ABSTRACT
The International Integrated Reporting (<IR>) Framework includes seven guiding principles: strategic focus and future orientation; connectivity of information; stakeholder relationships; materiality; conciseness; reliability and completeness; and consistency and comparability. The Framework goes on to specify what an integrated report should look like if the principles are appropriately applied. That is, an integrated report should: provide insight into the organization's strategy, and how that relates to its ability to create value in the short, medium and long term and to its use of and effects on the capitals; be concise; and so on. Conciseness, reliability and completeness and consistency and comparability are relatively self-explanatory. Whilst annual reports and sustainability reports have tended to be voluminous rather than concise, preparers of both reports should be familiar with the need for both 'reliability and completeness' and 'consistency and comparability'. These principles are relatively easily applied in financial reporting where approaches are mandated and results required to be audited.
