Integrated thinking or integrated reporting, which comes first?

The International Integrated Reporting Council (IIRC) published a framework on integrated reporting in December 2013 that guides the preparation of an integrated report. The integrated report is intended to be a true reflection of the value creation process of an organization. The IIRC advocates the adoption of integrated thinking within an organization prior to the production of the first integrated report. In this chapter, we examine two businesses in New Zealand that embarked on the adoption of integrated reporting in opposite ways, one by producing an integrated report first and the other by developing integrated thinking before attempting to produce an integrated report. By comparing their experiences, we evaluate which should come first.