Score:
Types of Report
Description
1
Incident Report
a report describing something that has happened
2
Accident Report
a report describing how someone was hurt or
something was damaged
3
Sales Report
a report describing how many goods or services
were sold, and the reasons for any differences
from the plan
4
Progress Report
a report describing how close you are to
completing something you planned
5
Feasibility Study /
Report
a report on how practical a proposal is
6
Recommendation
Report
a report on what your organisation should do
7
Site
a report on what has happened in a place, and
how close your organisation is to finishing
construction
8
Case Study
an academic report on how and why something
has changed over time
http://www2.elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/eiw/typesofreport.htm
Report Stages
1 Introduction - Who requested the report This report was requested by...
2 Introduction - When the report was requested The report was requested on ...
3 Introduction - Why the report was requested, and the Aim The report aims to...
4 Introduction - Overview of the structure of the report The report presents ...
0
/8
5 Procedure - When the data was collected Data for the report was gathered from ... to
...
6 Procedure - How the data was collected Primary data was collected by surveying...
7 Findings - Description of the information you discovered The survey respondents said
that...
8 Conclusion - Summary of what you discovered In conclusion, the results show that...
9 Conclusion - Your ideas about the reasons for the things you discovered
I believe that the reasons for this include...
10 Recommendations - What you think should happen These conclusions lead to a
number of possibilities for further action. These are...
http://www2.elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/eiw/report_intros.htm
Report Writing: Introductions
Explanation
The Introduction contains 2 types of information:
1. information about the report
2. an introduction to the content of the report.
It is also aimed at two types of readers:
1. the manager who wants solutions to a problem or suggestions for future action
2. readers in the future who want to know what they can learn from the organisation's
past experience, such as why a decision was made.
1. Information about the report (called the 'Terms of Reference').
1.1 Who asked for the report (Past tense, passive voice)
Most reports are requested by a manager, but some are commissioned by people or
organisation outside the company, and some are written by staff to suggest something.
1.1.1 Their name
1.1.2 Their job title or post
This changes over time as they are promoted.
1.1.3 Their department
This may change over time as they are promoted.
1.2 The date that the report was asked for. (Past tense)
e.g. This report was requested by Ms Amy Chan, Operations Manager in the Production
Department, on 10 November 2010.
2. An introduction to the content of the report.
2.1 The background of the report (Past tense or present perfect)
The situation or problem that the report discusses
2.2 The aim of the report (Present tense, as the aim is true all the time)
The report might make suggestions to solve a problem, or to take advantage of a situation
2.2 An overview of the organisation of the report (Present tense, as this is the
organisation all the time)
Reports can have a wide variety of organisational structures, so it helps the reader to
inform them of the structure of this one.
Figure 1: Example organisational structures.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Introduction
Background
Method
Findings
Conclusion
Recommendat
ions
1. Introduction
2. Method
1. Introduction
2. Method
3. Findings and
Discussion
4. Conclusion
5. Recommend
ations
1. Introduction
2. Method
3. Findings
4. Discussion
5. Conclusion
6. Recommend
ations
1. Introduction
2. Method
3. Findings and Discussion
4. Conclusion and Recomm
endations
3. Findings and Discussion
4. Conclusion and Recommendations
e.g. In the past two months our output of products has increased, but a larger number
have failed quality control. The aim of this report is to analyse this situation and
recommend appropriate action. Firstly the method of investigation is described, followed
by the findings. Then conclusions are drawn and a number of recommendations are
made.
Grammar note:
In order to show that you are being objective, which means not letting your personal
opinions and interests affect the report, you should avoid using personal pronouns such as
I and We. You can do this by using the report as the subject of the sentence (e.g. This
report shows...) or by using a passive voice (e.g. Conclusions are drawn...).
Example Introduction
1. Introduction
This report was requested by Mr. P Y Fung, Managing Director of Everbright Ltd. on 10
November 2010. The report concerns the recently observed declining morale of our staff.
The main aims of the report are to identify the causes of the decline in staff morale and
recommend ways to boost it.
In the report the findings describe the decline in staff morale, which can be traced back to
the period following the reduction of the company budget. Following these findings,
conclusions are drawn and a number of recommendations are made as to how staff
morale might be increased.
(1)
(2)
Click here >
Click here >
Click here >
Click here >
(3)
(6)
Click here >
Click here >
Click here >
(4)
(7)
Mr K.K. Chan, (5)
Click here >
(8)
Click here >
29 October 2010. The report (9)
staff dissatisfaction
Click here >
with sick pay regulations. The aim of the report is (10)
affordable
improvements in these regulations that would satisfy both staff and management.
Click here >
The report (11)
the method and findings of a questionnaire survey of
staff and results of discussions with management. Then various options are presented and
discussed. (12)
Click here >
recommendations (14)
Click here >
Click here >
a conclusion (13)
Click here >
(17)
(20)
Click here >
Click here >
. (15)
Click here >
Click here >
(18)
Click here >
and
(16)
(19)
(1) That's right, 1. Introduction is the right answer.
(2) Good job, This report is the right answer.
(3) Well done, was requested is the right answer.
(4) Yes, by is the right answer.
(5) Correct, well done, Chairperson is the right answer.
(6) That's right, of is the right answer.
(7) Good job, the Health and Safety Committee is the right answer.
(8) Well done, on is the right answer.
(9) Yes, concerns is the right answer.
(10) Congratulations, to suggest is the right answer.
(11) Correct, well done, contains is the right answer.
(12) That's right, After that is the right answer.
(13) Good job, is drawn is the right answer.
(14) Well done, are made is the right answer.
http://www2.elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/eiw/report_introduction_reconstruction.htm
Report Introductions
This report presents the findings of a survey of graduate employment carried out in 2010 .
The main aim of the survey is to gather information on the experiences of graduates in
their first year of full - time employment . The report writing task has involved analysing
the gathered data , drawing conclusions and making recommendations . It is hoped that
the recommendations will be helpful to new graduates as they prepare to join the labour
market . The findings of this report are presented with the aid of graphics and are
followed by conclusions and recommendations .
http://www2.elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/eiw/report_method.htm
Report Writing: Method / Methodology /
Procedure
Explanation
This section of the report tells your reader how, when and from whom you collected the
data for your report. The results of this investigation are given in the next section: the
Findings.
Content

