Tips for writing Annual Reports from someone who reads them
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Tips for writing Annual Reports from someone who reads them

Having just finished our reviews of the Annual Report and Accounts of UK FTSE 350 December year end reporters, I want to give all Annual Reports writers out there some food for thought...

1. Ensure YOU are the writer of your autobiography – In a world where information is readily accessible, what is said about you (often from sources outside of your direct control) has many more eyes on it than ever before… So make sure you fully embrace the opportunity to tell your story in your own words through the Annual Report, a document that 91% investors have told us they review[1]… indeed it is a Company’s very own autobiography.

 E mbrace the opportunity that the Annual Report brings for you to tell your story in your own words – investors do still care about it. 

2.  Don’t put all your eggs in one basket - reporting only on your financials doesn’t do your business justice. Investors want to know that your business is ‘sustainable’, not the 'green kind', but the ‘it will last in the long term kind'… So be sure to tell your whole story not just the numerical one. (This broader thinking should also help you when making the new 'Viability statement' for the coming year.[2])

 D o your business justice by reporting on the whole story - not just the numerical one.

3. Be brave and shake things up a bit - reporting on your strategy is a great way for a Company to bring to life what it's all about. Don’t lose that ‘essence of being’ by getting caught up trying to conform to your prior year template. Embrace innovation! True, it's often easier to follow the crowd and the pace set by what everyone else is doing – but the problem with that is you can become complacent and miss the opportunity to showcase what makes you truly unique. So go on, be a trend setter (regulation permitting of course)!

 S hake things up by embracing innovation and don’t get bogged down by prior year templates.

Finally, don’t forget that reporting says a lot about you[3]… As we all know, (despite us not wanting to admit it), human beings make quick judgements based on first impressions and book covers - so for better or worse - your reporting has an impact – make sure it’s what you want it to be.

What gets reported on, gets seen, what gets seen, leaves an impression & impressions lead to investment – or not!

 [1] See our PwC investor survey ‘Powerful stories through integrated reporting’. September 2014.

[2] As required by C.2.2 of the 2014 UK Corporate Governance Code. See our latest guidance on on our website

[3] 80% of investors told us 'the quality of a company’s reporting impacts their perception of management quality'. See our PwC investor survey ‘Powerful stories through integrated reporting’. September 2014.

Sami Gheriafi, Executive MBA

Business Executive | Management Consulting | Professor of Practice

8y

I never knew that when I wrote last year's annual report that I would tap on all those elements in the article.

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