Purpose of Report

Report Writing
 A report can be defined as a communication in which

the writer (or speaker if it is an oral report) provides
information to some individual or organization
because it is his or her responsibility to do so.
 It is an assigned communication for a purpose and for

a specific receiver/reader.
 Reports present facts, conclusions and

recommendations based on investigation and analysis
of data obtained by observation of facts.
The Purpose of a Report
 The basic purpose of a report is to help the
management identify the reasons underlying a specific
situation/problem.
 The factors responsible for the problem,
 the alternatives available for solving it, and
 the best course of action to take,
 emerge from a thorough study of all the relevant

facts and factors.
The Purpose of a Report…
The main purpose of a report is to:
present specific conclusions

regarding
the problem’s existence and solution.
Kinds of Reports
 Reports are of two kinds:
 Formal reports that contain all essential elements

of a report.
 Semi-formal/Informal reports.
 Reports are known by the names from which they

get their purpose and form.
 They are usually defined as:

Kinds of Reports…
 Routine reports: reports made by filling in a printed
form.
 Letter reports: reports in the form of letters.
 Memo reports: reports in the form of memos.
 Progress reports: reports on the progress and

status of project.
 Periodic reports: reports for keeping records, made

routinely at regular intervals.
Kinds of Reports…
 Laboratory reports: reports on the results of
laboratory work.
 Short reports: reports that are like formal reports

in tone and other general qualities, but are simpler in
design because they do not have all the front and
back matter and have a shorter main body.
 Formal reports: reports that are impersonal in

tone, detailed, and fully structured.
Kinds of Reports…
The writer of a report in an organization is guided by
the following:
 A specific layout: the sequence in which

information is presented. For instance,
recommendations and conclusions may follow the
discussion.
 Its cover details and terms of reference: this

includes the name of the organization, report code
number, and other related information about the
author, subject and details of submission.
Short Management Reports
 A short report is written either in the form of
memorandum (memo) or a letter.
 Usually reports meant for persons outside the

company or clients are written in letter form.
 Short reports uses the title page or just the report’s

title as the heading or subject.
 Is usually in direct order, beginning with a summary

or a statement summarizing the content.
 Presents findings, analysis, conclusions, and

recommendations.
Long Formal Reports
 Cover  Discussions/description
 Title page  Conclusions
 Acknowledgements  Recommendations
 List of Tables  Bibliography and
References
 List of Figures
 Appendix
 Contents
 Glossary
 Executive summary
 Index.
 Introduction
Long Formal Reports…
The Title Page:The title page includes the following:
 The heading (title of the report), which should be

short and clear.
 The name and affiliation of the author(s).
 The department and date of issue.

Cover Letter:
 The cover letter is usually written by top

management or project guides as a preface or
foreword to a report, reflecting the management’s
policy and interpretation of the report’s findings,
conclusions, and recommendations.
 It introduces the report and tells the readers why
it is being sent to them.
 The cover letter is being placed between the

cover and the title page.
 It is never bound inside the report.

Acknowledgements:
 The writer of the report should thank everyone

associated with assignment and preparation of the
report.
 He or she should be generous in expressing

gratitude.
Contents:
 Long reports must have a table of contents placed

after the acknowledgements and before the executive
summary.
 The table of contents indicates the hierarchy of

topics, their sequence, page numbers and mentions
the main sections of the report exactly as they are
worded in the text.
Abstract and Executive Summary:
 An abstract or executive summary comes

immediately after the list of tables in the table of
contents.
 Normally a report has either an abstract or an

executive summary, based on the length of the
report and expectations of readers.
 An abstract is a summary of a report’s most
important points.
 An executive summary gives a more detailed

overview of a report than an abstract does.
 Introduction: It discuss about the problem,

objectives, significance, Literature review etc. of the
study.
 Discussion and Analysis of findings: It discusses
about the analysis and interpretation of data and
findings of the report.
 Conclusion and Recommendations: The

conclusion of the findings of the report and
recommendations for further improvement.
Bibliography and References:
 All published and unpublished sources of information

used in preparing the report are listed in the
bibliography.
 All reference documents, previous reports, books,

periodicals, and even letters written and received by
the writer are mentioned in it.
Appendix:
 It usually includes the text of questionnaires or

instruments of survey.
 Tables, flow charts, maps, summaries of raw data,

and details of mathematical formulation are
generally included in the appendix.
Glossary:
 The glossary is the list of technical or special terms

used in a report or technical paper and is placed at
the end of a report, before the index.
 It alphabetically lists words or phrases that need

special attention.
 It explains the usage of technical terms peculiar to

the industry.
Index:
 An index (plural indexes or indices) is an

alphabetical list of subjects, names, and so on,
(subject index, company/corporate index, author
index etc.) with references to page numbers where
they occur in the report or book.
 It is usually placed at the end.

