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Corporate reporting in Canada has changed dramatically since the CICA Corporate Reporting Awards (CRA) program was launched in 1951. At one time, the annual report was the only vehicle companies used to communicate with shareholders. Now, investors and other stakeholders are shifting their focus to the corporate website, which is becoming the primary medium for communicating corporate financial and business information. Although reporting continues to evolve, the fundamental importance of accountability and transparency has not changed. To provide clear guidance on the information needs of the primary users — investors — the CICA commissioned this comprehensive Research Study about all aspects of Corporate Reporting to Stakeholders. The study, prepared by current and former CRA judges, is based on an in-depth review of the annual reports and websites of 125 companies that have participated in the CRA program. This new study examines practices and significant trends in corporate reporting by analyzing: - more than 50 different types of information disclosed in 2004-2005 annual reports;
- major changes in the 2004, 2005 and 2006 annual reports of award-winning companies;
- information content, presentation and navigation on company websites in 2007.
The aim of this Research Study is to promote effective communication between a company and its stakeholders by providing useful guidance to preparers of corporate reports. The study shows that electronic disclosure and web-based reporting of both financial and non-financial information is now commonplace. With the rapid advancement of information technology and related technologies, such as XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language), companies are adopting new means of communicating with investors and other stakeholders. For example, information is being delivered online in the form of corporate news, quarterly earnings releases, annual reports, audio and/or video conferencing and e-mail alerts. Together, companies and stakeholders are shifting to a new paradigm — real-time online reporting. |
