UNIT – 1 MEANING OF REPORT: Report is a summary of information.

It is a communication from
someone who has information to someone who wants to use that information. A report is a form of
narrative or statement which presents facts relating to an event or state of business affairs which are
necessary for an evaluation of progress and for decisions. It may arise out of available factual data or
through enquiry, investigation, survey, interview, experiment etc. Office reports may be regarded as the
vehicles of communicating information to those who need that information and will use it. They also
provide valuable records. OBJECTIVES OF REPORT WRITING: Objective of office reports is to
communicate the information to those who need it. To facilitate planning and co-ordination by
presenting factual information. To provide information to shareholders, creditors, investors, customers
and also the general public. To facilitate the management to take appropriate course of action. To
provide valuable records of documents to the office which can be used as future reference to provide
facts and results of an enquiry. To give the basis of measuring the performance of executives.
IMPORTANCE OF REPORT: It helps to keep records. It is the source of information. It talks about future
success and failures. It keeps on knowing what we are doing. It encourages the donors as it keeps them
informed about what happened to their donations. It helps other people know about the development
of their project. Other people are encouraged to do their own project. Helps researchers to do their
work. Helps to determine further actions. It is also important for evaluation purposes. Helpful to the
govt. to know their performance to bring different changes in policies, programs etc. TYPES OF
REPORTS: 1) Routine Reports – It contains the statement of facts in a detailed manner without any
recommendations. It conveys information to the management on the progress of some matter. These
are prepared at regular intervals and are based on present facts and figures. These may be production
reports, sales reports, cost reports, director’s report etc. 2) Special Report – It is presented to the
superior who has been entrusted with the responsibility of preparation. It usually contains the advice or
recommendation of the reporter on non- routine matters. It may include a research report, turnover
report, plant location report etc. 3) Statutory report – The report which is necessary to the prepared as
per the requirement of the law. For example, under the Company’s act of 2013, a Joint Stock Company
should prepare and file the following reports with the registrar of companies. Director's report to the
Annual General Meeting. Annual returns. Statutory report at the statutory meeting of the company an
auditor’s report. Reports by Inspectors appointed to investigate the affairs of the company. 4) Technical
report – Technical reports are prepared by technocrats and their contents are generally in the form of
figures and statistics. It may be an engineering report, plant maintenance report, project report etc.
Reports may also be classified as: – Formal or Informal 1) Formal report- It consists of several fairly
standardized parts. It is presented to the reader in a rather formal format. These reports are generally
analytical in nature. These reports are either statutory reports or non- statutory reports. Reports
submitted by officials or executives of companies, societies, local bodies etc. are usually formal reports.
2) Informal reports – This report does not follow any prescribed or official form or procedure. It may
involve verbal reporting in person or over the telephone. It is like the informal, these reports may be of
the following types – Short- report brief discussion of facts. Progress report providing information about
the progress of specific plan. Staff report presenting facts and giving recommendations on staff matters.
Justification report justifying a particular course of action. BASIC STRUCTURE OF REPORT: Front Matter-
It includes selecting an attractive report title, determining topics to the covered and listing points of the
topics. After acknowledgment, writer creates a summary abstract, which communicates the scope of
reports. Then author communicates the main objectives of the reports. It covers a wide area including
the background information, literature review, scope of study and research methodology used. The
introduction phase should be very short and concise. Writing the body – All information should be made
available in a straight forward way without beating the bush. Although it is a report, it is advisable to use
active voice as compared to the passive voice, since the former is clearer, more direct and has a natural
role. It is wise to use heading when writing the body since doing this maintains the logical flow of the
report and it is much easier for the readers to follow and understand. The titles and subtitles may be
bolded and text may be formatted to ensure clear information. The transition from one stage to another
should be smooth, ensuring that the reader does not get lost. Back Matter / Conclusion - It should be
the summary of the whole report covering all aspects of the document and any underlying themes.
Before writing the conclusion, it is advisable to make a draft first of the whole document and then note
the main points to sum up. There should not be any inclusion of new information in the conclusion. The
conclusion of report also involves listing the recommendations of the research. After studying the whole
report and understanding the underlying problem, one is able to make recommendations on the
possible solutions. Some reports also include list of references. A list of references shows the main
sources of information for the writer.

