EENG 222: TECHNICAL WRITING AND PRESENTATION SKILLS

Course content
The course covers; meaning of the terms of technical reporting; functions of reports;
informal and formal reports; principles of technical writing; sources of information;
literature review; documenting sources; illustrations; research proposals and
research reports; project proposals, progress reports and project reports; Gantt charts,
critical path, PERT; periodic reports; evaluation reports and manuals; techniques of
technical writing; publication articles; oral reports; phases in report writing; legal
aspects in writing; editing technical reports and publications.

Teaching/learning methodology and materials

Discussions, Lecture. Assignments; Overhead projector, Power point, Flip charts,
Hand-outs, Charts and Felt Pens.
Course assessment
CATS will account for 30% of the course, Final Examination shall account for 70%,
Total marks 100%

References
April, R., Arviola, R., ( 2006). Technical Communication Today. New York:
Pearson/Longman.
Gerson, Sharon, & Steve, G. (2007). Technical Writing: Process and Product.
Columbus, OH: Pearson.
Pfeiffer, William, S., & Jan, (2007). Technical Writing: A Practical Approach. 4th
Canadian Edition. Scarborough: Prentice Hall.
Scott, Blake, Longo, Bernadette, & Katherine, V. W. (2006). Critical Power Tools.
 What is a Technical Report?
A technical report is a written document that consists of the three key features of a
research i.e process, progress, and result.
It conveys information in an objective, fact-based manner and thus entertains no
space for the personal opinion of the author.
Some common areas in which technical reports are used are agriculture, engineering,
physical, and biomedical science.
So, such complicated information must be conveyed by a report that is easily
readable and efficient.
Now, how do we decide on the readability level?
The answer is simple – by knowing our target audience. A technical report is
considered as a product that comes with your research, like a guide for it.
You study the target audience of a product before creating it, right?
Similarly, before writing a technical report, you must keep in mind who your reader
is going to be.
Whether it is professors, industry professionals, or even customers looking to buy
your project – studying the target audience enables you to start structuring your
report. It gives you an idea of the existing knowledge level of the reader and how
much information you need to put in the report.

Importance of Writing a Technical Report

1. Efficient communication
Technical reports are used by industries to convey pertinent information to upper
management.
This information is then used to make crucial decisions that would impact the
company in the future.
Examples of such technical reports include proposals, regulations, manuals,
procedures, requests, progress reports, emails, and memos.
2. Evidence for your work
If you’re a student, your technical report acts as the sole evidence of your work. It
shows the steps you took for the research and glorifies your efforts for a better
evaluation.
3. Organizes the data
A technical report is a concise, factual piece of information that is aligned and
designed in a standard manner. It is the one place where all the data of a project is
written in a compact manner that is easily understandable by a reader.
4. Tool for evaluation of your work
Supervisors mainly evaluate your research project based on the technical write-up
for it.
Best results occur when both of them work together.
So, how can you write a technical report that leaves the readers in a ‘wow’ mode?
Let’s find out!
This means every report has a purpose beyond the simple presentation of information.
5. Analysis:
It is essential to problem solving and decision making. One may be asked to analyze
options for a supervisor who will make a recommendation to a client, or may be
asked to use analysis to make your own recommendation.
6. Argument: Good argument forms the basis for all technical communication.

Some common purposes are:

i. To convince the reader of something. For example:
 to convince a government agency of the effect of a particular course of action
 to convince a client that your solution will fulfill their needs
  to convince the public that a proposed project will bring benefits
ii. To persuade the reader to do something. For example:
 to persuade a government or council to adopt a particular course of action
 to persuade a client to choose one design over another
 to persuade an organisation to partner with your company on a project
iii. To inform the reader about something (usually for a further purpose). For
example:
 to provide a government department with information they will base policy
on
 to instruct other engineers who will work from your plans

How to Write a Technical Report?

Approach
When writing a technical report, there are two approaches you can follow, depending
on what suits you the best.
Top-down approach- In this, you structure the entire report from title to sub-
sections and conclusion and then start putting in the matter in the respective chapters.
This allows your thought process to have a defined flow and thus helps in time
management as well.
Evolutionary delivery- This approach is suitable if you’re someone who believes
in ‘go with the flow’. Here the author writes and decides as and when the work
progresses. This gives you a broad thinking horizon. You can even add and edit
certain parts when some new idea or inspiration strikes.
 Structure
A technical report must have a defined structure that is easy to navigate and clearly
portrays the objective of the report. Here is a list of pages, set in the order that you
should include in your technical report.
Cover page- It is the face of your project. So, it must contain details like title, name
of the author, name of the institution with its logo. It should be a simple yet eye-
catching page.
Title page- In addition to all the information on the cover page, the title page also
informs the reader about the status of the project. For instance, technical report part
1, final report, etc. The name of the mentor or supervisor is also mentioned on this
page.
Abstract- Also referred to as the executive summary, this page gives a concise and
clear overview of the project. It is written in such a manner that a person only reading
the abstract can gain complete information on the project.
Preface– It is an announcement page wherein you specify that you have given due
credits to all the sources and that no part of your research is plagiarized. The findings
are of your own experimentation and research.
Dedication- This is an optional page when an author wants to dedicate their study
to a loved one.
It is a small sentence in the middle of a new page. It is mostly used in theses.
Acknowledgment- Here, you acknowledge the people, parties, and institutions who
helped you in the process or inspired you for the idea of it.
Table of contents– Each chapter and its sub-chapter is carefully divided into this
section for easy navigation in the project. If you have included symbols, then a
similar nomenclature page is also made. Similarly, if you’ve used a lot of graphs and
tables, you need to create a separate content page for that. Each of these lists begins
on a new page.
Introduction- Finally comes the introduction, marking the beginning of your project.
On this page, you must clearly specify the context of the report. It includes
specifying the purpose, objectives of the project, the questions you have answered
in your report, and sometimes an overview of the report is also provided. Note that
your conclusion should answer the objective questions.

Central Chapter(s)- Each chapter should be clearly defined with sub and sub-sub
sections if needed. Every section should serve a purpose. While writing the central
chapter, keep in mind the following factors:
Clearly define the purpose of each chapter in its introduction.
Any assumptions you are taking for this study should be mentioned. For instance, if
your report is targeting globally or a specific country. There can be many
assumptions in a report. Your work can be disregarded if it is not mentioned every
time you talk about the topic.
Results you portray must be verifiable and not based upon your opinion. (Big no to
opinions!)
Each conclusion drawn must be connected to some central chapter.

Conclusion- The purpose of the conclusion is to basically conclude any and

everything that you talked about in your project. Mention the findings of each
chapter, objectives reached, and the extent to which the given objectives were
reached. Discuss the implications of the findings and the significant contribution
your research made.

Appendices- They are used for complete sets of data, long mathematical formulas,
tables, and figures. Items in the appendices should be mentioned in the order they
were used in the project.
References- This is a very crucial part of your report. It cites the sources from which
the information has been taken from. This may be figures, statistics, graphs, or word-
to-word sentences. The absence of this section can pose a legal threat for you. While
writing references, give due credit to the sources and show your support to other
people who have studied the same genres.

Bibliography- Many people tend to get confused between references and

bibliography. Let us clear it out for you. References are the actual material you take
into your research, previously published by someone else. Whereas a bibliography
is an account of all the data you read, got inspired from, or gained knowledge from,
which is not necessarily a direct part of your research.

Style
Let’s take a look at the writing style you should follow while writing a technical
report:
 Avoid using slang or informal words. For instance, use ‘cannot’ instead of
can’t.
 Use a third-person tone and avoid using words like I, Me.
 Each sentence should be grammatically complete with an object and subject.
 Two sentences should not be linked via a comma.
 Tenses should be carefully employed. Use present for something that is still
viable and past for something no longer applicable.
 Readers should be kept in mind while writing. Avoid giving them instructions.
Your work is to make their work of evaluation easier.
 Abbreviations should be avoided and if used, the full form should be
mentioned.
  Understand the difference between a numbered and bulleted list. Numbering
is used when something is explained sequence-wise. Whereas bullets are used
to just list out points in which sequence is not important.
 All the preliminary pages (title, abstract, preface..) should be named in small
roman numerals. ( i, ii, iv..)
 All the other pages should be named in Arabic numerals (1,2,3..) thus, your
report begins with 1 – on the introduction page.
 Separate long texts into small paragraphs to keep the reader engaged. A
paragraph should not be more than 10 lines.
 Do not incorporate too many fonts. Use standard times new roman 12pt for
the text. You can use bold for headlines.

Proofreading
If you think your work ends when the report ends, think again. Proofreading the
report is a very important step. While proofreading you see your work from a
reader’s point of view and you can correct any small mistakes you might have done
while typing. Check everything from content to layout, and style of writing.

Presentation
Finally comes the presentation of the report in which you submit it to an evaluator.
 It should be printed single-sided on an A4 size paper. Double side printing
looks chaotic and messy.
 Margins should be equal throughout the report.

Some examples of technical writing include:

 Instruction manuals
  Policy manuals
 Process manuals
 User manuals
 Reports of analysis
 Instructions for assembling a product
 A summarization of a long report that highlights and shortens the most
important elements

Formal and Informal Reports

Formal and informal reports are the two most common types of business reports.
When a report is highly structured and is relatively long in size, it is called a formal
report. On the other hand, when a report is less structured and is short in size, it is
called an informal report. These two types of reports differ in many ways. Major
distinctions between them are as follows:
Formal Report – reports that are prepared in prescribed forms, according to some
established procedures to proper authorities are called formal reports.
Form of the report: Formal report is highly structured and is prepared in a
prescribed format.
Most Formal report is always written in a manuscript (narrative style) format.
Purpose: Formal report is written to help management in making long term and
strategic decisions.
Objective: Objective of the formal report is to assist decision making by providing
an effective recommendation.
Length: It is long in size. Size of a formal report is large. It generally includes some
particular pages (e.g. prefatory page) that do not appear in short reports.
Distribution: In most cases, formal reports are circulated to top-level executives
and outside parties.
Nature of problem: Formal report deals with complex and non-recurring problems.
It is analytical and systematic in nature. It deals with key complex problems.
Frequency of writing: Formal report is written very infrequently.
Writing responsibility: This type of report is usually written by internal or external
experts.
Use of visual aids: This type of report makes extensive use of visual aids to present
the facts and findings.
Writing Style: This report follows inductive (indirect) and impersonal writing style.
A formal report on the other hand, after analyzing and interpreting the conclusion of
the report, you draw and make recommendations.
Recommendation: Recommendation is an essential part of a formal report.
Informal Report – An informal report is one that is prepared not by following any
prescribed rule or formality.
Form of the report: Informal report is less structured and it is less important to
follow the prescribed format. Most Informal reports are written in memorandum and
letter formats.
Purpose: The main purpose of an informal report is to present the facts that help
managers in making day-to-day business decisions.
Objective: Conveying routine messages and to help routine functions are the basic
objectives of the informal report.
Length: It is short in size. An informal report is short in size. This report writing is
generally complete in a page or two.
Distribution: Short report is usually circulated within the organization.
Nature of problem: Informal report deals with less complex and recurring problems.
It is not methodical in nature. This report deals with the schedule matters.
Frequency of writing: It is written very frequently even daily or weekly.
Writing responsibility: These reports are usually written by a subordinate.
Use of visual aids: This type of report seldom uses visual aids.
Writing Style: This report follows deductive (direct) and personal writing style.
Informal reports follow deductive writing styles. A short report highlights facts and
specific recommendations. It avoids analysis and inclusion of supporting
information.
Recommendations: Recommendations are not required in an informal report.

