Reporting: What is & Table of Contents for October 2010
Copyright © William Stong 2010
“Reporting” is the displaying of data in meaningful, required, or insightful ways. The American Heritage dic●tion●ar●y defines it thus:
Report (v): 1. To make or present an account of. 2. To relate or present…
Financial reporting has a core of numbers sourced from the accounting general ledger, usually augmented by information from additional sources. To be most effective, financial reporting consists of numbers, narrative explanations regarding the numbers and, frequently, graphic presentations that summarize numbers visually.
Financial reports always have a specific time component. General financial reports utilize different aspects of time:
● Point in time
● Period in time
● Multiple points/periods in time
i.e., trends
Reporting, especially as it relates to covering the business of a company, is a broad and deep topic. A large, complex corporation may generate hundreds or thousands of reports hourly, daily, and monthly. Each report has a specific business purpose, is directed at a specific audience, and is expected to be used in a certain way (e.g., making business decisions). These three components drive each report’s:
● Scope and boundaries
e.g., what is included, excluded
● Format and labeling
e.g., rows, columns, titling
● Content
e.g., which data elements need to be included
For Integrated Profitability, the month of October 2010 is dedicated to reporting and will focus on three specific reporting topics:
● Trends
Week of October 4, 2010
● Momentum analysis
Week of October 18, 2010
● Business focus & relevance
Week of October 25, 2010
In honor of Columbus Day, as well as providing a break from dreary finance and mind-numbing reporting, the Week of October 11, 2010 will carry fictional renderings of how Christopher Columbus might have reported his activities to various stakeholders related to his epic expedition(s).
Bill
William A. Stong
Email: william.a.stong@gmail.com
Telephone: 925-202-6244
Integrated Profitability Consulting TM
Blog # 8-16-0601 © 2010
“Insight knowledge for Profit Maximization”