UNIT – 2

DATA COLLECTION AND DATA SOURCE: Data should be relevant to examine the issues raised and to test
the hypothesis, if any, formulated in the project proposal. The variables on which data is needed should
be identified. You need to find out what kind of data pertaining to the topic of your project is available
and to what extent it would be suitable for your project work. There can be two types of data sources: (i)
Secondary Source, (ii) Primary Survey. Secondary Source - censuses, information collected by government
department, organizational records and data that was originally collected for other research purposes.
About secondary data, it is necessary to determine and record (i) Who did collect the data? (ii) When was
it collected? You should note the following details about every source of information: i) Full title of the
document, book, journal, map, etc. ii) Department/agency/author who has prepared the document, book,
journal etc. iii) Date/year when the document was prepared, and iv) Edition, place of publication and
publisher for books and articles. Primary Survey - In case, the desired data is not available through
secondary sources, you may collect the data at your own. there are three methods of data collection –
the Census and Survey Method, the Observation Method and the Experimental Method. The first is a
carefully planned and organized study or enquiry to collect data on the subject of the study/enquiry. The
Observation Method records data as things occurs, making use of an appropriate and accepted method
of measurement. An example is to record the body temperature of a patient every hour or a patient’s
blood pressure, pulse rate, blood sugar levels or the lipid profile at specified intervals. The Experimental
Method collects data through well designed and controlled statistical experiments. Suppose for example,
we wish to know the rate at which manure is to be applied to crops to maximize yield. This calls for an
experiment, in which all variables other than manure that affect yield, like water, quality of soil, quality of
seed, use of insecticides and so on, need to be controlled so as to evaluate the effect of different levels of
manure on the yield. MEMO FORMAT OF REPORT: Memorandum is the most widely used form of written
communication within an organisation. The Memorandum form is normally adopted for communication
between members of the same organisation. It can be used conveniently for inter-departmental and inter-
branch communication, or prepared to be filed as records and references. The format of memorandum is
simple. In a memorandum, the niceties of letter are sacrificed for the sake of conciseness. The format is
intended to simplify and speed up communication. Organisations often provide pre-printed forms to the
users with the basic elements of any memorandum. LETTER FORMAT: This form is used in the case of
brief and informal reports. Its main parts are: Heading; Date; Address; Salutation; Body; Complimentary
close; Signature. The body of the letter can be divided into the following parts: Introduction: Here the
writer states the problem. Findings: Here the finding of the investigation are presented.
Recommendation: After the findings, recommendations are given in the last paragraph of the body.
MANUSCRIPT FORMAT: reports should be no more than 1000 words long (excluding the abstract and
keywords) with a maximum of 10 references and 10 images. Manuscripts should also contain a separate
abstract of up to 150 words. Manuscripts should be double-spaced. Please number each page. Authors
should upload separate files for the title page and the manuscript. Formatting style for manuscript are of
short stories, novels, poems, and other literary work submitted by author to publishers. Structure of
manuscript format is; Title, Abstract, Background, Methods, Results, Discussions, and Conclusion.

UNIT – 3 GROUP DISCUSSIONS: A group discussion is a means of interaction within a team or between
various teams in an organization. It often determines managerial success. It is a common procedure in
competitive exams and job-interviews and is a standard component towards the end of an interview,
which the short-listed candidates have to take. The interviewers and examiners nowadays find it
necessary to evaluate a candidate's capability to work as a member of a team. Through such group
discussions the interviewer looks for the candidates' • Knowledge and awareness about a topic, Creative
aptitude, Ability to work as a member of a team, Ability to lead a team, especially as an opinion leader
skill. To make a group discussion successful you should have good listening skills, an approach to
contribute ideas, and show a positive interdependence. You need to convey your thoughts in a meaningful
way, and at the same time as a member of a team. GDs at interviews & GDs in general: group discussions
(GDS) in general and GDs in an interview have a similar structure, they have some functional differences.
In a classroom or an organization, the purpose of a GD is to generate thinking. enhance group
communication skills, facilitate a successful exchange of ideas and derive a conclusion. It may not be very
formal as the members as well as the observer are known to each other. GDs can also be part of
competitive examinations and job interviews. In the civil services, MBA admission process and Armed
Forces and Private Sector examinations, GDs are conducted to observe a candidate's suitability for the
course or the job. Hereafter GD in job interviews and GD in examinations will be referred together as GD

in interviews.

