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BUSINESS REPORTS:Prefatory Parts, Place of Title Page Items |
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Lesson
31
BUSINESS
REPORTS
Parts
of a Formal Report
A
formal reports manuscript format
and impersonal tone
convey an impression of professionalism.
A
format
report can be either short (fewer
than 10 pages) or long (10
pages or more). It is informational
or
analytical, direct or
indirect. It may be targeted to
readers inside or outside the
organization.
There
are three basic divisions of a
formal report:
1.
Prefatory Parts
2.
Text Parts
3.
Supplementary Parts
1.
Prefatory
Parts are:
a)
Cover
b)
Title fly
c)
Letter of authorization
d)
Letter of acceptance
e)
Letter of transmittal
f)
Table of contents
g)
List of illustrations
h)
Synopsis or executive
summer
2.
Text Parts
a)
Introduction
b)
Body
c)
Summary
d)
Conclusions
e)
Recommendations
f)
Notes
3.
Supplementary Parts
a)
Appendixes
b)
Bibliography
c)
Index
Prefatory
Parts
Cover
Use
a cover only for long
reports. Use a sturdy, plain,
light cardboard with good
page fasteners.
With
the cover on, the open pages should
remain flat. Center the
report title and your
name four or five
inches
from the upper edge.
Title
Fly
It
is a plain sheet of paper
with the title of the report on
it.
Title
Page
1.
the title of the report
2.
the name, title and address
of the person group that authorized the
report prepared
for submitted to
3.
the name, title and address
of the person, group etc
that prepared the report,
prepared
by, submitted
by
4.
the date on which the report
was submitted.
The
title page signals the
readers by giving the report
title, author's name, name of
person or organization to
whom
the report is addressed, and
date of submission. Choose
title information but not
long, A Report of,
A
Study of, or A Survey
of
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Your
title promises what your
report will deliver by
stating the report's purpose and content.
A
title
in
order to be effective must be
clear, accurate, comprehensive,
specific, concise and
appropriately
phrases.
Place
of Title Page
Items
Do
not number your title page,
but count it as page (I) of
your prefatory pages. Centre
the title
horizontally
on the page, three to four
inches below the upper edge, using
all capital letters. If the
title is
longer
than six or eight words,
centre it on two or more
lines.
Letter
of Authorization and Letter of
Acceptance
If
you received written
authorization (a litter or memo)
you may want to include. It usually
has
direct
request plan. Letter of Acceptance
(or memo of acceptance)
acknowledges the assignment. It
follows
good-
news plan confirming time
and money restriction and
other pertinent detail. This
letter is rarely
included
in report.
Letter
of Transmittal (or memo of
transmittal)
It
conveys
your report to the audience. It
says what you'd say if you
were handing the report to the
person
who authorized you. It has less
formal tone.
Depending
on the situation, your letter
might:
·
Acknowledge
those who helped with the
report
·
Refer
readers to sections of special
interest
·
Discuss
the need and approaches for
follow-up investigations
·
Suggest
some special uses of the
information
·
Urge
the reader to take immediate
action
·
Use
good news plan
Table
of Contents
This
table outlines the text and
list Prefatory Parts
1.
List preliminary items (transmittal
letter, abstract) in your
table of contents, numbering the pages
with
small
roman numerals. (List items
that appear at the end of the
report, such as glossary, appendix,
notes and
bibliography
section; number these pages
with Arabic numerals,
continuing the page sequence of the
report
proper,
where page no. 1ist the
first page of your report
text.
2.
Include no heading in the table of
contents not listed as
headings or subheadings in the report;
your
report
text may, however, contain certain
sub-headings.
3.
Use different types of
styles and indentations to show the
various levels of
heads.
List
of Illustrations
For
simplicity sake, some reports prefer to include
all visual aid as
illustration or exhibits.
Put
the list of figures and table on
separate page if they won't
fit on one page with the
table of
content.
Synopsis
or Executive Summary
A
synopsis is a brief overview
(one page or less) of report's
most important point. It is
also called
abstract.
Executive summary is a fully developed
mini version of the report and is
comprehensive.
1.
Make your summary able to
stand alone in meaning a
mini-report
2.
Make it intelligible to the general
reader. Readers of summaries
will vary widely in expertise,
perhaps
much
more than those who
read the report itself. So translate
all technical data into
plain English.
3.
Add no new information.
Simply summarize the
report
4.
Stick to the order of your
report
5.
Emphasize only major points.
Text
of the Report
Introduction
It
has a number of functions and
covers a wide variety of topics and
helps the reader follow
and
understands
information.
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Body
The
section contain information that
supports conclusion and recommendation as
well as analysis,
logic,
interpretation of the information.
Closing
You
summarize the main idea of
your report highlighting
your conclusion or recommendation
and
list
any course of action. In long
report this section may be
labeled Summary, Conclusion &
Recommendation.
Supplementary
Parts
Appendix/Appendixes
They
contain material related to the report
but not included in the text
because they were lengthy
or
not directly relevant.They
include:
1.
Statistics or measurements
2.
Maps
3.
Complex formulas
4.
Long quotations
5.
Photographs
6.
Related correspondence (letters of
inquiry etc.)
7.
Texts of law, regulations
etc.