The section should convince the reader that the data is accurate, and is therefore
suitable for making recommendations.


The data collection should be valid, which means that it should really measure
what it is trying to measure. For example, the data should not be only from one
group of people who do not represent everybody.
The data collection should be reliable: that is, if the same data was collected by
another person, the result should be the same.
Organisation
1. When the data was collected:
e.g. Data for this report were gathered from 15 - 29 October 2010.
2. How the data was collected
e.g. By observation, survey (a written questionnaire, or a researcher asking the
same questions to everybody), a vote, or research online or in a library.
3. From surveys, interviews and focus groups:
o Who the data was collected from: e.g. a random sample, or a speciallyselected group of people, or all the people involved.
o How many people were involved; e.g. how many questionnaires did you
send out, how many were completed and used for analysis. Sometimes the
return rate can be low: you might send out 100 questionnaires, and get
back only 20. The return rate would therefore be 20%. This should be
mentioned in the report, as it affects its reliability.
Grammar



Generally uses passive voice:
This is to show that the results are objective
e.g. The questionnaires were distributed to a total of 180 staff
Generally uses past tense.
This is because the data was collected in the past, before the report was written.
Data - singular or plural?
Data can be singular or plural: both 'The data was collected...' and 'The date were
collected...' are acceptable. For more information, see the etymology at Yahoo
Education.
Vocabulary




Matching Nouns and Verbs for Reports - an exercise in choosing the right
vocabulary for reports.
People who reply to a written questionnaire are called respondents
People who take part in an experiment, and are experimented on, are called
subjects
Business reports are often about staff. More information about how to use the
word staff correctly is available.
Style and Tone


