Write shorter reports instead.
Long reports usually have an executive summary that is maybe only 1 or 2 per cent as long as the report.
Isn’t this an admission that 98% of the report is not needed by most readers, if not all of them?
One thing you can be confident about is that your most important readers – the decision-makers – will read only the summary.
Shouldn’t we all write shorter reports instead of long reports with summaries? That is, shouldn’t we just write the executive summary?
Writing two pages instead of 10 or five pages instead of 100 is hard. It means thinking about what are the key messages and writing them down concisely.
It also means laying out the words (and graphics) in a way that makes it easy for the reader to understand your message. This means making good use of headings and white space. It also means using clear diagrams and charts that replace text rather than add to the overall length.
Where should you start? You could ask your readers if they read your last report but would you trust the answers to be completely honest?
I think it would be better to be proactive. When you write your next report set yourself the target of reducing its length by 50%. See if anyone notices. If you don’t get any feedback requesting you to write a longer report then you’ve got permission to continue. See if you can get the next one to be even shorter.