Report Writing

What is a report?

• Factual and objective information systematically

presented

• Orderly presentation of facts about a specific

business activity
 Types of reports

• Formal
• Informal

What’s the difference?

Formal Report: Generally based on projects for long
periods of time.
Informal Report: Brief. Letters (External)
Memo’s (Internal)
Both reports are informational or analytical
• An informational report: presents a situation without evaluation
or recommendations. It gives a detailed account of activities or
conditions with no attempt to suggest solutions to the problems
but confined to passing on information.
Example: salesman’s expense sheet
• An analytical report: describes a situation and gives an analysis
of a situation and conclusions and recommendations. The
analytical report is the basis of a decision
Example: Reports on the market potential of a new product.
 Steps in writing reports

Before writing a report ask yourselves the following

questions:
1. What is the purpose of writing the report
2. What problem/s are you expected to solve
3. Is it to pass on information or persuade someone to
take a particular course of action
4. Who are your readers
5. When is the report due
Writing down a statement of purpose helps to be
precise and focused
 Characteristics of a good report

• Information is accurate and reliable

• Clarity and concise
• Paragraphs and sentences should logically follow each other and
word should be simple
• A good report is objectively written
Avoid: The working conditions in the factory are appalling
Use: The working conditions in the factory need the immediate
attention of the management
• Information should be conveniently displayed for the reader to
grasp the main points immediately
Example: Headings & Sub-headings, table of contents, lists tables &
graphs to shorten text material, summary etc
 Format of a report

A report has four parts

1. Introduction: State the subject and purpose of the report. It may
also include background information necessary for the reader to
follow the report. Briefly refers to the conclusion to be drawn from
the report.
2. Body of the report: A clearly organised account of the subject of
the report. Example: The results of the survey carried out.
3. The conclusion of the report: A summary of the findings and their
significance
4. Recommendations: suggestions based on the facts of the situation.
Should be specific and positive statements. Example- hiring more
semi-skilled workers to complete the project on time
Conclusions and recommendations form the most important part of a
report.
 Structure of a report

Formal reports are divided into three major parts:

Front Matter
Body and
Back Matter
Front Matter includes:
i) Title page
ii) Summary
iii) Table of contents
iv) List of illustrations
v) List of tables
vi) List of abbreviations
 Title Page

This page is un-numbered and should contain the

following information:
 Title of the report
 The name of the writer
 Date
 Name of the organisation/department for whom the
report is being prepared for
 Sample Title Page
Status report
on
Pesticide Residues
Vis-à-vis

Consumer Protection
Prepared & submitted to the Program Advisory Committee Department of Science and Technology
Government of India, New Delhi
By
Chairman, Working Sub- Group on Pesticide Residue of the Program Advisory Group for the scheme
” Consumer Protection through Science and Technology”
10th June 2008

Published by
Voluntary Health Association of India
 Summary

A summary is nothing more than the entire report in a short form.

Readers should be able to acquire the essential information in
the summary
Summary’s should include:
 Purpose of the report: What is the report about and what is it
designed to do
 Potential use of the report- how can the company use the report
 Company’s problems- What led the company to investigate a
particular problem
 Methodology- briefly mention how information was collected
 Conclusions
 Recommendations
 Implications, for example costs and benefits.
Do not discuss anything in the summary which is not there in the
report
 Sample Summary
This report analyses the failure of electric motors of Hindustan Products
Ltd., during 2005-2008, causing loss of production due to frequent
shutdowns. The recommendations in this report may serve as guidelines
for the selectionof new as well as replacement motors.
Our investigation revealed that the motors were breaking down for the
following reasons:
 The motors were more than 20 years old and not maintained properly
 There was no automatic mechanism for tripping in case of overload
We also found that imported motors performed better under voltage
fluctuations than the indigenous ones.
As a result of these findings and conclusions it is recommended that the
windings of all the old motors be changed and automatic tripping
mechanism be incorporated. Only reliable suppliers like Siemens or
Kirloskars be approached for new motors which are supplied with
mechanisms for tripping in case of an overload.
The additional expenditure now will be beneficial in the long run.
 Table of Contents

The Table of contents begins on a new page. It lists all

the sections of the report in the order of their
occurrence along with the page numbers. Ensure that
in the table of contents the wording of chapters and
their page numbers are identical to those in the text.
 Status report on Pesticide Residues
Contents
Page
Background i
Acknowledgements iv
Introduction 1
Chemical Insecticides in India 2
Insecticide manufacture in India 2
Pesticide registration Committee 3
Aerial Spray(Photo1) 3A
Pesticide containers 3B
Pesticides and Formulations 4
Pesticide Cycle (Figure 1) 27A
Recommendations for action 38
References 40
 List of Illustrations

llustrations include charts graphs drawings and

photographs contained in the body of the report. This
section follows the table of contents and should also
begin on a new page. Figure numbers should be
identical to those in the text.
 List of Tables

