BUSINESS REPORTS

Business Reports:
A business report may be defined as an orderly and objective presentation of information, that helps in decision making and problem solving.

Business Reports
A report varies in purpose, length, format and complexity.
y Inform y Analyze y Persuade

Length, format and complexity

y Memo report y Letter report y Manuscript reports

Types Of Business Purpose Reports

y Informational y Analytical y persuasive reports

Frequency of preparation
y annual, monthly, weekly and hourly reports

Length
y short and long reports

Internal / External

 Periodic reports

Types Of Business Reports

Routine management reports Compliance reports Progress reports

 Proposals  Policies and Procedures  Situational reports

Parts of Report:
Preliminary Parts
y Cover page y Frontispiece y Title Page y Letter of Transmittal/ forwarding letter y Preface y Acknowledgements y Table of Contents y List of illustration y The Executive Summary or abstract

Body of the Report

y Introduction y Problem Statement y Research Methodology y Analysis, Findings y Conclusions y Recommendations

Parts of Report
Appendix Bibliography or References Glossary Index

A Letter of Transmittal accompanies a business report and may take the form of a simple memo with the following parts:
TO: Dr. Rose Norman FROM: Heather Cross DATE: June 24, 2008 SUBJECT: EH 501 Final Report: An Analysis of Training Manuals for Peer Tutors in Post-secondary Writing Centers [Open with an overview.] Enclosed you will find my final report for EH 501 entitled "An Analysis of Training Manuals for Peer Tutors in PostSecondary Writing Centers" due December 7, 1999. [Then state your main finding] From interviews with five writing center directors and four consultants, I found that each writing center has its own unique circumstances for training. The manuals from these same writing centers do contain some consistent areas of attention. The manual produced for the University of Alabama in Huntsville Writing Center should reflect these findings. [Then comes the descriptive abstract.] The purpose of this report is to develop recommendations for a new training manual for peer tutors in a post-secondary writing center. Initially the report gives a brief description of the writing center environment, pedagogy, and theory. For the specific application of peer tutor training, the findings from interviews with Dr. Diana Calhoun Belldirector of the UAH Writing Center, directors of other writing centers, and consultants are presented. The report compares information from these practitioner inquiries with the content and form of the sample manuals obtained from three other university writing centers and with the existing UAH manual. The report concludes with recommendations for the UAH Writing Centers Training Manual. [Then add whatever else you need to say.] After an initial email request to twenty-five writing centers, I was able to collect three peer tutor training manuals and receive answers to interview questions from two other directors. I interviewed four consultants in the UAH Writing Center using an abbreviated form of the questions. Dr. Bell has continued to express interest in this study and its continuation into an actual product. I hope to undertake the writing of the UAH Writing Center Consultant Training Manual as an independent study in the next semester. Enclosure: Final Report (2 Copies)

Components in Formal and Informal Reports

Body

Bibliography Appendix Recommendations

Conclusions

Introduction Executive summary

List of figures Table of contents Letter of transmittal Title page Cover

Generally appear in both formal and informal reports:

Optional in informal reports:

 Planning the report type of report that is required problem

audience analysis

Steps in Report Preparation:

 Selecting a method to solve the problem Primary/secondary  Gathering and organizing data  Arriving at a conclusion  Writing the report

Steps in Report Preparation:

 Writing the report Set a date for completion of the report & get started early Start with an easy section Write quickly, with the intention of rewriting Set aside uninterrupted writing time Review and rewrite where necessary State facts in an objective manner Provide expert opinions Use documentation Footnotes Use concrete nouns Avoid pronouns referring to the writer or reader Use tenses correctly Use transition sentences Define key terms carefully