REPORT III

• Informational report


  Presents facts but includes very little analysis
• Analytical report


  Analyzes a problem, presents facts and conclusions, and makes recommendations
• Seven planning steps for creating a report

  1. Identify the problem or topic

  2. Decide on areas to investigate

  3. Determine the scope of the report

  4. Plan ways to gather data

  5. Collect the data

  6. Develop a preliminary outline

  7. Analyze the data, draw conclusions, and make recommendations
• Scope


  The boundaries of the report—what will be included and what will not
• Primary research


  Gathering new data
• Secondary research


  Locating data that already have been gathered and reported
• Methods for primary research

  • Interviews
  • Surveys
  • Observations
• When using data from secondary sources, ask questions to help evaluate the information
• Questions to evaluate secondary data

  • Is the information relevant to the topic or problem?
  • Is the information true and accurate?
  • Is the information reliable? Is it provided by a reputable source?
  • Is the information current or useful?
  • Is the information biased?
• Ways the outline for an informational report can be arranged


  • Chronological order
  • Order of importance
  • Logical sequence
  • Category
  • Geographical order
• Ways the outline for an analytical report can be arranged

  • By hypotheses
  • By alternatives
• Discussion outline


  Provides more information about the topics and the subtopics than a topical outline
• Direct order


  Used for a routine report or when the reader is expected to respond favorably
• Indirect order


  Used when you expect an unfavorable response or when the receiver may need persuasion to accept the main idea
• Informal report writing style


  Relatively personal, uses personal pronouns and contractions
• Impersonal writing style


  Used for serious problems or reports to senior managers, makes a report seem more objective
• Main parts of an informal report

  • Opening
  • Body
  • Closing
• Information that may be included in the opening of an informal short report in direct order

  • The subject and purpose of the report
  • Recommendations
  • A preview of the sections of the report
  • The summary of findings or the conclusions
• Formal reports, rather than informal reports, are used only when absolutely necessary because of the amount of time required to write formal reports
• Formal reports usually are written in an impersonal style because these reports need to sound impartial and professional
• Preliminary report parts

  • Letter or memo of transmittal
  • Title page
  • Table of contents
  • Executive summary
• Supplementary report parts

  • Bibliography
  • Appendix
• Report


  A document that provides facts, opinions, or ideas about a specific topic or problem
• Writing a report


  1. Planning and research

  2. Gathering new data (primary research)

  3. Locating existing data (secondary research)

  4. Organizing data in a meaningful way

  5. Analyzing data and drawing conclusions

  6. Making recommendations based on conclusions
• Informal report


  Presents information that has been requested, or analyzes a problem and reports the findings
• Informal reports

  • May be organized in direct order or indirect order
  • Use an outline to identify and position topics and subtopics
  • May be written in a relatively personal style, but should be impersonal if about a serious problem or going to a senior manager
  • Have three main parts: opening, body, and closing
  • May be formatted like letters, memos, or manuscripts
• Formal report

  More complex and longer than informal reports
• Formal reports

  • May be organized in direct or indirect order
  • Usually written in an impersonal style
  • Have three major parts: preliminary parts, body or text, and supplementary parts
  • Follow the guidelines of the report style the writer has been instructed to use
• Plan a Formal Report

  Identify a topic or problem to be researched and studied for a formal report. The report can be an informational report or an analytical report. Ask your teacher to approve the topic.

  2. Write a statement or question that identifies the objective of the report.

  3. Determine the scope of the report. Decide what related areas will and will not be included in the report. You may need to modify the scope after you begin doing research.

  4. Develop a timeline for completing the report. Start with the date your teacher gives you for completing the report. Work backward from that date to create a timeline.
• Conduct Research for a Report

  Decide whether primary research, such as collecting data from a survey, or secondary research is appropriate for the report. You might want to do both types of research.

  2. Gather the data. Evaluate each source of data that you use to determine whether it is relevant, accurate, current, reliable, and unbiased.

  3. Create a bibliography note and one or more research notes for each secondary data source you use.
• Analyze Data for a Report

  Prepare a preliminary outline to organize the data you found in your research.

  2. Decide whether to use hypotheses or alternatives in the outline if you are doing an analytical report. Develop a list of questions you want to answer using the data.

  3. Compile, compute, compare, contrast, or evaluate the data as appropriate for your project.
• Draw Conclusions and Make Recommendations

  Use the data you have analyzed to try to answer your list of questions developed earlier.

  2. Using the data analysis, reach one or more conclusions about the topic or problem.

  3. Prepare recommendations based on the conclusions if that is appropriate for your report.
• Write a Formal Report

  Create an outline for the report you have planned and researched. The outline may be a topic outline or a discussion outline.

  2. Write the report using the outline you prepared earlier.

  • Create a letter or memo of transmittal for the report. Address the letter or memo to your teacher.
  • Prepare a title page and a table of contents. You will need to update the table of contents with the page numbers after you complete the report body.
  • Create an executive summary for the report.
  • Create the report body to include an introduction section; a findings and analysis section; and a summary and conclusions section. Also, include recommendations if that is appropriate for your report.
  • Prepare a Works Cited or Bibliography page.
  • Format the report like the one shown in the figures in Section 9.3 of this chapter unless your teacher requests that you use another format. Use the MLA style for citations in the text unless your teacher requests that you use another format.
  • Include an appendix at the end of the report if needed.
  • Work with a classmate to edit and proofread the report to be sure it is courteous, correct, concise, clear, and complete.