Planning Business Research and Reports AOS 272

What is a business report? An orderly and objective communication of factual information that serves a business purpose.

What is the purpose of a business report? Used for problem solving.  Develop procedures  Report test results  Improve products or service  Gather opinions  Explore markets

Business reports are used for decision making.

Research Methods: Your report is only as good as your research. Plan your research  Statement of problem Clarifies your focus Serves as a permanent record Can be reviewed by others May require preliminary research May be phrased as a question or a statement  Statement of purpose Why the report is needed What will happen as a result of the report

Problem Statement Question:  What are the causes of the increase in employee absenteeism? Statement:  Absenteeism is increasing and management wants to know why.

Purpose Statement Reduce absenteeism by Identifying possible causes of absenteeism And proposing solutions to the problem

Limiting the Scope What factors do you want to investigate?  Epidemic patterns Weather patterns  Employee attitudes re: sick leave  Employee morale  School days off  Patterns of absence  Business literature on absenteeism

Limiting the Scope, cont. How much time do you have? What are the costs and budget of the research?

Who is your audience? Formal  Length  Parts  Formal Language Informal  Memo or letter  No abstract or transmittal  Common language

Research Types Secondary – someone else’s information  Books  Articles  Internet  Newspapers Primary – your data and conclusions  Surveys  Interviews  Observations  Experiments

What Resources Are Available? Company Records Experts Support Staff Analytical Tools  Excel  Access  Specialized software

Research and Critical Thinking: Avoiding Human Error Report the facts as they are. Do not interpret lack of evidence as proof to the contrary. Do not compare non-comparable data. Do not oversimplify.

Analyzing your data Do not draw illogical cause-effect conclusions Beware of unreliable or unrepresentative data Do not think that conclusions are always necessary

Preliminary Outline Why is absenteeism increasing? Is morale poor? Are employees looking for other jobs? Are personal issues getting in the way of work? Family problems Daycare problems Transportation problems

Parallel Structure Call meeting to order Review and approve minutes Report on cost overruns – Site Director Discuss anticipation and prevention Call to order Approval of minutes Report on cost overruns – Site Director Discussion of anticipating and preventing overruns

Work Plan State problem State purpose and scope  What you will and will not cover List tasks to accomplish  Gather research  Identify sources of information

Proposals Solicited – response to advertised need  RFP – Request for Proposal specifies when and how work must be done Unsolicited – offers services or products to fill a need the recipient may or may not be aware of

Internal – request for change within organization  Policy  Procedure  Resources External – persuade current or potential customers or government agencies of the need for change or action

External Proposals More formal Legally binding Reflects the proposing organization’s competence and integrity

Problem Factoring – Analysis and Planning Defining the problem  What needs to be determined?  Why is this issue important?  Who is involved?  Where is the problem located?  How did it start?  When did it start?

Hypothesis – theory about causes of a problem derived from observation of effects or symptoms Leads to statement of problem Followed by statement of purpose