This section should be formal.
Like most formal business writing, it should be clear, concise, and correct.
Conventions


This section usually comes after the Introduction and before the Findings,
although sometimes it is part of the Introduction.
The section should not give the results, unless the results of the first data
collection affected the method in which later data was collected; e.g. The first
data collection was a questionnaire, but you decided to investigate why the people
gave the answers they did, and therefore you did some interviews to collect more
data.
Example Procedure
2. Procedure
Data for this report were gathered from 15 - 29 October 2010. A questionnaire survey
was carried out from 19 - 26 October. The questionnaires were distributed to a total of
180 staff, consisting of 60 staff at senior level and 120 staff of junior level. Staff
representatives from both senior and junior levels were interviewed from 29 October - 29
October.
Findings and Discussion
Report Writing: Conclusion
Explanation
This section of the report has two parts:
1. It reviews the main findings and results, and expresses them in general terms.
2. It draws a main conclusion and links to the recommendations by showing a need
for action.
1. It reviews the main findings and results, and expresses them in general terms.
This part is also for busy readers who don't have time to read all of your findings,
and for readers who want to read an overview of the findings before deciding
whether to read the findings in detail.
Example from a report on developing tourism in Hong Kong:
The findings indicate that tourists are now looking for more than just a shopping
trip; they are seeking a complete experience with plenty of attractions to visit,
good service and a pleasant environment. Our market research has shown,
however, that Hong Kong simply does not have enough attractions. The average
visitor to Hong Kong stays here for just 3.5 days and a shopping trip to Stanley
market and a visit to Ocean Park are still the main attractions for them.
Although findings are usually discussed in the Findings section, or in a
Discussion section after the findings, in some reports the conclusion also contains
some discussion of the main findings, in which the writer discusses possible
reasons for them. For example:
This may be because Hong Kong is seen as a small place, that people can see in
only a few days. Also, tourists may only be interested in a few of the attractions
offered in brochures. In addition Hong Kong is expensive compared to other
south-east Asian destinations, and so is not suitable for an extended holiday.
2. It draws a main conclusion and links to the recommendations by showing a need
for action.
Example:
It can be concluded that to encourage visitors to stay longer (and hence spend
more money) and to get greater numbers to come here, Hong Kong must develop
a new and less polluted tourist-friendly infrastructure with new and exciting
attractions.
It is important not to give detailed recommendations in the conclusion section. In
the above example, the sentence 'Hong Kong must develop a new and less
polluted tourist-friendly infrastructure with new and exciting attractions' is a
general recommendation that leads into more detailed ones which will be written
in the Recommendations section.
Content



The Conclusion should give the main cause(s) of the problem or opportunity that
is the topic of the report.
The section should summarise the main findings and link to the
Recommendations.
It should not include findings that are not related to the Recommendations.
Organisation


The Conclusion section comes after the Findings and any Discussion section.
It comes before the Recommendations.
Grammar



Generally uses past tense to summarise the Findings, but you can use present
tense or the present perfect if you think that the Findings are still true now.
The first part should be objective, in that pronouns such as ' I ' should not be used.
To do this you can:
o change the subject of the sentences; e.g. 'I found that...' changes to ' The
findings indicate that...'; or
o use passive voice; e.g. 'I conclude that...' becomes ' It can be concluded
that...'
In the second part, the lead-in to the recommendations, it is acceptable to refer to
your organisation as 'We', or by its name; e.g. ' The PolyU should address these
issues.'
Common errors:




describing cause and effect: see
http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/exercises/cause&effect.htm
using lack and lack of wrongly: see http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/exercises/lack.htm
confusion between the different sentence structures around due to and because:
see http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/exercises/because.htm
using it is because inappropriately see
http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/exercises/itisbecause.htm
Vocabulary


Matching Nouns and Verbs for Reports - an exercise in choosing the right
vocabulary for reports.
Business reports are often about staff. More information about how to use the
word staff correctly is available.
Style and Tone


