The author provides a seven point plan for what 2004 holds. The predictions range from a tougher environment for company directors as investors fight back and a greater focus from financial reporting on the future and cash.

Corporate interest in non‐financial performance measures may be a phenomenon of the nineties but it is nothing new. But the extent to which it brings about a change in company behaviour and business results hinges on the recognition that it is not an end in itself but a crucial component in...