Principles of technical writing

There are five universal ethical principles of technical writing. The principles are
quality content, audience and purpose, accessibility, grammar, and writing style.
Quality Content
Quality Content is subjective. MATC’s definition of high quality content is a product
that meets a client’s standards or goes above and beyond the initial scope of the
project. To produce a high quality project, you need to write with the intended
audience in mind. The writer must research additional knowledge needed before the
document or material is completed. The writer needs to know what format or
platform will be used to represent the information. The writer has to determine
specific information that range from knowing what the deadlines are to knowing
why the information needs to be written.

Audience and Purpose

The writer needs to understand both the purpose and audience in order to create an
outstanding technical piece. The technical writing audience varies on the industry
and the particular client.
For example, the audience of a lap report would be the product manufacturer who
hired us as writers. The audience for an eLearning training module may be a bank
or mortgage provider who needs compliance training. The writer has to know how
much the readers will know and what the responsibilities the writer is required to
fulfill when it comes to communicating to the readers.

Accessibility
It is essential for the audience to be able to access the information the writer created
with ease.
Accessibility includes anything that is on a document, such as headers and footers,
or on computer iLearn modules, which improve accessibility formatting to be more
universal and clearer. The technical writer needs to figure out the best method to
help readers navigate the documentation with notations from a bibliography to a
page numbers to a table of contents. The writer could even add visuals, such as charts
and figures, to explain information further.

Grammar
Writing clear, concise, and straightforward with a proper use of grammar is vital in
writing any technical piece. The writer must also proofread and edit any technical
piece being written to correct any errors or inconsistencies with the grammar, style,
and layout. A technical writer should always write in the present tense unless the
client indicates their preference else-wise.
The reader of the technical piece should be doing exactly what you are giving
instructions for.
The writer should always write in simple sentences that include gender neutral nouns.
Simple sentences help the readers clearly and efficiently understand the tasks they
have to undertake to complete their goals.
Writing Style
The writing style differs for every technical piece because it heavily depends on who
the audience is and the scenario that the technical piece is being written for. The tone
of a technical writing piece is essential because it helps the reader understand what
kind of tone is required to complete the task. Word choice is also an essential part of
the style in helping provide the needs for the audience because it connects back to
who your audience is. When referencing sections of information or websites, it’s
essential to provide clear and visible ways to access the information using tools, such
as figures and tables.

Tips for Good Technical Writing

Regardless of the type of document which is written, technical writing requires the
writer to follow the properties of knowing their audience, writing in a clear, non-
personal style and doing extensive research on the topic. By including these
properties, the writer can create clear instructions and explanations for the reader.
 Know your audience. An expert in the field will understand certain
abbreviations, acronyms, and lingo that directly applies to such a field. The
novice will not understand in the same manner and, therefore, every detail
must be explained and spelled out for them.
 Use an impersonal style. Write from a third person perspective, like a teacher
instructing a student. Any opinions should be omitted.
 The writing should be straightforward, to the point, and as simple as possible
to make sure the reader understands the process or instruction. This at times
may appear as simply a list of steps to take to achieve the desired goal or may
be a short or lengthy explanation of a concept or abstract idea.
 Know how to research. Gather information from a number of sources,
understand the information gathered so that it can be analyzed thoroughly, and
 then put the information into an easy to understand format to instruct those
who read it. The more inexperienced your audience, the more information you
will need to gather and explain.
 Be thorough in description and provide enough detail to make your points;
but, you also have to consider that you need to use an economy of words so
that you do not bore your reader with gratuitous details.
A good technical writer can make a difficult task easy and can quickly explain a
complex piece of information.

Sources of Information

Primary Sources
Primary sources are original materials. They are from the time period involved and
have not been filtered through interpretation or evaluation. Primary sources are
original materials on which other research is based. They are usually the first formal
appearance of results in physical, print or electronic format. They present original
thinking, report a discovery, or share new information.
Note: The definition of a primary source may vary depending upon the discipline or
context.
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Secondary Sources
Generally, they are accounts written after the fact with the benefit of hindsight. They
are interpretations and evaluations of primary sources.
Secondary sources are not evidence, but rather commentary on and discussion of
evidence.
However, what some define as a secondary source, others define as a tertiary source.
Context is everything.
Note: The definition of a secondary source may vary depending upon the discipline
or context.
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Tertiary Sources
Tertiary sources consist of information that is a collection of primary and secondary
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Literature Review
A literature review is both the process and the product.
What is a literature review?
 A literature review is a descriptive, analytic summary of the existing material
relating to a particular topic or area of study.
 The literature review process involves a systematic examination of prior
scholarly works.
Purpose of Literature Review

Why review the literature?

 Find out what information already exist in your field of research
 Identify gaps in literature/ to make sure you are not simply replicating research
that others have already successfully completed
 Find out people working in your field
 Identify methodology and research techniques
 Provide context for your own research
 Show relationships between previous studies and theories
 To help you understand a research topic
 To establish the importance of a topic
 To demonstrate knowledge and show how your current work is situated within,
builds on, or departs from earlier publications

How to write a literature review

A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic.
It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant
theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research.
Writing a literature review involves finding relevant publications (such as books and
journal articles), critically analyzing them, and explaining what you found.
There are five key steps:
1. Search for relevant literature
2. Evaluate sources
3. Identify themes, debates and gaps
4. Outline the structure
5. Write your literature review

A good literature review doesn’t just summarize sources – it analyzes, synthesizes,

and critically evaluates to give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.

Step 1: Search for relevant literature

Before you begin searching for literature, you need a clearly defined topic.
You will search for literature related to your research problem and questions.
If you are writing a literature review as a stand-alone assignment, you will have to
choose a focus and develop a central question to direct your search. Unlike a
dissertation research question, this question has to be answerable without collecting
original data. You should be able to answer it based only on a review of existing
publications.
Research question example: What is the impact of social media on body image
among Generation Z?
Search for relevant sources
Use your keywords to begin searching for sources.

Step 2: Evaluate and select sources

You probably won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on
the topic –
You’ll have to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your questions.
Make sure the sources you use are credible, and make sure you read any landmark
studies and major theories in your field of research.
You can find out how many times an article has been cited on Google Scholar – a
high citation count means the article has been influential in the field, and should
certainly be included in your literature review.
The scope of your review will depend on your topic and discipline: in the sciences
you usually only review recent literature, but in the humanities you might take a long
historical perspective (for example, to trace how a concept has changed in meaning
over time).
Take notes and cite your sources
As you read, you should also begin the writing process. Take notes that you can later
incorporate into the text of your literature review.
It is important to keep track of your sources with citations to avoid plagiarism. It can
be helpful to make an annotated bibliography, where you compile full citation
information and write a paragraph of summary and analysis for each source. This
helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process..

Step 3: Identify themes, debates, and gaps

You need to understand the connections and relationships between the sources
you’ve read.
Based on your reading and notes, you can look for:
 Trends and patterns (in theory, method or results): do certain approaches
become more or less popular over time?
 Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the literature?
 Debates, conflicts and contradictions: where do sources disagree?
 Pivotal publications: are there any influential theories or studies that changed
the direction of the field?
 Gaps: what is missing from the literature? Are there weaknesses that need to
be addressed?
This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review and (if
applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge.
Step 4: Outline your literature review’s structure
There are various approaches to organizing the body of a literature review. You
should have a rough idea of your strategy before you start writing.
Depending on the length of your literature review, you can combine several of these
strategies (for example, your overall structure might be thematic, but each theme is
discussed chronologically).

Chronological
The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time. However,
if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarizing
sources in order.
Try to analyze patterns, turning points and key debates that have shaped the direction
of the field.
Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.

Thematic
If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organize your literature
review into sub-sections that address different aspects of the topic.
For example, if you are reviewing literature about inequalities in migrant health
outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language barriers, cultural
attitudes, legal status, and economic access.

Methodological
If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of
research methods, you might want to compare the results and conclusions that
emerge from different approaches. For example:
Look at what results have emerged in qualitative versus quantitative research
Discuss how the topic has been approached by empirical versus theoretical
scholarship
Divide the literature into sociological, historical, and cultural sources

Theoretical
A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework. You can use
it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.
You might argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach, or combine
various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your research.

Step 5: Write your literature review

Like any other academic text, your literature review should have an introduction, a
main body, and a conclusion. What you include in each depends on the objective of
your literature review.

Introduction
The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature
review.

Body
Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body
into subsections. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or
methodological approach.
As you write, you can follow these tips:
Summarize and synthesize: give an overview of the main points of each source and
combine them into a coherent whole
Analyze and interpret: don’t just paraphrase other researchers—add your own
interpretations where possible, discussing the significance of findings in relation to
the literature as a whole
Critically evaluate: mention the strengths and weaknesses of your sources
Write in well-structured paragraphs: use transition words and topic sentences to
draw connections, comparisons and contrasts

Conclusion
In the conclusion, you should summarize the key findings you have taken from the
literature and emphasize their significance.

