ECM 523:

CONSTRUCTION
PROJECT MANAGEMENTChapter 3.0 :
Construction Documentation and Report
Writing
Presented by: Suman Mishra

MSc. in Civil Engineering

University of Calgary,
Canada
What is a
Report?
• A document containing information organized in a narrative, graphic, or
tabular form, prepared on ad hoc, periodic, recurring, regular, or as
required basis. Reports may refer to specific periods, events,
occurrences, or subjects, and may be communicated or presented in oral
or written form.

• A report is a document that presents information in an organized format

for a specific audience and purpose. Although summaries of reports may
be delivered orally, complete reports are almost always in the form of
written documents.
What is a
Report?
• Kuiper and Clippinger define business reports as "organized, objective
presentations of observations, experiences, or facts used in the decision-
making process“(Contemporary Business Reports, 2013).

• Sharma and Mohan define a technical report as "a written statement of

the facts of a situation, project, process or test; how these facts were
ascertained; their significance; the conclusions that have been drawn
from them; and [in some cases] the recommendations that are being
made“
(Business Correspondence and Report Writing, 2002).
• Types of reports include
o memos,
o minutes,
o lab reports,
o book reports,
o progress reports,
o justification reports,
o compliance reports,
o annual reports, and
o policies and
procedures.
Use of
Reports
• Reports can be used as controls to ensure that all departments are functioning
properly, to give information, to provide an analysis, and to persuade others to
act.“
(H. Dan O'Hair, James S. O'Rourke, and Mary John O'Hair, Business Communication: A Framework for Success. South-
Western College Publishing, 2001)

• "Effective reports are understood by the reader as the writer intended, and they
influence the reader to act as the writer desired. The writer's objectives are
most likely to be achieved if they correspond with the needs and objectives of
the reader. An effective report is empathetic, accurate, complete, concise, and
clear. Above all, an effective report presents information ethically.“

(Shirley Kuiper and Dorinda Clippinger, Contemporary Business Reports, 5th ed. South-Western, Cengage, 2013)
General and Technical
Communication
General and Technical Communication
General: Contains a general message, informal in style and approach, no
set pattern, mostly oral, not always for a specific audience, no use of
technical terms or graphics.

