LESSON 3

Writing Business and Technical Report

WHAT TO EXPECT?

● Explain the classifications, parts, and types of reports.

● Write a sample report applying the principles of report writing style.

PRE-DISCUSSION
1. List the types of reports you usually do in school. How do you frame suchreports?
2. Bring old reports from the student council, government offices, companies,
schools, hospitals, and other organizations.
3. Draw a Venn diagram to show the similarities and differences of school reports
and the report that you brought.
LESSON OUTLINE

 A Report is a comprehensive document that covers all aspects of the subject

matter of study. It presents results of an experiment, investigation, research, or an
inquiry to a specific audience.
Business and Technical Reports
Classification Types Parts
Progress reports • Cover Page
Formal Sales Reports • Title Page
Informal Personnel Evaluation • Table of Contents
Feasibility Reports • List of Illustrations
Literature Review Credit • Executive Summary
Reports • Main Body/Findings/
Informational Reports Discussions
Analytical Reports • Conclusions
Recommendation Reports • Recommendations
Research reports • References/Sources
Case Study Analyses • Appendices

Characteristics of a Report
▪ It presents information not an argument. 
▪ It is meant to be scanned quickly by the reader.
▪ It uses numbered headings and subheadings. 
▪ It is composed of short and concise paragraphs.
▪ It uses graphic illustrations such as tables, graphs, pie charts, etc. 
▪ It may have an abstract or an executive summary.
▪ It may or may not have references or bibliography.
▪ It often contains recommendations and/or appendices.

Report Categories 
I. The Informal Report
● It functions to inform, analyze, and recommend.
● It may be in the form of a memo, financial report, monthly
activities report, development report, research, etc. 
 ● It is written according to an institution's style and rules.
Introductory and prefatory parts are not required.
● It is used for conveying routine messages.

Types of Informal Report

A. Progress report - written to provide information about the way project is
developing
B. Sales activity report - helps a firm to understand about the progres the sales
people and also identify the shortcomings
C. Personnel evaluation - used by an organization to assess an employee's
performance 
D. Financial report - a presents formal record of the financial activities of a
business, person, or other entries
E. Feasibility report - assesses the viability of a new project; details whether or not
a project should be undertaken and the reasons for that decision; persuades or
helps the decision makers to choose between available options 
F. Literature review - conveys to the readers the work already done and the
knowledge and ideas that have been already established on a particular topic of
research
G. Credit report - details report of an individual's credit history prepared by a credit
bureau (Credit bureaus collect information and create credit reports based on
that information, and lenders use the reports along with other details to
determine loan applicants' credit worthiness.)

II. The Formal Report. 

● It is an official report that contains a collection of detailed information,
research, and data necessary to make decisions.
● It is formal, complex and used at an official level. . 
● It is often a written account of a major project.
 ● It may be in the form of launching a new technology or new project
results of a study or an experiment, a review of developments in the
etc.

TYPES OF FORMAL REPORTS

Type Characteristics Examples

Provides data, facts, feedback, and Results of a research on or

other. Types of information without rise of HIV patients
Informational report analysis or recommendations.
Presents an update of an operation,
an information or status of a current
research so readers can understand
a particular problem or situation.

It goes beyond just presenting Explanation of what causes

results a phenomenon.
Analytical reports present results, Presentation of the results
analyze those results, and draw conclusions based on those
conclusions based on those results. results. of a traffic study
It attempts describe why or how showing It attempts to
something happened and explains describe why or how
Analytical Reports what it means. accidents at an intersection
-- the report explains what it
means.
Explanation of the potential
results of a particular course
of action.
Suggestion which option,
action, or procedure is best.
Report writing on monthly
budgets, staff absentees and
so on.

This type advocates a particular Using treatment X is more

course of action. This usually efficient than treatments Y
presents the results and conclusions and Z. However, that does
Recommendation that support the recommendations not mean that you will use
What should one do about a treatment X as cost and
problem? other considerations might
Can a team do something? recommend treatment Y.
Should one change techniques,
 methods, technology, or do
something else?

