Clutter in annual reports is a problem, obscuring relevant information and making it harder for users to find the salient points about the performance of the business and its prospects for long-term success.
The report provides preparers of annual reports with practical aids for reducing clutter, giving ideas for how disclosures might look without the clutter, and factors to consider when planning the annual report process.
However, it’s not just preparers that can cut clutter. All of those involved in regulating, reviewing, preparing and using annual reports have to change their behaviours if we are to remove clutter and improve corporate reporting. The Government will be consulting further on the framework of narrative reporting. The FRC will coordinate its work with that. We also seek further debate on how materiality should be applied to financial statement disclosures.
Please contact the ASB at
clutter@frc.org.uk with your comments, good examples of disclosures with minimal or no clutter, or to register your interest in attending our autumn meeting, which will be the launch of the Financial Reporting Lab on 14 October 2011.
Click here to view:
Cutting Clutter: Combating clutter in annual reports