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    Report writing is an important part of many professional and academic subjects. Reports playan increasingly important role in the workplace, where they are a crucial instrument in all

    business processes. They are also widely used in government, technology, health care, social

    services, and many other areas.

    Whatisaformalreport?

    A formal report is a document that is written following a fixed procedure and is used todescribe an investigation and give results and recommendations based on the investigation.

    Whatisthepurposeofaformalreport?

    The purpose of a formal report is to investigate a problem or a need, find workable solutions,

    and make recommendations.

    What

    are

    the

    differences

    between

    different

    types

    of

    reports?

    Different types of reports are intended for different audiences and have different purposes.

    They may deal with different kinds of topics, and therefore use different types of vocabulary.They may vary greatly in length. However, the general form of most reports is similar.

    Whatarethepartsofaformalreport?

    TitleSummary

    IntroductionFindings and Discussion

    Conclusions

    Recommendations

    Please continue to the next page...

    Formal Report Writing

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    Mini-Quiz

    Aformalreportrequiresveryclear,conciseandaccurateuseoflanguagetoconveyvery

    specificinformationtoitsaudience.Therefore,asapre-test,selectthemostappropriate

    formalexpressionforuseinaformalreportfromtheoptionsgivenundereachitem:

    1. I_________

    the

    inspector

    to

    perform

    athorough

    check

    on

    the

    functioning

    of

    companymachineryandworkstations.

    a. asked

    b. talked to

    c. requested

    d. spoke to

    2. Extensivesuppliesofspecimens__________________fortestingatthelaboratoriesfor

    furtherresearch.

    a. were requiredb. were wanted

    c. were neededd. were booked

    3. Theobjectiveoftheformalreportis______________problemsandtobringout

    suitablesolutionsandrecommendations.

    a. to search forb. to investigatec. to identifyd. to find

    4. TheCEO___________shortlytodiscussgeneralissuesonimprovingefficiencyin

    manufacturing.

    a. comes,b.will sitc. will arrived.goes

    5. Themotiontoreduceworkinghours_______________bythecompanyboard,dueto

    thefearofadropintherequiredproductionoutput.

    a. was not allowedb. was dismissedc. was passedd. was accepted

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    ExampleofaReport

    A report has a welldefined structure. In the following report, as in most reports, all the

    parts are named. Sections and subsections are numbered.

    To the left of each section is an explanation of the type of information and language used in

    that section.

    Begin with a specific title. The

    title should convey useful

    information about the content ofthe report

    Survey of Overseas Students at Festina Lente

    University: 19851999

    This is followed by the name(s)of the author(s), along with the

    date when the report was

    finished.

    University Marketing and Survey Committee,June 10, 2000

    Number each section.

    The summary is optional. To

    write a summary:

    1. Briefly state the aim of the

    report.2. Briefly describe the

    methodology followed.

    3. Group the conclusions of the

    investigation into categories.

    1 Summary

    A report on overseas students at Festina Lente

    University was undertaken to determine what (if

    any) problems these students face. Students

    were surveyed on several matters. In general,students expressed satisfaction with the

    university; however, a few areas of concern were

    identified.

    The following parts are found inthe introduction of a report:

    What is to be investigated /

    aim (A) Who requested the report (R)

    When it was requested (D)

    What methodology is to beused (M)

    These are known as the terms ofreference of the report. (A), (R),

    and (D) may appear in any order.(M) is always last. In the sample

    report on the right, the order ofthe terms of reference is (R), (D),

    (A), (M).

    2 Introduction

    This report was requested by the president of

    Festina Lente University on November 5, 1999. AUniversity Marketing and Survey Committee was

    formed, consisting of the president; the bursar;

    the registrar; the deans of arts, science, andbusiness. The committee was asked to submit its

    findings by June 15, 2000.

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    Some expressions commonly

    found in (A):the aim of...is to ...., will outline,

    was to determine..., determine

    the feasibility of ..., the purpose

    of is to..., to investigate

    The main purpose of the study is to explore ways

    of attracting more overseas students to study atFestina Lente. An additional purpose is to help to

    make the existing environment more conducive

    to study for these students.

    Some expressions commonlyfound in (R):

    was requested by, as requested

    by, was instructed, was asked,

    make appropriaterecommendations, ...was asked to

    submit...

    Some expressions commonly

    found in (D):by (date), on or before (date)

    Some expressions commonly

    found in (M):was collected, with discussions,

    was used, obtain, carry out (atask, etc.), was undertaken,

    findings, were surveyed, the

    scale was used to measure...,

    responses were identified,

    questionnaires, tabulate, noted

    Tense: Usually past. Use presenttense only to describe

    aims/goals.

    Our major source of information about the needsand wishes of overseas students at Festina Lente

    is the students themselves. Therefore, the

    committee decided to construct a questionnaire,

    aimed at eliciting relevant information fromoverseas students who have studied at Festina

    Lente since 1985. Copies of the questionnaireare on file with the Student Union and the

    Faculty Office, and they are available for public

    viewing. A total of 242 responses were received,233 of which were usable. Three hundred and

    sixty nine overseas students had been enrolled

    at Festina Lente during the period in question.

    The responses, therefore, can be taken to reflectthe views of a significant majority of these

    students. The questionnaire included 24variables, grouped into five categories:

    a. Information received about Festina Lente

    before the students arrival here;

    b. The students reception into the country anduniversity;

    c. The students courses at Festina Lente;d. Interaction with academic and administrative

    staff;e. Learning resources.

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    Findings are the facts that were

    discovered by using the

    methodology described in the

    introduction. For example, if asurvey was used, the findings are

    the responses to the survey. The

    findings are grouped, presentedin tabular form, or reduced to

    statistics for easy understanding.