Technical: contains a technical message, mostly formal in style and

approach, follows a set pattern, both oral and written, always for a specific
audience, frequently involves jargons, graphics etc.
Process of
Communication
Process of Communication
The sharing of meaning information between two or more people with
the
goal of the receiver understanding the sender’s intended message.
 Communication
Process
Communication
means
is a process, which
that communication exists as a flow
through a sequence or series of steps.
A
simple model of communication
process
consists of seven parts or elements
as follows:
• Communication source
• Encoding
• Transmission
• Decoding
• Receiver
• Feedback
• Noise
 Importance of
communication
• Managerial efficiency: – Communication helps in smooth operation of
management. Managerial task can only be performed when communication
system is effective.
• Enhance morale and relations: – Effective communication emphasizes the
employee’s participation in management. It helps to build the employees
morale and cordial industrial relations between management and employees
• Effective leadership: – Effective leadership depends upon effective
communication. Two-way communication helps in effective communication.
Managerial leader must handle the subordinates. For ordering qualitative
leadership is essential. And that can be obtained from proper system of
communication.
Importance of
communication
• Mutual trust and confidence: – Mutual trust and confidence between
labor and managementis necessary for effective
When
movementthere is ofeffective communication, it
organization. helps to
misunderstanding
reduce and develop mutual trust.
• Better decision: – The success of organization can be measured in better
decision. When the information, data and other fact are not effectively
communicated, it hampers the decision making. So, when the facts are
communicated to concerned department, organization and person, it is
easy to make decisions promptly.
Importance of
communication
• Staffing: – When the information are correctly communicated in time, it
helps in the function of selection, placement, socialization , promotion
and transfer.
• Better managerial concern: – all managerial functions such as planning,
organizing, directing, controlling etc. can’t be conducted without
communication.
Why is Managerial
Communication Important at the
Workplace?
Communication is necessary for the exchange of ideas amongst employees
within the organization. Healthy discussions must be promoted at the
workplace for better and quicker results. A brilliant idea if not shared is of no
use. Managers must communicate amongst themselves to reach to ideas
which would not only benefit their teams but also the organization on the
whole.
Why is Managerial
Communication Important at the
Workplace?
• Managerial communication is essential at the workplace to
achieve
targets within the desired time frame.
• Effective communication also reduces duplicity of work.
• Managers must communicate with their team members to understand
and address their grievances and problems.
• Managerial communication plays a crucial role at the time of crisis.
• Employees feel secure and develop a sense of ownership
towards
organization as a result of effective communication.
Importance of Business
Communication
Business communication occurs between two or more parties to exchange
business related information. The success of a business depends on the
efficacy of business communication. For this, communication is regarded
the lifeblood of business. The role or importance of
as
communication is discussed below:
business
1. Exchanging information
2. Preparing plans and policies
3. Execution of plans and policies
4. Increasing employee’s
efficiency
Importance of Business
Communication
5.Achieving goals
6.Solving problems
7.Making decisions
8. Improving industrial relation
9. Publicity of goods and services
10.Removing controversies
11.Enhancing employee
satisfaction
12.Enhancing loyalty
 Business
•Report
What is Business Report?
When a report is written for business purpose, it is called business
report.
It is a little bit different from other reports. It deals with business
related information.
A business report is prepared containing business related information
that assists the management to take better decisions.
• According to Lesikar and Petit, “A business report is an orderly, objective
communication of factual information that serves some business purpose.”
Business
Report
• Boone and Other said, “A business report is a document that organizes
information and a specific topic for a specific business purpose.”
• According to Murphy and Hildebrandt, “A business report is an impartial,
objective, planned presentation of a fact to one or more persons for a
specific, significant business purpose.”
• So, a business report can be defined as an organized, written statement
of facts related to specific business matter. It helps the interested
persons to get insight into the problem and to overcome the problem.
 Characteristics of Business
Report
Business reports carry information on facts related to business activities. The
very nature of business report differentiates it from other reports. The unique
characteristics of business report are discussed below:
• Specific Issue: Every report, including business one, is written on specific
subject. It is written to fulfill certain need.
• Pre-Specified Audience: An important characteristic of report is that it has a
pre-specified audience. Usually a report is written for a limited number of
audiences and the need of the audience is always kept in mind.
Characteristics of Business
Report
• Specific Structure or Layout: In preparing report, certain structure or
layout or format is followed. The layout or structure of report is almost
same in every case.
• Written on Past Events: In most of the cases, the reports are written on
past events. Most of the business reports carry the reasons of happening
the incident, the ways of recovery etc. Reports are also written in past
forms.
• Neutral in Nature: In drafting reports, impartiality is strictly maintained.
No biased or non-objective material is included in it. Biased report may
lead to disastrous decisions.
Characteristics of Business
Report
• Factual Information: Business report is always written based on factual
information. The data collected on specific events is factual, not factious.
• Joint Effort: A report is an outcome of joint efforts of a group of people.
No one can personally or solely prepare a report. Now-a-days, in most of
the cases, committee is formed containing three to seven people for
furnishing a report on certain incident.
• Orderly Presentation: The information of a report is presented orderly so
that the audience can get his needed information from where it is
located.
Characteristics of Business
Report
• Upward Flow: The direction of a report is always upward in the
organizational structure. The higher authority normally assigns the duty
of preparing reports to their immediate lower authority and after
preparing the report, they submit it to their boss or higher authority.
• Some Additional Aids in Presentation: A report is always presented in
an attractive way. In addition, analytical reports contain executive
summary, contents and index, necessary charts, graphs and design and
conclusion and recommendation etc.
• Signature and Date: It is customary to put the signature of the reporter
with date at the end of the report. If it is prepared by a committee,
signature must be given by each member of the committee.
Types of
Reports
Reports on the basis of Importance or
Frequency
• Ordinary or Routine Report
• Special Report
Reports on the Basis of Legal Formalities
• Formal Report
• Informal Report
Reports on the basis of Function
• Informative Report
• Interpretative Report
Reports on the basis of meetings
• Verbation Reports
• Summarized Report
Types of
Reports
• Reports on the basis of Nature of the Subject dealt
with
• Problem Solving Report
• Fact Finding Report
• Performance Report
• Technical Report
Structure of
Reports
Front Matter
• The front matter will be at the top of report. This term simply refers to all the material
and information that comes before the actual body of the report. Front matter
includes:
• a title page, which will include the title of the report, the name of the company, the
name
of the writers, and the date of the report;
• a cover letter, which will provide an overview of why the report was prepared, a
summary of what's in it, and what next steps should be taken
• a table of contents
• a list of illustrations such as charts, graphs, maps and other visuals
• an abstract or executive summary, which provides an easy-to-read summary of the key
points of the report in a nontechnical manner for those either too busy to study the
whole report or who lack the technical knowledge to understand the details of the
Structure of
Reports
Main Body
It consists of the major sections that present, analyze, and interpret the findings
gathered as part of your investigation. These sections contain the
information necessary to support your conclusions and
detailed
recommendations.
• an introduction, which includes a discussion of the purpose of the
report
• a background or literature review to familiarize the reader with the
topic
• a statement of the problem or issue to be addressed.
• Methods and materials used
• Results and Discussion
Structure of
Reports
Back
Matters
Conclusions:
The writer’s analysis of what the findings mean. In other words, answers to the
questions that led to the report.
Recommendations:
Opinions, based on reason and logic, about the course of action that should be
taken.
References
Appendix
Preparatory Steps to Report
Writing
1. Define the Purpose and Step

