Informal Reports

CHAPTER: 11
 A report is an organized presentation of factual
information, often aimed at multiple audiences that
may present the results of an investigation, a trip, or
a research project.
◆ Informal Reports
◆ Formal Reports
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Hello!

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Informal Reports
Informative
Reports
• Progress Report
• Trip/ Activity
Report

Analysis Reports
• Feasibility Studies
• Problem Analysis
• Equipment Evaluation
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 Informal Report Formal Report
Length Short in length. Not to be completed in a page or
Usually completed in a page or two. Includes TOC
two.
Nature Deals with the routine matters Deals with complex problems
Reader Usually written for someone Written for within the
within’ the organization. organization or outside
Format written as memorandum and Written in a manuscript format.
letter
Formality Does not require extended Needs planning before writing
planning.
Use of Does not include prefatory Include these special parts to
Supplement parts\nor appended once because increase the reliability and
it presents only day-to-day events. validity of the report.
Style Personal writing styles (using first Are written using impersonal
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or second person style) can be (using third person style) styles

 Guidelines for Informal Reports
1. Plan well before you write
2. Use letter or memo format
3. Make text visually appealing
4. Use the ABC format for organization
5. Call the abstract an introductory summary
6. Put important details in the body
7. Separate fact from opinion
8. Focus attention in your conclusion
9. Use attachments for less important details
7 10. Edit carefully
 1.
Activity Report
Let’s start with the first type of informal reports

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 Let’s review some concepts

Definition Reader

 Any activity reports are written Purpose  Supervisors

at set periods, such as weekly,  ongoing tasks  managers
monthly, or quarterly.
 specific activities  Colleagues
 These periodic reports may be
used simply to inform others of  special projects
what is happening in a  Accomplishments
department or on a project, or of individuals or
they may become part of an departments
employment record.
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 Case Study

 Nancy Fairbanks is simply submitting her usual monthly report. The greatest challenge in such reports is to
classify, divide, and label information in such a way that readers can find what they need quickly. Fairbanks
selected the kind of substantive headings that help the reader locate information (e.g., “Jones Fill Project,”
“Performance Reviews”).

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 2.
Progress Reort

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 An informal report that provides your manager or client with
details about work on a specific project.
o Progress Reports cover progress on a specific project.
o They can be directed inside or outside your organization
o contain mostly objective data
o written in a persuasive manner

Readers
o Supervisor
o Client
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 Case Study
Scott Sampson, M-Global’s personnel manager, is in the midst of an internal
project being conducted for Jeannie McDuff, Vice President of Domestic
Operations. Sampson’s goal is to find ways to improve the company’s training
for technical employees. Having completed two of three phases, he is reporting
his progress to McDuff. Note that Sampson organizes the body sections by
task. This arrangement helps focus the reader’s attention on the two main
accomplishments—the successful phone interviews and the potentially useful
survey. Also note that Sampson adopts a persuasive tone at the end of the
report—that is, he uses his solid progress as a way
to emphasize the importance of the project. In this sense, he is “selling” the
project to his “internal customer,” Jeannie McDuff, who ultimately is in the
position to make decisions about the future of technical training at M-Global.
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 Ethics Questions in the Workplace

Each of the situations that follow presents an ethical

dilemma regarding a specific document, followed by
an answer to each problem.

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 Ethics Questions
 Lab report: Should you mention a small, possibly insignificant percentage of the data
that was collected but that doesn’t support your conclusions?
 Answer: Yes. Readers deserve to see all the data, even (and perhaps especially) any
information that doesn’t support your conclusion. They need a true picture of the lab
study so that they can draw their own conclusions.

 Trip report: Should you mention the fact that one client you visited expressed
dissatisfaction with the service he received from your team?
 Answer: Yes. Assuming that your report is supposed to present an accurate reflection
of your activities, your reader deserves to hear about all your client contacts—good
news and bad news. You can counter any critical comments by indicating how your
team plans to remedy the problem.

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 Ethics Questions

 Feasibility study: Should you list all the criteria you used in comparing three
products, even though one criterion could not be applied adequately in your
study?
 Answer: Yes. It is unethical to adjust criteria after the fact to accommodate
your inability to apply them consistently. Besides, information about a project
dead end may be useful to the reader.
 Technical article: Should you acknowledge ideas you derived from another
article, even though you quoted no information from the piece?
 Answer: Yes. Your reliance on all borrowed ideas should be noted, whether the ideas are
quoted, paraphrased, or summarized. The exception is common knowledge, which is
general information that is found in many sources. Such common knowledge need not be
footnoted.
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 Analysis Reports
1. Feasibility Studies
2. Problem Analysis
3. Equipment Evaluation

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 Problem Analysis

A report that presents

readers with a detailed
description of problems in
areas such as personnel,
equipment, products, and
services.
Its main goal is to provide
objective information so that
the readers can choose the
next step. Any opinions must
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 Case Study
 Harold Marshal, a longtime M-Global employee, supervises all technical work aboard
the Seeker II, a boat that M-Global leases during the summer. Staffed with several
technicians and engineers, the boat is used to collect and test soil samples from the
ocean floor. Different clients purchase these data, such as oil companies that must
place oil rigs safely and telecommunications companies that must lay cable.
 After a summer on the Seeker II, Harold has severe reservations about the safety and
technical adequacy of the boat. Yet he knows that his supervisor, Jan Stillwright, will
require detailed support of any complaints before she seriously considers negotiating
a new boat contract next season. Given this critical audience, Harold focuses on
specific problems that affect(1) the safety of the crew, (2) the accuracy of the
technical work performed, and (3) the morale of the crew. He believes that this
pragmatic approach, rather than an emotional appeal, will best persuade his boss
that the problem is serious.

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 Equipment Evaluation
 An informal report that provides objective data about how equipment has, or has not, functioned.
 The report may cover topics such as machinery, tools, vehicles, office supplies, computer hardware, and
computer software.
 Like a problem analysis, an equipment evaluation may focus only on problems; or like a recommendation report
it may go on to suggest a change in equipment. Whatever its focus, an equipment evaluation must provide a well
documented review of the exact manner in which equipment performed.

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 Equipment Evaluation

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 Case Study

 Like other firms, M-Global relies on word processing for almost all internal and external documents. It is an
evaluation of a new word-processing package used on a trial basis. Melanie Frank, office manager in San
Francisco, conducted the trial in her office and wrote the report to the branch manager, Hank Worley. Note
that she analyzes each of the software’s five main features and then ends with a recommendation, much as in
a recommendation report.

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 Feasibility Studies
 A document written to show the practicality of a proposed policy,
product, service, or other change within an organization. Often
prompted by ideas suggested in a proposal , a feasibility study examines
details such as costs, alternatives, and likely effects.
 Although they must reflect the objectivity of a report, most feasibility
studies also try to convince readers either:
 (1) to adopt or reject the one idea discussed or
 (2) to adopt one of several alternatives presented in the study.

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 Feasibility Studies
 Feasibility studies guide readers toward a particular action.
 It can be either in-house or external.
 Feasibility studies are usually solicited by the reader who needs to make a decision.
Therefore, they do not advocate strongly for a single solution. Instead, they compare
alternatives in such a way that a reader can make an informed decision about a course of
action.
 Feasibility studies are often part of a larger process. They may be preceded by a problem
analysis and a recommendation report or proposal.
 Once a problem has been identified and analyzed and a response has been suggested, a
feasibility study may be conducted to determine if the proposed action is appropriate for
the particular situation in the organization. If the proposed action is feasible and desirable
the feasibility study may be followed by a plan of action, including the development of
guidelines and training materials

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