1. Writing Formal Reports

2. Written for many reasons
• Research into new development
• Explorations of the feasibility of a new product or
service
• End-of-year review

3. More than one audience
• Formal reports are organized to address the
needs of more than one audience
• Different positions reading different sections
• Executive summary and abstract exist
independently

4. Voices in the Workplace
As a writing staff team leader at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Judy Prono notes that her
readers range from technical experts and elected officials to public interest groups and the general
public. To reach such a diverse readership, her staff will “begin by explaining the „what‟ and „so what‟
of the research to non-expert readers and add technical details as the report progresses…We may also
tell two stories, one in the text and one in the accompanying graphics, captions, and sidebars. The two
become complementary explanations…that tell the full story together but capture its highlights if
readers have time only for the „pictures.‟”

5. Abstract
• Condensed version (200-250 words) of a longer
work that summarizes and highlights its major
points.
• Contains: subject, scope, purpose, methods used,
results obtained (optional), recommendations
made (optional)
• Does not contain: detailed discussion or
explanation or the methods used, administrative
details about how research was done, who funded
it, who worked on it, illustrations, tables, charts,
maps, any information that does not appear in the
original document.

6. Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Abstract…………………………………………….iii
Preface……………………………………………...vii
Executive Summary………………………………..1
Introduction………………………………………...2
a
b
c
Analysis of Reported Cases
a
b
c
Conclusions and Recommendations…………….8
Appendices
a. Population…………………………10
b. Survey Example………………......11
References………………………………………...12

7. List of Figures or
List of Tables
When a report contains more than five figures/tables,
list them after the table of contents.

8. Foreword
• Optional
• Introductory statement written by someone other
than the author(s).
• Provides background information about the
significance and places it in the context of other
works in the field.
• Author is usually an authority in the field and/or an
executive of the company.

9. Preface
• Optional
• Written by the author to announce the purpose,
background, or scope of the report.
• May contain acknowledgements of help received
during the course of the project
• May cite permission(s) obtained
• This info can also be put in the introduction (depends
HOW much info you need and how extensive the
report is)

10. List of Abbreviations
and Symbols
• Use when the abbreviations and symbols used in
a report are numerous and when there is a
chance that the audience will not be able to
interpret them.

11. Body
• Executive summary
• Introduction
• Text (headings, tables, illustrations, and
references)
• Conclusions and recommendations

12. Executive Summary
• More complete overview of the report than the abstract
• States purpose and major findings
• Provides background
• States the scope
• Provides conclusions
• Gives recommendations
• Optional, but strongly recommended with wider range
of audience

13. Text/Body
• Longest part of the report
• Presents details of how the topic was investigated,
how the problem was solved, how the best choice
from alternatives was selected
• Tables and illustrations to support the text
• Lots of ways to organize this

14. Text/Body
• Graphic and Tabular Matter
• Figure 1, Figure 2; Figure 1.1, 1.2)
• Refer to the graphic or tabular matter by figure
number not location or page number

15. Text/Body—Conclusions
• The conclusions section of the report pulls it all
together—what the whole point of the
report/research was in the first place.
• Must remain consistent with findings and purpose

16. Text/Body—
Recommendations
• Generally combined with the conclusions, suggest a
course of action that should be taken based on the
results of the study/research.
• What consulting group should the firm hire for a special
project?
• With which Web-page designer should the firm target?
• Which make of delivery can should the company purchase
to replace the existing fleet?
• Recommendations advise the audience on the best
course of action based on the findings.
• Should

17. Text/Body—References

18. Back Matter
• Contains supplementary material, such as where
to find additional information about the topic
(bibliography)
• Expands on certain information (appendixes)
• Define terms used (glossary)

19. Back Matter—
Bibliography
• An alphabetical listing of all the sources you
consulted to prepare the report
• May contain additional texts that your References
do not include
• Starts on a new page labeled by its name

20. Back Matter—Appendices
• Clarifies or supplements the body with information
that is too detailed or lengthy for the primary
audience but that is relevant
• Might provide long charts, graphs, questionnaires,
etc.
• Place each appendix on a new page

21. Back Matter—Glossary
• Alphabetical list of definitions of terms used in a
formal report
• Appears on a new page after the appendix(es))
• Whether you use include a glossary is up to you,
but you still have to define new terms when first
mentioned in the text

22. Back Matter—Index
• Alphabetical list of all the major topics and
subtopics found in the report
• Cites the pages where each topic can be found

23. What I want
• Abstract
• Table of Contents
• Body
• Executive summary
• Introduction
• Text (headings, tables, illustrations, and references)
• Conclusions and recommendations
• References
• Bibliography
• Glossary (encouraged)
• Appendixes (encouraged)

24. Assume that the audience is, for example, the board of directors of CGF
Aircraft Corporation. Consider the following questions:
a. What is the purpose of the report?
b. What is the scope of the report? What is the scope of your current
research?
c. Are costs an important concern of this report?
d. Are the conclusions effective?
e. How long would you expect the report to be?