBS 銷售人數增長得更快，[不是我們增長] 本季度，但如果你回顧過去——自 19 年以來，我們的 GBS 銷售額增長了一個複合體每年大約 16% 的增長率——對不起，大約每年 5%。這比 GTS 快，GTS 幾乎持平。所以這使得 GBS 的增長要高得多。所以這兩件事，投資和銷售隊伍的增長相結合，是真正推動更快的 CV 增長的原因。

And the other thing I'd add, George, is just as we look out over the medium term, we believe given the market opportunity and our ability to go capture that market, that both GTS and GBS can be consistent 12% to 16% growers. And so, yes, GBS is growing a little bit ahead of that right now. But we remain very, very, very confident that both GTS and GBS can continue to grow at very strong double-digit growth rates.

喬治，我要補充的另一件事是，正如我們展望中期一樣，我們相信鑑於市場機會和我們佔領該市場的能力，GTS 和 GBS 可以保持 12% 到 16% 的一致種植者。所以，是的，GBS 現在的增長有點領先。但我們仍然非常、非常、非常有信心，GTS 和 GBS 都可以繼續以非常強勁的兩位數增長率增長。

Got it. That's helpful. Last quarter, you increased your normalized EBITDA margin target from 19% and 20% to 20%. And now you're saying underlying margins will be in the low 20s. So just going back to clarify, are you increasing your underlying margin target over the medium term? Or are you reiterating it from the prior quarter?

知道了。這很有幫助。上個季度，您將標準化 EBITDA 利潤率目標從 19% 和 20% 提高到 20%。現在你說潛在利潤率將在 20 多歲以下。因此，請回過頭來澄清一下，您是否在中期內增加了潛在保證金目標？還是您從上一季度重申？

Yes, it's a great question. So let me attempt to clarify because it's a very important question. So number one, I would say, just as context, we can grow our top line at double-digit growth rates and modestly expand margins over time. And there is operating leverage in the business, said another way, right? So those are kind of 2 key points.

是的，這是一個很好的問題。所以讓我試著澄清一下，因為這是一個非常重要的問題。所以第一，我想說，就像上下文一樣，我們可以以兩位數的增長率增長我們的收入，並隨著時間的推移適度擴大利潤率。換一種說法，業務中存在運營槓桿，對嗎？所以這些是2個關鍵點。

When we were discussing the 20% normalized margin, we were really looking back to 2021 and attempting to give a view on if things have been "more normal," what would our operating or EBITDA margins, what would they have been in '21?

當我們討論 20% 的標準化利潤率時，我們真的回顧了 2021 年，並試圖就事情是否“更正常”給出一個看法，我們的運營利潤率或 EBITDA 利潤率會是多少，他們在 21 年會是多少？

What we're now providing is more of a go-forward view around what do we believe the operating margins are that we can run the business at. And we have moved that higher over time, to your point, because we've gotten increased visibility into better ways to run our business. And so what is the new normal for travel expenses? What is the new normal for the amount of real estate we need? What would it look like when in-person conferences come back into the portfolio? And what would it look like as we catch up on headcount and then continue to grow and invest to support and sustain future growth?

我們現在提供的更多的是關於我們認為我們可以經營業務的營業利潤率是多少的前瞻性觀點。而且隨著時間的推移，我們已經將這一點提高了，因為我們已經提高了對更好的業務運營方式的可見性。那麼差旅費的新常態是什麼？我們需要的房地產數量的新常態是什麼？當面對面會議重新進入投資組合時會是什麼樣子？當我們趕上員工人數，然後繼續增長和投資以支持和維持未來增長時，它會是什麼樣子？

And so the way to think about that low 20s number is, yes, it's an update, but it's also a view towards what do we think the underlying margins of the business are that we can modestly expand on going forward.

因此，考慮 20 多歲這一低數字的方式是，是的，這是一個更新，但這也是我們認為我們可以在未來適度擴大業務的潛在利潤率的觀點。

Our next question comes from Toni Kaplan with Morgan Stanley.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的托尼卡普蘭。

This is Greg Parrish on for Toni. Congrats on a strong quarter. I just wanted to talk about margin. You've ramped up hiring in the quarter a lot, but margins were not up. And understand a lot of those probably weren't in the expense base yet. But just really, Craig, if you could kind of help us bridge on how you get to the margin in the back half given the sort of implied step-down?

