1. The structure of a Report & the process of writing a Report
EIT, Author Gay Robertson, 2017

2. What is a Report structure?
A report includes the following sections:
Title page
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Introduction
Findings and/or Discussion
Conclusion
Recommendations (Not always included in a report)
References

3. Title page and table of contents
A title page gives the title of the report, this page forms the cover of the report and should use the entire first page
The title page will also include the author of the report and the completion date
The table of contents is a list of the sections/headings of the report using numbering for sections and indenting to show levels with page numbers included
This should be on its own page; even if the table of contents only takes half a page it should be separate from the executive summary

4. Executive Summary
Although this is the first section of the report, it is usually written last
This section gives a complete summary of the key information in the report
It is information, not descriptive
Use an impersonal tone
It may outline:
The purpose of the report
What methods were used to collect the information
The key findings and key conclusions or recommendations

5. Introduction
The introduction explains the purpose of the report and explains how the investigation was carried out
Information such as the timeframe or when the report was due and any necessary background information
The main goal of the introduction is for the reader to:
Know what the report is about
Know why the report was written
Know where the information/research come from

6. Findings and/or Discussion
Findings are the facts found during your research
Numbered Major findings listed first, followed by numbered minor findings
It is important to give facts and not your own personal thoughts or opinions on the topic and no interpretation should be given at this point
A Discussion would be included if you are required to analyse or interpret the findings, it may discuss how different findings relate or how different each finding is

7. Conclusion
This is where you summarise the key findings of your report, the numbered major conclusions should be written first, followed by numbered minor conclusions
It is important that your conclusion are based on your findings and answer the question the report was produced to provide, or complete the objective of the report
The conclusions should include enough thought and information for recommendations to be made from them
No new information can be introduced in the conclusion
Each conclusion must match up with the numbered findings

8. Recommendations
Must be based on the numbered conclusions; should be practical and specific; should be well organized with the most important first
This section is for you to provide your opinion, whether the solution is:
A solution to a problem
An action that should be taken
What should be done about a situation
Possible changes that should be implemented
Each recommendation must match a numbered finding and conclusion

9. References
Your sources that are used are referred to in your report should be listed here
Typically this would be using a reference style known as APA
However for the purposes of this course you simply need to identify who/what was your sources for your research and a link to the source – generally a URL

10. Putting it all together
On the next screen you will see a report about this cute little puppy

11. Want to see it again – go to

12. The report writing process ….
Objective
Planning
Collecting Information
Organising Information
Audience
Structure
Finishing

13. Collecting Information Organising Information
Objective
Collecting Information
The objective
Identify the scope of your investigation
Identify the purpose …
To inform?
To convince?
Planning the report
How much time to write it?
What stages can you divide it into?
Set deadlines for the stages
Collecting information
What do I need?
Where do I find it?
Survey, organisations, Google, publications?
How much is needed?
Organising information
Relevant or irrelevant?
Sort under main headings
Planning
Organising Information

14. The audience Structure Often 3 different audiences
The casual reader/big boss who wants the main message as painlessly as possible
The interested reader who wants more detail but doesn’t want to grapple with all the gory technical details
The guru who wants the whole story
Structure
To address all 3 audiences effectively
Include an abstract for the big boss (executive summary)
A main body for the interested non-specialist
A technical appendix for the guru

15. Finishing the report
Finishing the report
Structure alone is not enough for clarity – you must write clear sentences
Complete short sentences
Avoid jargon and strive for simplicity
One theme per paragraph
Don’t use too many styles eg Heading1, Heading2 and Normal are enough
Avoid All Caps as they are difficult to read
No underscore
Use customized numbering to show levels
Include header and footer as required by your organisation

16. Okay, let’s go use the workbook