The Most Creative Annual Report Ever?

A big thanks to Marion Janner of Star Wards, @starwards, for alerting me to this fabulous approach to an annual report. And its not from a cutting edge startup, but from the public sector, the good old NHS: The annual report for Whittington Hospital Trust for 2004.

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The brief was to illustrate the entire job as though it were an American superhero comic and Bill Greenhead did a fabulous job of it and won the Nexus Award (apparently the second time the Whittington had won it).

It very much looks like a marvel comic, with lots of cartoons reflecting the issues for the Trust. But it also heavily features stories of actual staff to give a real feel for the organisation. It has, of course, got the usual financial information and regulatory bumph too.

I speak as a customer of the Whittington, having spent a night there earlier this year after coming off the bike and breaking my collar bone. It wasn’t quite as wacky as the report, but it was a very good experience.

Be Creative!

Is this the most creative annual report ever? If you know of a better one, or of other creative examples, please do post their links below.

Does your organisation produce an annual report? What could you do to make it more creative, more engaging and a joy to read?

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Henry is founder and Chief Happiness Officer of Happy Ltd, originally set up as Happy Computers in 1987. Inspired by Ricardo Semler’s book Maverick, he has built a company which has won multiple awards for some of the best customer service in the country and being one of the UK’s best places to work.

Henry was listed in the Guru Radar of the Thinkers 50 list of the most influential management thinkers in the world. “He is one of the thinkers who we believe will shape the future of business,” explained list compiler Stuart Crainer.

His first book, Relax, was published in 2009. His second book, the Happy Manifesto, was published in 2013 and was short-listed for Business Book of the Year.

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