Corporate reports: Purpose
A corporate report should provide insights into how a company's board directors and executives try to balance the imperative for the long-term viability of the company with capital market demands for short-term competitiveness and profitability.
Corporate reports: Content
A corporate report should include robust discussions about the following elements.
1. The board of directors oversight role with respect to strategy development, recruiting talented people, risk management, and capital expenditures.
2. The link between board and executive incentive compensation and progress towards medium- and long-term objectives.
3. The company's business model and the value drivers of short-term profitability and long-term viability.
4. Management's view of the company's global and local markets.
5. Sources of the company's competitive advantages.
6. Medium- and long-term strategic objectives; strategy execution plans, and metrics/KPIs used to measure progress towards long-term goals.
7. Processes for recruiting, developing, and retaining people.
8. Medium- and long-term plans for capital expenditures, R&D, stock repurchases, dividends.
9. Material risks to the company's short-term profitability and long-term viability and risk mitigation plans.
10. Current year performance relative to short-, medium-, and long-term plans.
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Groceries to consulting: 281 words
My professional and my not so professional work life gave me the opportunity to wear many hats and see the world, business, and myself from different perspectives. It began in 1965 with a part-time job at High-Low Foods, a Chicago grocery chain. After high school, I was an academic screw-up. I flunked out of DePaul University and was a mostly disinterested student at Southeast Junior College. I began working in the office and warehouse at Jackson Chemical, a company that manufactured and shipped paint to Earl Scheib auto paint shops. The next stop on my journey was three years in the U.S. Army, including a tour of duty in Vietnam with the 3rd Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division (Separate). My next stop was Illinois Central Gulf Railroad. While working a full-time job at ICG RR, I attended night classes at Calumet College and, after a little over three years, earned a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. The next step was to enroll in a CPA exam review program. I went on to pass the exam to be a Certified Public Accountant. After 13 years, I left ICG RR as the Director of Financial Reporting. My journey took me to Checkers Simon & Rosner, BDO Seidman, Illinois Central Railroad, Arthur Andersen, and Grant Thornton. In 2010, while working at Grant Thornton, I was named a member of the SAM Research AG Faculty core team; a Cecil and Ida Green Honors Professor at Texas Christian University, Neeley School of Business; and one of Trust Across America's Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior. I launched Mike Krzus Consulting, Inc. after retiring as a Partner of Grant Thornton LLP in 2011.