Understanding and Planning Reports and Proposals Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Basic Report Categories Informational reports Analytical reports Proposals Reports fall into three basic categories: Informational reports offer data, facts, feedback, and other types of information without analysis or recommendations. Analytical reports offer both information and analysis, and may include recommendations. Proposals offer structured persuasion for internal or external audiences. Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

The Three-Step Process Planning Writing Completing Analyze Situation Gather Information Select Medium Get Organized Revise Produce Message Proofread Message Distribute Message Adapt to the Audience Compose the Message Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Analyze the Situation State the purpose Prepare work plan To inform To identify To analyze Prepare work plan Determine tasks Create outline Set schedule Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Gather the Information Purpose Audience Priorities Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Selecting the Medium Media requirements Feedback preferences Uses for the document Subject matter Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Organize the Information Direct approach State conclusions and recommendations Introduce findings Include support Indirect approach Discussion and support Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Support Your Messages Plan your research Locate data and information Process data and information Apply your findings Manage information No matter what the task, successful research can be a rewarding activity if you follow productive research procedures: Plan your research. Planning is the most important step of any research project; a solid plan yields better results in less time. Locate the data and information you need. The research plan tells you what to look for, so your next step is to figure out where this data and information is and how to access it. Much of your business research will be done online, but other projects require personal interviews, surveys, and other techniques. Process the data and information you located. The data and information you locate probably won't be in a form you can use immediately and will require some processing; this processing might involve anything from statistical analysis to resolving the differences between two or more expert opinions. Apply your findings. You can apply your research findings in three ways: summarizing information for someone else's benefit, drawing conclusions based on what you've learned, or developing recommendations. Manage information efficiently. Many companies today are trying to maximize the return on the time and money they invest in business research by collecting and sharing research results in a variety of computer-based systems. Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Plan Your Research Develop a problem statement Identify information you need Generate research questions Prioritize information needs Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Ethics and Research Keep an open mind Respect privacy of participants Don’t mislead people Document and credit sources Respect intellectual property rights Observe research etiquette Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Data and Information Secondary research Primary research Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Evaluating Sources Honesty and Reliability Potential Bias Purpose of Material Author’s Credibility Source’s Information Independent Verification Timely and Complete Careful Scrutiny Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Secondary Research Inside the company Outside the company Reports and memos Other documents Outside the company Print resources Online resources Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Finding Information at the Library Newspapers Periodicals Business Books Directories Almanacs Statistical Resources Government Publications Electronic Databases Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Internet Search Tools Search engines Web directories Online databases Metasearch engines Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Search Techniques Keywords Boolean operators Natural language Forms-based Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Fine Tune Search Methods Read instructions Observe details Review your options Vary search terms Adjust search scope Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Innovative Search Methods Newsfeed subscriptions Social bookmaking sites Desktop search engines Enterprise search engines Research managers Content managers Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Documenting Sources Credit sources Build credibility Help your readers Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Primary Research Observations Experiments Surveys Interviews Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Conducting Surveys Validity and Reliability Clear Instructions Easy-to-Answer Questions Short Questionnaires Easy-to-Analyze Questions Avoid Leading Questions No Ambiguous Questions No Compound Questions A carefully prepared and conducted survey can provide invaluable insights, but only if it is reliable (would produce identical results if repeated) and valid (measures what it’s supposed to measure). For important surveys, consider hiring a research specialist to avoid errors in design and implementation. To develop an effective survey questionnaires, follow these tips: Provide clear instructions. Respondents need to know exactly how to fill out your questionnaire. Don’t ask for information that people can’t be expected to remember. For instance, a question such as “How many times did you go grocery shopping last year” will generate unreliable answers. Keep the questionnaire short and easy to answer. Don’t make any individual questions difficult to answer, and don’t expect people to give you more than 10 or 15 minutes of their time. Whenever possible, formulate questions to provide answers that are easy to analyze. Numbers and facts are easier to summarize than opinions, for instance. Avoid leading questions that could bias your survey. If you ask, “Do you prefer that we stay open in the evenings for customer convenience?” you’ll no doubt get a “yes.” Instead, ask, “What time of day do you normally do your shopping?” Avoid ambiguous questions. If you ask “Do you shop at the mall often?” some people might interpret often to mean “every day,” whereas others might think it means “once a week” or “once a month.” Ask only one thing at a time. A compound question such as “Do you read books and magazines?” doesn’t allow for the respondent who reads one but not the other. Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Internet Surveys Save time Minimize cost Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Conducting Interviews Choose questions Open-ended Closed Ask questions Sequencing Methodology Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Using Research Results Quoting Paraphrasing Summarizing Avoid plagiarism Cite sources Observe context Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Apply Research Results Drawing conclusions Making recommendations Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Planning Informational Reports Monitor and control operations Implement policies and procedures Demonstrate compliance Report progress Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Organizing Informational Reports Comparison Importance Sequence Chronology Geography Category Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Organizing Website Content Readers are demanding Reading online is difficult The format is non-linear The medium is multidimensional Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Information Architecture Site navigation Reader control Information “chunks” Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Planning Analytical Reports Assess opportunities Solve problems Support decisions Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Challenges of Writing Analytical Reports Analysis Persuasion Responsibility Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Focus on Conclusions Advantages Disadvantages Ease of use Bottom-line driven Disadvantages Possible resistance Oversimplification Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Focus on Recommendations Establish the need for action Introduce benefits List the steps Explain each step Summarize Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Focus on Logical Arguments 2 + 2 = 4 approach Yardstick approach Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Planning Proposals Internal External Funding Management support General projects External Investments Grants Sales Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall

Structuring Proposals Solicited Direct approach Interested audience Unsolicited Indirect approach Uninterested audience Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Prentice Hall