What you'll learn to do: Create an informal reportInformal reports in the business setting are usually shorter in length and have fewer sections than a formal report. Employees in most organizations create and use informal reports. Almost all informal reports are for internal use. Some institutions have prescribed formats and others do not. As we've previously discussed, an informal report fits in one of two large categories: Show
An informational report provides background and information without reaching an evaluation. These include simple reports like meeting minutes, expense reports, and progress, or status updates. An analytical report provides much the same
information as the informational report along with evaluation or recommendation. These reports may include feasibility studies, justification reports, and proposals. Learning Outcomes
Informal reports are the bread and butter of reports. It is likely that all employees will be responsible for many informal reports over their careers. Types of Informal ReportsThe following are typical types of informal reports. Keep in mind that there may be some overlap with formal reports (i.e., some report types can be informal or formal).
Practice QuestionSharing Informal Reports Informal reports may be delivered in a variety of formats
including letters, memos, emails, and digital postings (such as a blog). While your delivery method may impact the format of your report, the writing and purpose will stay the same.
Regardless of the mode of transmission, the structure and content of your report will be based on the type of the report. Practice questionSections of Informal ReportsInformal informational reports typically include the following three sections:
Informal analytical reports typically include the following four sections:
Introduction or BackgroundA short section introducing the reader to the "why" of the report. In more complex reports, the introduction may include a background, a problem statement, specific objectives, or all of the above. Support or Reasons This is where you'll include your facts, findings, and data. Writers new to reports may
make the mistake of providing lists of data and other information found as a result of research. However, most business managers can find the information on their own with time. The purpose of this section of a report is to present a summary of main ideas from the research—it's not simply a collection of raw data. Recommendations This section is only found in analytical reports; it shows how data supports the recommendation given in the report. Essentially, the author connects the logical data items in a way that points to the recommendation. Conclusion or SummaryThis short section wraps up the report and gives a quick summary of the information provided therein. practice questionOrganizing based on Audience Analysis The logic of report organization is the same as the logic discussed in Module 2 for shorter messages. Reports analyze the audience the same way. The difference lies in the depth of information needed. Thinking about your audience, or the stakeholders, is one of the most crucial considerations when creating a report. It's important to keep in mind that your audience may be
broader than you expect (remember the discussion on types of stakeholders from earlier this module): your potential readers have an interest in the report's content for many reasons based on their unique job functions. Organizing Your ReportFigure 1. Informational Report Organization If your audience is expected to react neutrally or positively to your message, then your conclusion or recommendation should be offered near the beginning of the report. Thus, your report would be laid out like this. First you would write the introduction, background, or problem section. Next come your conclusions or recommendations. These are backed
up by the support or reasons section, which details facts, data, or findings. The final section is typically some sort of further discussion, analysis, or summary. Remember that introducing these sections with a descriptive heading can help your readers, especially if the sections consist of multiple paragraphs. Formatting the ReportWhile informal reports may not use extensive or standardized labeling of sections, nor do they have required length of individual sections, each section has a unique purpose. However, these "sections" may be a couple of paragraphs rather than a fully separated section with their own headings. As the report starts to exceed a page or two, headings will provide a tremendous benefit to the reader, and to you, as the reader better understands and retains your main ideas. A Quick Comparison: Using Headings?Take a look at these two dummy texts to compare the structure of an informal report without headings and an informal report that uses headings. (Note that these examples only show the formatting of a report, not the ideal way to write one.)
Headings can be a useful tool for helping your readers navigate directly to the information they want. Notice that the headings catch your reader's eye much more easily than phrases such as "in my research . . . " Practice QuestionHow to Write an Informal ReportWriting informal reports follows the same steps of any other writing task. First is the plan. Second is the writing. Third is the revising. Figure 1.Planning Your Informal Report When asked to create an informal report, first check to see if your organization has a form or template that should be used. Then verify your understanding of the report’s purpose. Writing Your Informal Report With the detailed outline created in the planning process, the actual writing of the informal report should go quickly. In this step, you'll
focus on paragraph structure, wording, and phrasing using the lessons found in Module 2: Writing In Business. Writing for Your Company Different companies have different styles for writing reports: you should always match they style of your current institution. Some companies accept a more casual style of writing. This may include the use of personal pronouns such as “I recommend . . . ” or “we completed a survey of 20 people.” Some companies accept use of contractions as in, “The Customer Contact team couldn’t reach a conclusion
on types of bags to use,” while others do not. Formatting Your Report In writing your report, remember that headings guide the reader, but like an email subject line, they are no substitute for clear,
descriptive writing that helps the reader stay on track. While writing your report, you should use summary statements as each paragraph or section closes to avoid a jerky, disconnected feel in your writing. Ensure that each new section below a header has a good topic sentence that serves as an introduction to the section. A stronger writing skill is to look to the type of report and the outline prepared for the writing, then select headers that suit the content, rather than content suiting the header. With informal reports, the style is somewhat relaxed, so headers should focus on making information easy for the reader to access. When writing a report, or in almost any business writing, the writing step takes about 40–50 percent of the total time or effort for the full report. This may surprise many writers who think that this step is all you need to complete for a report. However, if you spend the time to ensure the planning step is well done, writing goes much more quickly, and you'll produce a better report. Revising Your Informal Report As with most documents, the final step in
creating a report is the one most frequently skipped or only partially completed by writers; in fact, writers will often intentionally skip this step, likely because it is at the end of a long process, and they are often eager to submit their work to the requester. Practice QuestionLicenses and AttributionsWhat is the difference between an informational report and an analytical report?As we learned, the forms of business reports include the informational report, which is one that contains only facts and data in which there are no proposed solutions, and it doesn't contain personal views, and the analytical report, which contains facts and data, but it also provides an analysis of this information ...
What is the main purpose of an informational report?- Even though all reports present information, simply put, the purpose of Informational Reports is to provide information in an organized, objective way, without analysis or recommendations; in other words, to report the facts.
What is included in an informational report?Informational reports provide facts, data, feedback, and other types of information to assist management to make decisions. Informational reports do not provide an analysis or interpretation of information and do not provide recommendations.
What are the four sections typically included in an informal analytical report?A typical informal analytical report has four sections: Introduction, Support or Reasons, Recommendations, and Conclusion.
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