Richard Mellis, senior consultant at Emperor, shares how to keep your annual report engaging and concise.

Annual reports have grown in size by 46% in the last 5 years. In fact, the average FTSE 100 annual report is 147,000 words: longer than 'A Tale of Two Cities'. Reporting regulations are only increasing, especially in the sustainability space, which means more sections, more data and more pages. Or does it?

Creating a report that is coherent, compelling and digestible, all while containing enough information to be regulatory compliant is a fine art. Luckily, there are a few ways to ensure your report stays on track – covering the important details without being mistaken for a lengthy historical fiction novel!

1. Talk about your DNA, but save the forensics for your website 

The core characteristics of your business, while essential to your ongoing success, are unlikely to change year on year. The At a Glance section, together with your business model and strategy, should suffice in showing what makes your business unique and how you’re adding value for all stakeholders. Show progress against relevant metrics within the year in line with longer term strategic objectives but stick to digital channels for evergreen content and further details.

2. Connect 4: audiences, objectives, channels and formats

Your corporate reporting should be an integral part of your strategic communications plan. Consider your audiences, including regulators, and what they need to hear from you. Establish your objectives and exactly how you want all stakeholders to respond to the information you’re providing. Then deliver your messaging in the most appropriate formats through the most appropriate channels to ensure relevance, accessibility and maximum engagement. 

3. Template for a new word order

Setting strict limits from the get-go is the simplest way to keep things short and sweet in any report. Our advice? Develop templates and word counts for the regulatory sections of your report. This way, pages will be easier for stakeholders to digest and content creators will thank you for clarifying the ask.

4. The devil is in the data detail

The ever-increasing requirement for sustainability data poses the biggest threat to shorter more succinct reports. Use indexing to evidence compliance but provide links to data books or web pages where more detailed data can be housed. Most of your audiences want to be reassured that you’re compliant but only specialists need the finer details.

5. Time and tide wait for no corporate reporters 

The reporting season comes around so quickly which means you can never start early enough. Forward planning and preliminary grunt work (especially in light of increasing sustainability regulation) will save you a world of pain. Remember the old adage that has been attributed to everyone from Mark Twain, Winston Churchill, Ernest Hemingway and even Bill Clinton: ‘If I’d had more time, I would have written…less!’

And finally: best of luck!