1. Department of Business Administration
SPRING
Chapter 7
Writing the Final Report by
Prof. Dr. Sami Fethi

2. Writing the Final Report
Purpose and importance of a written presentation
Guidelines
Structure of the report
Oral presentation
Writing for publication

3. Purpose and importance of a written presentation
Consider its purpose and to whom it is addressed.
Start with executive summary: explains important points of study
A preface: explains the course of study and than individual or institutions.
e.g. Writing a master thesis may look different from a report that is presented to a company or manager on a specific issue.
e.g. Writing a report such as an academic paper aims at getting it published.
Bottom line is that a report needs to be argumentative and convincing, whether it is to be submitted to a company or as an academic thesis.
Final exam subject

4. Guidelines Audience Final exam subject Good communication
Language and flow
Using diffucult language and terminology does not really impress the reader.
Form and style
Telegraphic style
long and complicated senteces
Usage of terminology and differences between spoken and written language.
Shortage of tables, figures etc...
e.g. Before submitting the report, have someone else read it through.
Headings
e.g. They serve as an outline of a report and should be clear, meanningful and consistent
Final exam subject

5. Structure of the report
Title page
Table of contents
Executive summary
Introduction and problem statement
Theoretical background
Methodology
Findings of empirical study
Conclusions and recommendations
Footnotes
Bibliography or references
Appendix
Final exam subject

6. An Example of a Table of Contents
Figure 1 An example of a table of contents

7. Bibliography or references
Final exam subject
The format and structure of the report, also check the rules of your institution
e.g. Footnote: (1) Berry (1989) said that The implication of his study about the subject matter...
e.g. Quotation ‘The implication of his study about....’
e.g. References:
Osterwald-Lenum, M. (1992), `A note with quantiles of the asymptotic distribution of the ML cointegration rank tests statistics`, Oxford Bulletin of Economic and Statistics, 54,
Odedokun, M. (1996b), Financial Indicators: Developing Countries, in Hermes, N. and Lensink, R. (ed.) (1996), Financial Development and Economic Growth: Theory and Experiences from Developing Countries. London: Routledge,

8. Oral presentation
Final exam subject
The presentation has to be organized in the same manner as the written report
e.g. Style: main objective and specific research questions
e.g. Speak slowly and clearly
e.g. Explain the concept in a required time
e.g. Should not be too technical or academic in nature

9. Writing for publication
Final exam subject
Writing for assignment, project, working paper, article etc....
Introduction
Literature Review
The Case :Economy Theory
Methodology, Data and Model
Interpretation or discussion on results
Conclusion and recommendation

10. Thanks