when a company decides to pursue flotation they typically enlist an investment bank as an underwriter the underwriting investment bank typically leads the process for conducting an ipo and helps the company determine the amount of money it seeks to raise from the public market issuance 
the investment bank also assists in the documentation requirements for becoming a public company the bank will develop an investment prospectus and will also market the company s offering in a roadshow prior to the initial stock issuance a roadshow is a sales pitch to potential investors by the underwriting firm and executive management team of the company about to go public gauging demand during the roadshow is an important step in determining the final ipo share price as well as in determining the ultimate number of shares to make available for issuance advantages and disadvantages of flotation