Report writing is an essential skill that must be learned not only by college students but also by employees in government and corporations. At one point or another, a person will be required to write a report. Any report writing exercise is for a specific purpose and a target audience. It involves collecting and collating information to come up with evidence that is plausible to the reader. Reports require excellent writing skills and the ability to follow a specified structure. This structuring is what enables the reader or the target audience to locate the information they need with ease. Such a report should not only be short but concise and straight to the point.
Elements of report writing
Unless your supervisor gives you specific guidelines in a given case, at All Homework Solutions, we believe report writing generally includes the following elements:
- A clear description of the situation at hand
- An interpretation of the significance of the position and how you arrived at this
- Evaluation of the facts resulting from the study or research
- Discussion of possible outcomes and actions for mitigation
- Your recommendations and actions
- Conclusion
Structure of a report
All Homework Solutions emphasize that by nature and design, reports are to lead people to find information in a structured manner. Report writing should include the following essential items.
- Numbered sections and subsections for distinction.
- A table of contents listing by page each heading and subheading for easy reference.
With this background information, All Homework Solutions ensure you are now ready to go and write an excellent report. At all times during the report writing process you must keep the following questions in mind at these critical two steps:
Step 1.
Be clear in your mind about the problem at hand. Ask:
- For who are you writing the report??
- What do you expect your reader to do after reading the description?
Step 2.
Throughout the process of report writing, you should keep the problem close to your heart. You should, therefore, ask the following questions.
- For whom am I writing?
- Why am I writing?
Finally, for your report to be complete, you must include the following sections which All Homework Solutions highly recommend.
- Executive summary: The executive summary is a quick walk through the report. It is a summary of the contents of the report. It should capture the problem and the reader’s expectation.
- Introduction: In the introduction, you must give a summary of the problem as well as a glance at what the reader should expect in conclusion. A good pitch is required right at the outset.
- Body: When writing the body of a report, you should divide it into subheadings which by design lead the reader through the issues identified. Separate questions are considered under different subheadings for clarity.
- Conclusion: These are inferences you have drawn as a result of the study. When you are coming up with deductions for report writing, you should have a basis which you laid in the body of the report.
- Recommendation: At the tail end of report writing, you must suggest specific ways in which the problems identified you have identified can be mitigated.