這是托尼的格雷格帕里什。祝賀一個強勁的季度。我只是想談談保證金。你在本季度大量增加了招聘，但利潤率沒有上升。並且了解其中很多可能還沒有在費用基礎上。但真的，克雷格，如果你能幫助我們在考慮到隱含的降級的情況下，你如何在後半區達到邊緣？

Yes. No, absolutely. So you've hit on a number of the items that will impact the margins in the second half of the year. So we were very aggressive on hiring in the first half, and we expect to remain as aggressive in the second half as we continue to catch up from hiring from '21, and we also make sure that we're investing appropriately for the future. So that's a big piece that goes into the cost base for the second half of the year.

是的。不，絕對。因此，您已經找到了一些將影響下半年利潤率的項目。因此，我們在上半年的招聘上非常積極，我們希望在下半年繼續保持積極的態度，因為我們繼續從 21 年開始招聘，我們還確保我們為未來進行適當的投資。所以這是進入下半年成本基礎的一大塊。

The second big thing is resumption of travel. And some of that is tied to us returning to in-person destination conferences, but a lot of it is just normal. We run global teams, and we want our leaders to be in front of those global teams, and so we'll see that ramp up in the second half of the year as well.

第二件大事是恢復旅行。其中一些與我們返回面對面的目的地會議有關，但很多都是正常的。我們管理全球團隊，我們希望我們的領導者站在這些全球團隊的前面，因此我們也將在今年下半年看到這種增長。

Third thing is our normal comp adjustment period happens April 1. So we only have 1 quarter of that in the first half of the year. We obviously have 2 quarters of that in the second half of the year. So those are the 3 biggies as you think about bridging the expenses.

第三件事是我們正常的薪酬調整期發生在 4 月 1 日。所以上半年我們只有 1 個季度。我們顯然在下半年有兩個季度。因此，當您考慮橋接費用時，這些是 3 個大問題。

And then the fourth one is with the returned in-person destination conferences, obviously, there's a lot of variable costs in delivering those in person.

然後第四個是返回的面對面目的地會議，顯然，親自交付這些會議有很多可變成本。

Great. Thanks for the color there. And I guess just a quick follow-up on pricing. I think last quarter, Craig, you talked about getting more this year given the inflationary environment. I guess the broad macro is a little bit different than it was 3 months ago. Are you still expecting sort of above normal pricing this year?

偉大的。謝謝那裡的顏色。我想只是對定價的快速跟進。克雷格，我認為上個季度，鑑於通脹環境，您談到今年獲得更多收益。我想廣義的宏觀與 3 個月前有點不同。您是否仍然期望今年的價格高於正常水平？

Yes. I mean I think, Greg, the way to think about it is we want to make sure that we are matching our price increases with our -- with wage inflation or cost inflation. The bulk of our costs are people related. So we feel good that we are matching our price increases with what we're seeing on our wages.

是的。我的意思是，格雷格，我認為，考慮它的方式是我們要確保我們的價格上漲與我們的 - 與工資通脹或成本通脹相匹配。我們的大部分成本與人有關。所以我們感覺很好，我們將價格上漲與我們看到的工資相匹配。

Our next question comes from Andrew Nicholas with William Blair.

我們的下一個問題來自 Andrew Nicholas 和 William Blair。

Wanted to ask a question first on the headcount growth. Really, really solid quarter-over-quarter increase there. I think in your prepared remarks, you touched on it briefly, but I was hoping you could spend a bit more time on attrition trends, how that's kind of coming in relative to your expectations and the successful recruiting efforts. Just a little bit more color there because it does sound like you're still pretty happy with where that's trending and your goals for the full year.