Types of Literature Reviews

Argumentative Review
This form examines literature selectively in order to support or refute an argument,
deeply imbedded assumption, or philosophical problem already established in the
literature. The purpose is to develop a body of literature that establishes a contrarian
viewpoint. Given the value-laden nature of some social science research [e.g.,
educational reform; immigration control], argumentative approaches to analyzing
the literature can be a legitimate and important form of discourse. However, note
that they can also introduce problems of bias when they are used to make summary
claims of the sort found in systematic reviews [see below].
Integrative Review
Considered a form of research that reviews, critiques, and synthesizes representative
literature on a topic in an integrated way such that new frameworks and perspectives
on the topic are generated. The body of literature includes all studies that address
related or identical hypotheses or research problems. A well-done integrative review
meets the same standards as primary research in regard to clarity, rigor, and
replication. This is the most common form of review in the social sciences.
Historical Review
Few things rest in isolation from historical precedent. Historical literature reviews
focus on examining research throughout a period of time, often starting with the first
time an issue, concept, theory, phenomena emerged in the literature, then tracing its
evolution within the scholarship of a discipline. The purpose is to place research in
a historical context to show familiarity with state-of-the-art developments and to
identify the likely directions for future research.
Methodological Review
A review does not always focus on what someone said [findings], but how they came
about saying what they say [method of analysis]. This methods of analysis provides
a framework of understanding at different levels [i.e. those of theory, substantive
fields, research approaches, and data collection and analysis techniques], how
researchers draw upon a wide variety of knowledge ranging from the conceptual
level to practical documents for use in fieldwork in the areas of ontological and
epistemological consideration, quantitative and qualitative integration, sampling,
interviewing, data collection, and data analysis. This approach helps highlight
ethical issues which you should be aware of and consider as you go through your
own study.
Systematic Review
This form consists of an overview of existing evidence pertinent to a clearly
formulated research question, which uses pre-specified and standardized methods to
identify and critically appraise relevant research, and to collect, report, and analyze
data from the studies that are included in the review. The goal is to deliberately
document, critically evaluate, and summarize scientifically all of the research about
a clearly defined research problem. Typically it focuses on a very specific empirical
question, often posed in a cause-and-effect form, such as "To what extent does A
contribute to B?" This type of literature review is primarily applied to examining
prior research studies in clinical medicine and allied health fields, but it is
increasingly being used in the social sciences.
Theoretical Review
The purpose of this form is to examine the corpus of theory that has accumulated in
regard to an issue, concept, theory, phenomena. The theoretical literature review
helps to establish what theories already exist, the relationships between them, to
what degree the existing theories have been investigated, and to develop new
hypotheses to be tested. Often this form is used to help establish a lack of appropriate
theories or reveal that current theories are inadequate for explaining new or emerging
research problems. The unit of analysis can focus on a theoretical concept or a whole
theory or framework.
Documenting Sources
Documenting means showing where you got source information that's not your own.
Remember, a research paper blends your ideas with ideas and information from other
sources.
Documentation shows the reader what ideas are yours and what information and
ideas you've taken from a source to support your point of view.
Why Document?
 By correctly documenting, you establish your credibility as a writer and
researcher.
 You're letting your reader know that you've consulted experts whose ideas and
information back up your own thoughts and ideas. Consequently, you make
your viewpoint or argument more believable.
  When you don't document correctly, your academic integrity can be called
into question, because it may seem as though you're passing off others' ideas
as your own.
 If you don't document, you could inadvertently plagiarize, which is grounds
for dismissal from college.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity involves not only acknowledging your sources, but also creating
your own ideas.
Academic integrity, explained in this way, sounds relatively simple. But the
particular applications are a bit more tricky.
The most common academic integrity problems that most students encounter
are these:
 relying too heavily on others' information in a research paper
 relying too heavily on others' words in a paraphrase or summary
 citing and documenting sources incorrectly
 relying too heavily on help from other sources
The most egregious violation of academic integrity is when a student uses a writing
assignment for more than one course, or when a student "borrows" a paper and
passes it off as his or her own work.
What to Document?
The basic rule for documentation is this: Document any specific ideas, opinions, and
facts that are not your own. The only thing you don't have to document is common
knowledge.
For example: you do have to document the fact that 103 cities in New York state
were originally settled by English settlers because this is a specific fact that is not
common knowledge. You do not have to document the information that New York
state has places named for British cities, since this is common knowledge.
There are two categories of common knowledge:
 information that's known to the general public
 information that is agreed upon by most people in a professional field
Tip: Sometimes common knowledge can be tricky to define. A good rule is this:
if in doubt, document.
Can You Document Too Much?
If you find yourself needing to document almost every sentence, then it means you
have not thought enough about your topic to develop your own ideas. A paper should
not be just a collection of others' ideas and facts. Sources should only support or
substantiate your ideas.
Tip: The rule of thumb is that whenever you use information from sources you
should comment on the information. Your comment should be approximately
the same length as the source itself.

