TOPIC: REPORTING AND THESIS WRITING

SUBMITTED BY:
ABHIRAM BIJU
S2 MBA - B
ROLL NO:1

SUBMITTED TO:
DR. BOSE TOM
Associate Professor
( Management studies)

DATE OF SUBMISSION:13-09-2021

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Reports are vital to the communicative needs of all types of organizations.They
contribute to the decision making process at all organizational
levels.Scientists,executives and professionals before they proceed further with
their investigations,examine the existing reports in a specific area. Hence writing
report is a flexible teaching-learning-practising tool specially designed to help
students and employees develop general research,identify the problem and
reporting skill
A report is a detailed description of what has been done and how it has been done
with respect to a particular area or topic. A research report is a presentation of
research findings in the form of a report and it is a necessary part of the research
process.Research report is the oral or written presentation of evidence. The
research report writing is the culmination of a research work.Reporting is the end
product of a research activity. It is a highly skilled work. It is the final stage of
the research work.

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So how do you recognize a research report when you see one? Here are some of
the basic features that define a research report.

It is a detailed presentation of research processes and findings, and it usually

includes tables and graphs.

It is written in a formal language.

A research report is usually written in the third person.

It is informative and based on first-hand verifiable information.

It is formally structured with headings, sections, and bullet points.

It always includes recommendations for future actions.

Research reports are to be prepared with care. Therefore, they are to be completed
through a number of steps. They are

1. Plan the project in advance, fix the target and final date of completing the
report.

2. The time of report writing should be planned in advance. The report writing
work should not be put off till the last moment. Sufficient time must be allotted
for report writing task.

3. Prepare a lay out of the structure of the report. Arrange the data,documents,
bibliography etc. in conformity with the structure of the report.

4. Prepare an outline for the report. The outline should be based on all main points
and subpoints.

5. Prepare a rough report of what one has done in his studies. He has to write
down the procedure adopted by him in collecting the material, the technique or
analysis adopted by him, the broad findings and generalisations and his
suggestions. This forms a rough report.

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6. Keep the rough report for few days for careful reading and then revising it on
the basis of thinking and discussing with others. It is appropriate to get the help
of some experienced and knowledgeable person at this stage. It is always good to
get the benefit of guidance of a good guide. The researcher can make suitable
revision of the report on the basis of these. He can also correct the mistakes, if
any,relating to grammar, spelling and usage in the language used in the report.

7. Rewrite the report on the basis of the revision made and corrections effected
on the first report. Eliminate all that are irrelevant and include all that are
essential.

8. Prepare final bibliography. The bibliography is a list of books pertinent to the

research. It should contain all those works which the researcher has consulted.
Bibliography may contain two parts,first containing name of books and
pamphlets, second containing the names of magazines and newspaper articles.

9. The last step in a report writing is the writing of a final draft of the report. The
final draft should be written in a concise and objective style and in simple
language. The draft may have to be read many times and corrected before it is
finalised for typing. A report should not be dull. It must maintain the interest of
the reader.

Types of reports can vary greatly; they can range from an experimental report to
an environmental impact statement. There is however, a basic structure common
to most reports, irrespective of their type.

1. Title Page

The title page includes the name of the report, who wrote it, their organization
and the date.

2. Acknowledgement

This section allows the people who were indispensable in writing the report to
be thanked or mentioned.

3. Table of Contents

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The Table of Contents lists all the major sections of the report. It helps the
reader to find specific information and indicates how the information has been
organized and what topics are covered. The table of contents should also
include a list of figures and a list of tables if any are used in the report.

4. Executive Summary

This section briefly summarizes the purpose of the study, sources of

information, major findings, conclusions, and recommendations. It is designed
for those who do not have the time to read the entire report and as a means of
refreshing a reader’s mind at some later time. It is probably the most important
section of the report, because it is almost certain to be read.

5. Introduction

The Introduction is an extremely important part of any report. It should not

include too much detail, but it should give the reader a good idea of where the
report is going (including a brief description of the contents of the report).