This section should be formal.
Like most formal business writing, it should be clear, concise, and correct.
Conventions


The conclusion is usually shorter than the Findings and the Recommendations.
The conclusions of business reports tend to be less tentative than those of
academic reports.
Example Conclusion
4. Conclusion
The fire was caused by an electrical fault in the 30-year-old wiring of the building, which
was installed by an unregistered contractor and had not been maintained or inspected for
5 years. The incident was made worse by the lack of safety training for the building
occupants, the blocked fire exits and the non-functioning fire-fighting equipment.
In order to prevent future fires, ensure safety, reduce insurance premiums, and avoid legal
liability, the building management company must improve facilities and training.
Report Writing: Recommendations
Introduction
This section of the report is probably the most important part of a report, because the
purpose of a report is to solve problems or to take advantage of opportunities, and the
recommendations section is the part where you make suggestions about how to do this.
Your reputation as a professional can be influenced by the quality of your
recommendations. Therefore, the quality of the content must be good. In addition, using
correct language is also important, because you want readers to trust you enough to
implement your suggestions, and if the language has errors, your readers will think that
you do not produce high-quality work, and therefore are not trustworthy. The notes below
will help you to produce recommendations with good content and language.
Scenario
To help you to understand the notes below, here is a scenario:
A customer visits your company and talks to a salesperson. The salesperson is new, and
lacks product knowledge, so sells the customer an unsuitable product. Later the customer
discovers that the product is unsuitable, and therefore he returns the product, complains,
and asks for his money back.
Example Recommendations
5. Recommendations
Due to the customer complaint and the lack of guidelines to prevent untrained sales staff
from serving customers, the following recommendations are made concerning
compensating the customer, staff training, monitoring new staff, and revising the
guidelines.
5.1 Compensation
Given that the customer has justifiably complained, we should give him his money back,
and, to maintain goodwill, give him a single-use voucher worth 5% of the price of the
original goods to encourage him to continue his relationship with our company.
5.2 Staff Training
In the light of the customer's complaint that our salesperson recommended the wrong
product to him, we should ensure that all sales staff complete their product training
before serving customers. This guideline should be in our staff manuals and procedures.
5.3 Monitoring New Staff
In order to reduce the possibility of new salespeople making incorrect recommendations
to customers, they should always be accompanied by an experienced salesperson for the
first month of their service. This guideline should also be in our staff manuals and
procedures.
Explanation
This section covers content, organisation, grammar, vocabulary, register and conventions.
Content

Cost / benefit analysis
For each recommendation you should think about how much it will cost and how
much money it will save your organisation.
For example, in the above scenario you should not recommend a training course
for all staff on communication skills, because such a training course would be
very expensive. It would be much cheaper to give the customer his money back,
and to maintain goodwill, give the customer a voucher for a future purchase.

Opportunity cost
For each recommendation you should think about whether it would use the
facilities, staff or money (in business terms: land, labour and capital) in the most
profitable way. For example:
o If your suggestion would only make a profit of 2% on the money that you
need to spend on it, it would be better to save the money in the bank, and
get more interest.
o If you recommend sending staff on a training course, you must convince
your readers about why this would be more profitable than the staff doing
their normal work and saving the cost of the course. If the cost of the
problems is less than the cost of the training course, it is not worth doing
the training.
o If you recommend moving a factory to a cheaper location, you need to
persuade your readers that after a few years you would save more money
than if you remained in the existing location.

Problem Analysis
To solve a problem, your recommendations can solve both the results of the
problem (the symptoms) and the root cause of the problem. To find the root cause
you can use a method called the '5 Whys' method. This method involves asking
'Why', and then for each answer, asking 'Why' again. Here is an example using the
scenario above.
1. Why did the customer complain? Because the salesman sold him an
unsuitable product.
2. Why did the salesman sell the customer an unsuitable product? Because
the salesman did not know that the product was unsuitable.
3. Why didn't the salesman know that the product was unsuitable? Because
he hadn't finished his product familiarisation training.
4. Why was a salesman who hadn't finished his product familiarisation
training serving a customer? Because our guidelines do not forbid it.
5. Why don't the guidelines forbid it? Because we hadn't had this problem
before, and we cannot predict every problem.
Therefore, the solution is to change the guidelines.

