Report planning and Research

What Are Business Reports?

Business reports are systematic attempts to answer questions and solve problems. They include the following activities.
Planning Research Organization Presentation

Ten Truths About Business Reports

1. Everyone writes reports. 2. Most reports flow upward. 3. Most reports are informal. 4. Three report formats (memo, letter, and manuscript) are most common. 5. Reports differ from memos and letters.
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Ten Truths About Business Reports

6. Todays reports are written on computers. 7. Some reports are collaborative efforts. 8. Ethical report writers interpret facts fairly. 9. Organization is imposed on data. 10. The writer is the readers servant.

Report Functions
Informational reports Analytical reports

Report Formats
Letter format (outside the organization) Memo format (with in the organization) Manuscript format (longer formal reports) Printed forms (repititive data ,monthly etc)

Writing Style
Formal Informal

Writing Informational Reports

Writing Informational Reports

Introduction
Identify the report and its purpose. Present a brief overview of the reports organization, especially for longer reports. When readers are unfamiliar with the topic, briefly fill in the background details.

Writing Informational Reports

Body
Group facts or findings into three to five roughly equal segments that do not overlap. Organize by time, component, importance, criteria, convention, or some other method.

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Writing Informational Reports

Body
Supply functional or talking heads (at least one per page) to describe each section. Use an informal, conversational writing style unless a formal tone is expected. Use bullets, numbered and lettered lists, headings, underlined items, and white space to enhance readability.
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Writing Informational Reports

Summary/Conclusion
When necessary, briefly review the main points and discuss what action will follow. If relevant, express appreciation or describe your willingness to provide further information.

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Writing Informational Reports

Typical informational business reports
Periodic reports
Describe production, sales, shipping, service, and other recurring activities.

Trip, convention, conference reports

Describe an event, summarize three to five main points, itemize expenses, and estimate the events value.

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Writing Informational Reports

Typical informational business reports
Progress and interim reports

Explain continuing projects, including work completed, work in progress, future activities, and completion date.

Investigative reports

Examine problems and supply facts; provide little analysis.