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. Knowing the Audience
Writing a formal annual report for your stakeholders is very different to 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. Adapting this technique will build rapport and
make the reader more receptive to your ideas.
Preparatory Steps to Report
Writing
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.
Preparatory Steps to Report
Writing
5.Structure the Report
( As discussed earlier)

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.
 General Structure of
Report
• Title page (always included)
• Acknowledgements (usually just in long reports)
• Contents page (always included in reports of 4+ pages)
• Terms of reference (sometimes included)
• Procedure (sometimes included)
How your research was carried out; how the information
was gathered.
• Materials and methods (included if applicable)
General Structure of Report
Contd..
• Summary (usually included in longer reports; may be called
Executive
Summary, Abstract or Synopsis)
• Introduction (always included)
• Main body/findings (always included)
• Results (possibly included in scientific/engineering reports)
• Conclusion (always included)
• Recommendations (sometimes included)
• Appendices
• Bibliography
Procedure for
Writing
 Introduction of Report
Writing
• How to write an introduction: some suggestions The introduction is certainly
the most read section of any deliverable, and it largely determines the attitude
of the reader/reviewer will have toward the work. Therefore, it is probably the
most delicate part of the writing of a report.
A Recipe for Writing an Introduction: Need to cover as follows
• Background: In this part you have to make clear what the context is. Ideally, you
should give an idea of the state-of-the art of the field the report is about.
• The Problem: If there was no problem, there would be no reason for writing a
report, and definitely no reason for reading it.
• The Proposed Solution: Now - and only now! - you may outline the
contribution of the report. Here you have to make sure you point out what are
the novel aspects of your work.
Introduction of Report Writing
contd..
• An anticipation of the conclusions:
• (a) keep it as short as possible,
• (b) refer as much as possible to the concluding section,
and
• (c) keep it well separated from the rest of the
introduction.
• Related work
Use of Illustrations and
Photographs
• Adding photographs to an evaluation report can make it more appealing to
readers and also make the key messages more memorable.
• Practical and ethical issues need to be addressed.
• If people can be identified in the photographs, their permission will be needed to
take the photo and to use it, and to add their name to the caption.
• Technical illustrations generally have to describe and explain the subjects to a
non- technical audience. Therefore, The visual image should be accurate in
terms of dimensions and proportions, and should provide an overall impression
of what an object is or does, to enhance the viewer’s interest and
understanding.
Matrix Format of
Reports
Matrix reports allow you to group records both by row and by column. These
reports are the most time-consuming to set up, but they also provide the most
detailed view of our data. Like summary reports, matrix reports can have graphs
and be used in dashboards.
Report
Checklist
Report
Checklist
THANK
YOU