The Introduction has three main components:

i. The Background describes events leading up to the existing situation, what

projects have been done previously, and why the project or study is necessary.

ii. The Purpose defines what the project or study is to achieve, who authorized it
and the specific terms of reference.

iii. The Scope outlines any limitations imposed on the project such as cost, time
etc.

Introduction is different from Executive summary because it highlights the

background,information,purpose and scope of the report.It should be specific,to
the point,brief but a complete discussion of the context of the problem.

6. Body

The body of the report is composed of a series of chapters that describe the
subject of the report. It’s divided into topics which are arranged in a logical
order with headings and sub-headings. The body of the report must address:

Why was the study necessary? (the purpose)

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When, where, how and by whom the study was conducted?
What were the findings?
What conclusions were drawn?
What recommendations were made?

7. Conclusion

covers the writer’s judgement based on information in the body of the report.It
should be brief, concise and specific.

8. Recommendations

The Recommendations should follow naturally from the conclusions.The

recommendations should be based on the materials and data which you
collected during the research process.

9. Abbreviation

Provide an alphabetical list of the abbreviations used in the report if they are not
familiar ones.Provide a glossary with brief explanation of the technical terms
used.

10. References/Bibliography

List of all sources that has been used in report in alphabetical order.It includes
author’s name and initials,date of publication,title of the book,paper or
journal,publisher,place of publication.

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✓ Oral Reports

Reports may be either oral or written. An oral report is a face to face

communication about something seen, observed or
investigated.Therefore, an oral report is any presentation of factual
information using the spoken word.Oral report covers the most routine
and informal reporting situations and may also covers highly formal
presentations.An oral report can be denied at any time but written report
provides a permanent record.

2. Written Reports

The written report is a visual aid to communication. A written report is

always preferred because the writer tries to present the data accurately
and precisely.

Written reports are classified into:

i. Informal

ii. Formal reports.

i. Informal reports

Informal reports are typically for internal use and can go to other
members of the department and department heads. They also may
circulate throughout the company. Although the report may be several
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sections long, it is typically much shorter than a formal report. Informal
reports can be formatted like a memo.

ii. Formal Reports

A formal report is one which is prepared in a prescribed form and is

presented according to an established procedure to a prescribed
authority.Formal reports can be of following three types:

a) Periodic or Routine Reports

These are prepared and presented at regular intervals in the usual routine
of business.They may be presented annually,half
yearly,quarterly,monthly,weekly or even daily.Generally such reports
contain a mere statement of facts,in detail or in summarized form,without
an opinion or recommendation.

b) Informative Report

If report merely presents facts pertinent to an issue or situation,it is

informative.It contains only data collected or the facts observed in an
organized form.It presents the situation as it is and not as it should be.It
does not contain any conclusions or recommendations.It is useful because
it presents relevant data put together in a form in which it is required by
the management to take decisions.

c) Interpretative Report

An interpretative report,like an informational report,contains facts but it

also includes an evaluation or interpretation or analysis of data and the
reporter’s conclusions.It may have recommendations for actions.

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The thesis is one of the most important concepts in college expository writing. A
thesis sentence focuses your ideas for the paper; it's your argument or insight or
viewpoint crystallized into a single sentence that gives the reader your main idea.
It's not only useful for the reading audience to understand the purpose of the
essay; this purpose is also useful for you as a writer, as it indicates the type of
support that will follow in the paper and may indicate a logical structure or order
for that support. Thus, you need to have a good grasp of the concept of thesis in
order to proceed.

The thesis identifies two basics:

1. what your ideas are about, and

2. what your ideas are (i.e. what you will be trying to prove).

There are two parts to a thesis sentence that reflect these basics.