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Student Progress Report

DATE: TO: FROM: SUBJECT:
~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~

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Background
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Work Completed
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Student Progress Report

~~~~~~~~~~

Page 2

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Work To Be Completed
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Writing Analytical Reports

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Writing Analytical Reports

Introduction
Explain why the report is being written. For research studies, include the significance, scope, limitations, and methodology of the investigation. Preview the reports organization. For receptive audiences, summarize the conclusions and recommendations.

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Writing Analytical Reports

Findings
Discuss the pros and cons of each alternative. For receptive audiences, consider placing the recommended alternative last. Establish criteria to evaluate alternatives. In yardstick studies create criteria to use in measuring each alternative consistently.

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Writing Analytical Reports

Findings
Support the findings with evidence: facts, statistics, expert opinion, survey data, and other proof. Use headings, enumerations, lists, tables, and graphics to focus attention.

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Writing Analytical Reports

Conclusions/Recommendations
Develop reasonable conclusions that answer the research question. Justify the conclusions with highlights from the findings. Make recommendations, if asked. Use action verbs. Explain needed action.

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Writing Analytical Reports

Typical analytical business reports
Justification/recommendation reports
Make recommendations to management; provide data to solve problems and make decisions.

Feasibility reports
Analyze problems and predict whether alternatives will be practical or advisable.

Yardstick reports
Establish criteria and evaluate alternatives by measuring against the yardstick criteria.

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Audience Analysis and Report Organization

If readers are informed

Report
-----Main Idea --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If readers are supportive

Direct Pattern

If readers are eager to have results first

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Audience Analysis and Report Organization

If readers need to be educated

Report
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Main Idea ----

If readers need to be persuaded

Indirect Pattern

If readers may be hostile or disappointed

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Applying the Writing Process to Reports

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5 Step 6 Step 7 Analyze the problem and purpose. Anticipate the audience and issues. Prepare a work plan. Implement your research strategy. Organize, analyze, interpret, illustrate the data. Compose the first draft. Revise, proofread, and evaluate.
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Work Plan for a Formal Report

Statement of problem Statement of purpose Sources and methods of data collection Tentative outline Work schedule

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Researching Report Data

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Researching Report Data

Locating secondary print data
Books card catalog, online catalog Periodicals print indexes, CD-ROM indexes

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Researching Report Data

Locating secondary electronic data
Electronic databases The Internet World Wide Web search tools
Google Ask Jeeves MSN search Yahoo!

Evaluating Web sources

How current is the information? How credible is the author or source? What is the purpose of the site? Do the facts seem reliable?
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Researching Report Data

Tips for searching the Web
Use two or three search tools. Understand case sensitivity. Prefer uncommon words. Omit articles and prepositions. Use wild cards. Know your search tool. Learn basic Boolean search strategies. Bookmark the best pages. Be persistent. Repeat your search a week later.
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Researching Report Data

Researching primary data
Surveys Interviews Observation Experimentation

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Documenting Data

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Documenting Data
Reasons for crediting sources
Strengthens your argument Gives you protection Instructs readers

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Documenting Data
Learning 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

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Dont Document These

Your own ideas. Common knowledge (i.e., what an average college graduate who hasnt done this research would know). Information youve found in multiple sources (e.g., Shakespeare died in 1616), unless its controversial (e.g., Shakespeares plays were written by Queen Elizabeth).

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Documenting Data
Manual note taking suggestions
Record all major ideas from various sources on separate note cards. Include all publication data along with precise quotations. Consider using one card color for direct quotes and a different color for your paraphrases and summaries.

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Documenting Data
Electronic notetaking suggestions
Begin your research by setting up a folder on your hard-drive that will contain your data. Create separate subfolders for major topics, such as Introduction, Body, and Closing. When on the Web or in electronic databases you find information you may be able to use, highlight (i.e., drag with your mouse) the passages you want to save, copy them (using control-c), paste them (using control-v) into documents that you will save in appropriate subfolders.
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Documenting Data
Be sure to include all publication data. Consider archiving on a Zip disk the Web pages or articles used in your research in case the data must later be verified.

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Documenting Data
Learn to paraphrase
Read the original material carefully so that you can comprehend its full meaning. Write your own version without looking at the original. Do not repeat the grammatical structure of the original, and do not merely replace words of the original with synonyms. Reread the original to be sure you covered the main points but did not borrow specific language.

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Three Major Systems

