WHAT IS A REPORT?

• It is a major form of technical/business/professional communication. In writing a report,

a person who possesses certain facts, ideas, or suggestions useful for courses of action transmits
this information to another person who wants to use it.
• A report can be the description of an event by a person who witnessed it to somebody else
who was not actually present on the scene.
• It can be the description of the conditions that did exist, that do exist, or that are likely to
exist. In short, we can say that a report is usually a piece of factual writing, based on evidence,
containing organized information on a particular topic and/or analysis of that topic.
• It is formal in nature and is written for a specific purpose and audience. It discusses the
topic in depth and contains conclusions and recommendations if required.

TYPES OF REPORT
Informal Report
• The informal report functions to inform, analyze, and recommend.
• It usually takes the form of a memo, letter or a very short international document
like a monthly financial report, monthly activities report,
research and development report, etc.
• This report differs from the formal report in length and formality.
• It is written according to organization style and rules, but usually does not include the
preliminary (front) and supplemental (back) material.
• The informal report is usually more controversial in tone and typically deals with everyday
problems and issues addressed to a narrow readership inside the organization.

Types of Informal Report

There are many embodiments of the informal report:
 Progress report
 Sales activity report
 Personnel evaluation
 Financial report
 Feasibility report
 Literature review
 Credit report

Formal Report

• The formal report is the collection and interpretation of data and information.
• The formal report is complex and used at an official level.
• It is often a written account of a major project.
• Examples of subject matter include new technologies, the advisability of launching
a new project line, results of a study or experiment, an annual report, or a year-old review of
developments in the field.

Types of Formal Report

They can be categorized as:
  Informational reports
 Analytical reports
 Recommendation reports

Informational Reports

• Informational reports present results so readers can understand a particular problem or

situation.
• Example: Manager of a city’s website might prepare an informational report for the city
council, the report would provide statistics on the number of people who pay their city
water and sewage bills online etc.
• Informational reports might:
 Present information on the status of current research or of a project.
 Present an update of the operation in your division.
 Explain how your organization or division does something.
 Present the results of a questionnaire or research.

Analytical Reports

• This type goes a step beyond presenting results. Analytical reports present results analyze
those results, and draw conclusions based on those results.
• These reports attempt to describe why or how something happened and then to explain
what it means.
• Like informational reports, analytical reports can be formal or informal.
• Explain what cause a problem or situation – Present the results of a traffic study showing
accidents at an intersection – the report explains what it means.
• Explain the potential results of a particular course of action.
• Suggest which option, action, or procedure is best.

Recommendation Reports

• This type advocates a particular course of action. This usually present the results
and conclusions that support the recommendations.
• This type is identical to analytical report.
• For example, your analytical report suggests using treatment X is more efficient than
treatments Y and Z. However, that does not mean that you will use treatment X as cost and
other considerations might recommend treatment Y.
• What should we do about a problem?
• Should we or can we do something?
• Should we change the method or technology we use to do something?

OBJECTIVES OF REPORTS

The purposes for which reports are written vary widely. Given below are some important
purposes of reports:

• To present a record of accomplished work (Project report)

 • To record an experiment (primary research report/laboratory report)
• To record research findings or technical specifications (a report on the details of a new
product)
• To document schedules, timetables, and milestones (a report on a long-term plan)
• To document current status (an inspection report)
• To record and clarify complex information for future reference (a report on policies and
procedures)
• To present information to a large number of people (annual report)
• To present organized information on a particular topic (a report describing the working of
various divisions of an organization)
• To recommend actions that can be considered in solving certain problems.
(recommendatory report)

STRUCTURE OF REPORTS

A key feature of reports is that they are formally structured in sections. The use of sections
makes it easy for the reader to jump straight to the information they need.

Unlike an essay which is written in a single narrative style from start to finish, each section of
a report has its own purpose and will need to be written in an appropriate style to suit – for
example, the methods and results sections are mainly descriptive, whereas the discussion section
needs to be analytical.

Understanding the function of each section will help you to structure your information and
use the correct writing style. Reports for different briefs require different sections, so always
carefully check any instructions you have been given.

Title
The title needs to concisely state the topic of the report. It needs to be informative and
descriptive so that someone just reading the title will understand the main issue of your report.
You do not need to include excessive detail in your title but avoid being vague and too general.

Abstract
(Also called the Summary or Executive Summary)
This is the ‘shop window’ for your report. It is the first (and sometimes the only) section to
be read and should be the last to be written. It should enable the reader to make an informed
decision about whether they want to read the whole report. The length will depend on the extent
of the work reported but it is usually a paragraph or two and always less than a page.
A good way to write an abstract is to think of it as a series of brief answers to questions.
These would probably include:
 What is the purpose of the work?
 What methods did you use for your research?
 What were the main findings and conclusions reached as a result of your research?
 Did your work lead you to make any recommendations for future actions?
 What is the purpose of the work?
  What methods did you use for your research?
 What were the main findings and conclusions reached as a result of your research?
 Did your work lead you to make any recommendations for future actions?

