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FreshSpectrum Information Design
On a mission to make research and evaluation more accessible.
free-to-read digital edition
The Reporting Revolution
2nd Edition
Because reporting should be more than checking a box.
Written & Illustrated by Chris Lysy
Last Update: November 6, 2025
Originally Published: August 31, 2022
Total Read Time: 35 Minutes
Authors Note: This is a free-to-read full text digital version of my book, The Reporting Revolution.
If you would like to purchase the paperback ($9.99) or kindle version ($4.99), it’s currently available for sale on Amazon.
If you would like to purchase the ePub/PDF version you can do so by following this link. [Coming Soon]
A Little Story.
Read Time: 2 minutes
Like the cursed prophet Cassandra, researchers and evaluators have a gift to see truths others can’t—but unlike her, our curse is self-inflicted. We’ve been sharing our work the same way we did in the late 90s, writing reports as if the last 20 years never happened, and it’s time for a monumental change.
The BIG Why.
Read Time: 6 minutes
Your reports aren’t just information dumps—they’re telling a story about your entire profession, and right now that story isn’t flattering. It’s time to shift from treating reports as products to be delivered into treating reporting as a process that serves real people, because the status quo is a path toward irrelevance.
Finding Your Audience.
Read Time: 7 minutes
Before you can revolutionize your reporting, you need to know who you’re actually reporting to (hint: it’s probably not who you think). This chapter will help you identify your Big 3 audiences and understand the critical difference between building an audience and serving one.
Developing Your Modern Reporting Strategy
Read Time: 9 minutes
Everyone is overwhelmed, and your 50-page PDF is making it worse. Learn three modern reporting strategies—the Modern PDF, the Web Report, and Report Blogging—that will help your work actually get read, shared, and used.
Leading the Change.
Read Time: 10 minutes
The HiPPO (Highest Paid Person’s Opinion) will kill your modern reporting dreams if you let them, but this chapter gives you the tools to lead change anyway. From building your design process to creating templates and style guides, you’ll learn how to make better reporting faster and more systematic.
A Call to Action.
Read Time: 1 minute
Lots of organizations settle for boring, ugly reports year after year because they’ve convinced themselves they don’t have the money, time, or talent to do better—but YOU do. The real secret isn’t fancy software or massive budgets; it’s simply a person who really cares and is willing to take that first baby step.
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