Business Communication: Process and Product, 3e

1
Reports Research, Format, and Tone
Includes materials from Guffey Chapters 12, 13,
and 14
2
What Are Business Reports?

• Business reports are systematic attempts to
  answer questions and solve problems. They include
  the following activities.

3
Audience Analysis and Report Organization
4
Audience Analysis and Report Organization
5
Report Components

• Refer to separate packet

6
Formal Report Tone

• Goal come across as objective and credible
• Avoid first-person pronouns (I, we, me, my, us,
  our)
• Use second-person pronouns as needed(he, she,
  they)
• Use it, not they when referring to the company

7
Formal Report Tone

• Avoid attributing action to the company (it is
  inanimate)
• Use the client(s) (or names)
• Use your consulting name to refer to yourselves
  and/or use the analysts

8
Formal Report Tone

• Avoid passive voice
• Not
• Periodicals were consulted
• The study was conducted
• Instead
• Periodicals indicated
• The study revealed

9
Formal Report Tone

• Be consistent in tense
• Use past-tense to describe completed actions (the
  respondents said, the study showed)
• Use present-tense to explain current actions (the
  purpose of this report is to.., this table
  shows)
• Use present-tense in conclusions and
  recommendations
• When citing references use past-tense verbs
  (Jones reported that)
• DONT switch back and forth between tenses in a
  sentence

10
Highlighting Making Your Report Accessible
11
Structural Cues

• Topic Sentences
• Transitions
• Present additional thoughts (additional, again,
  also, moreover)
• Suggest cause and effect (accordingly, as a
  result, consequently, therefore)
• Contrast ideas (however, though, but, at the same
  time)
• Show time and order (after, before, first,
  finally, now, previously, then)
• Clarify points (for example, for instance, in
  other words)

12
Headings

• At least 1 heading per page
• All headings parallel within level
• Do not repeat heading in topic sentence
• Do not use pronoun for heading in topic sentence

13
Levels of Report Headings

• MAJOR SECTION HEADINGS
• Bold, centered, all caps.
• Double-space after (1 blank line)
• Start new page for each
• Use for
• executive summary
• introduction
• research and analysis
• conclusions and recommendations
• appendices

14
Levels of Report Headings

• First-Level Sub-heading
• Left-justified, bold, title case
• Double-space (leaving one blank line) before and
  after.

15
Levels of Report Headings

• Second-Level Sub-heading. Part of the paragraph
  that follows it. Use bold, title case, ending
  with a period.

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RESEARCHING REPORT DATA
17
Secondary Data

• Books
• Periodicals
• Web sites
• How current is the information?
• How credible is the author or source?
• What is the purpose of the site?

18
Researching Primary Data

• Surveys
• Interviews
• Observation
• Experimentation

19
Preparing Effective Surveys
Provide clear instructions
Keep it short and easy to answer
Use questions that are easily tabulated
Avoid leading questions
Ask only one thing at a time
Pretest the questionnaire
20
Next Steps

• Analysis (next lecture)
• Conclusions and Recommendations (next lecture)

21
END