After a certain job has been completed or the service is performed, a report is almost always produced to document the work. Reports represent a necessary follow-up to successful proposals, business deals or meetings and even business visits.
Reports are informative documents. Their primary task is to make readers understand the subject, whether that is verifying that procedures were performed correctly, explaining how something works (e.g. accounting system), outlining for stockholders the annual performance of the company or analyzing tax liability.
Before writing your report down, you should think about the following points:
Consider the purpose of your report: who is it for, why does he/she want it, how will he/she use it?
Draft a working plan on a separate sheet of paper.
Write the body of the report.
Write the introduction: state the subject, the purpose, summarize your findings.
State the aim and the emphasis of the report briefly.
Collect all relevant materials: notes, documents…
Check your grammar, spelling, punctuation and style.
Arrange the points of information in a logical sequence and in order of importance.
Let someone qualified give instructive criticism.
Decide where you might need illustrations or diagrams.
Write the conclusion and recommendations.
Check your illustrations.
Summarize the report in a sentence.
Examine the draft: does it do what a report is expected to do?
Model reports:
1
From: Personnel Manager Division A To: Managing Director
Date: 16th May 2009
Subject: Proposed installation of clocking-in machines
1. Following your memorandum of 27th April we carried out a small study of staff views in three selected departments to see how the arrangements of breaks have been working: I here summarize the results:
65% office workers found the present break arrangements satisfactory;
25% would be in favour of a shorter lunch break and finishing earlier.
2. It is too early to say definitely how many machines would be needed. But at least one for each divisional office seems a reasonable estimate.
3. I also asked my personnel officers about the saving of time. They think that an improvement in time-keeping could be made.
4. The staff’s reaction to the idea was not very encouraging. In the survey we carried out only 15% said they would be in favour of using clocking-in machines. If they had a choice they would prefer not to use them.
5. You also asked for my views on how to deal with the union. I had a meeting with the chief union representative. I mentioned that in some departments the lunch break was lasting a lot longer than is actually allowed. The representative’s answer was not very helpful. She said the union would always insist on the lunch break being left as it is. There is a point beyond which no negotiation would be possible without asking all the union members in the company their opinion.
In conclusion, it seems important to draw the Board’s attention to possible difficulties which the rapid installation of clocking-in machines could bring. We need to discuss the problem a little longer and with more people before taking an action, it would seem.
2
Coffey & Nelson Public Accountants 2300 Peachtree St., Suite 100
Atlanta, GA 30000
Independent Auditor’s Report
To the Stockholders DVD Enterprises, Inc.
We have audited the company’s balance sheets of DVD Enterprise, Inc., as of December 2007 and 2008, and the related statements of income, retained earnings and cash flows for the years that ended. These financial statements are the responsibility of the company’s management.
Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audit.
We conducted our audits in accordance with auditing standards generally accepted in the United States of America. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and estimates made by the management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation.
In our opinion, the financial statements referred to the years 2007 and 2008 present a good and stable financial position of DVD Enterprises, Inc. We can add that the years ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the USA.
COFFEY & NELSON, P.C.
February 23, 2009
PRACTICE:
I. Rearrange the paragraphs of this mixed up report and do the true false exercise below:
From: Juana Garcia To: Anita Leonard
Subject: Quarterly report on office furniture Date: 15th July, 2008
The first point to stress is that following the acquisition of the Relaxed Group and J.S.
Amoretti S. p. A. last year, Relaxed International, the renamed division, experienced a year of consolidation and profit growth this year.
Relaxed Systems Furniture in the UK continued its profitable growth pattern. In marketing terms, the major events include extensions to the System M100 screen based furniture range which is proving such a popular product with major British companies. New storage products were also introduced in October. Alhambra, a Spanish desking range, was launched in the UK for the front office furniture market. It was well received and projected sales for next year are encouraging.
Marbles Relax de Espana showed real profit improvement following the factory investments which have led to more cost-effective manufacture. The order book increased significantly during the year, despite the lack of any real improvement in the business climate in Spain.
This was due to the introduction of new desking and storage products, aided by key changes to the sales management structure.
I must apologise for the late submission of my report, but the delay was partly connected with my visit to our Spanish subsidiary in Seville. I had to step in at the last moment for the sales manager who unfortunately suffered a car accident.
Overall, the past year has been a favourable one for the Relaxed Group in all three European regions. This has been the case despite the variable conditions from country to country. The prospects for the coming years look favourable on the whole, and only the situation in the USA may give some cause for concern.
At the same time marketing activity was strengthened by the opening of new showrooms for Relaxed at the new International Center in Washington DC and for Amoretti S.p.A. in the office and factory complex just outside Turin. We also had good production results to show in our three major European regions: the Iberian Peninsula, Northern Europe and the British Isles.
Here are the results of my analysis of the international performance of Relaxed International together with some predictions for the future development of the furniture market.
The Relaxed companies in Europe traded exceptionally well during the year, and new products were introduced to extend System 99 executive seating range. The market conditions in Germany and Holland were very favourable and Relaxed looks able to take further advantage of this with systems furniture to be launched in these countries in the next couple of years. The Swiss company continues to develop its own markets and last year significantly increased its activity in southern Europe. However, market conditions in the USA were not so favourable for Relaxed Incorporated, but the opening of the showroom in New York should indicate a return to growth in the USA in coming years.
Decide whether these sentences are true or false according to the report above:
Juana wishes she had not had to take the place of the sales manager in Seville.
Juana reports on the development of the business furniture market in the past few years.
The newly restructured company had a good year.
Production facilities were improved in Italy and America.
There were more orders in Spain during the year.
The success of the Spanish subsidiary was connected to the change in the business climate.
European trade development helped Relaxed companies to expand the number of new products they were able to sell.
Juana is not sure whether it will be an advantage to introduce new products in the next few years.
Relaxed Incorporated are likely to do less well in the USA in the future than they have this year.