REPORT WRITING

LIKE A BATHING SUIT,A REPORT COVERS EVERYTHING THAT HAS TO BE COVERED, BUT NOTHING MORE -H A SHEARRING AND B C CHRISTIAN

What is Report?


A Report is a major form of technical/ business/ professional communication. It is a piece of technical writing, designed to serve specific needs. The word report is derived from the Latin Reportare which means, to carry back (re=back+ portare=to carry). A report, therefore, is a description of an event or phenomenon, carried back to someone, who was not present on the scene.

Characteristics of a Report


Precise & Concise Factual (Scientific Accuracy) Relevant ReaderReader-Oriented Objective & homogenous Simple and Unambiguous Grammatical Accuracy Special Format

Purpose of A Report
Report is primarily a source of information to the management or an individual to help in decision-making. It can be used also decisionfor offering a solution to a business problem. Its purpose can be:


To provide information about a company s activities, progress, plans and problems. To record events for future reference in decision making. To recommend specific action. To justify and persuade readers about the need for action in controversial situations. To present facts to the management to help decide the direction, the business should choose.

Kinds of Reports
Formal reports that contain all essential elements of a report.

SemiSemi-formal/informal reports.

Formal Report


A Formal Report may consist of all or some of the following parts: title page, authorization message, transmittal message, table of contents, list of illustrations, abstract, body, glossary, appendix, and bibliography or reference list. The body of the report will span several pages and include multiple levels of headings. Content could be drawn from primary and/or secondary sources.

Three Levels of Formal Reports:

Reports can provide: 1. Information only  Sales Reports (sales figures for the week or month).  Quarterly Reports (figures showing a plant s productivity and profits for the quarter).

2.

Information plus analysis Annual reports (financial data and an organization s accomplishments during the past year). Audit reports (interpretations of the facts revealed during an audit). MakeMake-good or pay-back reports pay(calculations of the point at which a new capital investment will pay for itself).

3.Information plus analysis plus recommendation



Feasibility reports evaluate two or more alternatives and recommend which alternative the organization should choose. Justification reports justify the need for a purchase, an investment, a new personnel line, or a change in procedure. ProblemProblem-solving reports identify the causes of an organizational problem and recommend a solution.

Informal Reports


Informal Reports are generally brief. They can consist of a body and a title page or a body only; informal reports often are letters. formatted as memos or letters.

Memo Reports communicate information to individuals within an organization. This style is used primarily for reporting routine information concerning day-to-day operations or to provide a day-towritten record. Letter reports use a letter format to present information and make recommendations to individuals outside an organization; a subject line may be used to identify the topic of the report.