Highlighting successes and failures at the end of the year lays the groundwork for a better and more fruitful new year. It’s a time to review performance, assess financial reports, and take those insights to make improvements.
One way companies do this is by creating an annual report. For public companies, this document is required for shareholders to understand the health of the business. For smaller businesses and teams, creating an annual report can also help to build better decision-making.
An annual report template lets you create your financial report in half the time. Here, we’ll share some of the best templates to build an informative annual report. You’ll find templates for progress reports, work breakdowns, and annual reports for businesses in different sectors. 🙌
This Article Contains:
- Why are Annual Reports Important?
- 10 Free Annual Report Templates
- 1. ClickUp Annual Report Template
- 2. ClickUp Business Annual Report Template
- 3. ClickUp Annual Report Work Breakdown Structure Template
- 4. ClickUp Financial Analysis Report Template
- 5. ClickUp Progress Report Template
- 6. ClickUp Nonprofit Annual Report Template
- 7. ClickUp LLC Annual Report Template
- 8. Canva Modern Cover Annual Report
- 9. Venngage Year End Annual Report Template
- 10. Annual Report Template by Envato
Summarize this article for me pleaseWhy are Annual Reports Important?
Annual reports are documents that lay out the company’s financial health and describe operations. It’s required for public companies, but can also be used by smaller businesses and private firms for internal reporting.
Prior to the 1929 Wall Street crash, the annual report was not mandated. Following the financial implosion, regulators required annual reports from all public companies so shareholders and stakeholders could understand the financial health and operations. 📈
The corporate annual report typically starts with a letter to the stakeholders briefly outlining the main takeaways. The annual reporting process centers around collecting data and building diagrams to form a narrative that explains how the previous year went and what is expected for the future. The final parts of the report include in-depth metrics to highlight financial and operational procedures.
Most annual reports contain the following:
- A letter to shareholders
- Management discussion and analysis (MD&A)
- Financial statements
- Audit reports
- Summary of financing and operating wins
Businesses can choose to hire outside agencies to create the annual report or handle it internally. With a template for annual reports, you can take information from impact reports and sales reports to create your own financial and operational review.
What makes a good annual report template
Annual reports must have specific financial information to help shareholders understand the health of the company. These reports are designed to provide information on the ability to meet existing debts, profits or losses over the previous year, and operational plans. 💰
A comprehensive annual report should have:
- Detailed financial information: The whole point of this document is to meet regulatory requirements by providing in-depth financial information on revenues, profits, and losses
- A letter to stakeholders: Annual reports generally start with your organization’s mission statement and key takeaways from the previous year, so choose a template that includes a cover page for this information
- Support for data visualizations: Look for a template that features built-in graphs, pie charts, and Kanban boards to display key financial information and future plans
- Customizable fonts and graphic designs: Present your annual report in line with branding standards by selecting a template that offers customization for typography, design elements, and color schemes
Summarize this article for me please10 Free Annual Report Templates
Ready to start making annual reports? You’ll need to start by gathering insights on key financial metrics and operational performance. Dive into team performance reviews, assess success on project management goals, and delve into the nitty gritty numbers when it comes to revenue, debts, and profits.
Then, use one of these pre-built templates for annual reports to quickly put all of the information together in one informative document. From all-in-one templates to progress reports and financial analysis reports, you’ll find what you need to inform your shareholders. 💪
1. ClickUp Annual Report Template
ClickUp’s Annual Report Template takes a daunting task and turns it into a manageable step-by-step process. From gathering the correct data to presenting it in a professional annual report, this free annual report template will be your best friend when working on your most important end-of-the-year tasks.
Start by collecting important data from the previous year’s financial statements, project milestones, and marketing reports. Next, pop into the annual report template and fill out basic information like the company name, logo, and main people involved.
Use the Annual Highlights section to call out big wins like sales growth, market share expansion, and global ranking. Next, cover at least two notable projects, focusing on objectives and the impact on the company at large.
Finally, go over the year’s best practices that had the best results and a financial analysis for the entire year. Share the presentation with board members, teammates, and shareholders. Use key takeaways from the report to improve communication plans, lay the groundwork for increased profits, and streamline operations to meet team and HR goals.
2. ClickUp Business Annual Report Template
The Business Annual Report Template from ClickUp is an easy tool to gather, document, and present financial data at the end of the year. This modern annual report template provides support for advanced graphics, charts, and data tools to share information the way you want to.
Start by creating a report overview by breaking down information into summaries of business objectives, vision, and mission. Next, cover the company strategy, including reports on growth and shares. Add charts and graphs to drive home key successes and takeaways. 📊
The next section of the annual report template is all about finances. Write a financial statement laying out where the company stands and use hard numbers to back up the claims. Add a brief conclusion summarizing the main takeaways and finish with forecasts for the next few years.
3. ClickUp Annual Report Work Breakdown Structure Template
The ClickUp Annual Report Work Breakdown Structure Template makes creating annual reports easier than ever by divvying up the work. Use the template to break down your entire annual report into tasks and subtasks. Automatically assign them to the correct team member to gather analytics and build sections of the annual report.
Use the different views packed into this modern annual report template to visualize progress and see who is working on what. Use priority flags to identify work that needs to be addressed immediately. Add relationships for dependencies so the team knows which tasks are blocking others.
The built-in Gantt chart lets you quickly see the timeline for creating the annual report. Use it for a broad overview of all the tasks in progress. Open the individual task cards to get more detailed information on financial stats and reporting progress.
