Integrated Report: An Introduction (Part 1)
Integrated report was first coined in 2013 by the International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) in their guidelines named the International Framework.
Integrated report defined
Integrated report is a concise communication about how an organization’s strategy, governance, performance and prospects, in the context of its external environment, lead to the creation of value over the short, medium and long term.
An integrated report therefore aims to provide insight about:
- The external environment that affects an organization
- The resources and the relationships used and affected by the organization, which are referred to collectively in this Framework as the capitals and are categorized as financial, manufactured, intellectual, human, social and relationship, and natural
- How the organization interacts with the external environment and the capitals to create value over the short, medium and long term.
Integrated report differs from other reports and communications in a number of ways. In particular, it focuses on the ability of an organization to create value in the short, medium and long term, and in so doing it:
- Has a combined emphasis on conciseness, strategic focus and future orientation, the connectivity of information and the capitals and their interdependencies;
- Emphasizes the importance of integrated thinking within the organization.
Purpose and users of an integrated report
The primary purpose of an integrated report is to explain to providers of financial capital how an organization creates value over time. It therefore contains relevant information, both financial and other.
An integrated report benefits all stakeholders interested in an organization’s ability to create value over time, including employees, customers, suppliers, business partners, local communities, legislators, regulators and policy-makers.