SMART Recommendations
Recommendations, like Objectives, should be SMART - Specific, Measurable,
Achievable, Result-oriented and Time-bound:
o Specific:
You should state the method for implementing your recommendation.
 Bad examples:
 We should increase sales.
 We should take appropriate measures to increase staff
satisfaction so as to increase morale.
 Good examples:
 We should increase sales through a marketing campaign.
 We should improve staff morale by setting up a suggestion
scheme, then rewarding and implementing good
suggestions.
o Measurable:
Although some things in business are difficult to measure, such as
reputation, goodwill, knowledge and quality, your recommendations will
be more persuasive if they are measurable.
 Bad examples:
 We should increase sales.
 We should take appropriate measures to increase staff
satisfaction so as to increase morale.
 Good examples:


o
o
o
We should increase sales by spending 10% more on
advertising. According to our experience with our recent
advertising campaigns, this will generate an extra 15% in
sales.
We should improve staff morale by increasing the pay
increment for each additional year of service. This would
discourage staff from leaving. Although this would cost
more, we would save money overall by doing less
recruitment and training for new staff.
Achievable:
Recommendations should not involve too little time, or too much money,
labour, facilities or risk.
 Bad examples:
 We should re-train all sales staff.
 We should offer the customer a 20% discount on all future
orders.
 Good examples:
 We should re-train sales staff who consistently do not meet
sales targets.
 We should offer the customer a single-use voucher worth
5% of the price of the faulty goods.
Result-oriented:
The recommendation should provide good results for stakeholders:
 Bad example from the scenario above:
 We should fire the salesperson. (This would not solve the
underlying problem of allowing untrained staff to serve
customers.)
 Good example:
 We should set up procedures so that new salespeople are
not allowed to serve customers until they have finished
their training, and new salespeople should always be
accompanied by an experienced sales person for the first
month of their service.
Time-bound:
The recommendation should set realistic deadlines for completion of
suggestions.
 Bad example from the scenario above:
 The salesperson should not serve customers.
 Good example:
 Salespeople should not serve customers until they have
finished their training.
Organisation
1. The Recommendations section is the last main section of a report.
2. It comes after the Conclusion and before any appendices.
3. Recommendations should be numbered so that it is easy for readers to refer to
them in messages (e.g. 'In Recommendation 2 you said that...')
4. Recommendations should have an introductory sentence or paragraph linking
them back to the Conclusion and outlining the areas; e.g. 'Due to the customer
complaint and the lack of guidelines to prevent untrained sales staff from serving
customers, the following recommendations are made concerning compensating
the customer and revising the guidelines.'
5. Recommendations should have sub-headings so that it is easy for readers to find
the right one; e.g. 5.2 Staff Training
6. Recommendations should refer back to the problem that they address; e.g. 'In the
light of the customer's complaint that our salesperson recommended the wrong
product to him, we should ensure that all sales staff complete their product
training before serving customers.'
The grammar for this is: Referring phrase; problem (noun phrase or clause);
comma; recommendation. For example:
o In the light of + the customer's complaint (meaning = something
informative, grammar = noun phrase) + comma + we should ensure that...
(+ recommendation)
o In view of + the salesman's lack of product knowledge (noun phrase) +
comma + we should ensure that... (+ recommendation)
o Given that / Due to the fact that / In view of the fact that / Since + the
customer complained about the service (clause) + comma + we should
ensure that... (+ recommendation)
7. Previously mentioned single objects should be referred to as 'it', but previously
mentioned situations should be referred to as 'This'; e.g. ' The product was not
suitable, so we should replace it ' ( 'it' = the product), or ' The product was not
suitable, and this caused the customer to complain' ( 'this' = The lack of suitability
of the product).
Grammar




