Do annual reports communicate strategic issues? Insight into reporting practices of high-tech companies
Do annual reports communicate strategic issues? Insight into reporting practices of high-tech companies

Summary/Abstract: Due to rapid technological progress, high-tech companies are expected to be forward-looking in order to ensure shareholder value creation and respond adequately to customer needs. Moreover, stakeholders may expect that high-tech companies will inform them about strategic plans and related aspects which cover knowledge of current activities and business model, business environment and R&D achievements. Accordingly, this paper examines the extent of strategic disclosures included in 69 annual reports of IT companies listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange. It explores also whether two factors: market value of a firm and its place of listing are related with the extent of strategic disclosures. Lastly, it scrutinizes whether a place of listing may be perceived as a moderator variable that influences a strength of a relationship between a market value of a firm and the extent of strategic disclosures. The research results suggest that the examined entities reported poorly on R&D activities and sufficiently on risk factors and future perspectives. The developmental strategy was disclosed often, however, only in annual reports of stock issuers listed on the primary market. The in-depth analysis shows that both the firm’s market value and the place of listing may be perceived separately as factors which induce managers to disclose more strategic issues. Nonetheless, the empirical results do not prove that a place of listing moderates an effect between market value and the extent of strategic disclosure.

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