想先問一個關於員工人數增長的問題。確實，那裡的季度環比增長非常穩健。我認為在你準備好的評論中，你簡要地談到了它，但我希望你能花更多的時間來了解自然減員趨勢，以及相對於你的期望和成功的招聘工作而言，這是如何產生的。那裡的顏色要多一點，因為聽起來您仍然對趨勢和全年目標感到非常滿意。

Andrew, great question. So the -- first, in terms of our attrition, we want to retain our great associates. With attrition, like many companies, went up over the last couple of years. We worked hard to understand the causes and then making sure we address that. And actually, our return -- associate turnover has actually gone down now to kind of what we would call normal levels. And so we're very happy with that turnover.

安德魯，好問題。所以——首先，就我們的人員流失而言，我們希望留住我們的好夥伴。與許多公司一樣，在過去幾年中，隨著人員流失的增加。我們努力了解原因，然後確保我們解決了這個問題。實際上，我們的回報 - 員工營業額現在實際上已經下降到我們所說的正常水平。因此，我們對這一營業額感到非常滿意。

In addition to that, we have a very strong recruiting team. We have a truly world-class recruiting team, and that recruiting team has been doing a great job. And of course, we have a great employee value proposition as well. If you combine those 3 things: lower turnover, a great employee value proposition, a great recruiting team, that's allowed us to get our net associate headcount growth back up to where we need to support the growth in our business.

除此之外，我們有一個非常強大的招聘團隊。我們有一個真正世界級的招聘團隊，而且這個招聘團隊一直做得很好。當然，我們也有很好的員工價值主張。如果將這三件事結合起來：較低的人員流動率、出色的員工價值主張、出色的招聘團隊，這將使我們的員工人數淨增長恢復到支持業務增長所需的水平。

Great. And then for my follow-up, I wanted to ask about strength in the U.S. versus internationally. Obviously, it seems like there's pretty broad-based growth across the practices and across the industries. But is there any difference in CV growth or how you're kind of able to sell in EMEA, for example, given the geopolitical uncertainty? Or anything to call out there in the quarter?

偉大的。然後在我的後續行動中，我想問一下美國與國際的實力對比。顯然，跨實踐和跨行業似乎有相當廣泛的增長。但是，考慮到地緣政治的不確定性，CV 增長或您在歐洲、中東和非洲地區的銷售能力有什麼不同嗎？或者在本季度有什麼需要注意的地方？

Yes. There's -- what I'd say is there's nothing systematic. If you look at Europe, Europe is proceeding along. There are some countries that are doing very well. There are some countries that aren't, and it's sort of typical of what we've seen, and that is kind of flat. And the same is true for the rest of the world. So nothing really remarkable in terms of U.S. versus different geographic reach.

是的。有——我想說的是沒有什麼系統的。如果你看看歐洲，歐洲正在前進。有些國家做得很好。有些國家不是這樣，這有點像我們所看到的那樣，有點平淡。世界其他地區也是如此。因此，就美國與不同的地理範圍而言，沒有什麼特別值得注意的。

Yes. And Andrew, when we say broad-based growth, it is broad-based. So we look at it across our top 10 geographies, they're all growing at nice growth rates. When we look across industry cuts, they're all growing a nice growth rate. And so yes, there are always pockets where there may be a little bit of a challenge for us. But generally, those are either like super micro challenges or our own operational challenges, but the growth has remained pretty broad-based.

是的。安德魯，當我們說基礎廣泛的增長時，它是基礎廣泛的。因此，我們在前 10 個地區查看它，它們都以不錯的增長率增長。當我們縱觀行業削減時，它們都在以不錯的增長率增長。所以是的，總有一些口袋對我們來說可能會有一點挑戰。但總的來說，這些要么像超微挑戰，要么像我們自己的運營挑戰，但增長仍然相當廣泛。

Yes. The biggest indicator of where we've been growing, not growing is -- were headcount. Our sales headcount has grown faster or slower.

是的。我們一直在增長而不是增長的最大指標是 - 是員工人數。我們的銷售人數增長得更快或更慢。

Our next question comes from Seth Weber with Wells Fargo.

我們的下一個問題來自富國銀行的賽斯韋伯。

I wanted to just ask another question on the expense side. I appreciate that travel, T&E and stuff like that is ramping up in the second half of the year. Do you think that the run rate by the end of the second year will kind of get you back to par? Or do you think there will still be some kind of catch-up headwinds into next year?

