Annuals with style

When he founded Cahan & Associates in 1984, Bill Cahan vowed that his firm would be different-a lofty goal in San Francisco, where design firms rival Starbucks for ubiquity. Guided by two simple credos-learn about clients' businesses and look for fresh, intelligent approaches to implementing a strategic platform-Cahan & Associates has truly delivered design from a unique perspective.

Although Cahan & Associates produces work in everything from packaging to company brochures, it's in the design of annual reports where this firm truly shines. (Check out the many Cahan-designed annuals on the following pages.) This 17-employee staff tackles annual-report design with creativity and style not associated with many of the firm's clients-predominantly hi-tech and bio-tech companies.

Molecular Biosystems 98 Annual Report

The stockholders of Molecular Biosystems International (MBI) aren't experts on echocardiography or ultrasound imaging. The communication gap between who the company is and what information the shareholders need to make investment decisions is significant. With the design of the Molecular Biosystems 1998 Annual Report, Cahan had the formidable task of communicating the complex mission and work of the client company to its audience.

At first glance, the annual report looks more like a magazine than a year-end financial report. The first eight pages feature a series of low-contrast images-some serious, some silly-that the reader is asked to identify. Is that a UFO or frisbee? Bigfoot or a lumberjack? Sea monster or driftwood?

This is precisely the point: Without proper contrast, it's difficult to distinguish between reality and illusion. The product developed by MBI creates a greater degree of contrast in ultrasounds, technology that allows doctors to better make life-or-death decisions.

"The annual report engages the shareholders with problems similar to what doctors face when reading ultrasounds," Cahan says. "They're able to put into context the importance of positively identifying low-contrast images."

When creating an aggressively bold annual report, the designers engaged, rather than alienated, the audience with such an esoteric approach. To encourage feedback, the annual included a postcard where, if readers correctly identified all the low-contrast items featured in the "quiz" portion, entrants had a shot at winning a gift and 100 shares of MBI stock. The response was staggering-more than 700 postcards were received. Most importantly, the recipients actually read this annual report.