The report may also have a list of Tables. It follows the

same layout as that of the List of illustrations
Sample List of Tables
Page
Table 1: Resistance of some chlorinated hydrocarbon 35
insecticides in soil
Table 2: Persistence of organochlorine insecticide 40
 List of Abbreviations

If any abbreviations have been used in the report and

there is a chance that the reader might not be able
to intepret them include a list of abbreviations and
what they stand for. The list of abbreviations should
be included in the front matter of the report.
 The Body of the report

The body of the report is the text itself. It has a beginning, a

middle and an end and includes:
Introduction
Main Body
Conclusions
Recommendations
The introduction will include a fully defined statement of purpose
which includes:
 The purpose of the report
 Potential use of the report
 The Company’s problems
 Your specific assignment
 The organisation of the report-here you may inform the reader
how you have broken down the report- into how many parts and
in what sequence you will discuss each part
Example

This report is divided into two parts:

a) Analysis of the financial performance of the
shiipping division
b) Analysis of the proposed investment in ships
 Sample Introduction

Famous Peoples Miniatures Inc., manufactures miniatures of famous people.

Lack of proper planning has exhausted its initial cash outlay and delayed
payments to suppliers. The bank has refused to give the company a loan
unless the company prepares a master budget. It will also analyse the
cost structure of Famous Peoples Miniatures and prepare its master
budget. Finally the report will inform the management about the role of
the microcomputer in budget preparation
In the body of the text always remember to
keep two things in mind
1. The purpose of the report
2. The requirement of your reader
The end of the body of the report consists of
conclusions and recommendations
Conclusions: Conclusions are intermediate step between
the facts in the report and the recommendations.
Ensure that the conclusion directly answers questions
raised by the problem referred to in the statement
of purpose at the beginning of the report. It is best
to present conclusions in descending order from the
most important to the least important. Be direct and
not non committal like-
It would appear that…..
It seems as if……
 Sample Conclusion
Financing systems and institutional arrangements
For
Water supply and Sanitation
In
Brazil and Mexico
The study of financing systems and institutional arrangements for water supply and
sanitation in Brazil and Mexico reveals that there is keen awareness in those
countries of the importance of these services for ensuring quality of life for the
people. It is also recognised that the provision of these services is a
responsibility to be undertaken by the Government at various levels-Federal,
State, Municipal and Institutional.

Brazil has established a clear lead in this field by making a start even in the early
70,s and instituted a national Sanitation Plan-PLANASA- on a long term basis
with appropriate financial and organisational devices.

In Mexico the organisational arrangements for the water supply………..

 Recommendations

In contrast to conclusions which are factual statements

recommendations are action statements. The reader
wants to know what you have learnt about a certain
problem and what can be done about it.
Recommendations are therefore your opinions, your
professional judgments of how to solve the problem
 Sample Recommendation
Status Report
On
Pesticide Residues
Vis-à-vis
Customer Protection
Summary of Recommendations for Action
(An extract)
1. Need for bringing about awareness amongst all groups on the hazards
of pesticides; in particular there is an urgent need for education of
the consumer
2. Pressing need for monitoring and surveillance of pesticides in food, in
environment and in humans
 Back Matter

The back matter of a report comprises supplementary

material- material which is not part of the report but
which may provide additional information on the
subject. It includes:

A) List of references
b) Bibliography
c) Appendis
References:
It is mandatory to give references or credit to the work which is used and
quoted in your report.

Bibliography:
A bibliography is an alphabetically ordered list of published and
unpublished works which are consulted during the preparation of a
report.
The difference between a reference and a bibliography
Bibliography: Lists works which the author has read and to which he/she is
indebted for ideas or information that is included in the report. The
bibliography may contain works recommended for further study and
bibliographies are always in alphabetical order.
Reference: Points out the specific location of an idea or a piece of
information in the original source. References do not show further
reading and could be recorded if the author chooses to list according to
a sequence cited in the text of the report.
 Example of a bibliography:

1. Ablurison Maurice I., and Herman M Weisman. “Water

Abstracts, A Proposed Abstracting Journal for
Water Resources and Related Subjects”, Unpulished
paper read before the meeting of the American
Society of Civil Engineers, Phoenix, Arizona, April 14th
1999, 14P
 Appendix
The chief purpose of an appendix is to gather in one
place all the data which cannot be worked into the
body of the report without interrupting the flow. A
cross reference in the text to the relevant part of
the appendices is necessary. The following are
usually appendices:
1. Charts
2. Tables
3. Computations and data sheets
4. Exhibits Graphs maps photographs diagrams and
drawings
5. Letters, questionnaires and records of interviews.
Don’t let this happen to you
Or this when your report is read
Or this—what have I got?
Instead make this happen
Good Luck to all when writing your SIP reports

Menaka Rao