我只想問另一個關於費用方面的問題。我很欣賞下半年的旅行、T&E 和類似的事情。你認為到第二年年底的運行率會讓你回到標準水平嗎？或者你認為明年還會有一些迎頭趕上的逆風嗎？

Yes. It's a good question. So I think the second half of the year will be more indicative of "normal travel" starting off the year this year, given where we were with pandemic. It was a little light in the first 3 or 4 months of the year and has started to pick back up. And so yes, second half is probably more indicative.

是的。這是個好問題。所以我認為，考慮到我們在大流行的情況下，今年下半年將更能說明從今年開始的“正常旅行”。今年前 3 或 4 個月有點清淡，並開始回升。所以是的，下半年可能更具指示性。

I think the way we're thinking about it is as compared to the last "normal year" back in 2019, where we expect to spend probably at least 50% less than we did in 2019. And again, we just think that the company and our associate base has embraced and thrived operating virtually. We still do need to travel, but we don't need to travel at the same volume that we did back in 2019.

我認為我們考慮它的方式與 2019 年的上一個“正常年份”相比，我們預計在 2019 年的支出可能至少比 2019 年少 50%。再說一次，我們只是認為公司我們的員工基礎已經接受並蓬勃發展了虛擬運營。我們仍然需要旅行，但我們不需要像 2019 年那樣旅行。

Got it. And then just as a follow-up. I was really surprised at the strength in some of the areas like the non-subscription revenue and then the Consulting backlog up 45%. I'm just -- was there anything unusual there? Or is that just reflective of kind of what you were talking about earlier that the model is just more recession resistant or resilient than people might expect? And just any comment on those few line items.

知道了。然後只是作為後續行動。我真的很驚訝在一些領域的實力，比如非訂閱收入，然後諮詢積壓增長了 45%。我只是——那裡有什麼不尋常的地方嗎？或者這只是反映了你之前所說的那種模型比人們預期的更能抵抗衰退或更有彈性？以及對這幾個行項目的任何評論。

Seth, I think it just reflects that our clients had challenges that they get. Our clients had challenges that they help with, and that our content -- and [when we looked], the contract was through Consulting, Conferences or Research is really helpful in helping them solve their problems.

賽斯，我認為這只是反映了我們的客戶遇到了挑戰。我們的客戶遇到了他們可以幫助解決的挑戰，而我們的內容 - [當我們查看時]，通過諮詢、會議或研究簽訂的合同確實有助於幫助他們解決問題。

And so I think it's indicative that we have a great value proposition just kind of what's going on.

所以我認為這表明我們有一個很好的價值主張，就像正在發生的事情一樣。

Okay. And just the non-subscription revenue, is that -- do you feel like that's kind of a sustainable level? Or would you expect that to come off a little bit here going forward?

好的。只有非訂閱收入，你覺得這是一個可持續的水平嗎？或者你會期望這在未來會有所進展嗎？

Yes, it is. We had a really strong year on that line last year. So tough compares there, which again, we did model into our initial guidance and our updated guidance as well. But to Gene's point, the products and offerings we have there offer a very strong and compelling value proposition in good times or rougher times. And so we still expect it to be a nice strong grower for us. But again, super tough compare against the '21 performance.

是的。去年我們在這條線上度過了非常強勁的一年。在那裡進行比較如此艱難，我們再次將其建模到我們的初始指導和更新的指導中。但在 Gene 看來，我們在那裡的產品和產品在經濟繁榮或艱難時期都提供了非常強大和引人注目的價值主張。所以我們仍然希望它對我們來說是一個很好的強大種植者。但同樣，與 21 年的表現相比，超級強悍。

Our next question comes from Jeff Silber with BMO Capital Markets.

我們的下一個問題來自 BMO 資本市場的 Jeff Silber。

This is Ryan on for Jeff. I just had a quick question on the labor supply side. Is it still as tight to find potential employees as it was 3 months ago?

