1. Reliable – can be relied upon
   • Neutral
   • Complete
2. Relevant – has value for decision makers
3. Timely – timing is correct and recent
4. Understandable – users can understand it
5. Comparable – similar enough to make comparisons

To summarize some of the things we’ve just mentioned, information must be:

• Reliable: complete, without a bias
• Relevant: has value for the people looking at it
• Timely: recent and correct period
• Understandable: can be understood by the person reading it (who is often not an accountant!)
• Comparable: need to be able to compare to other years, other companies

Anything else that makes information useful?