Enhanced Business Reporting Consortium Releases Framework To Promote Greater Transparency In Corporate Reporting; Calls For Public Comments.

WASHINGTON -- Framework addresses capital market needs for information about a company's opportunities, risks, strategies and plans

The Enhanced Business Reporting Consortium today announced that it has released its first version of a comprehensive information framework to help companies better communicate with their investors and other key audiences about business strategy and current and expected performance. The Consortium, better known as the EBRC, also called for public comments from the business reporting community on the framework.

"During the last 10 years, many organizations have proposed new or improved reporting models--but none so far has succeeded in gaining recognition as a common, complete framework that would allow for consistent and relevant external reporting of key performance information," said Mike Krzus, Interim EBRC Executive Director. "The EBRC framework provides that model."

"We want to hear from shareholders, directors, management and other stakeholders to ensure that we develop the best approach for providing the types of information that investors and others need," said Krzus.

To make successful decisions, management and investors need information about the key elements of a company's business that are the sources of its value. These can be measured numerically through financial or non-financial key performance indicators or they may be qualitative factors such as business opportunities, risks, strategies and plans--all of which permit assessment of the quality, sustainability and variability of a company's cash flows and earnings.

"Studies have found that only twenty-five percent of a company's market value can be attributed to accounting book value, with the remaining seventy-five percent based on an assessment of value created by intangibles such as strategy, product innovation, people and customer loyalty," said Robert Eccles, an advisor to the EBRC and former professor at Harvard Business School. "Unfortunately, only about one-third of the value drivers generally associated with the industry sectors surveyed are published in formal filings used by investors."

"Enhanced Business Reporting can change the markets' focus on short-term earnings projections," said Eccles. "The over-emphasis of quarterly earnings will decline as companies report transparently on their key drivers of value creation. The long-term rewards will be tangible: a greater investor following, lower stock-price volatility and ultimately a more attractive cost of equity and debt."

"We distribute this framework as an invitation for global collaboration," said Krzus. "We look forward to candid and spirited dialogue to build upon this foundation."

The framework structure includes four broad categories--Business Landscape, Strategy, Competencies & Resources and Performance--and is available at www.ebr360.org. For the next 60 days, interested parties may send comments to [e-mail].

About the Enhanced Business Reporting Consortium

The Enhanced Business Reporting Consortium is a not-for-profit organization. Our public mission is: A consortium of stakeholders collaborating to improve the quality, integrity and transparency of information used for decision-making in a cost-effective, time-efficient manner.

The Founding Members of the EBRC are: AICPA Center for Public Company Audit Firms; Grant Thornton LLP; Microsoft Corporation and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

A diverse group of organizations have come together to make this endeavor a reality. The EBRC's Strategic Partners include:

-- American Institute of Certified Public Accountants

    -- Business Roundtable

    -- Business Wire

    -- National Association of Corporate Directors

    -- NASDAQ

    -- National Investor Relations Institute

    -- Open Compliance and Ethics Group

    -- PR Newswire

    -- XBRL International

Enhanced Business Reporting Framework Summary

The Enhanced Business Reporting Framework promotes greater transparency of corporate strategy and performance. The Framework also provides structure for the type of narrative management discussion, e.g., MD&A in the U.S. and O&FR in the U.K., required in many countries. This structure makes it possible to create useful classifications, i.e., taxonomies for value drivers, performance measures and qualitative information. Specifically, the EBR Framework enables a more robust use of XBRL taxonomies. Ultimately, companies adopting the Framework will provide the investment community and other stakeholders the information they need to make better decisions. The complete Enhanced Business Reporting Framework is available at www.ebr360.org.

Level 1                                Level 2
Business Landscape                     Overview
                                       Competition
                                       Customers
                                       Technological change
                                       Shareholder relations
                                       Capital availability
                                       Legal
                                       Political
                                       Regulatory

Strategy                               Business model
                                       Organization
                                       Governance
                                       Risk management
                                       Environmental & social
                                       Business portfolio
                                       Resource allocation
                                       Product life cycle

Competencies & Resources               Key processes
                                       Customer satisfaction
                                       People
                                       Innovation
                                       Supply chain
                                       Intellectual property
                                       Information & technology
                                       Financial assets
                                       Physical assets

Performance                            Profitability
                                       Liquidity
                                       Operating
                                       Segment