這是傑夫的瑞恩。我剛剛在勞動力供應方面提出了一個簡短的問題。尋找潛在員工是否仍像 3 個月前一樣緊張？

Great question, Ryan. What I read in the press and what I see with a lot of other companies is a lot of challenges were going to the CFO survey. One of the bigger concerns that CFOs have is their ability to hire talent. We've actually found that we've had no trouble hiring talent.

好問題，瑞恩。我在媒體上看到的以及我在許多其他公司看到的情況是，CFO 調查面臨很多挑戰。首席財務官最關心的問題之一是他們聘用人才的能力。我們實際上發現我們在招聘人才方面沒有遇到任何困難。

Our -- again, our employee value proposition is very strong. We have a great brand with associates. And so we've had no trouble hiring people at all, and that's reflected in the hiring results that you saw.

我們的 - 再次，我們的員工價值主張非常強大。我們與合作夥伴有一個偉大的品牌。因此，我們在招聘人員方面完全沒有問題，這反映在您看到的招聘結果中。

Got it. And then just a follow-up on the prior question. Should we look to non-subscription revenues as a leading indicator if we're heading into a downturn?

知道了。然後只是對先前問題的跟進。如果我們進入低迷期，我們是否應該將非訂閱收入作為領先指標？

No, I don't think so. I mean it's a relatively small line. It can be a little volatile. Again, I think as we look across -- I would look broadly across the business for leading indicators, not one of the smallest revenue lines that we actually have out there. So now I would guide you to look at Consulting and look at Conferences and look at our Research CV growth as the leading indicators.

不，我不這麼認為。我的意思是這是一條相對較小的線路。它可能有點不穩定。再一次，我認為當我們縱觀全局時——我會廣泛關注整個業務的領先指標，而不是我們實際擁有的最小收入線之一。因此，現在我將指導您查看諮詢和會議，並將我們的研究簡歷增長視為領先指標。

Our next question comes from Manav Patnaik with Barclays.

我們的下一個問題來自巴克萊銀行的 Manav Patnaik。

This is Brendan on for Manav. Just wanted to ask, obviously, some of your competitors for talent at least are freezing hiring and you may have an opportunity to catch up on headcount in the next few quarters as the labor market gets a bit more friendly.

這是布倫丹在為 Manav 工作。只是想問一下，顯然，您的一些人才競爭對手至少正在凍結招聘，隨著勞動力市場變得更加友好，您可能有機會在接下來的幾個季度趕上員工人數。

So for GTS specifically, obviously, things started to improve this quarter. Is this a level where you grow 10% off of? Or are you -- do you think you can really catch up the next couple -- over the next few quarters?

因此，特別是對於 GTS，顯然，本季度情況開始有所改善。這是您增長 10% 的水平嗎？或者你——你認為你真的能趕上接下來的幾個季度——在接下來的幾個季度裡嗎？

Brendan, it's a great question. I mean our business grew really rapidly last year, and we're right where we'd expected. And so we had a lot of hiring to catch up on, including in GTS. And so we want to get that catch-up hiring so that we can properly service our clients and also be prepared to sell more clients. And over time, we expect to grow our GTS sales force and GBS, by the way, I think 3 to 5 percentage points lower than our CV growth. So CV growth is 15%, you'd expect to see. Over time, our target would be headcount growth of 12% -- 10% to 12% growth.

布倫丹，這是一個很好的問題。我的意思是我們的業務去年增長非常迅速，而且我們的預期是正確的。所以我們有很多招聘要趕上，包括 GTS。因此，我們希望能夠趕上招聘，以便我們能夠為客戶提供適當的服務，並準備好銷售更多客戶。隨著時間的推移，我們希望增長我們的 GTS 銷售隊伍和 GBS，順便說一下，我認為比我們的 CV 增長低 3 到 5 個百分點。所以 CV 增長是 15%，你會看到的。隨著時間的推移，我們的目標是員工人數增長 12%——10% 到 12%。

Yes. That's -- and Brendan, the way to think about that is that's sort of the normal algorithm for how we want to make sure that we are investing for both current needs and future sustained growth.

