The Challenge

Aviva, the largest insurer in the UK, wanted to embed best practice reporting across the organization and provide its board with industry-leading information.

With 28,000 employees at Aviva, it was challenging to adopt a consistent approach to report writing. Aviva’s group secretariat wanted to implement a new approach to reporting and make it easier for writers to adopt best practices, preparing papers focused on the most relevant matters.

The Solution

Board intelligence introduced Write, our online Reporting Toolkit, to support report writers and implement a company-wide standard for board reporting. As part of this solution, we:

1. Engaged with all members of Aviva’s Executive Committee to explain the goals of the project and understand their priorities.
2. Customized the resources on Write to meet Aviva’s unique needs, ensuring that the templates included industry and organization-specific prompts. This included developing the CEO’s report to lead the way in the new approach.
3. Led training workshops for 250 report writers to explain the principles underpinning the resources and to provide practical guidance on how to prepare excellent papers.

The Outcome

Following our solution, Aviva has reported a significant improvement in the quality of their board information:

• Papers are shorter, of higher quality, and more directly answer the board’s questions.
• The board has additional assurance that its regulatory and statutory duties are being discharged.
• Report writers and Executive Committee sponsors are saving time due to fewer iterations of papers. 
• Writers have been upskilled and can confidently prepare reports that meet Aviva’s exacting standards.

Aviva’s papers now provide a framework for strategic discussion in the boardroom, making better use of the board, Executive Committee, and report writers’ time. Thanks to the success of the UK project, Aviva is now focusing on expanding Write across three continents to ensure a consistent approach to reporting throughout the business.

If you would like to know more about Write, Read, or Manage tools and how they can help your organization, book a demo. Once you have filled out the form, we will be in touch to arrange a convenient time for you.

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