LIB300_Understanding, Planning and Writing Reports and Proposals

Understanding and
Planning Reports and
Proposal
Week 8

What is a ‘report’?
“A report is a written message presenting information that
will help a decision maker to solve business problems”.
(Ricks & Gow, 2012)
Reports are analytical in nature, longer than letters and
memos and contains detailed discussion.
Locker, O.K. and Kaczmarek, K.S. (2011). Business Communication: Building Critical Skills. (5th Ed.). NY, Mass. McGraw-Hill / Irwin.

Purpose
of a
Report
Provide the relevant details of an
activity to a specific audience
What is the audience?
• Depends on circumstances
Instructor
• Interested in your methodology and results
will be checking this against standard results
Boss
• Interested in conclusions and implications

Content
I. ReportsThree Basic Categories
II.Three-stepWriting Process to
Reports and Proposals
A. Plan
1. Analyzing the situation
2. Gathering Information
3. Selecting the Right Medium
4. Organizing the information
5. SupportingYour Message with
Reliable Information
B. Write
C. Complete

What are the three
Categories of
Reports?

3 Basic Categories of Reports
• Offer data, facts, feedback, and other types of information, without
analysis or recommendations
Informational reports
• Offer both information and analysis and can also include
recommendations
Analytical reports
• Present persuasive recommendations to internal or external
audiences, often involving investments or purchases
Proposals
Bovee, C., &Thill, John. (2012). Business Communication Essentials (5th Ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J: Prentice Hall

Informational Reports
Offer data, facts feedback and other types of
information without analysis or recommendations
Reports to Monitor and Control Operations
Reports to Implement Policies and Procedures
Reports to Demonstrate Compliance
Reports to Document Progress

Analytical Reports
Offer information and analysis; can also include
recommendations
Reports to Assess Opportunities
Reports to Solve Problems
Reports to Support Decisions

Proposals
Feature persuasive requests for decisions or
action
Internal Proposals
External Proposals

1. Analyzing the
Situation
Pay attention to your
statement of purpose,
which explains why you are
preparing the report and
what you plan to deliver.

To identify potential markets for our new
phone-based videogames
To update the board directors on the progress
of the research project
To submit required information to the
Securities and Exchange Commission
Report sample statement purpose.

To secure funding in next year’s budget for new
conveyor systems in the warehouse
To get management approval to reorganize the
North American sales force
To secure $2million from outside investors to start
production of the new titanium mountain bike
A proposal must also be guided by a clear
statement or purpose to help you focus on
crafting a persuasive message.

2. Gathering
Information
Some reports require
formal research projects
in order to gather all the
necessary information.

3. Selecting the
right medium
The best medium for any given
report might be anything from a
professionally printed and bound
document to an online executive
dashboard that displays nothing
but report highlights.

4. Organizing your information
• Present the reports’ recommendation, followed by the
conclusions that lead to the recommendation
Direct approach
• Introduce the topic but no conclusions are drawn
immediately, the conclusions and the ultimate
recommendation appear later, in the body of the report.
IndirectApproach

4.1
Organizing
Informational
Reports
Comparison
• Showing similarities and differences, advantages and
disadvantages
Importance
• Building up from the least important item to the most
Important or vice versa
Sequence
• Organizing the steps or stages in a process or
procedure
Chronology
• Organizing a chain of events in order from oldest to
Newest or vice versa
Geography
• Organizing by region, city, state, country, or another
Geographic unit
Category
• Grouping a topical category, such as sales, profit, cost
or investment

Exercise: For each sentence, identify the
correct logical order: comparison, importance
, sequence, chronology, geography, and
category
1. You must prepare a status report to
account for daily activities.
2. You must examine how three
companies solved the same
problem.
3. You must write a report to discuss
your department’s major projects.
4. You develop a set of instructions for
an on-the-job training manual.
5. You attended a meeting
representing your boss, and you are
now writing a memo to your boss
about what happened.

Introduction
Conclusion
Support the conclusion with evidence
Support the conclusion with evidence
Complete the report by highlighting
areas that still need improvement
Summary
4.2 Organizing Analytical Reports
•Focusing on Conclusions
When you’re addressing a receptive audience
Example:

4.2 OrganizingAnalytical Reports
Establish
Establish the need
for action in the
introduction by
describing the
problem or
opportunity
Introduce
Introduce the
benefits that can
be achieved if the
recommendation is
adopted, along
with any potential
risks.
List
List the steps
(recommendations
) required to
achieve the
benefit, using
action verbs for
emphasis
Explain
Explain each step
more fully, giving
details on
procedures, costs,
and benefits; if
necessary also
explain how risks
can be minimized.
Summarize
Summarize your
recommendations
Focusing on Recommendations
When readers want to know what you think they should do

4.2 Organizing Analytical
Reports
Focusing on Logical Arguments
• When readers are potentially skeptical,
consider using the indirect approach to
logically build toward your conclusion or
recommendation.
• Demonstrate everything that adds up to
your conclusion and use a number of
criteria to decide which option to select
from two or more possibilities.

