Writing Reports

Trần Thị Tuyết - 10.2020

Contents Outcomes

Types of report Understand types or report

Understand the
Writing a proposal
components of a proposal
Describe steps in writing
Writing a report
and editing formal reports
Conduct research Conduct research
Identify the purposes and
Documentation
techniques of documenting
1. Types of report
• Seek for funds
Proposal • Promote
products/services

• Offer data, facts,

Informat- feedback, and
ional
other types of
reports information,

• Present findings
and
Analytical
recommendations
report
based on research
and data analysis
2. Writing a proposal
 Introduction
Purpose: state the reasons for the proposal and
highlights the writer’s qualifications.

How to “hook”?
• Hint at extraordinary results with details to be revealed
shortly.
• Promise low costs or speedy results.
• Mention a remarkable resource available exclusively to you.
• Identify a serious problem (worry item) and promise a
solution, to be explained later.
• Specify a key issue or benefit that you feel is the heart of the
proposal.
 Background, Problem, and Purpose
Purpose: identify the problem and discusses the goals
or purposes of the project.

Solicited proposal Unsolicited proposal

• Prove that a • Understand

problem exists the reader’s issues
• Present the • Have a realistic
problem in detail solution
 Proposal, Plan, and Schedule
Purpose: explain the plan for solving the problem

• Implementation plan
– Methods used to gather data (if research
involved)
– Benefits for the reader
– Deliverables
– Credibility: management and auditing
• Schedule or timetable of activities
 Staffing
Purpose: describe the staff qualifications for
implementation of the proposal as well as the
credentials and expertise of the project leaders
 Budget
Purpose: Represent a contract. Budget is a central item
in most proposals and should be prepared carefully.
 Conclusion and Authorization
Purpose: remind the reader of the proposal’s key
benefits and make it easy for the reader to respond
3. Writing a report

• Steps in writing
• Reviewing a report
• Components of a
report
 Steps for writing formal business reports

• Determine the Purpose and Scope of the Report.

1

• Anticipate the Needs of the Audience

2

• Decide on a Work Plan and Appropriate Research Methods.

3

• Conduct Research Using Primary and Secondary Sources

4

• Organize, Analyze, and Draw Conclusions.

5

• Design Graphics to Clarify the Report’s Message.

6
What to Review When Editing Formal
Business Reports

Format Consistency Graphics

Heading
Accuracy Mechanics
levels
Report components
 Title Page
• Name of the report, often in uppercase letters
• Prepared for (or Submitted to)
• Prepared by (or Submitted by)
• Date of submission
 Letter or Memo of Transmittal
• Announces the topic of the report and tells
how it was authorized;
• Briefly describes the project;
• Highlights the report’s findings, conclusions,
and recommendations;
• Closes with appreciation for the assignment or
instruction for follow-up actions.
 Table of Contents and List of Figures
• The table of contents shows the main sections
in the report and their page numbers
• For reports with many figures or tables, lists
the figures and tables help readers locate
them easily
 Executive Summary
• present an overview of the longer report for
people who may not have time to read the
entire document
• summarize the report’s major sections, such
as the purpose, background, conclusions, and
recommendations
 Introduction
• Background: Events leading up to the problem or need
• Problem or purpose: Explanation of the problem or
need that motivated the report
• Significance: Account of the importance of the report
topic, which may include quotes from experts, journals,
or Web resources
• Scope: Boundaries of the report, defining what will be
included or excluded
• Organization: A road map or structure of the report

For Minimal requirements

 Introduction(cont.)
• Authorization: The name of whoever
commissioned the report and its intended
audience
• Literature review: A summary of other
publications on this topic
• Sources and methods: A description of secondary
sources (periodicals, books, databases) and
methods of collecting primary data
• Key terms: Definitions of important and
unfamiliar terms used in the report

For more information

 Report body
• Be the principal section in a formal report
• Discusses, analyzes, interprets, and evaluates the
research findings or solution to the initial
problem.
• Show the evidence that justifies your conclusions
 Conclusions and Recommendations
• the conclusions and recommendations section
is most important to a reader.
• This section tells what the findings mean,
particularly in terms of solving the original
problem
Works Cited, References, or Bibliography
4. Conducting Primary and Secondary Research

“A report is only as good as its data”

Secondary research source Primary research source

Print resources: books,

Surveys
periodicals…
Online database Personal interviews
Observation and
The Web
Experimentation
 Tips for surveys
• Select the survey population carefully
• Explain why the survey is necessary
• Consider incentives.
• Limit the number of questions
• Use questions that produce quantifiable answers
• Avoid leading or ambiguous questions
• Make it easy for respondents to return the survey
• Conduct a pilot study
 Tips for personal interviews
• Locate an expert
• Prepare for the interview
• Maintain a professional attitude
• Ask objective and open-ended questions
• Watch the time
• End graciously
5. Documentation

