“A report is a textual work made with the specific intention of relaying information or recounting certain events in a widely presentable form.” A report must be written based on test result and facts. It must be written in a proper manner. In order to write a good report, employees must have the required report writing skills. Every employee will not be born with a writing skill. But the real fact is that all employees can develop their report writing skills if they put in some effort. How you write and what you write can greatly influence and motivate your target audience, be it your clients, customers or the top management. The power of effective written communication can contribute significantly to organizational productivity, efficiency and success in today’s rapidly changing business world. So the better you are at this form of communication, the more successful you're likely to be. Work Better course on this topic will take you through the steps of writing concise reports, from understanding why they are writing reports; to requirement analysis and information gathering techniques required to write precise reports; to writing and proofreading; through to creating the final, professional product.

1. The following rules and guidelines relate to the conventional structure of a report. Some
organizations lay down their own ('House style').
a) Title page
This normally carries the title, sub-title if any, date, author's name and position, and
distribution list. It may also carry a reference number or other classification (eg,
confidential). But don't overcrowd the page: a clear, simple layout is always the best.
b) Summary
A necessity if the report is a long one. It gives busy people the gist of the report without
their having to read it all; but if attractively written, it may whet their appetite, and
stimulate them to read the whole thing.
c) Contents list
The contents of short reports may be shown on the title page - or not at all. More
extensive ones should always have a separate page, listing the major sections or
chapters, sub-sections if any, and appendices, and giving their page numbers. It should
be laid out clearly so as to show the relationship between them.
d) Introduction
This gives the background to the report, and shows why it was necessary. It usually
states the objective of the report (in formal terms), who called for it, and the scope and
treatment. The shorter it is, the better.
e) Body of the report
This contains your detailed facts and findings, shows how they were arrived at, and
indicates the inferences to be drawn from them, all in accordance with your horizontal
plan (p.5).
f) Conclusions
Here you draw out the main points of your report and present a considered judgment on
them.
g) Recommendations
Finally, set down any recommendations, relating them clearly to what has gone before.
In a good report, the reader is carried along by the argument, so that by the time he
reaches the end, he'll need no further convincing.
h) Appendices
Some reports need detailed supporting information, or perhaps information that only
some readers need. All this goes in the appendices.
In some cases you may also need to include:
j) Bibliography and/or References
This lists either the books and articles consulted as a basis for the report, or those you
want to suggest as further reading - or both. Make clear which they are.

2. k) Glossary
This can be a help if your readers include non-experts as well as experts. When writing
on a specialist subject for non-experts alone, define any technical terms as you go
along.
Types of Reports
Short report
· Title page
· Introduction
· Discussion
· Recommendations
· References
Science report
· Title page
· Introduction
· Method & materials
· Results
· Discussion
· Conclusion
· Appendices
· References
Business report
· Title page
· Executive summary
· Table of contents
· Introduction
· Discussion
· Conclusion
· Recommendations
· Appendices
· References
Engineering report
· Title page
· Executive summary
(optional)
· Introduction
· Objectives
· Analysis
· Discussion
· Recommendations &
action plan
· Conclusion
· Appendices
· References
Research report
· Title page
· Executive summary
· Introduction
· Method / methodology
· Results / findings
· Discussion
· Conclusions
· Recommendations
· Appendices
· Bibliography

3. Difference between a Business Proposal and a Report
It would take too long for me to describe the procedures of how to do each kind, so I will
use accounting as an example for each.
**Accounting Report**
Could be a report of the company's profits, losses, investment of assets, operational cost
(both direct and indirect), or a combination of a few. Comprehensively, it would include all
just mentioned.
This report would have a balance and income statement listed as an exhibit and commonly
would have graphs and line charts (if a short report, it would just have the statement
portion). The report would have narration of the different transactions of expenditures,
revenue/capital gains, etc. It would depend a lot of what kind of business the company is in.
**Accounting Proposal**
Like a report, it is a narration with graphs and charts. The difference is that a proposal is a
forecast of how a particular action would effect the company.
A proposal might be, to name a few types; "should we invest in new markets, buy new
machines, hold more inventory, or create a new product."
One or more company departments would be involved, depending on the scope of the
proposal. Each department would present and defend their position to their superiors.
Both may be done orally with a slide presentation, or in writing. A good proposal would be
done both ways. Usually with the oral presentation first, followed by a written summary of
the presentation. However, if the scope is large, a detailed account of the proposal may be
given before the presentation so that the participants in the proposal can make an
informed decision as to what direction to take. In this example for accounting, it would
usually be a discussion of how to spend money to optimize growth and revenue. However,

4. in special circumstances, it might be to "lose money," as in the case of a poison pill to
prevent a hostile takeover...but that is another story :P .
What is Literature review in a report? Why is it important?
A literature review is an evaluative report of information found in the literature related to your
selected area of study. The review should describe, summarise, evaluate and clarify this
literature. It should give a theoretical base for the research and help you (the author) determine
the nature of your research. Works which are irrelevant should be discarded and those which are
peripheral should be looked at critically.
A literature review is more than the search for information, and goes beyond being a descriptive
annotated bibliography. All works included in the review must be read, evaluated and analysed
(which you would do for an annotated bibliography), but relationships between the literature
must also be identified and articulated, in relation to your field of research.
"In writing the literature review, the purpose is to convey to the reader what knowledge and ideas
have been established on a topic, and what their strengths and weaknesses are. The literature
review must be defined by a guiding concept (eg. your research objective, the problem or issue
you are discussing, or your argumentative thesis). It is not just a descriptive list of the material
available, or a set of summaries.
What is bibliography?
A bibliography is a list of books, scholarly articles, and other sources you use when researching a
topic and writing a paper. The bibliography will appear at the end of your paper.
The bibliography is sometimes called Works Cited or Works Consulted.
Bibliography entries must be written in a very specific format, but that format will depend you
the particular style of writing you use.
What is Abstract in a report?
Often when asked to write a report or article you will be required to include an abstract.
This is usually a very concise summary of what the report or article is about and is
sually placed before the body of your writing. The abstract can be read to get a quick
Overview . It tells the reader what to expect in your work and it should be based on
all you have written

5. Definitions
The word abstract comes from the Latin abstractum , which means a condensed form of
a longer piece of writing . There are two main types of abstract:the (1) Descriptive
and the (2) Informative abstract. The type of abstract you write depends on
your discipline area.
How do I write an abstract?
First re read your paper/report for an overview. Then read each section and shrink the
information in each down to 1-2 sentences; Next read these sentences again to ensure that they
cover the major points in your paper;
Ensure you have written something for each of the key points outlined above for either
the descriptive or informative abstract;
Check the word length and further reduce your words if necessary by cutting out unnecessary
words or rewriting some of the sentences into simple and single sentence.
Edit for flow and expressions

6. Definitions
The word abstract comes from the Latin abstractum , which means a condensed form of
a longer piece of writing . There are two main types of abstract:the (1) Descriptive
and the (2) Informative abstract. The type of abstract you write depends on
your discipline area.
How do I write an abstract?
First re read your paper/report for an overview. Then read each section and shrink the
information in each down to 1-2 sentences; Next read these sentences again to ensure that they
cover the major points in your paper;
Ensure you have written something for each of the key points outlined above for either
the descriptive or informative abstract;
Check the word length and further reduce your words if necessary by cutting out unnecessary
words or rewriting some of the sentences into simple and single sentence.
Edit for flow and expressions