Nobody reads your finance reports all the way through.

That's the uncomfortable truth most finance professionals don't want to hear.

Your readers are drowning in emails, back-to-back meetings, and competing priorities. If your opening doesn't grab them immediately, they'll skim the executive summary and move on.

Here are 3 ways to open a finance report that actually gets read:

1. Lead with something unexpected

Don't bury the headline. If you've found something surprising or controversial, put it right at the top. "Our ICT project is 20% overspent" beats "This report analyses capital expenditure on IT" every time.

Too bold? Frame it as a question instead: "Should we stop spending money on our ICT project?"

2. Start with a relevant quotation

Not some inspirational quote from a famous CEO. Use something real from your organisation. An internal audit report could open with a comment from a fieldwork interview. A budget report could quote a department head's concern.

It makes the report feel immediate and grounded in reality.

3. Describe a specific event

Tell the reader what happened and why it matters. "Last quarter, three major funders delayed payments by 60+ days" is more compelling than "This report covers accounts receivable trends."

All three approaches work for the same reason: they create a question in the reader's mind that your report then answers.