是的。那是 - 布倫丹，考慮這一點的方式是我們希望如何確保我們為當前需求和未來持續增長進行投資的正常算法。

Obviously, this year, to Gene's point, we aren't doing a lot of catching up. And so you'll see those growth rates a little bit higher potentially. And obviously, with GBS up at 17%, and we're fully expecting both GTS and GBS to end the year with strong double-digit quota-bearing headcount growth.

顯然，今年，就吉恩而言，我們並沒有做太多的追趕。所以你會看到這些增長率可能會更高一些。顯然，隨著 GBS 增長 17%，我們完全預計 GTS 和 GBS 將在年底實現強勁的兩位數配額員工增長。

Okay. And just another question here, but moving over to the conferences. Is the guidance increase really -- is it just like better attendance than you expected? Are the conferences all full? Is that what it is? Or is there something else driving that higher?

好的。這裡只是另一個問題，但轉移到會議上。指導增加真的 - 就像出勤率比你預期的要好？會議都滿了嗎？就是這樣嗎？還是有其他東西推動更高？

So the first piece of it is that we're seeing very, very robust demand for conferences. Exhibitors are -- find it a great way to meet prospects for them, and the attendees find tremendous value as well. So we're finding just very strong demand for our conferences continuing on. And then I'll let Craig talk about how [difficult is the] guidance.

所以第一部分是我們看到對會議的非常非常強勁的需求。參展商 - 發現這是與他們的潛在客戶見面的好方法，與會者也發現了巨大的價值。因此，我們發現對我們的會議繼續進行的需求非常強烈。然後我會讓克雷格談談[困難是]指導。

Yes. So I think, Brendan, obviously, the second quarter were our first in-person destination conferences in a few years. And so we were pretty cautious about our expectations around the number of exhibitors and number of attendees that would want to come, would be able to come.

是的。所以我認為，布倫丹，很明顯，第二季度是我們幾年來的第一次面對面的目的地會議。因此，我們對我們對參展商數量和想來、能夠來的與會者數量的期望非常謹慎。

And as you heard in our comments, I think both groups enthusiastically returned in the second quarter. And as Gene mentioned earlier, our bookings leading through our Q3 events and even the advanced bookings on Q4 conferences look very strong as well. And so the update, the outlook is really just around some caution upfront because we hadn't delivered anything in person in essentially almost 3 years, and we saw an enthusiastic return from both revenue streams, attendees and our exhibitors.

正如您在我們的評論中所聽到的那樣，我認為這兩個群體都在第二季度熱情地回歸。正如 Gene 之前提到的，我們通過第三季度活動的預訂，甚至第四季度會議的提前預訂看起來也非常強勁。因此，更新後的前景實際上只是預先謹慎一些，因為我們在近 3 年的時間裡沒有親自交付任何東西，而且我們看到了來自收入來源、與會者和我們的參展商的熱情回報。

(Operator Instructions) Our next question comes from Hamzah Mazari with Jefferies.

（操作員說明）我們的下一個問題來自 Hamzah Mazari 和 Jefferies。

This is actually Stephanie on for Hamzah. I was hoping you could talk a little bit about the tenure of your GTS sales force today versus pre-pandemic. How much tenure can add to productivity? And right now, if you view the GTS sales force productivity is kind of back to those pre-pandemic levels?

這實際上是哈姆扎的斯蒂芬妮。我希望您能談談您今天的 GTS 銷售團隊與大流行前的任期。多少任期可以增加生產力？現在，如果您認為 GTS 銷售人員的生產力有點回到大流行前的水平？

Stephanie, great question. So tenure is an important determinant of productivity. When we hire a new salesperson, it takes some time to fully get up to speed. And so a more senior sales force is more productive. We're very focused on both hiring people to get up to speed quickly as well as having internal training and other systems that help those salespeople get up to speed even faster.

