A board report can be used to accomplish a number of objectives, including encouraging discussion, acknowledging accomplishments and laying out a strategy for the future, and ensuring accountability and transparency. Many reports fail to achieve their objectives due to many factors. This includes a poor structure and poor presentation.
The first step in creating an organized report is to comprehend your audience. Utilizing clear headings to provide the context and make the information more comprehensible is a way to do this. Similar to that using a variety of visuals can assist board members to quickly comprehend your information.
Once you’ve set the tone, it’s time to provide specific figures and metrics that can be compared against previous performance. This is a good time to discuss any future projects, or strategy needs which require board approval. Make sure to tie these projects back to the goals and strategies you’ve previously outlined to give them greater meaning for your board members.
It’s also worth including a section that compares your company’s performance in relation to stock price with its peers. This will help the board understand relative positioning, valuation, and growth expectations while providing an important insight into the perception of investors. Alternatively, a table of consensus estimates could be included to show the board where Wall Street is currently positioned on key metrics. This information is especially valuable for firms with analysts covering the sell-side.