Our story.
A simple idea.
A regulatory quirk.
And a world first.
From complexity to transformation.
Why did we create Reportl?
Today, most reporting is not led by print requirements.
Regulations now require digital reporting.
98% of the world accesses content on a mobile.
And AI needs digital content and data, not PDFs.
So you might wonder... why do companies still use PDF-first software to create their report?
This is the story of Reportl.
An unsolved design challenge...
For many years, our design clients had been asking for digital reports alongside PDF and print formats. Because of software limitations, creating digital versions was too slow, manual and expensive to be viable.
We always wondered... “why can’t we design in one tool for all formats – print, PDF and digital?”
A regulatory quirk...
In 2014-2015, European regulators published proposals for a new corporate reporting format. Digital-led and machine readable (AI), the ESEF regulation would require reporting to digitise, using iXBRL.
Despite the complex way iXBRL is often explained, this is simply a web format (HTML) with data tags added.
...A simple idea
What if fully-compliant, tagged digital reports could be as easy to access and use as a website?
Digitisation will transform reporting
By 2016, it was becoming clear that digitisation was going to reshape reporting, and that print software wasn't going to provide all the functions that would be required.
Regulators set simple goals – to improve accessibility, comparability and transparency through the digitisation of reporting. To prepare, we researched and scoped what we thought full digitisation would eventually require.
We researched and planned a software solution that digitises the entire report design, production and build process. It would need to deliver efficiencies and compliance across multiple formats, with no compromises in design.
The idea for Reportl was born.
A world first
Over many years, we developed, consulted and tested with companies, auditors, design agencies and regulators. This resulted in robust digital-first processes and software to meet the changing demands of corporate reporting.
In 2022, using the beta version of Reportl, our team collaborated with Experian plc to launch the world’s first fully-designed, online iXBRL report (we think). This prototype report delivered all the functions of the web in the new iXBRL format – interactivity, video, search, mobile responsiveness. It was also enhanced with AI-optimised iXBRL tagging.
This report is highlighted in the best practice guidance from the UK Financial Reporting Council.
You can view Experian's 2022 prototype annual report online.
Launch of Reportl
In March 2024, Oakley Capital Investments, a FTSE250 private equity firm, published and filed their first digital-first iXBRL report from Reportl.
This report was recognised in multiple industry awards in late 2024, and the inventor of iXBRL, Philip Allen, commented “This is the exemplar of digital reporting.”
User analytics data showed that 85% of visitors chose to view the online ESEF report over the PDF. And because the report was easy for Google and AI tools to find, it attracted 14x the number of visits vs the prior year's report.
Who are we?
The Reportl team has worked in corporate communications and reporting for over 30 years. The platform has been developed through collaboration with partner design agencies, software developers, XBRL experts, auditors, regulators and listed companies.
We hope that these collective efforts to improve reporting for all stakeholders will help us to deliver the advances which digitisation and AI promises.
If you have any questions or ideas for improving the Reportl platform, we would love to hear from you.