4. ClickUp Financial Analysis Report Template
Use the Financial Analysis Report Template from ClickUp to craft an up-to-date and detailed report on financial health that you can use as part of a bigger annual report. Pre-built spreadsheets make it easy to fill out financial data and track changes as needed.
Start by filling out the basic company information, including your logo, business address, and contact details. Next, add graphs and charts laying out details on financial essentials. These can include things like cash flow analysis, liquidity ratios, and debt ratios. 💸
The following sections include summaries for valuation and risk analysis. Add data and narratives to keep the reader’s attention and help them understand the company’s standing. Finish off by summarizing key takeaways, tips for improvement, and a quick recap.
Use the report to give a quick presentation to internal stakeholders or share it more widely in a PowerPoint or webinar with shareholders. Custom permissions settings let you control who sees the report and whether they can edit it or not.
5. ClickUp Progress Report Template
The ClickUp Progress Report Template is a great add-on to an annual report. It allows you to keep track of project objectives, stay on schedule, and share summaries of progress with shareholders. Use the Progress Report Template to assess individual team member success or monitor achievements for the entire department.
Customize the sheet to evaluate a single team member or the department. Fill out the basic information, including job titles, project scope, and contact information. Next, create a performance evaluation by breaking down main goals into key metrics.
Develop a skills assessment section in the template by coming up with key skills the team or employee should meet. Break the ranking down into three to five ratings. Finally, end the report by featuring a recommendations section where you take the evaluated metrics and assess them alongside company and project objectives.
Use the Progress Report Template to highlight wins and areas for improvement in your annual report. The Progress Report can also be used to identify cases where teams have improved operations and elevated the company’s health and success.
6. ClickUp Nonprofit Annual Report Template
The Nonprofit Annual Report Template from ClickUp allows organizations to share insights into operations and financial standings. Use nonprofit annual reports to share key takeaways with the public at large or offer reporting to advocates and donors. 🤩
The Nonprofit Annual Report Template starts with a message from the executive director. Use this section to thank investors and volunteers for their contributions and make a statement on the past year’s successes.
Next, lay out the vision and mission for your non-profit organization. Be sure to explain where the company stands today and where you see it going over the next year or two. The Annual Report layout then goes on to cover key accomplishments and program activities.
Follow up by highlighting stories of change where people made the biggest impact in the organization this past year. Dive into financial statements and share special thank-yous to donors and volunteers who went above and beyond.
End your nonprofit annual report templates by focusing on future goals for the organization. Here, you can focus on financial goals in terms of fundraising as well as upcoming projects that you want to take on.
7. ClickUp LLC Annual Report Template
ClickUp’s LLC Annual Report Template lets you share operational details and financial results from the past year. Use it to manage business filings, save time creating annual reports, and keep track of progress over the years.
This corporate annual report template features four pre-built sections, but you can add more as you see fit. The first section is all about project growth, including detailed financial statistics. Sections for the growing team and corporate social responsibility highlight a people-first approach to the company.
Finally, a section on plans for the year ahead lets you add in financial forecasts and potential projects. This is a great place to get buy-in for the year ahead from key stakeholders.
8. Canva Modern Cover Annual Report
Canva is known more for design than it is for annual reports. However, this tool can take a generally boring set of information and turn it into a creative annual report, ready for presentations and sharing among the company. Featuring dozens of annual report design templates, the Modern Cover Annual Report is among our favorites.
This creative annual report template features a blue and yellow design, but you can customize it to feature your branding colors or go for a simple black-and-white layout. Personalize the fonts to use your branding style in the annual report cover. 👩🏽🎨
Add photos, graphics, and icons to make the design really stand out. Download the design in two clicks and instantly share it across forums from social media to your internal annual report document.
9. Venngage Year End Annual Report Template
Venngage is a professional infographic design tool that features an eye-catching Year End Annual Report Template. The vintage design features retro color palettes that you can customize to suit your company’s branding.
The six-page template starts with a cover page, introduction, and table of contents. The next few pages cover year-end highlights, industry trends, and performance. Throughout the free template, you’ll find bright colors, gradients, and charts to highlight the most important information from expense reports and other financial documentation.
This attractive annual report template is best used for businesses that want to provide short insights into the business dealings of the past year. Add more pages and deeper insights if you prefer a more in-depth report.
10. Annual Report Template by Envato
The Annual Report Template from Envato is an in-depth, 24-page approach to informing shareholders about the state of your business. Featuring a professional design, the final product can be shared as a PDF or email attachment. 📧
This annual report example lets you present your business in a formal and eye-catching way. Use it to share quarterly business reviews, key wins, and financial statements with relevant parties.
Change all the colors throughout the document in one place to match your branding. Use the built-in free fonts to change the text to meet your brand guidelines. The design works best in Adobe InDesign and features layered and vector functionality for elevated designs.
Summarize this article for me pleaseUpdate Shareholders with Annual Report Templates
With a simple annual report template, you’ll update shareholders on the company’s health and financial situation faster than ever before. From gorgeous, customizable designs to simple, informative layouts, there’s a way to share your information the way you want to.
Sign up for ClickUp today and start creating a comprehensive annual report that’s sure to be informative and engaging. Browse more than 1,000 templates to gather data for financial reporting and leverage the 15+ views and customization tools to monitor success throughout the year. When you’re ready to craft an annual report, there are several template options from ClickUp to get the job done. 🌻
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