Recommendations often use modal verbs such as should and could, followed by
an infinitive verb. Should is for recommendations that you are sure about, but
could is for ones that you are less sure about.
e.g. 'Sales staff should have completed their training before they serve
customers.'
e.g. 'Experienced sales staff could be requested to monitor new staff.'
Should and could can also be in a clause, for example:
o I suggest that we should change our procedures.
o It is suggested that we should change our procedures.
It is wrong to use I recommend to change our procedures; use I recommend
changing our procedures or I recommend that we change our procedures.
To describe the results of your recommendations, use would or will if you are
very confident; e.g. ' This would prevent this problem from happening again.' or '
This will increase sales.'

would and will can be part of conditional sentences; e.g. ' If we increase
advertising, sales will increase.' or ' If we increased advertising, sales would
increase.'
Common grammar errors:




describing cause and effect: see
http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/exercises/cause&effect.htm
using lack and lack of wrongly: see http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/exercises/lack.htm
confusion between the different sentence structures around due to and because:
see http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/exercises/because.htm
using it is because inappropriately see
http://elc.polyu.edu.hk/cill/exercises/itisbecause.htm
Vocabulary



Verbs for recommendations: recommend, suggest and propose.
Matching Nouns and Verbs for Reports - an exercise in choosing the right
vocabulary for reports.
Business reports are often about staff. More information about how to use the
word staff correctly is available.
Style and Tone


This section should be formal.
The strength of your recommendations will partly depend on your company
culture. For example, in some companies it is acceptable to use 'We must
change...', but in others this would be too strong, and it would be better to use 'The
company should consider changing...'
Conventions





The Recommendations section is usually longer than the Conclusion, but shorter
than the Findings.
The recommendations of business reports tend to be less tentative than those of
academic reports.
Business recommendations should be ethical.
Business recommendations should be legal, especially regarding any punishment
of staff.
Recommendations should be suitable for the company culture; e.g. it may not be a
good idea to suggest training courses for staff on Sundays.