Practice
1. In which area in Australia should
Starbucks expand its branches to take
advantage of its larger research
budget?
2. What are the causes of the decrease in
enrollment of XYZ University and how
can this problem be avoided in the
future?
3. There has been an issue of excessive
use of ink and papers in printing and
photocopying classroom materials.
Should ABC University make use of
wireless facilities to reduce the costs
associated with using printers and
papers despite the fact that there
maybe some risks in running a
paperless university?

Organizing Proposals
I. Introduce what the proposal is all about and write a
clear statement and thesis statement.
II. Highlight the serious nature of the problem and
explain how the information used in the analysis is
collected.
III. Describe the problem(s) and explain how it occurred,
without blaming anyone personally and provide
example
IV. Provide the recommendations/proposed solutions and
explain how it will solve the problem. Provide evidence
using APA citation and referencing.
V. Provide an opposing argument but refute back to your
main proposed solutions.
VI. Neatly summarize both problem and the
recommended solution and call to action

Thesis
Statements
AnalyticalThesis Statement (analyse)
• Example 1: Korean food has become more popular over the
last few years because its fresh ingredients and quick
preparation provides an excellent alternative to processed fast
foods.
• Example 2: In modern times, yoga is often viewed as an
activity exclusively for women, but its history shows that it was
developed primarily by men.
Expository Thesis Statement (explain)
• Example 1: Korean food has many health benefits due to its
fresh ingredients, use of lean meats and uncomplicated
preparation.
• Example 2: Yoga is a form of spiritual practice, which can
equally benefit the mind and body as well as the spirit.
Proposal Thesis Statement (argue)
• Example 1: Korean food needs to be recognized along side
other world cuisines because of its extensive history, its
interesting use of ingredients, and its unique distinction from
other Asian cuisines.
• Example 2: More university students should take up yoga, as
it is a great way to reduce stress, maintain physical health, and
establish a strong sense of self.

How to write a thesis statement
• One method of writing a thesis statement comes
in the form of “X is Y because Z.”
"X" is your main subject
"Y" describes your main subject
"Z" provides the reasons about the description.
For example
Fast food negatively effects our health
because of its many processed ingredients.

Thesis statements: examples
• Weak
The technological changes of the last one hundred years have been
amazing.
This is a huge topic, covering everything from genetically
modified foods in India to the iPod. Choose one kind of
technology or one perspective.
• Strong
Over the last 10 years, changes in wireless technology have made a
profound difference in the way American college students study and
communicate.
Over the last 10 years, changes in wireless technology have made a
profound difference in the way American college students study and
communicate.
“X is Y because Z.”

• Weak
Drunk driving is a serious problem with long-lasting consequences.
Does anyone not believe that drunk driving is serious? Since all that’s really
argued about is how to stop it, that’s what a paper on the topic should
focus on.
• Strong
An offender’s driver’s license should be automatically suspended after a drunk
driving conviction in order to deter teenagers from dangerous behavior.
An offender’s driver’s license should be automatically suspended after a drunk
driving conviction in order to deter teenagers from dangerous behavior.

• Weak
This paper will first suggest qualities essential to a good corporate manager
and then discuss how those qualities contribute to overall management
style.
Merely provides a “roadmap” but no controversy or tension.
• Strong
Character qualities that make corporate managers successful often make
their management styles ineffective.
Character qualities that make corporate managers successful often make
their management styles ineffective.

Thesis statement writing practice
• Technology has a lot of negative effects on human behavior today.
• WatchingTV can be good for children.
• Teenagers today don’t like reading books.
Explain why each of the thesis statements below are weak.Then,
rewrite each statement so that it is makes a strong argument.

LIB300_Understanding, Planning and Writing Reports and Proposals

More Related Content

Similar to LIB300_Understanding, Planning and Writing Reports and Proposals

More from SvetlanaPozhidaeva1

Recently uploaded

LIB300_Understanding, Planning and Writing Reports and Proposals

Editor's Notes