ENG - W232 The Formal Business Report

Audience supervisors at Air America

Length and Format 8 pages including front and back matter…, –single spaced with double spacing between paragraphs, –include graphs, charts and pictures –and subheads… –plus running headers on all pages except title page

Purpose to identify and quantify a problem and to propose a researched solution

Grading Best practices discussed in class will be the guiding criteria for the main project as well as the smaller related projects. Page length and surface features weigh heavily in a project like this.

The Sections Title Page Abstract Table of Contents Introduction Body Recommendations References

Title Page needs to reflect the major emphasis of your paper and prepare readers for the information you present Try to imagine what you would want to see in the title if you were searching for your paper by keyword Omit obvious words and phrases such as “A study on...” and “An investigation of...”

Title page… Approaches to a title: –Include the name of the subject investigated. –Example: Gander Mountain: Upscale vs. Lo-scale Buying –Name the developed for application. –Example: A Comparative Analysis of Buying Practices for Major Sports Retailers –Provide a brief description of the results obtained. –Example: Upscale Buying: Improving Gander Mountains Profitability Sample title page

Abstract (sometimes called Executive Summary) Begin the report with a summary of what the report hopes to convey and accomplish, as well as the methods and research used to arrive at your conclusion “This report examines current buying practices in an effort to… “In addition to looking at the practices of Gander Mountain, this report also provides buying information gleaned from business web sites and compares the effectiveness of those strategies to those of Gander mountain.”

Abstract… Neutral in tone Gives a reader the reason why they should be interested in this issue, and in this case, states the conclusion and recommendations in bare bones terms. May be written last, simply by summarizing in one sentence each section of the report Sample

Table of Contents Comes after the Abstract or Executive Summary Sample Leaders: highlight first entry Then go to Format>Tabs>Leader>2>Set>OK Page numbers: View> Header and Footer

Introduction Does three things: –States the purpose of the report –Provides the scope of the report –Gives the background to the report

Introduction… The purpose: –What did your research discover or prove? –What kind of problem did you work on? –Why did you work on this problem? If the problem was assigned, try to imagine why the instructor assigned this particular problem; what were you supposed learn from working on it? –Why are you writing this report? –What should the reader know or understand when they are finished reading the report?

Introduction… The scope –How did you work on the research problem? –Why did you work on the problem the way you did? –Were there other obvious approaches you could have taken to this problem? What were the limitations you faced that prevented your trying other approaches? –What factors contributed to the way you worked on this problem? What factor was most important in deciding how to approach the problem?

Introduction… The background; ask yourself: –What facts does the reader need to know in order to understand the discussion that follows? –Why was the project authorized or assigned? –Who has done previous work on this problem? –What theory or model informed your project? –What facts are already known that support or don’t fit the theory? –What will the reader know about the subject already and what will you need to tell them so they can understand the significance of your work?

The Body Generally has four parts –Discussion of research methods used –Presentation and discussion of the data –Interpretation of the data – what does it mean? –Conclusion – a short restatement of the most important points that can be drawn from the data

Recommendations This is your action plan Here you can present a timeline, costs, and benefits You can justify your plan with some more charts and graphs if appropriate. Use detail and examples and specific language.

References Needs to be a separate page This is also often referred to as “Works Cited” or “Bibliography.” Don’t use “Works Cited” unless instructed and in proper MLA format. For this project, use “References” and refer to your annotated bibliography for bibliographical content (not the annotations) Sample