Where to Document
You must identify your sources in two places in your research paper:
 at the end
 in your paper as you use direct quotations or paraphrases and summaries
of ideas and information from the sources you've researched
Citing at the end of the paper: Put your notecards with the source information on
them in alphabetical order according to the authors' last names, then follow the
correct format for providing the essential source information.
Documenting your sources within the text of your paper: Most current research
papers insert the basic source information inside parentheses within the text of the
paper either at the end of the sentence, or group of sentences, that contain the source's
information.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism means to steal and use the ideas and writings of another as one's own. To
appropriate passages or ideas from another and use them as one's own."
Plagiarism is a serious offense within the academic community. You plagiarize
whether you intend to or not when you don't credit others' ideas within/at the end of
your paper. Even though you may have rewritten ideas and information using your
own words in a paraphrase or summary, the ideas and information are not yours.
You must cite your source.
How to avoid plagiarism
 Acknowledge any sources that you use with proper documentation
 Put in quotation marks and document the sources of all the exact words and
phrases that you get from another source
 If you paraphrase, you must acknowledge the source
 It is not necessary to document facts considered common knowledge
There is no correct way to document sources. What is important is to be
consistent with Where the citation appears.
It appears in two places
Some Documentation Styles
Footnote System
American Sociological Association (ASA)
Numbered Notes System (e.g Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers)
American Psychological Association (APA)
Council of Science Editors (CSE)
ILLUSTRATION
AN ILLUSTRATION is a graphic or an image that conveys information or a
message. There are basically three categories of illustrations used in technical
documents:
• Photographs from digital recordings or silver-halide film
• Line art such as graphs, charts, or drawings
• Tables with numbers or words organized by row and column
Illustrations usually make a document more interesting, and they help clarify content
by reducing words and enhancing the transfer, presentation, and interpretation of
information.
They help the author meet his or her objective, whatever it may be.
Reasons for Using Illustrations
Illustrations interpret information, and make the document more interesting and easy
to read. In other words, try to use them effectively in all technical documents.
Interest
Illustrations increase interest and readability by giving readers a visual break. An
uninterrupted page of words can be boring. Newspapers and magazines are full of
illustrations. They create visual interest, and often photos are used to lure readers to
particular pieces. The opposite extreme is a legal document like an insurance policy,
which contains only words (and often long complex sentences).
Which type of document do you like to read? Most people prefer a document with
some photos, graphs, or other illustrations.
An author can use illustrations to increase visual appeal. A verbal description of a
machine can be made more interesting with a good photo of the overall machine.
Another way to increase interest is use photos with people in them. A photo of
equipment with an operator is more interesting than just a photo of machinery.
People in photos give a sense of action and scale. They help animate photos of
equipment and machinery, and this works for any type of document. However, be
sure to get permission to use a person’s photo in a document.
Clarification/Simplification.
The classic use of an illustration is to clarify the assembly of a device or appliance.
If you have ever bought a tool, or piece of furniture with “some assembly required,”
you recognize the benefit of an assembly drawing. Directions of any sort can usually
benefit from an illustration.
Numerical data and calculations also can be simplified by the use of tables or graphs.
Hardness conversions and temperature conversions are examples. Conversion can
be accomplished without calculations when the information is presented in a graph
or a table. Another example is the tax computation table, which makes calculations
easier when determining taxes for the government.
Mathematical computations are also simplified by computer spreadsheets.
Concision.
“A picture is worth a thousand words” is an old and worn cliche, but it is still true.
Illustrations help make a document more concise.
An organization chart is a good example of speeding up communication with an
illustration. You can convey how your department works very quickly by simply
including an organizational chart in your document.
Easier Interpretation of Information.
Graphs, charts, and tables are often indispensable when large amounts of
information are presented.
Well-designed tables or graphs can communicate information on one page that may
otherwise require ten pages of words and/or numbers. A well-designed illustration
also gives a visual structure that allows scanning and comparison of numerical or
verbal content.
Photographs
You only have two choices of media for capturing images as photographs: silver-
halide film or digital files. Both can be either black-and-white or in color. The choice
between digital image files and film often depends on the availability of equipment.
Some people do not have both digital and film cameras. However, when one has the
option, the choice between the two can become a question of speed and resolution.
Speed depends on the specific type of equipment and/or film.
The resolution of two-dimensional image recorders (that is, cameras) is defined in
terms of dimensional resolution and contrast resolution. Dimensional resolution is
expressed in terms of pixels, which is just a shortened term for “picture element.”
Any two-dimensional image can be divided into any array of many small pixels.
This pixel array defines the dimensional resolution and the size of the smallest
feature that can be discerned. Ordinary televisions have a resolution of about
300,000 pixels, whereas digital high-definition televisions have a resolution of about
2x106 pixels. The dimensional resolution of a good digital camera (in 2000)
Line Art (Graphs, Charts, Schematics)
Line art refers to illustrations that can be drawn with lines, text, and lines formed
into letters, words, and sentences. In the past, artists with drawing instruments and a
drawing table prepared line art. Today, computer software can do the job. Like
photos, line-art illustrations can be produced in print or electronic form. If you plan
to reproduce illustrations from electronic files (or submit them to a publisher for
print or electronic publication), then the best electronic format for line art is a “.tif”
file with a resolution of 600 dpi. Scanning or saving line-art illustrations at
600 dpi gives a crisp image without excessively large files (unlike photos, which
should be scanned or saved at 300 dpi).
Schematics: are simplified sketches of a process or object.
Charts.
Line-art illustrations also include charts, which are visual presentations of numerical
or verbal information. These are a type of informal line art that has become prevalent
with computer spreadsheet software and tabular data. Charts differ from graphs in
that they are less mathematical than graphs, and they may not be appropriate for
showing trends. In simpler terms, charts are usually applied to business information.
In contrast, graphs are used to present trends and scientific information. Their use,
however, can overlap.
Graphs
Are an indispensable part of many technical documents. They interpret data and
serve as the basis for models and theories. The independent variable is usually
plotted horizontally; the dependent variable is usually plotted on the vertical axis.
Research Proposal and Research Report
When it comes to academic or scientific, quantified research, there are several steps
writers need to be aware about before diving head-first into the hypothesis. One
common mistake students make when writing research projects is mixing up their
research proposal and research report. Of course, both of them are closely related to
the research itself.
What is a research proposal?
The proposal step of research precedes the actual research itself.
This is the stage where a student should outline in detail what questions they will
explore and analyze. As a preparation stage, the research proposal is presented at the
beginning of the research project with the aim of justifying the need for a deeper
analysis and probing into the question or hypothesis.
The proposal outlines the methods that will be used to carry out the research and the
design of the research to ensure that the results are reliable and efficient.
What is a research report?
Similar to the proposal, the research report is a crucial role in the entirety of a
research project.
The research report is presented after the research has been conducted already. This
can be seen as a post-report stage, as it analyses the information and results of the
research and summarizes the student’s findings. The aim of a research report is to
critically analyze the proposed hypothesis or questions as well as the results of said
research. In some cases, this will be called a thesis or dissertation – a major
assignment for college and university students trying to achieve their degree.
Inside of a Research Proposal
The proposal lays out many steps and ideas before conducting the research – so it is
essential to have a structure or outline that matches with the results you will be
looking for. Typically, a good research proposal is five to seven pages long, or 2,000
words or more.
The proposal outline will include:
Title – a title should be straightforward and clear at first glance
Background Information – this includes issues related to your proposed research,
as well as the rationale behind the research. It should also include literary sources
that will be used to reference from, or maybe where the proposed question or
hypothesis derived from. If the topic is widely discussed, there can also be a
summary of the topics discussed and the ongoing developments happening at the
moment.
Research Questions – the main part of the research project, the question is what
you will be doing research on. It serves as a starting point from where students can
branch off into other problems and issues that may arise during the research step.
This segment can change based on the information you gather pre-research.
Methodology – this outlines the process of the research and the resources students
will need to conduct the research. It should include the theoretical framework – or
how the research will be approached and if they are appropriate for the proposed
questions. Theoretically, it should include possible limits of the research and the
advantages of the predicted outcome.
Plan of work – This segment details the amount of time needed to conduct the
research and a detailed outline of the schedule to complete the research. Its essential
to understand the scope of the project and to set a date to have the research completed
in order to analyze the information at the appropriate time.
Bibliography – just like any academic writing, a bibliography lists the references
students will use for the research and a handful of resources at their disposal during
the research process.
Inside of a Research Report
The research report is the golden egg of the research – it provides the results and
information students will be searching for. The report comes post-research and
serves as the dissertation or thesis that is a deeper analysis of the information.
The research report will include:
A Cover Sheet – this provides the reader all the information about the writer and
the proposed topic.
An abstract – a basic summary of the report itself, the abstract includes the sample
size of research, the treatment of the research, the design of the research, and the
implications of the research. This is not meant to be longer than a page – just a
briefing on the proposed research before diving into the deep analysis.
Introduction – this stretched beyond the information in the abstract and should
include supportive statistics and the purpose and the significance of the research in
the scope of a community or the globally. This prepares the reader with the
information needed to follow the research steps and the reasons why these steps were
taken.
Research questions – the hypothesis should be presented in this segment, outlining
a broader idea and moving towards specific and detailed questions. There should be
a large distinction between the quantitative-based questions, and the qualitative-
based questions here, to make things more clear for the reader to follow. Students
should have more than one hypothesis to be considered a well-conducted research
project, as it widens the scope and the purpose of the research.
Review of literature – the resources used to conduct the research should be present
here. This qualifies the research done and supports it with evidence from literature
related to the topic itself.
It should be able to refute evidence and support the main ideas. The sources should
be linked together so as to provide synthesis.
Method and Results – The methods used during the research period should be
detailed at this segment – mentioning the samples, the setting, the treatment, and the
data analysis. The results should also be described in details, again differentiating
between quantitative and qualitative results.
Discussion – the final aspect of the research project includes an open discussion
about the work done. It should restate the hypothesis and check to see if it was correct
or incorrect and see why.
It should also include the limitations of the study – and maybe reasons why it turned
out to be correct or incorrect. The discussion should be wrapped up with a conclusion
and a closing summary of the entire research project.
Project proposal
It’s a document that lists down all aspects of a project; its background, vision, goals,
tasks, requirements, owners, associated risks, etc. So it basically explains what your
project is, what you want to achieve with it, and how you plan to execute it.
It’s a necessary first step towards getting a project off the ground. A project proposal
is usually selected during the project intake process.
A well-written project proposal informs and persuades, and combines project
management skills with a few other essential skills: research, data analysis, and some
copywriting.
It follows conventional proposal formats that include the following elements:
Executive summary. Short and to the point, the executive summary is essentially
the project’s elevator pitch. It states the problem clearly, addresses how your
proposed project intends to solve the problem, and discusses what a successful
project looks like.
Background or history. This section outlines both successful and unsuccessful
previous projects, including how the latter could have been handled better, with the
goal of showing how the proposed project will be more successful based on the
lessons of the past.
Requirements. This section briefly summarizes what’s needed throughout the
project life cycle in terms of resources, tools, project schedule, etc.
Solution. The solution section explains how you intend to approach the project
and bring it to completion. It covers the project management steps, techniques, and
skills needed to get things done more efficiently, as well as how to manage problems.
Authorization. This section states explicitly who the project’s decision-makers
are and the stakeholders authorized by the client to make approval/sign-off decisions.
Appendix. Any information not included in the actual proposal should be in the
appendix, such as materials and resources that team members and stakeholders can
use to learn more about the project.
Benefits of a well-structured project proposal
 Clarifies the expectations of the project – project requirements and the action
plan
  Helps increase the viability of the project
 Offers a large overview of the project allowing you to identify issues easily
 Simplifies project implementation
Different types of project proposals include
Formally solicited – a proposal that is made in response to an official Request for
Proposal (RFP). The RFP document usually outlines the stakeholder requirements
and even sometimes spells out the instructions to prepare the proposal.
Informally solicited – this type of proposal does not require an RFP, which means
there is no official document outlining the demands of the customer or the
stakeholder, therefore doesn’t consist of the specific details a formal one usually has.
Unsolicited – this type of proposal is thought of by the person creating them and not
expected or requested by anyone, yet they can be of a lot of value to the stakeholder.
Continuation – this basically requires you to update an ongoing or already approved
proposal or remind the stakeholders of it. You are required to check-in with the
stakeholders and discuss progress.
Renewal – this is written in support of renewing a project that has been terminated
or outlived its usefulness.
Supplemental – when you need more resources than what was originally allocated
to a project, you can write a supplemental project proposal. Its purpose is to justify
the need for extra resources and re-estimate the project scope and timeline.
How to Write a Project Proposal
Once you have identified the type of project proposal that suits your requirement,
you can start writing your business project proposal.
Before you actually begin to write down the project proposal, there are a few
preliminary steps that you need to take. These are:
Identify who your stakeholders are. While you should aim to win the attention
and interest of your stakeholders with your proposal, the best way to do that is to
think like them. Understand who they are, what they already know of, and what they
prefer in terms of your idea. Based on who they are, you can alter the information
you include, and the language you use.
Gather information about the problem the project is aiming to solve,
especially in terms of how it’s affecting your stakeholders and their interests.
Conduct research into the current state of the issue and the potential solutions
that have already been discovered by those who are outside of your company or by
your own team. This will help you adjust your own solution to generate a more solid
argument or determine whether it’s worth pursuing (especially if the solutions found
by others have already been tested and failed).
Determine the impact of the project on your company’s success or how it will
benefit your stakeholders. Layout the success metrics for the proposal and showcase
the results, and if you find any risks involved, don’t be afraid to bring them to light
as well; in any case, knowing them will allow you to alter your action plan to
withstand them.
Specify a timeline and the resources needed to complete the project. Check if
the teams, equipment, and material needed to carry out the project tasks are available
and the objectives can be achieved in a timely manner. Take into account the other
projects your team will be working on, the equipment or material that’s currently
unavailable, and any extra costs on resources you will have to bear in order to carry
out the proposed project.
Create an outline of your project proposal based on the information you have
gathered. Write down the core elements; more or less the basic elements should
include an introduction, problem, solution, the action plan, timeline and resources,
and a conclusion.
How to write a project proposal
1. Write the executive summary
The executive summary offers a quick overview of the proposal that is to follow. It’s
not only the first thing the reader will see, but sometimes it’s the only thing a
stakeholder will read before making a decision about the proposed idea. Therefore,
the executive summary should make sense to someone who hasn’t read it; for this
purpose, it should consist of a synopsis of all the sections in the document.
 An analysis of the problem
 The conclusions you have arrived at
 The recommended action plan
 Aim to keep the summary intriguing and convincing; make use of notable
statistics in the first two sentences to pique the interest of the reader.
2. Define the problem
Give a brief description of the problem your project aims to solve.
Referring to the research you have done earlier, you can explain the current situation
of the problem in terms of what’s being done about it both within and outside of
your organization, and why your stakeholders should be concerned about it.
While you need to be straightforward with your explanation, remember to use the
language and concepts your stakeholders resonate with the most.
3. Introduce your solution
Now that the stakeholders know what the problem is, it’s time to explain how your
project or your solution comes into play. This section is usually the most detailed
out part of the project proposal, and to retain the attention of your reader, you can
play around with the use of visuals.
This section should explain your solution along with how you plan to execute it. It
should reinforce the fact that your decision is backed by proper and thorough
research.
Clarify;
The project approach; how the team will be put together, the tools and equipment
that will be used, and how you will be handling the changes during execution.
Project schedule; list the project tasks along with time estimations for each of them.
The task breakdown will enable you to allocate your team properly, and you can use
a Gantt chart in this section to clearly outline the resources, tasks, and timeline.
Project deliverables; deliverables are the outcomes of a completed project (i.e.
product, service or a detailed report). Mention your project deliverables along with
delivery dates. Use a work breakdown structure here to help the stakeholders get a
clearer picture.
As required you can also include additional information such as the anticipated risks
and steps you would take to overcome them, a communications plan, and milestones
to help track progress.
In order to make this section more reader-friendly, you can present all this
information using an action plan.
Action Plan Template (Click on the template to edit it online)
4. Outline the project costs
This section focuses on the estimated cost of the proposed project. It should include
an itemized budget for the project.
The purpose of this section is to help the investors get an idea as to whether the
project costs can fit into their own budgets, therefore make sure that the calculations
are as accurate as possible.
5. Conclude your proposal
Provide a brief review of all the key points discussed throughout the proposal. As
this is the last section, it’s also the last chance you have to convince your
stakeholders; therefore reinforce your solution and why your stakeholders should
care about it while ensuring that your proposed method is in the best interest of the
organization.
6. Add an appendix
This section is reserved for the reference documents, charts, graphs, etc. that were
referred to when writing the project proposal.
7. Revise and refine
In order to substantiate your professionalism and win over your stakeholders, you
must present an error-free project proposal.
Proofread your proposal to check for any spelling mistakes and grammatical errors.
Often a fresh pair of eyes helps detect mistakes easily; either get a colleague to
review the document or wait 1-2 days and review it anew yourself.
Should you use project management software for your project proposal?
A project proposal is, in itself, a project and, therefore, can benefit from project
management software.
Software is an essential piece of modern project management basics, with benefits
that include:
Easier collaboration. Good project proposals take time and are often the result
of team effort. Using a quality project management software option will make
collaboration easier, especially when teams are located in different parts of the world.
Centralized workroom. To build a compelling business case, you need data and
research, lots of both if the proposal is for a big, complex project. Having all the data
you need in one place saves everyone the trouble of finding files and documents in
different places. A centralized project workroom ensures everyone can access all
updates, notes, and attachments on demand..
Communication in one place. Especially if people are geographically dispersed,
physical meetings will be very difficult, if not impossible, to facilitate.
Communication features that include voice and audio conferencing, group chat,
private messaging, comments, activity streaming, and presence are generally native
to most project management software. Those that don’t offer them allow integration
with other communication tools with just a few clicks.
24/7 access. If you need to make changes to the proposal at home or would like
to review it one last time before you send it off to decision-makers, saving a copy in
your project management software ensures you have the latest version and that you
can make changes to it at anytime, anywhere.
Project Report
The project report is a document that contains all information regarding the proposed
project. It is served as a blueprint of all operations to be undertaken for attaining the
desired results. The project report is basically the business plan of action and clearly
describes its goals and objectives. It is one that helps in converting the business idea
into a productive venture without any chaos or confusion as it defines strategies for
project execution.
Information from various aspects like technical, financial, economic, production and
managerial are together constituted in project report for better understanding. It
describes all inputs required for the accomplishment of a project so that they can be
arranged accordingly at the right time.
The project report is an essential tool available with management for proper
monitoring of operations and helps them in recognizing any problems. Managers
through project reports are able to estimate all costs of operations and possible
profitability of the proposed project.
How to Write an Effective Project Report in 7 Steps
1. Decide the Objective
Take some time to think about the purpose of the report. Do you need to describe,
explain, recommend, or persuade? Having a clear purpose from the outset ensures
that you stay focused, which makes it easier to engage your reader.
2. Understand Your Audience
Writing a formal annual report for your stakeholders is very different from a
financial review.
Tailor your language, use of data, and supporting graphics to the audience.
It is also useful to consider the personal communication style of the reader, for
example, how do they write emails or structure documents? Reflect their preferences
where possible. You may need to develop a more formal or informal tone to your
own natural style.
Adopting this technique will build rapport and make the reader more receptive to
your ideas
3. Report Format and Type
Before you start, check the report format and type. Do you need to submit a written
report or deliver a presentation? Do you need to craft a formal, informal, financial,
annual, technical, fact-finding, or problem-solving report?
You should also confirm if any templates are available within the organization.
Checking these details can save time later on!
4. Gather the Facts and Data
Including engaging facts and data will solidify your argument. Start with your
collaborative project site and work out as needed. Remember to cite sources such as
articles, case studies, and interviews.
5. Structure the Report
A report typically has four elements:
Executive Summary/abstract. Your report will begin with the summary, which
is written once the report is finished. As the first item the reader encounters, this is
the most important section of the document. They will likely use the summary to
decide how much of the report they need to read so make it count!
 Introduction: Provide a context for the report and outline the structure of the
contents.
Identify the scope of the report and any particular methodologies used
Body: It’s now time to put your writing skills to work! This is the longest section
of the report and should present background details, analysis, discussions, and
recommendations for consideration. Draw upon data and supporting graphics to
support your position
Conclusion: Bring together the various elements of the report in a clear and
concise manner. Identify the next steps and any actions that your reader needs to
take.
6. Readability
Spend some time making the report accessible and enjoyable to read. If working in
Word, the
Navigation pane is a great way to help your reader work through the document. Use
formatting, visuals, and lists to break up long sections of text.
7. Edit
The first draft of the report is rarely perfect so you will need to edit and revise the
content. If possible, set the document aside for a few days before reviewing or ask a
colleague to review.
The contents to include in a project report.
Title
The title page of the report denotes the title of a project and the author’s name. It
mentions the name and detail of industry for which the project is undertaken. This
page must clearly define the area and scope of project.
Abstract
Abstract is a brief summary giving details about the contents of a project report. It
provides an idea to reader regarding what is project report about. Anyone who does
not know anything about report simply by reading its abstract can make out whether
it is of their interest or not. Abstract is generally half a page long.
Acknowledgements
This section of report denotes the individuals who assisted you during your project
work. It is meant for thanking the people who provided you technical or any other
type of assistance such as your supervisor.
Contents Page
Content page tells about the main chapter and sub sections included in the report.
Chapters with proper titles are mentioned along with the page numbers telling where
the particular chapter/section begins and ends. It should be ensured that only
sufficient levels of subheadings are provided under each chapter.
Introduction
It is the most crucial element of the project report. The introduction tells about the
nature and scope of the report to the reader. This part summarizes what the author
set out to attain, gives a clear description regarding the background of the project,
main contributions, and relevance. The introduction shall summarize the key things
in the report and provide the sections containing the technical material.
Background
Background component sets the project report into context and describes the layout
for attaining project goals. For meeting out the proposed goals different approaches
should be evaluated for choosing the efficient one. However, this part of report can
be included as a part of introduction also but it is ideal to present it as a separate
chapter in case if project involve extensive amount of research and ground work. All
pieces of work which are listed should be provided with proper sources from where
they are referred.
Body of Report
This is the central part of project report which contains three to four chapters which
describes all technical work undertaken for the completion of project. The chapter’s
structure dependent upon project which reflects the development of project in
chronological order. It should be justified why a particular approach is chosen above
other alternatives mentioned in background component. Every interesting features
and problems during the implementation should be properly documented. All
contents relating to testing and integration should be thoroughly discussed with the
supervisor.
Conclusions and Future Work
It denotes the achievements made as a result of completing the project. This part of
report concludes the success and failures of a project. It also provides suggestions
for future work of project for taking it further. No project is completely perfect and
each of it come with certain limitations.
References
They tells about the books, articles, journals, manuals etc. which are used while
doing the project or referred in the report. Full and accurate information regarding
sources used such as title, author name, issue and page number should be mentioned
for readers. Providing the source of information helps readers in validating the facts
of report.
Appendix
This part comprises of information that is peripheral to main body of report. Things
included here are such as program listings, graphs, proofs, tables or any other thing
that would break up the theme of text if it appeared in situ. All material should be
bind in a single volume and compressed as much as possible.
User Guide
This section consists of proper instructions for better understandability by users.
Suppose a project that had led to the development of new software, it should provide
a complete guide on how to use it. It displays all essential features of project using
diagrams for illustrating them properly. User guide component of report should be
kept simple and concise.
Need and Objectives of Project Report
Selecting Best Investment Proposal: Project report is an efficient tool for analyzing
the status of any investment proposal. It shows the expected profitability and risk
associated with the project and this way helps in choosing the best option.
Approval of Project: It is essential for registration or approval purposes of the
proposed project. Different authorities like District industries center, Directorate of
industries, government departments, etc. require project reports for giving approval.
Tracking: The Project report assists in tracking the current activities of the project.
It helps team members and other stakeholders to check the project progress from
time to time and helps in finding out any deviations against the original plan.
Visibility: Another important advantage of having the project report is that it gives
full insight into the project. It gives a clear description of activities to be undertaken
and avoids any confusion or disorder.
Risk Identification: Identification of risk is a significant step for the completion of
every project. The project report enables in spotting the risk early and taking all
corrective actions timely.
Cost Management: Project report helps in managing the expenses through regular
reporting of all activities. It sets the standard cost of every operation in advance and
helps in finding out any deviation in these costs through tracking of the project.
Financial Assistance: It is an important tool for availing financial assistance from
financial institutions or fund providers. The project report enables financial
institutions in judging the profitability of the proposed project and then takes the
decision accordingly for approving the funds.
Test Business Soundness: Project report helps in testing the profitability and
soundness of the proposed project. It tells the total estimated costs, possible income
and risk associated with any proposal.
Characteristics of Project Report
Scope: The project report gives a clear picture of what is to be done or to be achieved.
It describes the goals of the proposed project and activities to be undertaken for
achieving these goals.
Resource: It shows the means or resources required to meet the desired scope.
Project report serves as the roadmap which tells the direction in which business
should go for attaining its goals.
Time: The project report denotes the standard time required for the completion of
each and every task of the proposed project.
Quality: The project report explains the desired standards to be achieved by the
completion of all tasks. Limit of deviations that can be accepted from these defined
standards are also contained in this report.
Risk: Risk is an unavoidable factor associated with every business and needs to be
monitored properly. The project report considers all risk factors that may arrive at
the completion of the proposed project and also tells the ways for recovering from
these factors.
Progress Report
A progress report is a document that shows the progress that your team is making
towards completing a project.
Progress reports give an overview to either a supervisor, a manager, a team leader,
a colleague or a client on:
 The status of the project
  The milestones achieved
 Responsibilities of each employee or team member
 The issues faced by various team members