Introduction
(Also called Background or Context)

In this section you explain the rationale for undertaking the work reported on, including what
you have been asked (or chosen) to do, the reasons for doing it and the background to the study.
It should be written in an explanatory style.

State what the report is about - what is the question you are trying to answer? If it is a brief
for a specific reader (e.g. a feasibility report on a construction project for a client), say who they
are. Describe your starting point and the background to the subject, for instance: what research
has already been done (if you have been asked to include a Literature Survey later in the report,
you only need a brief outline of previous research in the Introduction); what are the relevant
themes and issues; why are you being asked to investigate it now?

Explain how you are going to go about responding to the brief. If you are going to test a
hypothesis in your research, include this at the end of your introduction. Include a brief outline
of your method of enquiry. State the limits of your research and reasons for them, for example,
“Research will focus on native English speakers only, as a proper consideration of the issues
arising from speaking English as a second language is beyond the scope of this project”.

Literature Survey
(Also called Literature Review or Survey/Review of Research)

This is a survey of publications (books, journals, authoritative websites, sometimes conference

papers) reporting work that has already been done on the topic of your report. It should only
include studies that have direct relevance to your research.

A literature survey should be written like an essay in a discursive style, with an introduction,
main discussion grouped in themes and a conclusion. Introduce your review by explaining how
you went about finding your materials, and any clear trends in research that have emerged. Group
your texts in themes. Write about each theme as a separate section, giving a critical summary of
each piece of work and showing its relevance to your research.

Conclude with how the review has informed your research (things you will be building on; gaps
you will be filling etc.).
Methods
(Also called Methodology)

You need to write your Methods section in such a way that a reader could replicate the research
you have done.

There should be no ambiguity here, so you need to write in a very factual informative style.
 You need to state clearly how you carried out your investigation. Explain why you chose this
method (questionnaires, focus group, experimental procedure etc.), include techniques and any
equipment you used. If there were participants in your research, who were they? How many? How
were they selected?

Write this section concisely but thoroughly – go through what you did step by step, including
everything that is relevant. You know what you did, but could a reader follow your description?

Results
(Also called Data or Findings)

This section has only one job which is to present the findings of your research as simply and
clearly as possible. Use the format that will achieve this most effectively e.g. text, graphs, tables,
or diagrams.

When deciding on a graphical format to use, think about how the data will look to the reader.
Choose just one format - do not repeat the same information in, for instance, a graph and a table.
Label your graphs and tables clearly. Give each figure a title and describe in words what the figure
demonstrates. Writing in this section should be clear, factual, and informative. Save your
interpretation of the results for the Discussion section.

Discussion

This is probably the longest section and worth spending time on. It brings everything together,
showing how your findings respond to the brief you explained in your introduction and the
previous research you surveyed in your literature survey. It should be written in a discursive style,
meaning you need to discuss not only what your findings show but why they show this, using
evidence from previous research to back up your explanations.

This is also the place to mention if there were any problems (for instance, if your results were
different from expectations, you couldn’t find important data, or you had to change your method
or participants) and how they were or could have been solved.

Conclusion

Your conclusions should be a short section with no new arguments or evidence. Sum up the
main points of your research - how do they answer the original brief for the work reported on?

This section may also include:

• Recommendations for action

• Suggestions for further research

References
(Also called Reference List or Bibliography)

List here are the full details for any works you have referred to in the report, including books,
journals, websites, and other materials. You may also need to list works you have used in
preparing your report but have not explicitly referred to- check your instructions for this and for
the correct style of referencing to use.
 You can find information about how to reference more unusual materials (television programs,
blogs etc.) from various websites including the LearnHigher website on referencing. If you are not
sure, the rule is to be consistent and to give enough details that a reader can find the same piece
of information that you used.

Appendices

The appendices hold any additional information that may help the reader but is not essential
to the report’s main findings: anything that 'adds value'. That might include (for instance) interview
questions, raw data or a glossary of terms used. Label all appendices and refer to them where
appropriate in the main text (e.g. ‘See Appendix A for an example questionnaire’).

Which section should I write first?

It can be helpful to write up sections as you go along. This means that you write about what
you have done while it's still fresh in your mind and you can see more easily if there are any gaps
that might need additional research to fill them. In addition, you do not end up with a large piece
of writing to do in one go - that can be overwhelming.

Here is a suggested order for writing the main sections:

1. Methods and Data/Results: As a rough guide, the more factual the section, the earlier you
should write it. So sections describing ‘what you did and what you found’ are likely to be written
first.

2. Introduction and Literature Survey: Sections that explain or expand on the purpose of the
research should be next. What questions are you seeking to answer, how did they arise, why are
they worth investigating? These will help you to see how to interpret and analyze your findings.

3. Discussion: Once you have established the questions your research is seeking to answer,
you will be able to see how your results contribute to the answers and what kind of answers they
point to. Write this early enough that you still have time to fill any gaps you find.

4. Conclusions and Recommendations: These should follow logically from your Discussion.
They should state your conclusions and recommendations clearly and simply.

5. Abstract/Executive Summary: Once the main body is finished you can write a succinct and
accurate summary of the main features.