• “Whenever you ‘borrow’ the ideas or words of

others, you must give credit to your
information sources”
• “To use the ideas of others skillfully and
ethically, you need to know why, what, and
how to document”
 Why document
• To strengthen your argument and add credibility
• To protect yourself against charges of plagiarism.
• To help the reader learn more about the topic.
• To provide proper credit in an ever-changing world.
 What to document
• Another person’s ideas, opinions, examples, or
theory
• Any facts, statistics, graphs, and drawings that are
not common knowledge
• Quotations of another person’s actual spoken or
written words
• Paraphrases of another person’s spoken or written
words
• Visuals, images, and any kind of electronic media
 How to paraphrase
1. Read the original material intently to comprehend
its full meaning.
2. Write your own version without looking at the
original.
3. Avoid repeating the grammatical structure of the
original and merely replacing words with synonyms.
4. Reread the original to be sure you covered the main
points but did not borrow specific language.
 Plagiarized Acceptable
Source
version paraphrase
• We have seen, in a • Many trusted • Digital technology
short amount of household name has allowed a whole
time, the brands disappeared new virtual global
disappearance of a very swiftly because economy to
large number of they did not blossom and very
household brands sufficiently and early swiftly wiped out
that failed to take pay attention to the some formerly
sufficient and early software revolution powerful companies
heed of the software that is toppling that responded too
revolution that is traditional physical late or inadequately
upending traditional businesses and to the disruptive
brick-and-mortar creating a global force that has swept
businesses and digital economy. the globe. (Saylor,
creating a globally (Saylor, 2012) 2012)
pervasive digital
economy.
 When to Quote
• To provide objective background data and establish
the severity of a problem as seen by experts
• To repeat identical phrasing because of its precision,
clarity, or aptness
• To duplicate exact wording before making critical
statements
 How to quote
• Use quotation marks to enclose exact quotations
• For a long quotation, try to summarize and
introduce it in your own words.
• Introduce quotations or paraphrases
– According to Waller. . . .
– Waller argues that. . . .
– In his recent study, Waller reported. . . .
6. Incorporating graphics to reports

• Consider the audience

• Use color wisely
• Check calculations for accuracy
• Place graphics strategically
• Choose appropriate captions or titles.
 Tables
• Add a meaningful title at the top of the table.
• Arrange items in a logical order (alphabetical, chronological,
highest to lowest), depending on what you need to
emphasize.
• Provide bold headings for rows and columns.
• Identify the units in which figures are given (percentages,
dollars, hours) in the table title, in the column or row heading,
in the first item of a column, or in a note at the bottom.
• Use N/A (not available) for missing data rather than leaving a
cell empty.
• Make long tables easier to read by shading alternate lines or
by leaving a blank line between groups of five.
• Place tables as close as possible to the place where they are
mentioned in the text.
 Bar Charts
• Keep the length and width of each bar and segment
proportional.
• Include a total figure on the bar if it adds clarity for
the reader and does not clutter the chart.
• Always start dollar or percentage amounts at zero.
Grouped Bar Chart Segmented 100 Percent
Bar Chart
 Line Charts
• Begin with a rectangular grid showing a vertical and
horizontal axis.
• Place the time component (usually years)
horizontally across the bottom.
• Label the vertical and horizontal axes (if needed) for
clarification.
 Pie Charts

• Place the largest wedge

near the top of the circle
and arrange the others in
descending order.
• Include the actual
percentage for each wedge.
• Use four to six segments for
best results; smaller
wedges can be grouped in a
segment labeled Other
Which one is better choice for data
representation?
 Flowcharts

• Ovals to designate
the beginning and
end of a process
• Diamonds to
designate decision
points
• Rectangles to
represent major
activities or steps
 Infographics
• An infographic is a visual representation of
complex information in a format that is easy
to understand. Compelling infographics tell a
story by combining images and graphic
elements, such as charts and diagrams.
• Because these data visualizations tend to be
long, they are commonly shared in online
environments
Selecting the best visual
Reference
• Marry E. Guffey, Essentials of Business
Communication (10th Edition), Cengage
Learning, 2016
• Bovee, L. Cortland & Thill, V. John (2020).
Business Communication Essentials:
Fundamental Skills for the Mobile – Digital –
Social Workplace (Global Edition). Pearson
Higher Education.
Thank you 