Which of the following would make the most appropriate final sentence of the report?

Chapter 10

Informal Reports

Multiple Choice Questions

1.The three factors of successful reports are ________.

a)content, tone, skimmability

b)content, clarity, skimmability

c)content, clarity, accuracy

d)content, clarity, tone

2.________ is not a feature of an informal report.

a) Use of a table of contents for reports over five pages

b)Use of personal pronouns

c)Infrequent use of visual aids

d)A within-report summary

3.Marta sells mouse pads in Waterloo, ON, but sends weekly sales reports to the head office in

Victoria, BC. She should send ________.

a)an analytical report

b)a periodic report in memo format

c)a justification report in memo format

d)an information report in letter format

4.The main sections of an analytical report are ________.

a)purpose/introduction, background, facts/findings, recommendations/ conclusions

b)purpose/introduction, discussion/analysis, conclusions, recommendations

c)purpose/introduction, discussion, analysis

d) purpose/introduction, facts/findings, discussion/analysis, recommendations/conclusions

5.Report writers should use a more formal tone than usual ________.

a)because they don’t know where the report could end up

b)because they are less important than their readers

c)to make the report seem impressive and important

d)to exaggerate the importance of their findings

6. ________ is not a functional heading.

a)Recommendations

b)New Policy on Secure Messaging

c)Findings

d)Problems

7.A heading in all caps, bold, and centred, would be ________.

a)third level

Which of the following transitional expressions can be used to present additional thoughts?

a. Accordingly, as a result, consequently, therefore
b. After, before, first, finally, now, previously, to conclude
c. At the same time, but, however, though, yet
d. Again, also, moreover, furthermore

Which of the following transitional expressions suggest cause and effect?

a. After, before, first, finally, now, previously, to conclude
b. For example, for instance, in other words
c. At the same time, but, however, though, yet
d.Accordingly, as a result, consequently, therefore

Informational reports should be organized using which of the following patterns?

a. Introduction/problem, facts/findings, conclusions/recommendations, discussion/analysis
b. Summary/conclusion, introduction/background, facts/findings
c. Introduction/background, facts/findings, summary/conclusion
d. Introduction/problem, conclusions/recommendations, facts/findings, discussion/analysis

The range for daily sales for the week, $89,000, $75,000, $98,000, $66,000, and $99,000, is

a) $85,400.
b) $33,000.
c) $89,000.
d) $427,000.

You're a newly hired member of the Human Resources and Communications Department at LHC Design, a 130-employee firm that designs architecture, visual merchandising, and branding strategies for retail stores. Today your boss, Jenna Bostick, emailed you an assignment that will enable you to show off your research and writing skills.

Jenna, the director of the department, will be attending an executive team meeting next week, and she would like to know by then what, if anything, the company should do about the employee blog that has sprung up on WordPress, a free blog-hosting site. Apparently, several LHC designers, strategists, and artists have taken it upon themselves to start a blog in which they can share their creative ideas with each other, with creative people in other companies, and with current and potential clients. They call their blog "InspirationPoint," and it seems to be gathering momentum. "What should the company do about this blog? Ignore it? Squelch it? Link it to the company website?" Jenna asks. She wants your recommendation so that she can make her own, based on yours, to the executive team.

Of course, to figure out what to recommend, you'll need to do research. You'll start by studying the blog itself. Then you'll arrange appointments to speak with the young employees who started and maintain the blog. You'll also study websites, books, and articles about corporate blogging, and you'll look for any other data that might help your boss decide what course of action to recommend to her bosses.

Make Jenna feel great about hiring you by doing a stellar job on this report.

Which form of report would be appropriate for this situation?

1. either an email report or a short report attached to an email message
2. a letter report
3. a formal report
4. a memo report
5. an email report

Make Jenna feel great about hiring you by doing a stellar job on this report.

You could argue that it would be appropriate in this case to state your assessment of the blog up front but make your recommendation for action only after presenting the information about the blog. Your reasoning would be

1. that your boss might not read the whole report if you stated your recommendation up front.
2. both that you want to avoid seeming pushy and that you want to build support for your recommendation before presenting it.
3. that your recommendation is of little importance here.
4. that, given your position, it could seem pushy to make your recommendation at the beginning of the report.
5. that you want to build your boss's confidence in your analysis before making your recommendation.

Make Jenna feel great about hiring you by doing a stellar job on this report.

Which of the following choices would not be a reader-friendly way to organize the report's information?

1. Organize the information in the order of the reader's most likely questions.
2. Organize the information in terms of the blog's pros and cons.
3. Go through the posts and evaluate them one by one.
4. Organize your assessment of the blog on the basis of the criteria for an effective employee blog.
5. Organize on the basis of your key observations, using examples from the blog to support each one.

Make Jenna feel great about hiring you by doing a stellar job on this report.

Which of the following would make the most appropriate final sentence of the report?

1. "It is therefore advisable for LHC Design to develop social-media guidelines and require that employees follow them."
2. "In light of the blog's assets, I would recommend that the blog's authors be encouraged to continue but that we develop a social-media policy to guide such practices."
3. "As you can see, the pros outweigh the cons in this case, so I'd say let the authors continue their blog."
4. "I hope this information is helpful."
5. "Please let me know if you'd like me to help you present this information to the executive team."

Make Jenna feel great about hiring you by doing a stellar job on this report.

Which of the following could be a helpful and appropriate appendix to the report?

1. a representative post from the employees' blog
2. a sample social-media policy to help LHC develop such a policy
3. a table of the blog's pros and cons
4. a list and description of all the sources you consulted
5. both a representative post from the blog and a sample social-media policy

Name That Report
(Routine operational report, progress report, short problem-solving report, meeting minutes, or formal report)

Donna - The Verstag Company, a metal-working shop with about 60 employees, is considering adopting a profit-sharing plan. As financial manager for the company, Donna has been asked to study the government regulations for such plans, the forms the plan can take, how to implement such a plan, and the likely risks and benefits for both the employees and the company. She will present her results orally to the administrative team, but she will also prepare a detailed written report.

Name That Report
(Routine operational report, progress report, short problem-solving report, meeting minutes, or formal report)

Jasper - Jasper is a sales person for a financial services firm. His job is to call potential customers, discuss their current mortgages with them, and offer, if possible, a better deal from his firm. Each week he needs to report how many calls he made, how many he completed, what the current mortgage rates are of those he spoke with, and how many sales he made.

Your company, Sierra Publishing Company, launched a corporate fitness program 18 months ago. The results have been tremendous. Your employees have lost a collective 5,367 pounds, and the employees have had fewer sick days and paid less for medical care. The problem? Many of the sales and management staff entertain clients at business breakfasts, lunches, and dinners. These employees have expressed concern that their hard work in the fitness program is sabotaged when they entertain clients and dine on food loaded with fat, calories, cholesterol, carbohydrates, and sodium. They also worry that hidden "hazards" in certain foods (e.g., dressings, sauces) may cause them to make poor food choices even when they are attempting to make good ones. Joe Moreno, a senior vice president, is trying to find ways to address employees' concerns. He has assigned you, his assistant, the task of researching the nutritional content of menus at the five restaurants where employees most frequently entertain clients. Even if the company pays a little more for healthful meals, this cost is offset by the benefits healthy employees bring to the company. You are to present your findings in a report. Joe will then share the information with all Sierra employees.