斯蒂芬妮，好問題。因此，任期是生產力的重要決定因素。當我們聘請新的銷售人員時，需要一些時間才能完全跟上進度。因此，更高級的銷售團隊更有效率。我們非常注重招聘人員以快速上手，以及提供內部培訓和其他系統來幫助這些銷售人員更快上手。

If you look at it, because we hired fewer people during the pandemic, the average tenure in our sales force last year was pretty high, the highest it's been in recent memory. As we've ramped up our hiring, in Q2, it was towards a normal tenure level. As we keep hiring, we expect that to drop a bit as we go through the rest of the year and enter into 2023.

如果你看一下，因為我們在大流行期間僱傭的人更少，去年我們銷售隊伍的平均任期相當高，是最近記憶中的最高水平。隨著我們增加招聘，在第二季度，它接近了正常的任期水平。隨著我們繼續招聘，我們預計隨著今年剩餘時間進入 2023 年，這一數字會有所下降。

Great. And then kind of switching gears, could you talk a bit about the M&A environment? How is the pipeline looking today and kind of where your focus is at?

偉大的。然後是換檔，你能談談併購環境嗎？管道今天的情況如何，您的重點在哪裡？

Yes, from an M&A perspective, obviously, we've got a team that is actively out there looking at opportunities and then staying in touch with a few hundred companies and actually tracking well more than that.

是的，從併購的角度來看，顯然，我們有一個團隊積極尋找機會，然後與數百家公司保持聯繫，實際上跟踪的遠不止這些。

I think our strategy, as we've articulated, is number one, we're an organic growth company, and we believe we can achieve our medium-term objectives of the double-digit growth and modest margin expansion organically, and so it does not require M&A to get there.

我認為，正如我們所闡述的那樣，我們的戰略是第一，我們是一家有機增長的公司，我們相信我們可以有機地實現兩位數增長和適度利潤率擴張的中期目標，所以它確實做到了不需要併購就可以到達那裡。

That said, we do like to do M&A when it can fill a gap or catalyze us or add an asset or capability or things like that. So I think as we look at the radar screen, we are looking at things that can catalyze us for filling gaps or add assets to our portfolio that can help us over the long term. I think there -- obviously, over the last 2 or 3 quarters, just like the equity markets has been a recalibration around valuations. I'm not sure every seller has completely recalibrated yet either. But again, we'll continue to be on the lookout for strong, strategic value-enhancing tuck-in opportunities that again can either catalyze growth, fill in a gap or add an important assets for us.

也就是說，當併購可以填補空白或催化我們或增加資產或能力或類似的事情時，我們確實喜歡進行併購。因此，我認為當我們查看雷達屏幕時，我們正在尋找可以催化我們填補空白或將資產添加到我們的投資組合中的事物，這些資產可以長期幫助我們。我認為那裡 - 顯然，在過去的 2 或 3 個季度中，就像股票市場一直在圍繞估值進行重新校準一樣。我也不確定每個賣家都完全重新校準過。但同樣，我們將繼續尋找強大的、具有戰略價值的增值機會，這些機會又可以促進增長、填補空白或為我們增加重要資產。

And I'm currently showing no further questions at this time. I'd like to turn the call back over to Gene Hall for closing remarks.

我目前沒有提出其他問題。我想把電話轉回給 Gene Hall 做閉幕詞。

Well, summarizing today's call. For the second quarter, we drove strong performances across the business. Across every geography, every industry and every major function, we deliver incredible value. We have strong demand for our services. We have a vast untapped market opportunity. We can drive sustained double-digit top line growth.

好了，總結一下今天的電話。第二季度，我們推動了整個業務的強勁表現。在每個地域、每個行業和每個主要職能部門，我們都提供令人難以置信的價值。我們對我們的服務有強烈的需求。我們有一個巨大的未開發的市場機會。我們可以推動持續兩位數的收入增長。

As we invest for the future, we'll continue to return significant levels of excess capital to our shareholders (inaudible) increased our 2022 guidance. (inaudible) results, we increased our 2022 guidance. Thanks for joining us today, and we look forward to updating you again next quarter.

在我們為未來投資時，我們將繼續向股東返還大量超額資本（聽不清），增加了我們對 2022 年的指導。 （聽不清）結果，我們增加了 2022 年的指導。感謝您今天加入我們，我們期待下個季度再次更新您。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與。您現在可以斷開連接。