Report Writing: A Survival Guide

By Rhonda Rhodes

Employers continue to say that written and oral communication skills are the most important skills for employees. This book presents the basics for writing any kind of report, such as research reports, proposals, case studies, business plans, technical reports, feasibility studies and more. Both novice and experienced writers will benefit from the book. Checklists are included to assist writers in perfecting their reports.

The book includes:

Organizing purpose, types, formats, parts
Starting planning, researching, referencing, avoiding plagiarism
Referencing basic steps, reference management software, citing sources, using style manuals, APA reference list, avoiding plagiarism
Writing objectivity, conciseness, coherence, emphasis, variety, comprehensive
Polishing abbreviations, acronyms, capitalization, italics, numbers, punctuation, spelling, word division
Producing fonts, color, paper, layout, graphics
Finishing editing, proofreading

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Jan 19, 2015
• ISBN: 9781450068949

Book preview

Report Writing

A Survival Guide

Joyce Kupsh and Rhonda Rhodes

Copyright © 2015 by Joyce Kupsh and Rhonda Rhodes.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2010906992

ISBN:      Hardcover      978-1-4500-6893-2

               Softcover        978-1-4500-6892-5

               eBook              978-1-4500-6894-9

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Second Edition

Xlibris

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

585355

Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction

Chapter 1 Organizing

Purposes

Inform

Interpret

Recommend

Persuade

Types of Reports

Research Report

Case Study Analysis

Case Study

Feasibility Study

Strategic Plan

Business Plan

Business Proposal

Evaluation Report

Synthesis Report

Assessment/Audit Report

Technical Report

Follow-up Report

Press Release

Miscellaneous

Format Styles

E-mail, Memo, Letter

Form

Report

Newsletter

Brochure

Magazine, Booklet, or Manual

Social Media

Parts of a Report

Executive Summary/Abstract

Contents

Introduction

Body

Appendices

Bibliography/References/Resources

Chapter 2 Starting

Planning

Purposes or Objectives

Target Audience

Time Schedule

Overall Plan

Researching

Secondary Data

Primary Data

Outlining

Preparation

Evaluation

Chapter 3 Referencing

Quotations

Paraphrases

Summaries

Reference Management Software

Citing Sources

Parenthetical

Endnotes

Footnotes

Using Style Manuals

APA Reference List

Avoiding Plagiarism

Chapter 4 Writing

Objectivity

Conciseness

Irrelevant Information

Redundancy

Clutter and Clichés

Extra Phrases

Implied Ideas

Abstract or General Words

Coherence

Repetition

Transition

Tone

Positive versus Negative

Active versus Passive

Expletives

Pronouns

Bias-Free Language

Emphasis

Variety

Comprehensive

Chapter 5 Polishing

Abbreviations

Acronyms

Capitalization

Italics

Numbers

Punctuation

Apostrophe

Colon

Comma

Dash

Diagonal

Ellipsis

Exclamation Point

Hyphen

Parentheses

Period

Question Mark

Quotation Marks

Semicolon

Spelling

Word Division

Chapter 6 Producing

Fonts

Classifications

Variations

Sizes

Line Spacing

Alignment

Color

Paper

Type

Weight

Size

Layout

Page Orientation

Margins

Column Size

Blank Space

Headings and Subheadings

Page Numbers

Headers and Footers

Binding

Cover

Graphics

Chapter 7 Finishing

Editing

Substance

Style

Consistency

Proofreading

Techniques

Tips

Checklists

Acknowledgements

We truly appreciate the suggestions and comments from our reviewers:

Dr. Nancy Merlino

College of Agriculture

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

Leanne Powers

College of Business Administration

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

Dr. Harry Smallenberg

Pasadena Community College

Andi Gray

K and A General Contracting

Cornville, Arizona

Graduate and Undergraduate Students

California State Polytechnic University

Pomona, California

A special thank you goes to Joe Cruz for the artwork.

Joyce Kupsh – [e-mail]

Rhonda Rhodes – [e-mail]

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Introduction

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M any methods of communicating are used in the twenty-first century. Telephones, letters, reports, and faxes are still used; but now we use

text messaging, instant messaging, e-mail, voice mail, Facebook, and Twitter. These new methods have a language entirely different from the established communication language of the working world.

However, in order to succeed in college, on the job, and in life, you must be able to produce a top-notch report. Effective reports are planned, researched, outlined, referenced, and formatted for their particular purpose and audience. A report can be one page or numerous pages. But all reports should include correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling, as well as objectivity, conciseness, thoroughness, coherence, and an eye-catching format. You must be aware of the types, format choices, and the parts of a report.

Report Writing—A Survival Guide will help you with the foundation of producing an effective report. Whether you are writing a case study, a research report, or a strategic plan, the Checklists at the end of the book will help ensure your written communication is successful for its intended purpose. The material appears in an orderly arrangement. However, you may choose to refer to a particular section as needed.

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Chapter 1

Organizing

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O rganizing means to arrange or order things so that they can be found or used easily and quickly, according to Merriam Webster Dictionary.

The time you spend thinking and arranging—organizing—will payoff throughout the completion of your report. When organizing a report, you need to think about the

• Purpose of the report

• Type of report that works best

• Format that will be the most effective.

Purposes

All reports are written for a reason. The reason may be to inform, interpret, recommend, persuade, or some combination of these reasons.

Inform

Written communications that inform may tell the status or progress of a situation. Social media is a popular means of informing in today’s technology world. Examples of social media are Facebook, which informs friends of our status, LinkedIn, which is used by people in the business world, or Twitter, which shares an opinion in 144 characters or less. Even though the various types of social media inform, they require special care in their organization and writing of reports.

Examples of various types of reports that inform are as follows:

• Company annual report—tells the shareholders the status of the    company.

• Sales report—provides the sales performance for a week/    month/year.

• Construction report—updates the progress a company has made    toward completion of the new company headquarters.

• Procedures—includes procedures to be followed.

• Documentation—describes occurrences or events.

• Financial reports—includes such things as income and expense statement, balance sheet, credit standing showing financial position

• Facebook—informs our friends of our personal business and status.

• Twitter—informs in 144 characters or less one’s opinion.

• LinkedIn—informs about jobs, productivity, and other business concerns.

Interpret

Rather than simply stating the condition, interpretive reports advance to a higher level, going beyond the facts and including an analysis or interpretation of the facts. Examples of this type of report are:

• Sales or marketing reports—analyzes the reasons for an increase or decrease in a given period of time.

• Research and development report—describes the performance standards of a new product.

• Scientific or technical reports—investigates