Financial reporting bonanza

Corporate literature design groups will see their work escalate as listed companies are urged to introduce summary financial statements along with their annual reports.

The Way Forward, a report published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants, advises all listed companies to produce a summary for shareholders.

“It’s an opportunity for designers to do something interesting and attractive for the reader,” says ICA head of financial reporting Robert Langford.

“The problem with annual reports is that they tend to be too weighty and uninteresting. Design could have a bigger role to play [in summary financial statements],” Langford adds.

The Way Forward highlights 25 companies which already produce the summary statements along with annual reports. This number could grow to include all 3000 listed companies.

SmithKline Beecham’s summary statement was designed by Addison, which was also responsible for its annual report.