MEETING: A meeting forms a part of the various activities of an organization and serves to bring together
the members of the organization to fulfil one or more objectives. It is useful when: #Opinions from
members become necessary to decide on an issue. #Participation of members becomes important to solve
a problem. #Explaining previous matters becomes important before taking a decision. #The organization
needs to settle conflicts. #The organization needs to communicate sensitive information. The organization
needs to generate new ideas. #Meetings as well as group discussions basically help us to communicate
our own ideas or views about a topic to others and know others' opinions about the same. But a meeting
has a more controlled structure than a group discussion. The following components form the structure of
a meeting: #A chairperson. #A process for making decisions process making decisions. #An agenda. #A
well-managed discussion. #A productive physical set-up. Agenda of a Meeting: The agenda is the most
important component of any meeting. It gives the necessary details about the meeting: the time and place
of the meeting, the names of the people who will attend it, the time when the meeting starts and ends,
the issues to be discussed in the meeting, any preparation the attendees have to make for the meeting
such as contacting people and collecting relevant information. Meetings cannot be effective in fulfilling
their aim(s) if the agenda is too large. A hidden agenda also makes meetings a waste of time. It results
from personality clashes, private conflicts and discussing issues unrelated to the proposed agenda. It lies
only in the chairperson's hands to handle such situations. The agenda must consider the usefulness of a
meeting. It should be formulated with an aim to: #Giving depth to decisions #Preventing mistakes
#Evolving diverse thinking #Encouraging the attendees in decision-making #The agenda is usually
presented by the secretary (to the chairperson of the group/committee) and approved by the chairperson.
Preparing to give an oral presentation requires four steps :1) Assessing the speaking situation 2) Writing
We speech 3) Preparing the graphic aids 4) Rehearsing the presentation. #Assessing the speaking
situation - your audience and your purpose; The two are fundamental to your speech. Audience; Before
you start, you need to think about who is in the audience, why they are there, and what they know already.
Regardless of your topic, the way to develop it is dictated almost entirely by audience background. This is
particularly true for technical subjects, which by definition draw on highly specialized experiences.
Purpose; At the beginning many speakers almost always encompass too wide a field in their speeches.
Instead, pinpoint what you have to say in one idea and then develop this idea slowly and methodically in
the time allotted. In other words, before you write a word, decide on what idea you want your listeners
to take out the door with them. Then arrange your arguments and visual accompaniments to support this
idea. #Writing the Speech - Writing out a speech will prevent disorganized presentation, it's a basic step
in preparing a technical talk. Bear in mind, however, that writing out a manuscript does not mean
delivering it by reading the text word for word. The manuscript is the first step in a successful oral
presentation rather than the final one. Here are steps for writing out a manuscript: 1) Begin with an
outline, Shape it to the time allotted. Let's say you have 30minutes, Divide the presentation into an
introduction, body of the text, and conclusion. If you take 3 minutes for the introduction, and 3 minutes
for the conclusion, you have 24 minutes left. Decide now how many ways you want to elaborate on or
explain your point. List them under the main discussion topic. If You have six examples that's 3 minutes
each. #Preparing the Graphic Aids - Graphic aids mil the same purpose in an oral presentation that they
do in a written one: they clarify or highlight important ideas or facts. Statistical data, in particular, lend
themselves to graphical presentation, aa do representations of equipment or process. The same
guidelines that apply to graphic aids kl text apply here: they should be clear and self-explanatory. The
audience should know at once why each graphic aid is showing. In addition, the material conveyed should
be simple. #Rehearsing the Presentation - There are two ways you can deliver the speech:
extemporaneously or reading directly from the manuscript. Extemporaneous Speaking: This is the more
useful of the two methods in most corporate, industrial, and professional settings. Extemporaneous
delivery does not entail memorizing speech word for word. instead, the speaker takes each topic within
the speech and practices delivering the information until it can be spoken rather than read. The only text
actually carried by the speaker is a skeleton outline with key words and side lists, plus statistics,
quotations, or another item that need to be quoted verbalism. Manuscript Reading: It is hard for most
listeners to attend to someone reading a speech. There's little eye contact and little variation in pace or
tone since the reader is not guided by audience response. There are some exceptions, though.
PREPARATION TO GIVE PRESENTATION TO AUDIENCE: #outline your presentation. # Practice your
presentation ahead of time. # Read and revise your presentation. #White with your audience in mind. #
Take clues from professional speakers. # Arrive early. #Practise your head gesture. # Your opening line.
#Take some deep breath. #Rehearse. #Memorize your opening lines. # Practice your speech from written
notes. # Practice presentation flow. # The power of silence. # Have a back-up. # Use physical props for a
demo. JOB APPLICATION FORMAT: It is a document that should be submitted along with the resume to
an employer to express the candidate’s interest in the position while applying for jobs. It is also known as
a Cover Letter. The job application letter should be well presented by keeping in mind the following
information: #It should be written on a single page. #It should be single-spaced with a space between
every paragraph and a 1-inch margin with the text aligned to the left. #Times New Roman, Arial, or Calibri
font should be used with a font size between 10 to 12 points.