English, foreign language, and humanities scholars use the Modern Language Association (MLA) citation system. Journalists and scholars in history, art, and philosophy follow The Chicago Style Manual. Researchers in psychology and other social sciences use the American Psychological Association (APA) style.
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Chicago manual

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 Use superscript (raised number in the text) Use foot notes / end notes Reference contains authors name, title of publication, date and page cited Number citations through out For footnotes leave 1 & half inch line Supply the list of references (Bibliography) at the end of report.

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Sample note:
4. Donald N. McCloskey, Enterprise and Trade in Victorian Britain: Essays in Historical Economics (London: George Allen and Unwin, 1981), 54.

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 Make it at the last page Centre the heading in capital 2 inch from the top page Include all references cited in the report Arrange items alphabetically by authors last name or by the first entry of reference Single space within and double space between references Indent the second and succeeding lines of references.
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Sample bibliographic entry:

McCloskey, Donald N. Enterprise and Trade in Victorian England: Essays in Historical Economics. London: George Allen and Unwin, 1981.

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Chicago manual of style format

Note form numbered Bibliographic form
yalphabetized
[When alphabetizing, use the author's last name for your entry; if it is not given, simply go on to the next item in order (the title of the book or article, for example) and use that to alphabetize the entry.]

yauthor = first name and then last name ylocation of publication, publisher, and year in parentheses yuses commas to separate items

yauthor = last name, comma, then first name yno parentheses for location, publisher, and year yuses periods to separate items ylists entire books, complete chapters, or journal articles to which you referred yfirst line not indented; subsequent lines are indented 5 spaces

lists specific pages from which you took information

yfirst line indented 5 spaces; subsequent lines are not

Sample note: 4. Donald N. McCloskey, Enterprise and Trade in Victorian Britain: Essays in Historical Economics (London: George Allen and Unwin, 1981), 54.

Sample bibliographic entry: McCloskey, Donald N. Enterprise and Trade in Victorian England: Essays in Historical Economics. London: George Allen and Unwin, 1981.

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APA

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 Start the reference list on a new page Type the word References center top of page Double space ALL LINES between and within entries Use a hanging indent format Arrange alphabetically If same first author arrange by year of publication

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Citation Essentials
You must give enough information in the parenthetical cite for the reader to locate the entry in the reference list without difficulty. Include the last name of author(s), date of publication and page number at an appropriate point in text. Eg. (Collins, 2000, p. 232)

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Citation Essentials
If you cannot find an author, cite the first few words of the reference list entry (usually the title and year).

Eg. The homepage of UW-Green Bays

Professional Program in Nursing (2003) has a PowerPoint presentation about APA format (American Psychological Association Writing, 2003).

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The List of References

The reference list at the end of the paper provides sufficient information for readers to identify and retrieve each source. The reference list includes only sources cited in the text. All references cited in the text must appear in the reference list.

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Preparing the Reference List

Arrange entries in alphabetical order by surname of the first author. APA guidelines specify additional rules for special cases. (e.g., multiple works by same author). Entries are single spaced, double spaced between entries, with the second and subsequent lines indented five spaces.

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Examples of Source Entries(APA)

A book with one author:
Rodriguez, R. (1982). A hunger of memory: The education of Richard Rodriquez. Boston: Godine.

An article in a magazine:
Auletta, K. (2001, January 15). Final offer. The New Yorker, 40-46.

Part of an online document:

Elston, C. (n.d.). Multiple intelligences. Retrieved June 6, 2001, from http://education.com/teachspace/
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Online Document
Elston. C. (n.d.). Multiple intelligences. Retrieved June 6, 2001, from http://education.com/teachspace/ Provide author, date, title data as for print sources. Add information regarding how and when you retrieved the source. If source has no publication date, use n.d.

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MLA style

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Works Cited
Most citations should contain the following basic information: Authors name Title of work Publication information

Citation Essentials
You must give enough information in the parenthetical cite for the reader to locate the entry in the reference list without difficulty. Include the last name of author(s) & page number at an appropriate point in text. Omit commas
More than one author with the same last name (W. Wordsworth 23); (D. Wordsworth 224) More than one work by the same author (Joyce, Portrait 121); (Joyce, Ulysses 556) Different volumes of a multivolume work (1: 336) Citing indirect sources (Johnson qtd. in Boswell 2:450) 58

Citation Essentials
If the source has no known author, then use an abbreviated version of the title: Full Title: California Cigarette Tax Deters Smokers Citation: (California A14) If the source is only one page in length or is a web page with no apparent pagination: Source: Dave Polands Hot Button web column Citation: (Poland)

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Works Cited: Some Examples

Book Byatt, A. S. Babel Tower. New York: Random House, 1996. Article in a Magazine Klein, Joe. Dizzy Days. The New Yorker 5 Oct. 1998: 40-45. Web page Poland, Dave. The Hot Button. Roughcut. 26 Oct. 1998. Turner Network Television. 28 Oct. 1998 <www.roughcut.com>.

Dawoud, Khaled. "Control without Bounds?" Al-Ahram Weekly Online 4-10 July 2002. 4 Feb. 2003 <http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2002/593/eg6.htm>.

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End

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