Ideal annual report journey
Your annual report journey is sure to have had its share of thrills and spills. Celebrating over 25 years helping clients prepare annual reports including over 10 years in integrated reporting, we dedicate this story to you.
Most annual report journeys are rocky.
why?
Because an annual report must have the accuracy of an in-depth exposé, despite report preparers not being able to enjoy the luxury of time.
-
Putting together an annual report that reflects your company’s character is not easy but it is possible. Through our research arm Smart Labs, and our training arm, Smart Academy, we look at making annual report preparation easier and more effective. Garnering and sharing knowledge is central to our ethos.
Our two-minute video, Annual Report Irony, captures the report preparers pain all too well.
Supporting such preparers is also our focus through Smart Works where we partner with companies to produce their annual report. Over a three-year period, we improve the quality of the company’s annual report while also increasing the capacity of its report preparers.
“Starting out with a fire burning in
your very soul.
Don’t look back at those misadventures –
focus on control…”
Ideal Annual Report is the music video that we dedicate to you. Lovingly crafted by our in-house team, it will be especially poignant for you if you have experienced anything less than joy when producing your own annual report.
Starting the journey
The story begins with our protagonist revisiting past mistakes before taking off on yet another journey. Her goal is to avoid the pot holes she fell into during the previous run.
Moving from a better annual report to one that is more effective can be just as daunting as producing a first-time annual report. If you’ve had more spills than thrills on your journey you will be able to identify with our protagonist’s predicament.
-
An annual report is a labour of love. You may have put an annual report together on your own but that experience is sure to have had you yearning for the support of a team of specialists. It’s a next step that’s worth considering.
Switching gears
As she moves further along the road than she has ever been before, our protagonist gains confidence in her own abilities. The fire to improve and succeed increases within her with every new challenge. What does it take to improve your annual report?
Taking that next step towards integrated reporting is a step in the right direction. Remember, integrated reporting is the journey rather than the destination. In our experience there have been times when integrated thinking follows integrated reporting rather than the other way around.
This is why we encourage all report preparers to kick start their integrated reporting journey without putting it off. We’ve seen annual report preparers leap from L-board to a complete paradigm shift in integrated reporting in as little as three years. It is possible, so take heart. Soon you’ll be switching to cruise control.
Blazing a brand new trail
Even when our protagonist becomes competent in her abilities, she remains hungry for new and greater experiences. In her search for excellence she transforms into a master herself.
Mastering an integrated report isn’t the end of the road. Rather, it is just a bend in the road. Creating an annual report that complies with all regulations but which truly reflects the character of your organisation is the true mastery of the art.
In other words, the goal is to create an annual report that does an important piece of work – whatever that may be for your company – from delivering a specific message to being a rallying call. The way to achieve this is to improve the skills of the novices on your team and increase the capacity of the more experienced annual report preparers.
Transcending the medium
As our protagonist breaks through into another dimension we are reminded of the different needs of a company’s stakeholders. Just as each annual report you prepare must do a specific job for you in terms of messaging, it must also speak to each of your key stakeholder groups in a way that is specific to them.
We help annual report preparers move beyond annual reporting to master a range of mediums over a three-year period with us. We also help report preparers to promote key annual report content across social media throughout the year.
Just as annual report preparers must realise their full potential in terms of understanding and applying annual report skills in the real world, so too must annual reports be utilised to become the best version of themselves for relevant stakeholder groups.
Now that you know the true meaning behind our music video… do enjoy it again!
Our business is focused on three strategic pillars: Smart Labs (research and development), Smart Academy (capacity building that empowers report preparers) and Smart Works (the core business "To make the making and the reading of annual reports a joy"). Partner with us.