Transcript Planning Business Reports and Proposals

Planning Business
Reports and Proposals
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 1
Classifying Reports
Source
Frequency
Audience
Length
Intent
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 2
Informational
Reports
Monitor and
Control Operations
State Policies
and Procedures
Document
Compliance
Report Progress
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 3
Monitoring and
Controlling Operations
Written
Plans
Operating
Reports
Activity
Reports
•Strategic Plans
•MIS Reports
•Sales-Call Reports
•Business Plans
•Annual Reports
•Expense Reports
•Marketing Plans
•Sales Reports
•Recruiting Reports
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 4
Implementing
Policies and Procedures
Lasting
Guidelines
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Position
Papers
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 5
Complying with
Government Regulations
Annual
Reports
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Interim
Reports
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 6
Documenting Progress
on Workplace Projects
Interim
Reports
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Final
Reports
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 7
Analytical Reports
Problem-Solving
Reports
Business
Proposals
Persuasion
Solutions
Recommendations
Conclusions
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 8
Solving Problems
Troubleshooting Reports
Feasibility Reports
Justification Reports
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 9
Writing Proposals
Internal
External
Solicited
Unsolicited
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 10
The Three-Step Process
Step 1
Planning
Step 2
Writing
Analyze
Organize
Revise
Investigate
Compose
Produce
Adapt
Design
Proofread
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Step 3
Completing
Chapter 10 - 11
Planning Reports
Analysis
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Investigation Adaptation
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 12
Analyze the Situation
Informational
Reports
Analytical
Reports
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 13
Problem Definition
for Analytical Reports
Clarify
the Problem
Ask the
Right Questions
Factor
the Problem
Form a
Hypothesis
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 14
What is the Purpose
of the Report?
• To inform
• To analyze
• To persuade
• To recommend
• To summarize
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 15
Developing an Outline
I.
First Major Part
A.
First subpoint
B.
Second subpoint
C.
II.
1.
Evidence
2.
Evidence
Parallel
Construction
Third subpoint
Second Major Point
A.
First subpoint
B.
Second subpoint
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Consistent
Headings
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 16
Preparing the Work Plan
• State the problem
• State the purpose and scope
• Discuss tasks to be accomplished
• Describe final products or outcomes
• Review of schedules and requirements
• Set follow-up plans
• Develop a working outline
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 17
Gathering Information
Do Preliminary
Research
Clarify the
Assignment
Start Serious
Research
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 18
Locating Secondary Sources
A Specific Company
An Entire Industry
Statistics and Trends
Business Issues
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 19
Finding Information
in the Library
Business
Books
Directories
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Electronic
Databases
Newspapers
Periodicals
Almanacs
Statistical
Resource
Government
Publications
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 20
Business Information
on the Internet
Internet
Public Library
Company
Websites
News
Release Sites
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 21
Fine-Tune Search Methods
Select
Appropriate Databases
Use Short Phrases
and Single Terms
Use Multiple
Search Engines
Avoid Stopwords
Replace Concepts
with Key Words
Avoid Words in
the Database’s Name
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 22
Fine-Tune Search Methods
Use Variations
of Search Terms
Use Proximity
Operators
Specify
Logical Relationships
Use Wildcards
Use Boolean
Operators
Refine Searches
as Needed
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 23
Primary Information
• Documents
• Observation
• Experiments
• Surveys
• Interviews
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 24
Sources of
Primary Information
Documents
Observations
Experiments
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 25
Effective Survey Questions
Provide Clear Instructions
Avoid Leading
Questions
Ask One Thing
At a Time
Pretest All
Questions
Validity
Reliability
Ask Easy-to-Analyze
Questions
Keep the Questionnaire Short
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 26
Internet Surveys
Minimize Cost
Reach More People
Boost Response Rate
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 27
Planning Interviews
Purpose
Audience
Main Ideas
Structure
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 28
Types of Questions
More
Open-Ended
Less
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Information Quality
Direct
Open-Ended
Restatement
Interviewer Control
Excellence in Business Communication
Less
Close-Ended
More
Chapter 10 - 29
Preparing Questions
Think About
Sequence
Rate the
Questions
Ask Smart
Questions
Mix Types of
Questions
Limit
the Number
Edit
Questions
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 30
Processing
Interview
Information
Write Down
Your Ideas
Review Notes
Organize
the Material
Transcribe
Recordings
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 31
Evaluating and Selecting
Sources
Honesty and
Reliability
Potential
Bias
Purpose of
the Material
The Author
Data Collection
Methods
Independent
Verification
Completeness
Logic and
Good Sense
Timeliness
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 32
Presenting Information
Direct Quotes
Paraphrasing
Enhance
the Argument
Enhance
Your Understanding
Preserve
Original Text
Condense
Original Text
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 33
Documenting Sources
Quotations
Paraphrased
Material
General
Knowledge
Fair Use
Doctrine
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 34
Analyzing
the Data
Mean
Median
Mode
Trend
Correlation
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 35
Interpreting the Findings
Conclusions
Recommendations
Facts
Values
Assumptions
Judgment
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 36
Selecting the Channel
and Medium
Written
Reports
Oral
Reports
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Complex
Information
Future
Reference
Immediate
Feedback
Nonverbal
Communication
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 37
Electronic Reports
Cost and space savings
Advantages
Faster distribution
Multimedia features
Ease of maintenance
Hardware and software costs
Disadvantages
System incompatibility
Training needs
Data security
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 38
Audience Relationship
“You” Attitude
Positive Tone
Credibility
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 39
Audience Relationship
Polite Treatment
Bias-Free Language
Corporate Image
© Prentice Hall, 2005
Excellence in Business Communication
Chapter 10 - 40