Faster, more aurate, and standardized information – XBRL promises to transform the way mpanies keep their stakeholders up to date. Still, it is no substitute for intimate mpany knowledge.

XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language) is a standardized format for sharing financial information. Similar to how the USB plug has made it easier to nnect mputers to peripherals, XBRL aims at making financial figures easier to aess and manipulate. For the end user, this brings a lot of benefits:

Figures can be imported directly into the user’s preferred investment software .

Figures can be easily nverted to different formats, making it simpler to mpare figures across formats, acunting standards and other obstacles .

Figures will be more aurate, as the human error caused by manually typing figures across formats is minimized

In short, XBRL makes it easier for investors to play around with your figures. This again should mean a greater reliance on timely, aurate data. This implies two opportunities for IR:

An increased need for timely, aurate and extensive financials. As users me to rely more on financial figures in XBRL format, expect even mom-and-pop investors to grow increasingly sophisticated. They’ll expect you to provide them with data both early and often.

An increased need to highlight important metrics. As automated models beme more mmon, it bemes even more important for IR to help investors understand the value of the mpany by pointing out figures that are important for making an investment decision about your mpany. For example, your annual report can make investors aware of KPIs that are particularly relevant to your mpany’s suess.

The modern IR professional needs to work with XBRL. Ignoring it will move investors toward mpanies that do fulfill their need. Even more importantly, there is no substitute for intimate knowledge of the importance of certain figures and the qualitative aspects of your mpany. The winners will be mpanies that are good at nveying both.