What does the future of reporting look like?

Perhaps the most important task of any finance or analytics team is to report on the data in an effective and easy-to-understand way. Whether you’re looking at regulatory reporting, management reporting, environmental reporting, social impact reporting, or anything else – the quality of your outputs makes a big difference in whether the right actions can be taken on the back of that information. 

Most companies claim that they’re making data-driven decisions but when you peek behind the curtains you often find that the reporting structures and workflows are actually not set up in a way that can enable this effectively. Here at Apliqo, this is something that we’re very passionate about and many of our tools focus on this almost exclusively. As such, we’re always looking out for new ways to think about reporting and we strive to keep our finger on the pulse of where the industry is going. 

Recently, BARC released its most recent research on the future of reporting and it brings up some key concepts that we think are quite pertinent. Let’s walk through them together and hopefully they can give you some food for thought as you consider your own reporting practices. 

Flexibility and customisation are critical 

Every organisation is going to have different reporting priorities, challenges, and requirements – and so it’s absolutely imperative that your reporting technology is flexible enough to handle the unique characteristics that you require of it.  Your ability to customize your reporting based on key inputs, perspectives, and decision-making frameworks makes a big difference in the overall impact that it can have on the business as a whole. 

The tools must be user-friendly 

Gone are the days when the only people interacting with reports are those in the finance or business intelligence teams. In modern organisations, every function needs to be able to pull their own data and analysis which makes it even more important that the reporting functionality is user-friendly. By decentralizing these aspects, you empower people to take control of their own numbers and drive their own success, all of which leads to better results in the long run. 

Data quality is paramount 

The protection, management, and security surrounding data is a key input that can make or break a reporting workflow. The future of reporting relies on state-of-the-art data warehousing, robust data cleaning and preparation, anomaly detection, and various other components of a healthy data environment. This will involve your IT team to ensure that your data sources are carefully integrated, they’re performing as required, and that you’re not misinterpreting things because of a data flow issue. Garbage in, garbage out, as they say. 

Reports must inspire action 

We speak about it a lot on this blog but your reports mean nothing unless they actually inspire action. FP&A practitioners must ensure that their reporting is done in a way that informs management and enables decisive action. This comes down to its presentation, the storytelling, the ease of use, and an intentional strategy about the level of detail that is relied upon. The information needs to be easy to grasp and indicative of the types of decisions that need to be made in any particular situation. 

The BARC report goes into a lot more detail, so it’s certainly worth checking that out, but hopefully this gives you a sense of some of the key principles of what the future of reporting looks like. It’s something we’re keeping a keen eye on here at Apliqo and we have no doubt that it will continue to evolve as the technology advances.  Watch this space! 

Related Posts

More resources

Fortifying FP&A: essential strategies for data security

In any organisation, the FP&A team is going to be responsible for handling vast amounts of sensitive financial data. From revenue forecasts to strategic planning metrics, these insights are critical to an organisation's success. However, a single data breach or security lapse can lead to financial losses, reputational damage, and regulatory penalties – thus making data security more important than ever.

Read this article

How to customise your FP&A software to fit your business needs

Financial planning and analysis (FP&A) software has become an essential tool for modern businesses, offering robust capabilities to forecast, budget, and analyse financial performance. However, many organisations struggle to fully leverage these sophisticated systems, often underutilising key features or adapting their processes to fit the software rather than customising the software to fit their unique needs.

Read this article

Enhancing collaboration between finance and operations through FP&A software

Collaboration between finance and operations teams is crucial for an organisation's success, but too often they simply don’t speak the same language. Finance teams tend to focus on financial accuracy, budgeting, and forecasting, while operations teams are driven by efficiency, productivity, and execution.

Read this article

9 ways that FP&A can drive sustainable growth

Sustainable growth is no longer a luxury — it's a necessity. Companies are under increasing pressure to meet financial targets while also addressing their environmental and social responsibilities. This delicate balancing act requires more than just intuition; it demands a strategic, data-driven approach. We’re firm believers that FP&A can be the unsung hero here that bridges the gap between short-term wins and the long-term vision.

Read this article

4 ways FP&A software can enhance investor communications

The world of investor communications has changed dramatically over the past decade with investors of all kinds demanding more transparency, better forecast accuracy, and real-time insights that can be used to make smarter investment decisions. This is placing increasing pressure on companies that have to split their focus between improving internal operations and strategies that drive results and meeting the demands of external stakeholders who they rely on for funding and support.

Read this article