Every year, some of our biggest organizations publish an annual report. It is usually a many-page document that seeks to show its readers how well they have performed, showcase their latest products and achievements and ultimately reassure their readers that all is well. I remember seeing many copies of these annual reports yearly as a child. All I cared about were the glossy pages with graphs, charts, product showcases and colourful figures. I was more interested in the graphics design than anything else. I also loved to keep mental notes of changes in management. Every year, each organization tried to outdo itself in the design and presentation of its annual report. Fun times! Apparently, many more groups of people seem to be as interested in these reports as I was, albeit for much different reasons than mine. A very important part of this annual report is the financial statement and it seeks to show how well the organization has performed over the past year in terms of its financial resources. It contains four elements that explain how the organizations resources have been managed to grow the organization’s financial strength. One statement showed how much profit or loss the organization made during the year. Another statement showed how much cash flowed in and out of the organization. Yet another shows the value of the organization’s assets in relation to its liabilities and owners equity, which represents the amount of money that would be returned to a company’s owners if all of the assets were liquidated (converted to cash) and all of the company’s debt was paid off in the case of liquidation. It was interesting to discover the diverse groups of people who are interested in reading these financial statements. While I could understand the relevance of the management board and shareholder’s interest in financial statements, I had never really given much thought to the fact that employees would also find the statements useful. As it turns out, employees need the financial statements to assess the stewardship of their management/board and for making economic and career decisions. Another interesting group of users were individuals or businesses who provide an organization with either goods or services required to carry out their production. These suppliers also require financial information for the same reasons as banks and lenders: to ensure that the organization is financially healthy and that it is capable of repaying its debts. Their preferred component is the balance sheet, as it gives them an indication of the quality of the organization’s management and business practices. The most interesting users for me were the general public. They also require the information contained in financial statements for various reasons. Members of the public may want to assess the impact of an organization on the community, the environment and the economy. They may also be interested in financial information of an organization to guide investment decisions. It turns out a lot more people require the financial information contained in annual reports than I imagined! #EMBA28