Identify and discuss the core factors of communication that must be considered in the presentation of an annual report.

Presentation of an Annual Report

Core Factors of Communication:

1. Clarity: Information presented to diverse users must attempt to be clear to the users.  This is a key factor to avoid the communication of wrong information to users with different levels of understanding and technical skills.

2. Informative: For the annual report to achieve its purposes, it must be informative to the users.  The annual report is a snapshot of an organization activities and performance.  It must achieve this purpose of delivering information to the intended users.

3. Logical sequence: The annual report of a company must follow some recognized logical order to ensure full coverage of all required topics.  For example, in presenting the financial statements, there is a recognized order for their presentation.  This order must be strictly followed to reduce confusion.

4. Conciseness: Information being presented to a wide audience must be concise to achieve its intended purpose.  The length of the presentation should not be such as to discourage the average reader of the annual report.  This means that irrelevant information should be eliminated.

Explanation:

Annual reports are required from companies by the stockholders and the potential investors.  There are other stakeholders who also require the annual reports.  Since annual reports are met to meet the information needs of many different stakeholders, its presentation should be such that accommodation is made for the various users.