 It should not be confused with the table of contents,
which always appears at the beginning of the report
or book.
Eg: In a book’s index, the entry “Research questions

34a – 675” means that the topic of research
questions is discussed on page 675 under section 34a.
Annual Report
 An annual report is a comprehensive report on
a company's activities throughout the preceding year.
 Annual reports are intended to give shareholders and

other interested people information about the
company's activities and financial performance and
future direction.
 The front part of the report often contains an

impressive combination of graphics, photos and an
accompanying narrative, all of which chronicle the
company's activities over the past year.
Annual Report…
 The back part of the report contains detailed financial
and operational information.
 Typically, an annual report will contain the following

sections:
 Financial Highlights
 Letter to the Shareholders
 Narrative Text, Graphics and Photos

Annual Report…
 Management's Discussion and Analysis
 Financial Statements
 Notes to Financial Statements
 Auditor's Report
 Summary Financial Data
 Corporate Information.
Status Report
 A status report is a simple document that exists
between the project manager, the client and the
internal team,
 to periodically update everyone as to where the

project is in relation to where it should be at that
point in time.
 Put the most important information in a summary at

the start of the report. .
Status Report…
 Follow up with key details that discuss project details
in terms of accomplishments and challenges.
 Keep things brief but informative.

Survey Report
 A survey report is based on some survey conducted
by either an individual or a group of individual or an
organization on a given problem.
 It presents and analyze the results / findings of a

research based on the information gathered from
door to door surveys through a detailed
questionnaire,
 concerning reactions to a product, service etc.,

including general assessment,
 conclusions and suggestions or recommendation(s).

References
 Courtland L. Bovee, John V Thill, Business Communication Today,
Prentice Hall International
 Raymond V Lesikaret. al., Connecting in a Digital World, 13e,Tata

McGraw Hill, New Delhi.
 Guffey Mary Ellen, Business Communication, South-Western Collage

publishing
 Meenakshi Raman, Sangeetha Sharma, Technical Communication-

Principles and Practice, Oxford
 Argenti Paul A, Irwin, Corporate Communication, McGraw Hill.
 Atkinson, Reynolds, Business Writing & Procedures, American Book

Co.
MACFAST
Thank You…
Dr. Ajai Krishnan G

Purpose of Report

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Report Writing

 A report can be defined as a communication in which

 It is an assigned communication for a purpose and for

 Reports present facts, conclusions and

 The factors responsible for the problem,

 the alternatives available for solving it, and

 the best course of action to take,

 emerge from a thorough study of all the relevant

present specific conclusions

 Formal reports that contain all essential elements

 Reports are known by the names from which they

 They are usually defined as:

 Letter reports: reports in the form of letters.

 Memo reports: reports in the form of memos.

 Progress reports: reports on the progress and

 Periodic reports: reports for keeping records, made

 Short reports: reports that are like formal reports

 Formal reports: reports that are impersonal in

 A specific layout: the sequence in which

 Its cover details and terms of reference: this

 Usually reports meant for persons outside the

 Short reports uses the title page or just the report’s

 Is usually in direct order, beginning with a summary

 Presents findings, analysis, conclusions, and

 The heading (title of the report), which should be

 The name and affiliation of the author(s).

 The department and date of issue.

 The cover letter is usually written by top

 The cover letter is being placed between the

 It is never bound inside the report.

 The writer of the report should thank everyone

 He or she should be generous in expressing

 Long reports must have a table of contents placed

 The table of contents indicates the hierarchy of

 An abstract or executive summary comes

 Normally a report has either an abstract or an

 An executive summary gives a more detailed

 Introduction: It discuss about the problem,

 Conclusion and Recommendations: The

 All published and unpublished sources of information

 All reference documents, previous reports, books,

 It usually includes the text of questionnaires or

 Tables, flow charts, maps, summaries of raw data,

 The glossary is the list of technical or special terms

 It alphabetically lists words or phrases that need

 It explains the usage of technical terms peculiar to

 An index (plural indexes or indices) is an

 It is usually placed at the end.

Eg: In a book’s index, the entry “Research questions

 Annual reports are intended to give shareholders and

 The front part of the report often contains an

 Typically, an annual report will contain the following

 Letter to the Shareholders

 Narrative Text, Graphics and Photos

 Notes to Financial Statements

 Summary Financial Data

 to periodically update everyone as to where the

 Put the most important information in a summary at

 Keep things brief but informative.

 It presents and analyze the results / findings of a

 concerning reactions to a product, service etc.,

 conclusions and suggestions or recommendation(s).

 Raymond V Lesikaret. al., Connecting in a Digital World, 13e,Tata