This report is essentially a project management mechanism to prevent issues before
they happen, to ensure that the project will be finished on-time, and to keep those
involved informed of the project's progress.
How often the progress report should be submitted (e.g. daily, weekly, monthly, etc.)
will heavily depend on the project's scope and complexity.
In general, you want your progress reports to provide meaningful insights. Setting a
daily reporting schedule for a long-term project may lead to progress reports with
surface-level answers.
Therefore, you may want to set a reasonable schedule and give a progress report
template with standardized questions on project progress and key issues.
Giving these questions in advance will encourage your team members to think about
their responses more thoroughly before handing in the report.
Why Is a Progress Report Important?
The importance of progress reports lies beyond keeping track and managing your
different projects happening simultaneously. Progress reports also provide valuable
insights on how your team can finish projects more effectively.
Aside from giving an overview of the projects taking place, a well-structured
progress report template also allows the project manager to identify key issues
affecting the team's productivity and a project's progress toward completion.
These insights can then be fed into a knowledge base, which contains best practices
on how to manage and execute future projects.
Of course, a progress report also helps foster collaboration. Simply put, knowing
about each other's tasks helps prevent people from doing the same things and reduce
task redundancy.
Best practices on how to write a progress report
1. Treat a progress report like a Q&A
A simple way to start learning how to write a progress report is by treating the
progress report format as a question and answer sheet on the project's progress. You
need answers on the progress, the blockers and the next tasks to do that lead to
project completion
2. Include questions on progress, plans and problems (PPP)
PPP is a management technique for status reporting that focuses on project progress
toward completion. Questions related to PPP lead to specific and meaningful
answers, instead of generic ones with unnecessary details. It's used by many people
at Skype and Apple to get useful and relevant project facts.
Here's what each P means:
Progress - These include milestones, goals achieved, finished tasks and validated
items that contribute to project completion.
Plans - These include things to do, short- and long-term objectives, and other
plans that affect project completion.
Problems - These are blockers and issues that affect project completion.
3. Allow meaningful completion of the progress report
An often-neglected aspect of the progress reporting process is ensuring that the
information acquired is at a high quality. Two things help achieve this: setting the
right schedule and encouraging specific answers.
Setting appropriate deadlines is key. People doing long-term projects that last for a
year or more may not want to submit daily progress reports. A wrong schedule might
lead to unsatisfactory answers. That said, make sure that you set actual dates for
submission. Otherwise, people may always put them as a last priority task.
Moreover, you should encourage formulating specific answers. For example, this
can be emphasizing for answers to include relevant metrics, instead of vague
descriptions.
This helps you track progress more meaningfully.
4. Use section headings to make reading and writing simpler
Add section headings in your progress report format to make the process of writing
and reading the report a lot easier. When learning how to write a progress report,
section headings help you focus on providing valuable information about the
progress, in itself.
The purpose of a progress report is to give clarity on the progress of a project, not to
describe every single aspect about what's currently happening in the project.
Plus, the project manager reading the project will have an easier time reading and
remembering key elements in it.
5. Use simple and straightforward language
Learning how to write progress reports means using a progress report format with a
language that's clear and straight to the point. Unless your project requires you to
use jargon and technical language, keep your sentences simple, straightforward and
easy to understand.
Format of Progress Reports
Depending on the size of the progress report, the length and importance of the project,
and the recipient, the progress report can take the following forms:
 Memo—A short, informal report to someone within your organization
 Letter—A short, informal report sent to someone outside your organization
 Formal report—A formal report sent to someone outside your organization
Organizational Patterns or Sections for Progress Reports
The recipient of a progress report wants to see what you’ve accomplished on the
project, what you are working on now, what you plan to work on next, and how the
project is going in general.
In other words, the following three sections are key in any progress memo or
progress report:
 Work accomplished in the preceding period(s)
 Work currently being performed
 Work planned for the next period(s)
Other Parts of Progress Reports
In your progress memo or report, you also need to include the following sections:
(a) an introduction that reviews the purpose and scope of the project, (b) a detailed
description of your project and its history, and (c) an overall appraisal of the project
to date, which usually acts as the conclusion.
 Opening paragraph introducing the purpose of the memo and a reminder about
the project topic
 Summary of the project
 Specific objectives of the project
 Scope, or limits, of the project
 Research gathered
 Overall assessment or appraisal of the project at this time
Gantt Chart
Generalized Activity Normalization Time Table (GANTT) chart is type of chart
in which series of horizontal lines are present that show the amount of work done or
production completed in given period of time in relation to amount planned for those
projects. It is horizontal bar chart developed by Henry L. Gantt (American engineer
and social scientist) in 1917 as production control tool. It is simply used for graphical
representation of schedule that helps to plan in an efficient way, coordinate, and
track some particular tasks in project.
The purpose of Gantt chart is to emphasize scope of individual tasks. Hence set of
tasks is given as input to Gantt chart. Gantt chart is also known as timeline chart. It
can be developed for entire project or it can be developed for individual functions.
In most of projects, after generation of timeline chart, project tables are prepared. In
project tables, all tasks are listed in proper manner along with start date and end date
and information related to it.
Gantt chart represents following things:
 All the tasks are listed at leftmost column.
 The horizontal bars indicate or represent required time by corresponding
particular task.
 When occurring of multiple horizontal bars takes place at same time on
calendar, then that means concurrency can be applied for performing
particular tasks.
 The diamonds indicate milestones.
Advantages:
Simplify Project – Gantt charts are generally used for simplifying complex projects.
Establish Schedule – It simply establishes initial project schedule in which it
mentions who is going to do what, when, and how much time it will take to complete
it.
Provide Efficiency – It brings efficiency in planning and allows team to better
coordinate project activities.
Emphasize on scope – It helps in emphasizing i.e., gives importance to scope of
individual tasks.
Ease at understanding – It makes it for easy stakeholders to understand timeline
and brings clarity of dates.
Visualize project –It helps in clearly visualizing project management, project tasks
involved.
Organize thoughts and Highly visible – It organizes your thoughts and can be
highly visible so that everyone in enterprises can have basic level of understanding
and have knowledge about what’s happening in project even if they are not involved
in working.
Make Practical and Realistic planning –It makes the project planning practical
and realistic as realistic planning generally helps to avoid any kind of delays and
losses of many that can arise.
Disadvantages:
 Sometimes, using Gantt chart makes project more complex.
 The size of bar chart dost not necessarily indicate amount of work done in
project.
 Gantt charts and projects are needed to be updated on regular basis.
 It is not possible or difficult to view this chart on one sheet of paper. The
software products that produce Gantt chart needed to be viewed on computer
screen so that whole project can be seen easily.
Applications:
There are several professions, where use of gantt chart is very beneficial. Some of
them are given below:
Advertising Manager –
Advertising Managers generally controls and supervises end result of advertising
companies, scheduling advertisements in different media, etc.
Operations Manager –
Operations Managers generally control and handle resources that are essential for
company operations.
Project Manager –
Project Managers generally motivates project teams, collaborate with team members,
schedule task and complete that on time, and report to stakeholders, etc.
Example:
Nowadays, there are many companies and teams that use Gantt chart to plan,
schedule, and execute their projects. Some of them are consulting agencies,
manufacturing companies, Marketing teams, Construction companies, etc. Below is
an example of Gantt chart:

PERT Analysis
Program Evaluation and Review Technique (PERT) is a method used to examine the
tasks in a schedule and determine a Critical Path Method variation (CPM).
It analyzes the time required to complete each task and its associated dependencies
to determine the minimum time to complete a project.
It estimates the shortest possible time each activity will take, the most likely length
of time, and the longest time that might be taken if the activity takes longer than
expected.
The US Navy developed the method in 1957 on the Polaris nuclear submarine
project.
PERT Analysis informs Program Managers and project personnel on the project’s
tasks and the estimated amount of time required to complete each task.
By utilizing this information a Program Manager will be able to estimate the
minimum amount of time required to complete the entire project. This helps in the
creation of more realistic schedules and cost estimates.
To conduct PERT Analysis, three-time estimates are obtained (optimistic,
pessimistic, and most likely) for every activity along the Critical Path. Then use
those estimates in the formula below to calculate how much time for each
project stage:
Formula: (P+4M+O)/6
 Optimistic Time (O): the minimum possible time required to accomplish a
task, assuming everything proceeds better than is normally expected.
 Pessimistic Time (P): the maximum possible time required to accomplish a
task, assuming everything goes wrong (excluding major catastrophes).
 Most likely Time (M): the best estimate of the time required to accomplish a
task, assuming everything proceeds as normal.
Advantages and Disadvantages of PERT Analysis
Understanding the advantages and disadvantages of utilizing PERT analysis will
give program managers and project personnel a better understanding of the realities
of their schedules. It takes an experienced program manager to truly utilize the
benefits a PERT analysis can provide a project team.
Advantages: Provides program managers information to evaluate time and
resources on a project. It helps give them the necessary information to make
informed decisions and set a realistic schedule.
 d be influenced a few
outspoken team members.