Like most formal business writing, recommendations should be clear, concise,
and correct.
Please close this window to return to the web page containing the exercise.
Exercise
http://www2.elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/reportvideo/default.htm
http://www2.elc.polyu.edu.hk/CILL/eiw/reportcorrection.htm#Corrected%20report
CONTACT COMPUTER GRAPHICS
MEMORANDUM
To:
From:
Date:
Subject:
S.M. Chan, General Manager
Samantha Ng, Office Manager
10 November 2010
Report on Staff Satisfaction with the Microwave Oven
1. Introduction
At the monthly staff meeting on Thursday, 4 November 2010, you requested information about staff
satisfaction with the new microwave oven. The aim of this report is to present this information, and
make suggestions about how to improve the situation.
2. Background
Since the move to the new office in Kowloon Bay, staff have had difficulty in finding a nearby place
to buy lunch. This is because the new office is in a factory area, and there is a lack of restaurants. A
Sharpe R-3R29 microwave oven was purchased so that staff could eat hot lunches at work. However,
some staff have expressed dissatisfaction with the microwave.
3. Method
Sixty staff were surveyed by questionnaire from 4 - 5 November .
4. Findings
4.1 Introduction
In general, staff was not satisfied with the power and size of the microwave. Some were
satisfied with the location of the microwave, and most were satisfied with its reliability (see
Table 1). On analyzing the data, two distinct groups of staff emerged. The first group were 40
staff who had usually eaten in the office when the office was in Central. The second group of
20 staff had usually eaten outside in Central.
Table 1: Staff Satisfaction with the Microwave Oven
Staff Satisfaction
Group A
Usually ate in the
office (n=40)
Group B
Usually ate outside
the office (n=20)
Both Groups
Size
55%
35%
48%
Power
30%
25%
28%
Location
70%
75%
71%
Reliability
95%
95%
95%
Average
62.5%
57.5%
60.5%
Feature
4.2 Power
Only a quarter of Group B staff said that the oven was powerful enough for their needs. Also,
less than a third of Group A staff were satisfied, giving a total for both groups of less than
30%. Staff responded that it took too long for the oven to cook their food and therefore they
had to queue at lunchtime.
4.3 Size
In addition, about two-thirds of Group B staff said that the microwave was too small. For
example, one member of staff complained that his 10" pizza would not fit in the oven.
However, more than half of Group A staff were satisfied, giving a total satisfaction for both
groups of just under 50%.
4.4 Location
About three-quarters of both groups of staff thought that the location of the oven was
acceptable. The rest of the staff did not agree on a better position for the oven.
4.5 Reliability
Regarding reliability, almost all of the staff were satisfied. Three members of staff did not
understand how to operate the oven.
5. Conclusions
The Findings show that staff, especially staff in Group B, were not satisfied with the power and size of
the microwave. We should therefore consider buying a bigger and more powerful microwave.
6. Recommendations
There are a number of options we could consider, as follows:
6.1 Exchange
Given that we need a better microwave, we should return the microwave to the shop and ask
them if we can buy a bigger one, and only pay the difference. I suggest trying this first.
6.2 Purchase of a New Microwave
If the shop will not take back the old microwave I recommend buying a new one, and keeping
the old one in another part of the office for the staff who do not like the present location.
Alternatively, we could sell the old microwave second hand.
6.3 Queuing System
We could let the staff arrange a system for different staff to use the microwave at different
times.
http://esl.about.com/od/businessenglishwriting/a/bizdocs.htm
Reports: Example Report
Terms of Reference
Margaret Anderson, Director of Personnel has requested this report on employee benefits
satisfaction. The report was to be submitted to her by 28 June.
Procedure
A representative selection of 15% of all employees were interviewed in the period
between April 1st and April 15th concerning: </dir> </dir>
1.
2.
3.
4.
Overall satisfaction with our current benefits package
Problems encountered when dealing with the personnel department
Suggestions for the improvement of communication policies
Problems encountered when dealing with our HMO
Findings
1. Employees were generally satisfied with the current benefits package.
2. Some problems were encountered when requesting vacation due to what is
perceived as long approval waiting periods.
3. Older employees repeatedly had problems with HMO prescription drugs
procedures.
4. Employees between the ages of 22 and 30 report few problems with HMO.
5. Most employees complain about the lack of dental insurance in our benefits
package.
6. The most common suggestion for improvement was for the ability to process
benefits requests online.
Conclusions
1. Older employees, those over 50, are having serious problems with our HMO's
ability to provide prescription drugs.
2. Our benefits request system needs to be revised as most complaints concerning inhouse processing.
3. Improvements need to take place in personnel department response time.
4. Information technology improvements should be considered as employees
become more technologically savvy.
Recommendations
1. Meet with HMO representatives to discuss the serious nature of complaints
concerning prescription drug benefits for older employees.
2. Give priority to vacation request response time as employees need faster approval
in order to be able to plan their vacations.
3. Take no special actions for the benefits package of younger employees.
4. Discuss the possibility of adding an online benefits requests system to our
company Intranet.
Important Points to Remember
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

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A report is divided into four areas:
o Terms of Reference- This section gives background information on the
reason for the report. It usually includes the person requesting the report.
o Procedure- The procedure provides the exact steps taken and methods
used for the report.
o Findings- The findings point out discoveries made during the course of
the report investigation.
o Conclusions- The conclusions provide logical conclusions based on the
findings.
o Recommendations- The recommendations state actions that the writer of
the report feels need to be taken based on the findings and conclusions.
Reports should be concise and factual. Opinions are given in the "conclusions"
section. However, these opinions should be based on facts presented in the
"findings".
Use simple tenses (usually the present simple) to express facts.
Use the imperative form (Discuss the possibility ..., Give priority ..., etc.) in the
"recommendations" section as these apply to the company as a whole.