1. The topic in the thesis tells what you are writing about.

2. The angle in the thesis tells what your ideas are about the topic (again, what
you are trying to prove).

The thesis should contain the following chapters:

- Title page

- Summary/abstract

- Table of content

- Introduction

- Background information

- Materials and methods

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- Results and discussion (or separate chapters)

- Conclusion

- (recommendations)

- References

Summary: The summary should contain a brief overview of the research and the
most important results (usually half a page)

Introduction: Your introduction contains information about why you do the

work. It should contain a short description of the problem. If possible, what has
already been done (literature). What is still missing in the research, and how you
are going to contribute to that field. So it should end with an aim or goal. It could
also include a hypothesis, if you are expecting something specific to come out.
The introduction section is usually about 1 page.

Background information: The background information contains all information

needed to understand your results. This contains information about the
ingredients that you use. The background of the methods that you use. Start with
the more general concepts and go into more detail from there. This chapter
involves the use of literature. Try to turn it into a logical story. Do not just put
different literature statements after each other (5-10 pages).

Materials and Methods: The chapter starts with materials. Name all materials
and where they were bought, purchased, received as a gift, etc. The methods
contain all information about how you did the experiments. This contains all the
settings of the equipment as well: temperature, how long you stirred, settings of
the equipment. All information should be there, so someone else can do redo your
experiment. The material and method section is always written in the past.

Results and Discussion: Since it is very difficult to separate results with

discussion, they are often combined in one chapter. This often also makes the
flow of the story better. Results are often represented in figures and tables. Not
just show the raw data. The figures should be self-explanatory. In the text, do not
repeat the data from these tables and figures, but interpret the results. Be critical.
What have I measured. Did I do duplicates? What are the error margins? What
do the results tell me? How can I explain them? And what do I learn from it?.In
the results section, you should also compare your results with those in literature.
What has been done by others, what do they find? And is that similar to my

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results? At the end, your results should be used to answer your aim/questions or
hypothesis that you had at the beginning of your thesis.

Conclusion: this section should contain your most important findings. Start by
mentioning your aim, so people know why you did the work. Do not mention all
the results again in detail, but describe the results as an overview. You could end
the conclusion what kind of implications your results have (in terms of new
product development or something. Or use in other field of science). The
conclusion is usually max. 1 page.

References: There are a lot of different ways to make a reference list. Check
some articles that you read to see the different versions. It is up to you to choose
one. However, when you choose one, stick to it. Do not use different version in
your list. Since it is easier to know the relevance of a paper, also include the title
of the article!

Use of Figures:
- Figures should contain names on both axis with their unity in
brackets: Force (N)

- They should not contain any lines on the inside, only if they have a
function.

- Remove the lines around the complete Figure (standard in excel)

- Make sure that the size of the symbols and letters are large enough so you
can read them.

- Use scientific numbering: 1.105

- Avoid very large numbers for clarity: 10000000 should be 1.107

- Figure numbering should be underneath the Figures

Use of Tables:
- make sure all tables have the same lay-out

- Table columns should contain the parameter with unity in brackets

- Table numbering should be above the Table.

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Length of the thesis: There is not a standard length of the thesis. In general a
BSc thesis is 25-35 pages, and a MSc thesis between 30-50 pages. Only relevant
information should be presented in the thesis itself. Less relevant information and
additional info (pre-testing for example) could be presented in the appendix.

The aim of the research report and thesis is helpful for the evaluation
of the evaluation of the study reports. And also, Research Report is to
demonstrate or develop your ability to undertake a complete piece of
research including research design, and an appreciation of its
significance in the field because provide a clear, specific argument that
will serve as a guide to the reader so she knows what to expect from
your essay.A thesis statement makes a promise to the reader about the
scope,purpose, and direction of the paper. It summarizes the
conclusions that the writer has reached about the topic. The thesis
statement also focused and specific enough to be proven within the
boundaries of the. It should mention and include all the main points that
the research paper wants to address.

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✓ Report Writing, Characteristics, Structure and Types | Simplynotes
✓ Structure of thesis report - WUR
✓ L R Potty. Yamuna Publications. Thiruvananthapuram

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