Bibliography
A
bibliography is a list of source
materials on a particular subject. In a
formal report it shows
what
books
and other library materials
were consulted and it
includes all the works mentioned in the
footnotes.
As
part of the reference matter, it follows
the appendix or appendices.
Index
An
index is an alphabetical list of
names, places and subjects
mentioned in the report, along
with
the
page on which they occur.
They are rarely included in unpublished
reports.
RESTLESSNESS
AMONG WORKERS
Prepared
for
Ahmad
Hassan
General
Manager
ABC
TEXTILE Mills
Prepared
by
Asad
Ali
Manager
Cost Accounting
Services
ABC
Textile Mills Ltd
March
6, 2006
Contents
1.
Letter of Transmittal
2.
Introduction
3.
Present Situation
4.
Effect on Business
a)
b)
5.
Causes of Restlessness
a)
b)
6.
Recommendation
a)
b)
7.
Conclusion
Letter
of Transmittal
ABC
Textile Mills Ltd
Raiwand
Road Lahore
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September
16, 2006
Managing
Director
ABC
Textile Mills Ltd.
Raiwand
Road, Lahore
Dear
Sir
Subject:
Report on Restlessness among
Workers
This
has reference to your letter
no. 11 of September 3 in which I
was asked to compile a report
on
the
restlessness now prevalent among
our workers. I have
completed my investigations, and my
findings
with
recommendations are given in a detailed
report which is
enclosed.
I
would be obliged if I could
have your comments after you
have gone through the
report. If, in the
course
of
your reading, you would
like to discuss some points
with me, I shall be happy to do so at
any time
convenient
to you.
Respectfully
submitted
Yours
truly
Asad
Ali
Manager
cost accounting
services
135
Table of Contents:
- COMMUNICATION:Definition of Communication, Communication & Global Market
- FLOW OF COMMUNICATION:Internal Communication, External Communication
- THEORIES OF COMMUNICATION:Electronic Theory, Rhetorical Theory
- THE PROCESS OF COMMUNICATION & MISCOMMUNICATION:Message
- BARRIERS IN EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION /COMMUNICATION FALLOFF
- NON- VERBAL COMMUNICATION:Analysing Nonverbal Communication
- NON- VERBAL COMMUNICATION:Environmental Factors
- TRAITS OF GOOD COMMUNICATORS:Careful Creation of the Message
- PRINCIPLES OF BUSINESS COMMUNICATION:Clarity
- CORRECTNESS:Conciseness, Conciseness Checklist, Correct words
- CONSIDERATION:Completeness
- INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION
- INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION:Education, Law and Regulations, Economics
- INDIVIDUAL CULTURAL VARIABLES:Acceptable Dress, Manners
- PROCESS OF PREPARING EFFECTIVE BUSINESS MESSAGES
- Composing the Messages:THE APPEARANCE AND DESIGN OF BUSINESS MESSAGES
- THE APPEARANCE AND DESIGN OF BUSINESS MESSAGES:Punctuation Styles
- COMMUNICATING THROUGH TECHNOLOGY:Email Etiquette, Electronic Media
- BASIC ORGANIZATIONAL PLANS:Writing Goodwill Letters
- LETTER WRITING:Direct Requests, Inquiries and General Requests
- LETTER WRITING:Replies to Inquiries, Model Letters
- LETTER WRITING:Placing Orders, Give the Information in a Clear Format
- LETTER WRITING:Claim and Adjustment Requests, Warm, Courteous Close
- LETTER WRITING:When The Buyer Is At Fault, Writing Credit Letters
- LETTER WRITING:Collection Letters, Collection Letter Series
- LETTER WRITING:Sales Letters, Know your Buyer, Prepare a List of Buyers
- MEMORANDUM & CIRCULAR:Purpose of Memo, Tone of Memorandums
- MINUTES OF THE MEETING:Committee Members’ Roles, Producing the Minutes
- BUSINESS REPORTS:A Model Report, Definition, Purpose of report
- BUSINESS REPORTS:Main Features of the Report, INTRODUCTION
- BUSINESS REPORTS:Prefatory Parts, Place of Title Page Items
- MARKET REPORTS:Classification of Markets, Wholesale Market
- JOB SEARCH AND EMPLOYMENT:Planning Your Career
- RESUME WRITING:The Chronological Resume, The Combination Resume
- RESUME & APPLICATION LETTER:Personal Details, Two Types of Job Letters
- JOB INQUIRY LETTER AND INTERVIEW:Understanding the Interview Process
- PROCESS OF PREPARING THE INTERVIEW:Planning for a Successful Interview
- ORAL PRESENTATION:Planning Oral Presentation, To Motivate
- ORAL PRESENTATION:Overcoming anxiety, Body Language
- LANGUAGE PRACTICE AND NEGOTIATION SKILLS:Psychological barriers
- NEGOTIATION AND LISTENING:Gather information that helps you
- THESIS WRITING AND PRESENTATION:Write down your ideas
- THESIS WRITING AND PRESENTATION:Sections of a Thesis (Format)
- RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:Studies Primarily Qualitative in Nature
- RESEARCH METHODOLOGY:Basic Rules, Basic Form, Basic Format for Books