progresses.
Critical Path Method
The Critical Path is the longest path of scheduled activities that must be met to
execute a project.
This is important for Program Managers (PM) to know since any problems on the
critical path can prevent a project from moving forward and be delayed. Earned
Value Management
(EVM) analysis focuses on the critical path and near-critical paths to identify cost
and schedule risks. Other schedule paths might have slack time to avoid delaying the
entire project, unlike the critical path. There might be multiple critical paths on a
project.
The Critical Path is determined when analyzing a project’s schedule or network logic
diagram and uses the Critical Path Method (CPM). The CPM provides a graphical
view of the project, predicts the time required for the project, and shows which
activities are critical to maintaining the schedule.
The steps in the CPM are:
1. List of all activities required to complete the project
2. Determine the sequence of activities
3. Draw a network diagram
4. Determine the time that each activity will take to completion
5. Determine the dependencies between the activities
6. Determine the critical path
Identification of the critical path
For this, you need to determine four parameters of each activity of the network.
 Earliest start time (ES) - The earliest time an activity can start once the
previous
 dependent activities are over.
 Earliest finish time (EF) - ES + activity duration.
 Latest finish time (LF) - The latest time an activity can finish without delaying
the project.
- LF - activity duration.
The float time for an activity is the time between the earliest (ES) and the latest
(LS) start time or between the earliest (EF) and latest (LF) finish times.
During the float time, an activity can be delayed without delaying the project finish
date.
The critical path is the longest path of the network diagram. The activities in the
critical path have an effect on the deadline of the project. If an activity of this path
is delayed, the project will be delayed.
In case if the project management needs to accelerate the project, the times for
critical path activities should be reduced.
Advantages of Critical Path Method
 Offers a visual representation of the project activities.
 Presents the time to complete the tasks and the overall project.
 Tracking of critical activities.
Conclusion
Critical path identification is required for any project-planning phase. This gives the
project management the correct completion date of the overall project and the
flexibility to float activities.
A critical path diagram should be constantly updated with actual information when
the project progresses in order to refine the activity length/project duration
predictions
Project Status Report/ Periodic report
A project status report is a document that describes the progress of a project within
a specific time period and compares it against the project plan. Project managers use
status reports to keep stakeholders informed of progress and monitor costs, risks,
time and work. Project status reports allow project managers and stakeholders to
visualize project data through charts and graphs.
Project status reports are taken repeatedly, throughout every phase of the project’s
execution, as a means to maintain your schedule and keep everyone on the same
page. The status report for a project will generally include the following:
 The work that’s been completed
 The plan for what will follow
 The summary of the project budget and schedule
 A list of action items
 Any issues and risks, and what’s being done about them
The true value of a project status report lies beyond its use as a communication
channel. It also provides a documented history of the project. This gives you
historical data, so the next time you’re planning a similar project, you can avoid any
missteps or bottlenecks.
Because project status reports cover so many topics, historically, they were time-
consuming to create. Fortunately, modern project management software like
ProjectManager.com expedites the all-important reporting process.
How to Write a Project Status Report
Writing a project status report is an essential project management task. Whether you
generate one weekly, monthly or quarterly, the steps are essentially the same. Here’s
how to write a project status report:
1. Determine the objective
2. Target your audience (Clients, team members, sponsors, etc)
3. Choose the format and type
4. Collect your data
5. Structure the report
6. Make sure it’s clear
7. Edit draft
How Do You Ask for a Project Status Report?
A project status update is usually distributed on a regular schedule, but sometimes
people want to see a status report immediately. You can ask for a project status
update via email, but you don’t want to come across as rude. To request a project
status report, you should ask in a professional manner and place your request through
the proper channels.
A friendly reminder is never a bad idea, as it maintains a connection, especially if
you can offer something of value in return. If you’re using project management
software, then you can always get an instant status report by checking the project
dashboard that tracks various metrics.
Whatever you do, a status report should include the elements that we cover in the
next section.
Elements of a Project Status Report
The different elements of a project status report organize the different parts into a
cohesive whole. The objective of a status report, of course, is to keep stakeholders
informed and expose areas of the project that need greater organizational support.
To better communicate these things, be sure to touch on all the following when you
compose your project status report.
General Project Info
To start with, you’re going to need to just put down the basics. What is the project
name? Who is the project manager? What are the number of resources? All this
information is essential, if obvious, to track the paperwork. Don’t assume your
stakeholder is familiar with all this information. It’s especially useful for when
you’re doing historical research for future projects.
General Status Info
Again, you’re going to want to stamp the report with data that will distinguish it
from the deluge of reports that will be streaming into the project paperwork. So, here
you want to include what date the report was generated, who the author is and so on.
Milestone Review
Milestones are the major phases of your project. They’re a good way to break up the
larger project into smaller, more digestible parts. The milestone review lets you note
where you are in terms of meeting those milestones (against where you planned to
be at this point) in the project’s life cycle.
Project Summary
One of the main purposes of the status report is to compare the project’s progress
with the project plan estimates. To do this, include a short summary of the forecasted
completion date and costs of the project. This allows project managers to control the
project’s execution and measure success. Be sure to include the activities that are
facing issues and how those problems might impact the project’s quality, resources,
timeline and costs. Explain what you’re planning to do to resolve these issues and
what the results will be once you have fixed the problem.
Issues and Risks
Risks are all the internal and external factors that are a threat to your project. They
become issues once they affect your project’s budget, timeline or scope. List the
issues that have arisen over the course of the project to date. What are they? How
are you resolving them? What impact they’ll have on the overall project? Apply the
same questions to the risks that you’re aware of. Have they shown up? If they have,
what are you doing to get the project back on track?
Project Metrics
It’s important to back your report up with hard numbers to prove the statements
you’re making.
You should have established the metrics for status reporting during the project’s
planning phase.
It’s impossible to know if your project is succeeding without measuring its
effectiveness. These metrics are a way to show you’re on track and evaluate what, if
anything, needs attention.
Objectives of Status Reports
 Helps the project management team keep track of costs, tasks and timelines
 Compare the budget and time forecasts with the actual costs and task duration
 Improve communications across the organization
 Simplify the communication process
 Keep stakeholders informed
 Deliver key messages to the intended target audience
 Improve organizational support for your projects or your team
If you’re reporting to stakeholders, you don’t want to bog them down in details
they’re uninterested in. Keep your presentation light and to the point. Their time,
like yours, is limited.
Respect that. If they want to know more about a specific aspect of the project, then
you can go in for the deeper dive.
How to Format Your Project Status Report
There are many ways to format your status report. You can put yours together in any
number of ways. Naturally, depending on the type of report and who it’s for, will set
you on a specific course. But there is usually a template to follow regardless of the
path you choose to follow.
Like any report, you start with an introduction. Give a short overview of what is to
follow. It would make more sense to compose this section last, so you can make an
accurate summary of the coming content.
You next will want to list the accomplishments. Use hard facts, numbers and details,
and how they reflect your progress to achieve the overall goals and objectives of the
project. Speaking of goals, you’ll want to state them, too, especially the goal of the
report.
Don’t neglect problems. Note the bottlenecks and roadblocks that are preventing you
from being when you planned to be at this point in the project. Set expectations by
detailing risks and issues that could grow into problems that make it harder to reach
your target. Also, write out how you plan to address and resolve these issues as they
arise and what resources will be needed.
Best Practices for Presenting Project Status Reports
Whether you’re presenting your weekly status report in a meeting, or sending a
weekly email update, it’s a good idea to know the best practices when reporting on
a project’s progress before jumping into a presentation of your report.
Communicate
Project status reports are only a single facet in your communication plan. Don’t rely
on it fully to communicate everything, but use it to deliver the right data to the right
party at the right time.
Know Your Audience
Project status reports are vehicles for communication, but if you’re unsure of the
destination, then you’re not going to deliver the goods. Stakeholders such as clients
and sponsors want to know the big picture, while team members will be more
interested in specifics.
Consistency
Use the same format, distribution cycle and method. Don’t mix things up. That only
disrupts the effectiveness of the communication aspect of the report.
Establish Metrics
When planning for the project, figure out how you’re going to measure its progress,
and then stick to this method as you report on the project throughout its life cycle.
Simplify
You want the report to be effective, so don’t obscure it with unnecessary details.
Stay to the point, and just report on what needs reporting on.
Verify
Your audience doesn’t want opinions or unsubstantiated facts. Do the due diligence,
and make sure that you’re giving only what your audience wants.
Standards
Like consistency, keeping standards of process and a template for reporting makes
sure your report is clear.
Use Tools
There are project management tools that incorporate these best practices,
streamlining the reporting process thanks to dashboards and automated reporting
features.
Other Types of Status Reports
Status reports are just one of the many reports project managers use to keep updated
on the progress of their projects. Status is more general, while others focus on
specific aspects of the project. Some of the more common status reporting
alternatives follow.
Tasks Report
Every project is made up of tasks, often lots of them. You need a report to keep track
of them all.
Get all your project tasks collected in one place. Filter the report to show the status
of each task to see if there are any roadblocks or bottlenecks holding up progress.
You need to take care of issues before they affect your project’s timeline.
Timesheets Report
Teams log their hours on timesheets to submit to managers for payroll. Timesheets
are also another way to track progress on a project by monitoring the hours logged
on tasks.
View the timesheet of selected team members and know the hours they worked over
a range of time using online project management software.
Availability Report
Keeping track of when your team can work, when they have paid time off or there’s
a holiday is critical to scheduling and workload management.
Know instantly who has too much work on your team and if they’re available to
work. Team members are listed in this report with utilization rates. This data helps
you reallocate tasks.
Workload Report
The workload is the amount of tasks your team has been assigned. Keeping their
workload balanced, so no one has too much on their plate, is how you increase
productivity and morale.
See your entire team with the amount of tasks they’ve been assigned. Know if
someone has too many or too few tasks and balance their workload to get more done
and not burn people out.
Variance Report
The variance is the difference between what you planned for the project and where
you actually are in its execution. This is how you know if your project’s on track or
not.
Set the baseline on the Gantt chart tool when planning and get data on your current
schedule.
Then, compare it against where you planned to be at this point in the schedule.
How often should you generate status reports?
In general, status reports are weekly; but it’s not unheard of to create daily or even
monthly reports, which can be the best choice for businesses in certain industries.
How do you know which is right for you?
Daily
A daily status report is geared towards short-term goals. It’s a way to do a
postmortem on the day’s work and learn lessons from what went wrong and what
went right. It also will speak to the accomplishments from the day before, and what
is on deck for the next day.
Weekly
A weekly status report is more extended in that they cover the week’s worth of work,
including what has been accomplished and what is left to do. They share similar
content with the daily report, such as challenges and lessons learned, only over a
longer timeframe.
Monthly
A monthly status report is really only useful for projects with an extremely long
duration.
Otherwise, you’ll want to get more regular data. However, when the project is
stretched over a great period of time, then monthly (or even quarterly) status reports
are advisable. The contents tend to be the same.
Reporting Software
Reporting software is used to automatically collect project data, analyze it, and
display the results to help project managers make better decisions when managing a
project. The software gathers information from different sources within the project
and converts them in spreadsheets, graphs and charts.
Depending on the software, reporting data can be filtered to highlight areas of the
project that you need to see at that time. Reports can be generated on various aspects
of the project’s progress and performance, such as time, cost, workload, etc.
Reports are also used to keep key stakeholders, such as sponsors and clients, updated
on how the project is doing, and therefore, should be shareable.
Manual Project Status Reports vs Reporting Software
Reporting has always been a staple of project management. It’s a data-driven
discipline. Given that many successful projects have succeeded in the past (without
software to help), is it necessary to use a reporting tool?
Yes, of course! A modern project deals in much more data than the projects of the
past, and automatic tools can relieve many of the headaches induced by navigating
it all manually.
Sure, there are some advantages in manual reporting.
 It’s less expensive, as there’s no software to license or subscribe to.
 You also control the process and can make it as simple as you need.
However, there are far more advantages to be found in using an automatic
reporting software.
 It collects your data automatically, and does the calculations for you— and
those reports can be archived to use as historical data when planning your next
project.
 Software is also much faster and more accurate than having to do everything
manually.
  Reporting software can also be cloud-based, which means that it gathers data
in real-time.
Not all reporting software is the same. To get more bang for your buck, make sure
that whatever tool you choose has the following features:
 Converts complicated data into useful reports
 Filters to show only what information you want
 Allows you to create reports on specific time periods
 Share reports and keep stakeholders updated
 Update instantly for greater accuracy
 Monitor actual progress against your plan
 Report on program or portfolio of projects
Oral report
Is usually a presentation made by one person to a group of people.
Students may give oral reports of their projects during a science and engineering fair
fir class and for judges
An oral report may have an introduction, a body and a conclusion
In the introduction the presenter gives the topic of the report or the preview of the
report. You can begin by asking a question or giving a relevant quote.
The main issues are handled in the body. You can use audio-visuals such as posters,
videos, or models slides to enhances your presentation
The conclusion sum up the presentation
Preparations of oral presentation
 Carry out research on the topic of presentation to ensure that dates, names,
quotes and statistics are accurate
 Prepare a clear outline of your report by arranging the points in a logical order
  Rehearse before a mock audience in order to gain confidence and correct
possiple errors
 Analyse your audience in order to tell their age and interests so that you may
meet their expectations
 Consider the time allocation for the report
How to deliver an Oral report
 Focus on the key points
 Maintain an upright posture
 Involve the audience by inviting and answering their questions
 Project your voice in order to be audible so as to capture and maintain the
attention of the audience
 Speak clearly to capture the interest of the audience
 Vary your tone appropriately to maintain interest
 Make meaningful eye contact with your audience
 Stick to the time allocated. Don’t speak for too long
 Use gestures to enhance your oral presentation naturally Speak naturally with
a moderate pace while maintain a relaxed poise or demeanour
Phases in Report Writing
Knowing how to write a successful report can make you a valuable asset in your
current workplace or an appealing candidate for new employers. Here are some steps
to follow when writing a report:
1. Decide on terms of reference.
2. Conduct your research.
3. Write an outline.
4. Write a first draft.
5. Analyze data and record findings.
6. Recommend a course of action.
7. Edit and distribute.
1. Decide on terms of reference
Many formal reports include a section that details the document's "terms of
reference". These terms include:
 What the report is about
 Why it is necessary
 When it was written
 What is its purpose
Setting these terms helps both the writer and their readers to understand why the
report is important and what it hopes to accomplish. The terms of reference are
usually explained in the first paragraph so that the reader can determine its relevance
without having to read the entire document. Setting concrete terms early on will help
you create the report's outline and keep your discussions on track throughout the
writing process.
2. Conduct your research
