9-4 Preparing Short Informational Reports

- Informational reports often describe periodic, recurring activities (such as monthly

sales or weekly customer calls) as well as situational, nonrecurring events (such as
trips, conferences, and special projects). Short informational reports may include
safety compliance reportsand summaries of longer publications.
- Most informational reports have one thing in common: a neutral or receptive audience.
Thereaders of informational reports do not need to be persuaded; they simply need to
beinformed.
9-4a Trip, Convention, and Conference Reports
- Employees traveling on business to conventions and conferences typically must
submit trip reports, also referred to as conference reports, when they return. These
reports often inform management about business trends, new procedures, innovative
equipment, legal requirements, or other information that would affect their products,
operations, and service.
- The hardest parts of writing these reports are selecting the most relevant material and
organizing it coherently. Generally, it is best not to use chronological sequencing.
Instead, you should focus on three to five topics in which your reader will be
interested.
Here is a general outline for trip, conference, and convention reports:
■ Begin by identifying the event (name, date, and location) and previewing the
topics
that were discussed.
■ In the body summarize the three to five main topics that might benefit the
reader.
Use headings and bullets to enhance readability.
■ Close by expressing appreciation, suggesting action to be taken, or synthesizing
the
value of the trip or event.
■ Itemize your expenses, if requested, on a separate sheet.
9-4b Progress/Interim Reports
- Continuing projects often require progress reports, also known as interim reports, to
describe their status. These reports may be external (notifying customers about the
headway of their projects) or internal (informing management of the status of
activities).
Progress reports typically follow this pattern of development:
■ In the opening specify the purpose and nature of the project.
■ Provide background information if the audience requires filling in.
■ Describe the work completed so far.
■ Explain the work currently in progress, including personnel involved,
activities, methods, and locations.
 ■ Describe current and potential problems and possible remedies.
■ In the closing discuss future activities and provide the expected completion date.
9-4c Minutes of Meetings
- Meeting minutes summarize the proceedings of meetings. Most businesses post
team meeting minutes to intranet sites soon after the meeting ends. The notes are then
accessible to all attendees and absent team members. Companies often use in-house
templates for recording meeting minutes. Formal, traditional minutes are written for
more formal meetings and legislative bodies. If you are assigned to take minutes, you
will want to follow this general pattern:
■ Begin with the name of the group, as well as the date, time, and place of the
meeting.
■ Identify the names of attendees and absentees.
■ State whether the previous minutes were approved or revised.
■ Record briefly the discussions of old business, new business, announcements, and
committee reports.
■ Include the precise wording of motions; record the votes and actions taken.
■ Conclude with the name of the person recording the minutes. Formal minutes
may require a signature.
9-4d Summaries
- A summary compresses the main points from a book, report, article, website, meeting,
or convention. A summary saves time by reducing a report or article by85 to 95
percent
Summary reports of all types follow these general guidelines:
■ State the main idea or purpose as well as the source of the document being
summarized. Why was it written?
■ Highlight the research methods (if appropriate), findings, conclusions, and
recommendations.
■ Omit illustrations, examples, other details, and references.
■ Organize for readability by including headings and bulleted or enumerated lists.
■ Paraphrase accurately from memory without copying passages.
■ Include your reaction or an overall evaluation of the document if asked to do so.
- An executive summary summarizes a long report, proposal, or business plan. It
concentrates on what management needs to know about the full report.
9-5 Preparing Short Analytical Reports
- Analytical reports differ significantly from informational reports. Although the authors
of both seek to collect and present data clearly, writers of analytical reports also
evaluate the data and typically try to persuade the reader to accept the conclusions and
act on the recommendations.
9-5a Justification/Recommendation Reports
- Reports that justify or recommend actions, such as buying equipment, changing a
procedure, filling a position, consolidating departments, or investing funds. These
reports are called justification reports or recommendation reports.
Direct Strategy. For nonsensitive topics and recommendations that will be agreeable to
readers, you can organize directly according to the following order:
1. Identify the problem or need briefly.
2. Announce the recommendation, solution, or action concisely and with action verbs.
3. Explain more fully the benefits of the recommendation or steps necessary to solve the
problem.
4. Include a discussion of pros, cons, and costs.
5. Conclude with a summary specifying the recommendation and necessary action.
Indirect Strategy. When a reader may oppose a recommendation or when circumstances
suggest caution, do not rush to reveal your recommendation. Consider using the following
sequence for an indirect approach to your recommendations:
1. Refer to the problem in general terms, not to your recommendation, in the subject line.
2. Describe the problem or need your recommendation addresses. Use specific examples,
supporting statistics, and authoritative quotes to lend credibility to the seriousness of the
problem.
3. Discuss alternative solutions, beginning with the least likely to succeed.
4. Present the most promising alternative (your recommendation) last.
5. Show how the advantages of your recommendation outweigh its disadvantages.
6. Summarize your recommendation. If appropriate, specify the action it requires.
7. Ask for authorization to proceed if necessary.
9-5b Feasibility Reports
- Feasibility reports examine the practicality and advisability of following a course of
action. They answer this question: Will this plan or proposal work?
- Feasibility reports typically are internal reports written to advise on matters such as
switching to solar energy, offering a wellness program to employees, or hiring an
outside firm to handle a company’s accounting or social media presence.
- These reports may also be written by consultants called in to investigate a problem.
The focus of these reports is on the decision: rejecting or proceeding with the
proposed option. Your role as a report writer is usually not to persuade the reader to
accept the decision; your role is to present information objectively. In writing
feasibility reports, consider these suggestions:
 ■ Announce the decision immediately.
■ Provide a description of the background and problem necessitating the proposal.
■ Discuss the benefits of the proposal.
■ Describe the problems that may result.
■ Calculate the costs associated with the proposal, if appropriate.
■ Show the time frame necessary for implementing the proposal.
9-5c Yardstick Reports
- Yardstick reports examine problems with two or more solutions. To determine the best
solution, the writer establishes criteria by which to compare the available options.
- The real advantage to yardstick reports is that the available options can be measured
consistently using the same criteria. Writers using a yardstick approach typically do
the following:
■ Begin by describing the problem or need.
■ Explain possible options and solutions.
■ Establish criteria for comparing the options; explain how the criteria were
selected or developed.
■ Discuss and evaluate each option in terms of the criteria.
■ Draw conclusions and make recommendations.