    An example of a finding is, Eightpercent of all respondents

    considered their courses on the

    whole to be unsatisfactorybecause they were unable to

    understand their instructors.

    3 Findings

    3.1 Before arrival at Festina Lente:

    Students were asked if they had received

    thorough, partial or no information about the

    university, their chosen program of study, localculture, and travel and visa matters. Results

    suggest that insufficient information on local

    culture and traditions was provided to studentsbefore they arrived here. In addition, some

    departments apparently sent out flyers and

    other information sheets that were insufficient,incomplete, or unclear.

    Divide complex informationlogically into parts and numbereach part as shown.

    3.2 Arrival at Festina Lente:

    The past tense is often used in

    this section of the report, and the

    passive voice is common.

    Using a scale of dissatisfied, satisfied, or verysatisfied, students were asked to rate five

    different aspects of their arrival in the country

    and at the university. Mean responses suggestthat local food and campus orientation seem to

    require improvement.

    This section is sometimes called

    Discussion and Conclusions.

    Conclusions are statements of

    fact derived from the findings.

    They are answers to the

    question: What is the problem?An example of a conclusion is,

    There are not enough

    computers in the head office.Usually the present simple tense

    or the present perfect tense is

    used.

    4 Conclusions

    This survey of overseas students at FestinaLente over the last 15 years shows why Festina

    Lente continues to be a soughtafter place of

    study for students from many countries.

    However, two main concerns have beenhighlighted by the survey:

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    4.1

    4.2

    In some cases, inadequate or erroneous

    information has been sent to overseas studentsprior to their arrival at Festina Lente.

    Problems with housing and cuisine have been

    noted.

    Recommendations aresuggestions about how to solve

    the problems. They often containthe word should. They answer

    the question, What should we

    do to solve the problem(s)? Anexample of a recommendation is

    the following: Management

    should install eight new

    computers in the head office.

    Verbs with should appear in theactive voice (The universityshould provide information)

    or the passive voice (The Student

    Union should be asked).

    5

    5.1

    5.2

    Recommendations

    Based on the survey results, the committeemakes the following recommendations:

    The university should provide information onlocal culture and traditions as part of the mailing

    to overseas applicants.

    It should identify departments whose

    departmental brochures and flyers are in need ofupdating or expansion.

    FormalReport

    Language

    Formal reports should be written using formal language. Can you replace the underlinedwords in the following short text with more appropriate business language?

    On June 20th, 2004, I had to have a look at complaints about the timekeeping of the guys inthe general office. To get some information I had a chat with each of the 12 workers

    concerned, and watched out for their time of arrival over a twoweek period.

    (Suggested answers: investigated, punctuality, staff, obtain, conducted interviews,

    employees, noted)

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    PractisingWhatYouHaveLearned

    Nowpractisewhatyouhavelearnedaboutreportwritingandthelanguageofformalreportsbyselectingthebestoptionfromeachsetofwordscontainedinsquarebracketsin

    thefollowingshortreport.

    [Notethat

    this

    report

    does

    not

    have

    aSummary,

    so

    the

    numbering

    begins

    with

    the

    Introduction.]

    ComplaintsaboutthePoorServiceOfferedbytheLibraryofthe

    UniversityofBilgewater

    The University of Bilgewater Library Committee, September 20, 1995

    1 Introduction

    The objective of this report was to [address, receive, answer] complaints aboutpoor service provided by the library and to make appropriate

    recommendations, as [demanded, requested, recommended] by S. I.

    Pennington, President, on 25 March 1995. An interview [conducted, wasconducted, held] with Mr. Vernon English, Chief Librarian, on 15 March.

    Questionnaires [were distributed, distributed, sent out] to a crosssection of

    staff who used the library between 15 and 20 March.

    2 Findings

    2.1 Interview with Chief Librarian

    2.1.1 Staffing:

    Mr. English has 13 fulltime assistants. Five of these [at the, work the, areemployed by the] college on Monday, Wednesday and Friday each week. They

    [work, stay, duties] from 25 p.m. on those days.

    2.1.2 Equipment:

    A schedule of current items of equipment and their year of purchase

    [examined, was examined, is examining.] No problems with this equipment

    [noted, were noted, can be noted]. However, he requested purchase ofadditional equipment as follows:

    1 photocopier

    3 trolleys to transport books around the library

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    2.2 Views of the academic staff

    22 staff [asked, asking, were asked] to fill in a questionnaire, 20 responded. The

    problems identified are shown below:

    2.2.1 75% of the respondents thought the photocopying facilities were inadequate.

    2.2.2 100% [has, reported, found] difficulty in recalling books.

    2.2.3 50% reported difficulty in communicating in English with some library staff.

    3 Conclusions

    3.1 There [are, were, should be] not enough library assistants to cope with the day

    today running of the library in the morning.

    3.2 The present photocopying equipment is insufficient.

    3.3 The standard of English of some library assistants is not sufficient to enable

    effective communication to take place between the library staff and the academicstaff.

    3.4 There [was, could be, is] no system in place for recalling books.

    4 Recommendations

    4.1 Five new library assistants should be [made, recruited, brought in] to work from

    09001400 hours Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.

    4.2 A new photocopier and three new trolleys [shall be, will be, should be] bought.

    4.3 The front line staff [should give, should be given, should be taken] Englishclasses wherever needed.

    4.4 The Chief Librarian [should be asked, should ask, is asking] to devise and

    implement a recall system.

    Based on: Henry, Alex, & Roseberry, Robert L. (2001). HelpYourselftoEnglishintheBusinessSchool.

    (2nded.). Ashhurst, N.Z.: One2One Training and Consultancy, by permission of the authors.