Most reports will require you to collect a store of data that directly relates to your
topic. You may already have access to this information if, for example, you are a
doctor who has copies of a patient's medical charts. However, if you are tasked with
analyzing an issue or investigating an event, you will likely need to spend some time
requesting, finding and organizing data.
Interpreting data and formatting it in a way that your readers will understand is an
important part of writing a report. You may need to create charts, graphs or timelines
that make your raw information easier to comprehend. You will also need to
carefully cite your sources and keep track of where and how you found your data in
order to present it professionally.
3. Write an outline
The next step is to construct your report's outline. This typically looks like a bulleted
or numbered list of all the different sections in the document. Your report's outline
might look similar to this:
1. Title page
2. Table of contents
3. Introduction
4. Terms of reference
5. Summary of procedure
6. Findings
7. Analysis
8. Conclusion
9. References or bibliography
The order of these sections—and whether or not you decide to include them all—
will depend on the specific type of report, how long it is and how formal it needs to
be. The most important thing to do when writing your outline is to include all the
necessary sections and eliminate anything that does not directly contribute to the
report's purpose.
4. Write a first draft
Writing a first draft is one of the most important stages of constructing a successful
report. The purpose of the first draft is not to write a perfect document, but rather to
get all the main elements of your information out of your head and onto the page.
You will have time to add to and edit this first attempt later on, so your primary goal
is just to organize your data and analysis into a rough draft that will eventually
become a final product.
While writing your first draft, you will likely find gaps in your data or holes in your
analysis.
Make note of these, but do not try to address every issue as you write. Instead, finish
the draft, and save the problem-solving for when you begin the editing process.
5. Analyze data and record findings
The focus of every report is the "findings" section or the part where you present your
interpretation of the data. For an accountant, the findings could involve an
explanation as to why a company's stock drooped during the previous quarter. For
an environmental scientist, it could include a summary of an experiment on
biodegradable plastics and how the results could affect waste management methods.
The findings section of your report should always provide valuable information
related to the topic or issue you are addressing, even if the results are less than ideal.
If your final conclusion is that the data was insufficient or the research method was
flawed, you will need to explain this in a professional and accurate manner.
6. Recommend a course of action
The final section of your report's body is your recommendation. After examining the
data and analyzing any outcomes, you are qualified to present an idea as to what
actions should be taken in response to your findings. After reviewing the number of
overtime hours that their team has been working, a project manager may recommend
that an additional employee be added to the team. A surgeon might recommend that
the hospital introduce new sterilization methods into the operating room after noting
an increase in preventable infections in the previous six months. If you have
presented your data well and shown your expertise, your reader is likely to trust your
judgment.
7. Edit and distribute
The final stage of writing a report is editing it thoroughly and distributing it to your
audience.
You will need to edit for grammar mistakes, spelling errors and typos. You will also
need to double-check your data, make sure your citations are correct and read over
the entire document to make sure it presents a cohesive narrative. If the report is
going to be read by a wide audience, you may decide to ask someone else to
proofread it or give you their opinion on the readability of the content.
Distributing the report can take different forms depending on your particular
occupation. You might email it to your supervisor, present it verbally during a staff
meeting or publish it in a professional journal. Regardless of how or where it is read,
your goal is always to create a concise, informative and effective document that will
contribute to increased productivity in your workplace.
Tips for writing successful reports
Here are some final suggestions to guide you when writing reports:
Know your audience. Before you begin writing, be sure you understand who the
report is for, why they need the information and what you want them to do after
reading it. Knowing your audience will help you guide your style and ensure you
communicate your information as efficiently as possible.
Proofread carefully. Nothing ruins a quality report quite like a typo. Before you
submit or present your report, be sure to proofread it carefully for any errors.
Be open to feedback. Depending on your job title, you may receive criticism or
feedback on your reports. Try to remain receptive and open to critique. If you are
willing to take feedback and implement your superiors' suggestions, your writing
will likely improve as a result.
Use your time wisely. Writing a quality report can take anywhere from a couple of
hours to several weeks. Before you begin, be sure to budget your time and set a
regular writing schedule.
You may need also need to set hourly or daily goals to ensure that your progress
stays on track
Legal Issues Writers Should Avoid at All Costs
Plenty of writers make it through their entire careers without any legal troubles. But
there are plenty out there who don’t. And while we tend to think of the big and the
bad suits like defamation and copyright infringement, there are many kinds of legal
trouble you can get into -- regarding your finances or contracts.
Here are 7 tips to protect your career and keep things running smoothly.
1. Avoid Plagiarism
Do not, under any circumstances, copy someone else’s work and try to pass it off as
your own.
Doesn’t matter if it’s a book, a blog, or an academic journal; if you didn’t write it,
don’t publish it. Familiarize yourself with fair use standards if you’re quoting a
source, or someone else’s research, and always make sure that you give credit where
credit is due.
If you're working on a project where you could accidentally plagiarise, run your
writing through one of ProWritingAid's plagiarism checks. With these, you can
check your work against over a billion web-pages, published works, and academic
papers to be sure of its originality. Paying for a plagiarism check, well, pays. Free
plagiarism checkers often keep and sell your text. With ProWritingAid, your privacy
is assured.
2. Credit Sources
Even when you’re not using someone’s actual words, it’s important to credit sources
for anything. If you’re writing an article for a local newspaper and you use statistics
from your local police department, credit the police department. Not only does it
protect you from plagiarism accusations, it protects you from some liability if you
happen to publish misinformation based on someone else’s information.
3. Credit Anyone that Helps You (If they Want)
Don’t forget your editors, proofreaders, professors, doctors, lawyers, or anyone else
that you contacted to help you, even if you’re not copying them directly. If you’ve
asked a professor or a doctor for information for a book or article you’re writing,
allow them to review the final draft before you publish it, to ensure that you haven’t
misquoted or misunderstood anything.
4. Avoid Defamation
If someone can identify your work as having costed them finances, relationships,
employment, or reputation, they can sue you. In many cases, they don’t even have
to prove that it did, just that it could have been the cause. Many people think that
they can protect themselves by changing names and identifying characteristics, but
if someone familiar with you or the individual in question can make the connection,
it can still be considered defamation.
5. When in Doubt, Make it Fiction
Novels are so much more fun to write anyway. If you want to avoid any legal issues
relating to sharing a real-life story or memoir, consider turning it into a work of
fiction entirely. This allows you much more room to play with names, locations,
descriptors, and any other information that might be used to identify actual people
and events. If you want to be certain that it can’t be traced to you, you can even
publish your work under a pseudonym.
6. Copyright Your Content
All artists should be able to protect their work from being stolen and presented by
someone else.
If you’re publishing a piece that you intend to sell or make money from, make sure
that you copyright your work before you publish it. It’s also important to keep your
work close, and only let those who must see it have a copy, like editors, proofreaders,
and publishers. If anyone else is going to see it, like a beta-reader or friend or family
member, have them sign a nondisclosure agreement.
7. Ironclad Contracts
One of the best things that you can do to protect yourself is to make sure you have a
good attorney to review your contracts. If you’re working with a publisher, they may
have all contracts taken care of for you, but it’s still a good idea to have someone
review it for you. If you’re working with ghostwriters, editors, proofreaders, printers,
or anyone else that is going to handle or help produce your work, it’s important to
make sure that all your expectations and responsibilities are detailed in a contract.
Making sure that you protect yourself from potential legal liability is important for
a successful writing career. Follow these tips to help you stay on track and avoid
trouble.
Steps to Improve Technical Editing Skills
Technical writers always want their work to be recognized by the audience.
Technical writing and editing skills are highly associated with each other. Effective
editing will help make bad writing good and good writing becomes even better.
Experienced editing will catch both factual and grammatical errors in copy before it
is published, preventing embarrassment, additional costs, and possible legal action.
To become an experienced editor, here are some steps to improve your editing skills.
Step 1. Develop a mastery of the English language
It is very important for technical editors to learn and understand the basic rules of
the language, such as sentence structure, grammar, and punctuation. Technical
editors also need to develop advanced skills for editing the style and context of
technical writing work.
Step 2. Know the purpose of the work you are editing
Technical editors need to define the goal of a writing work or the nature of its content
in order to determine what kind of audience the writing is trying to focus on. Once
the editors understand the purpose of the writing, they will be able to correct
problems and help technical writers create sharp-looking documents.
Step 3. Familiarize yourself with the necessary style
Each type of technical writing has different standards and expectations that the piece
must conform to. For example, user manuals such as hardware guides, software
guides, and product operational manuals are written in an instructional style. These
documents teach users how to operate technical products. Informative materials such
as scientific testing reports, annual reports, and organizational manuals are produced
in a factual style. They provide information of function on products or organizations
to the public. Promotional materials such as advertising flyers, product campaign
pamphlets, and marketing brochures are designed in a commercial style. They help
the sales department of a corporation promote and sell its products and services.
Step 4. Have the confidence to spot and fix errors
An experienced technical editor should have the judgment to search not only for
syntax errors, but also for logical mistakes, and to fix them in a correct way. Many
companies use technical documents to market their technologies; any illogical error
in the content will cause negative effects to these companies. Good editors will help
the organizations increase their profits.
Step 5. Give yourself time to do the job right
Rushing to edit a piece of writing work will cause missed errors and make the
document look unprofessional. Technical editing experts have provided several
guidelines to create a sharplooking document. They include putting away writing for
a day, reading it out loud, using textto- speak program, building a checklist of writers’
most common mistakes, customizing spell check, and reading back to front, bottom
to top, right to left.
Step 6. Read it through once for comprehension
Technical content always contains vital information on technologies and other
important technical elements. Technical editors should read documents carefully
before start editing to understand all important information. This will lead the editing
process in a positive direction and avoid major editing flaws.
Step 7. Re-read each sentence individually, making corrections as needed
Editors should make sure a sentence states its meaning clearly, using the right words,
and ensure that the sentence is in the right place in the paragraph. They need to
eliminate redundancy by deleting duplicate or unnecessary words, sentences, and
paragraphs. Also they should check relevant facts and correct misspellings, syntax
errors, incorrect punctuation, and superfluous emphasis. Step 8. Review the work
again by paragraph or section
Technical editors should ensure the clarity of a writing work by reviewing the
content thoroughly. A well-edited document will help the audience locate technical
information from paragraphs or sections without difficulty.
Step 9. Run an electronic spell check
Technical editors should use the spell check to catch typo errors that they may have
missed. An electronic spell check will be able to catch misspelled words, but it
cannot catch correctly spelled words used incorrectly.
These guidelines provide great value to editors to help improve their editing skills.
Technical editors and writers should work together to produce well-polished
documents that will assist corporations to market their products and also will help
the audience learn about today’s new technologies.
The why of technical editing: Quality
Editing is quality control for written communication
Quality control (QC) is a planned and systematic pattern of all actions necessary
to provide adequate confidence that the product optimally fulfills customer's
expectations.”
Definitions of quality for technical information
General procedure for editing
The way you go about editing technical materials will depend on multiple factors.
You will need to consider the artifact you are editing—is it mostly text? does it
contain visuals? is it mostly visuals? is it paper-based or in electronic format? does
it contain multimedia content? is it static or interactive?—and the type of edits that
you are responsible for making. Even so, you can use the same general strategy when
approaching most technical editing projects:
1. Analyze the materials' purpose, audience, format, and uses.
2. Evaluate the materials to see if they fit. In particular, consider the materials'
 contents — completeness; appropriateness
 organization — order of contents; signals about order
 visual design — text; lists; tables; aesthetic appearance
 navigability — findable, working hyperlinks; section breaks
 style — writing style; authorial persona; sentence structures; cultural biases;
grammar; mechanics
 illustrations — type; construction; placement
3. Set up objectives and plan your project's sequence.
4. Review the plan with the author.
5. Edit the materials.
6. Evaluate the outcome.
Levels of edit
When you begin an editing project, avoid the temptation of diving in and making
any-and-all changes that you think will be valuable. Instead, find out what "level of
edit" you need to perform, and stick to it.
A "level of edit" defines how "deep" you should go with your edits. Levels range
from superficial to extremely deep. Many different levels of edit can exist; experts
disagree about how many levels of edit are necessary and what the different levels
should involve, and some types of materials may not require specific levels of edit.
Even so, you can use three basic levels for most technical editing projects:
Consistency and correctness. Edit for surface-level issues such as spelling,
punctuation, grammar, word use, page-numbering, cross-references, and color
consistency. Changes from these edits will not deeply impact the document as a
whole.
Visual readability. Edit for substantive issues such as typeface choices and
consistency; graphic elements' locations, sizes, labels, and captions; and document
layout. Changes from these edits may have ripple effects across a document and
create new errors with consistency and correctness.
Content and structure. Edit for deep issues such as internal organization,
sentence structures, logical flaws, image appropriateness, and overall meaning.
Changes from these edits often require fundamental changes in the document and
may create entirely new problems with other levels of edit.
When you edit any technical materials, do multiple passes through the material,
moving from the deepest to the most superficial level of edit. That way, you will
avoid wasting your time on marking up or correcting surface-level problems that
will be deleted anyway.
If you see a problem that is outside your responsibility as an editor—for example, if
you see a logical problem but you're only responsible for fixing comma splices—
note the issue and contact someone with the authority to correct the problem.
Editors' resources
When you edit technical materials, consult a style guide or style sheet, and create a
style sheet of your own.
1. Style guides A style guide is an existing, authoritative source that lays out rules
for the materials you are editing. For example, you have almost definitely used a
dictionary at some point in your life, and if you have taken a first-year composition
course, you have used a writer's handbook.
Both of these examples are style guides.
Many technical editors use their employers' own in-house style guides, but many
technical editors also use commercially-available style guides. Some that are
commonly used in technical communication include Scientific Style and Format:
The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers, the APA Publication Manual,
and the Chicago Manual of Style.
Specialized style guides for highly technical subject matter also exist. If you are
editing materials that require specialized knowledge, consult an appropriate style
guide. For example, if you're editing documentation for factory-control equipment
that will be exported to Russia, refer to The English-Russian Dictionary of
Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Automation.
Always be prepared to justify your edits with a style guide reference. If you make
up your own rules or follow your gut instinct instead of following a style guide, your
author may reject your edits, or worse, you may introduce new errors.
2. Style sheets
Style sheets are small-scale, local style guides that provide consistent, quick-
reference answers to common problems. Technical editors often develop style sheets
to cover separate-but-related projects or different phases of a major project, and to
make sure that all the editors on a project are following the same rules.
You should compile your own style sheet every time you edit anything. Do not
simply list every error you encounter. Instead, list recurring errors or problems with
answers that you need to look up frequently, and alphabetize the contents to make
them easy to navigate.