Writing a report on some

Most widely used report usually in product development.
Research Reports university levels
Report writing for your
competitor's activities.

Case study analysis Widely used in university

reports Includes real life examples level competitions.

PARTS OF A REPORT

Parts of the Brief Contents Language

Report Description Characteristics
Name of the report in all caps
(e.g. final report)

Receiver’s name, title and

organization

Team name and team members

Title page Name of the Factual
report Date submitted
(month/date/year)

The authors and their

association/organization.

No page number on title page

(page 1 is executive summary)

Table of What you find Show the beginning page Factual

contents in the report number where each report
heading appears in the report (do
not put page number range, just
the first page number)

Connect headings to page

number with dots.

Heading should be grammatically

parallel include major section
headings and sub-headings
 No page number on TOC page.
Executive A summary Should be no longer than one Factual, use of third
summary of report page person, use of passive
verbs
It provides the key
recommendations and
conclusions, rather than a
summary of the document.
Briefly describes the context

Identify the general subject

matter

Describe the issue or problem to Factual use of third person

Background, be reported on. use of passive verbs
Introduction problem,
approach, State the specific questions the
definition of report answers
special words
used Outline the scope of the report
(extent of investigation)

Preview the report structure

Comment on the limitations of

the report and any assumptions
made.

Methods Methods or For all types of research provide: Factual use of

procedures procedures third person use
which led to of passive verbs
the findings Goal for each piece of research which (what
is yourquestion/hypothesis?) the findings

Data source

For surveys give the number of surveys

distributed, how was it distributed, how the
population was chosen.

For observations give how when and where

the observations occurred.

The goal is to supply proofs for conclusions.

Discuss, analyze and interpret (don’t just

give results, also say what they mean-
particularly with benchmarking). Factual use of
Results third person,
Findings investigation, Remember to report on all your research, use of passive
 research and including interviews with clients and verbs.
calculation personal observations (discuss in
methodology too.)
Support your findings with new evidence.

Provide summary paragraph of key findings

and their significance at end of section.

Explain all graphs in writing.

Arrange the findings in logical segments that

follows your outline.

Findings should be presented in the same

order as discussed in methodology.

Use clear descriptive headings.

Present “just the facts” no opinions, and no

feelings.

Interpret and summarize the findings

Say what they mean.

Relate the conclusions to the report

issue/problem Transition
Conclusions Conclusion signals such as
drawn from Limit the conclusions to the data presented; it seems that
the findings do not introduce new material. the, results
indicate that it is
Number the conclusions and present them probable that
in parallel form. etc.

Be objective: avoid exaggerating or

manipulating the data.

SUMMARY

Formal reports are meticulously structured. They focus on objectivity and

organization, contain deeper detail, and the writer must write them in a style that
eliminates factors like personal pronouns.
Informal reports are usually short messages with free-flowing, casual use of
language. We generally describe the internal report/memorandum as an informal report.
For example, a report among your peers, or a report for your small group or team, etc.
 A formal or long report has major three (3) parts:
1. Prefatory parts (includes the 1. Cover; 2. Title fly; 3. Title page;
4. Letter of authorization; 5. Letter of acceptance; 6. Letter of
transmittal; 7. Table of contents; 8. List of illustrations; and
9. Synopsis or executive summary.
2. Text parts
3. Supplementary parts

REFERENCES

Mayhew, R. (2019). How to write business & technical reports.

https://bizfluent.com/how-7720978-write-business-technical-reports.html

Wakat, G., Caroy, A., Dela Cruz, A., Dizaon, E.G., Jose, M., Ordonio, M.R.,
Palangyos, A., Sao-an, M., & Paulino F. (2018). Purposive communication.
Lorimar Publishing Inc. Philippines.