Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's1 s memos forms letters reports Informational reports can take many forms:

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's2 The writing process for informational reports includes six steps: Analyze your audience. Analyze your purpose. Research the subject and compile your information. Choose an appropriate format. Draft the report. Revise, edit, and proofread the report.

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's3 How might your readers react to your informational report? Will your readers be comfortable with your choice of document? Do you need to adjust your writing style? Consider three questions in writing reports for multicultural readers:

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's4 directives field reports progress and status reports incident reports meeting minutes You likely will have to write five types of informational reports:

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's5 Use this strategy in writing field reports: Describe inspections, maintenance, and site studies. Explain the problem(s), methods, results, and conclusions. Deemphasize methods. Include recommendations if needed.

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's6 What is the purpose of the report? What are the main points covered in the report? What were the problems leading to the decision to perform the procedure? What methods were used? What were the results? What do the results mean? Answer these seven questions in a field report:

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's7 Understand the difference between a progress and status report: A progress report describes an ongoing project. A status report or activity report describes the entire range of operations of a department or division.

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's8 Report your progress honestly when responding to three common problems: The deliverable won’t be what you thought it would be. You won’t meet your schedule. You won’t meet the budget.

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's9 Two organizational patterns are typical in progress and status reports: Time PatternTask PatternDiscussion A. Past Work A. Task 1 B. Future Work1. Past Work 2. Future Work B. Task 2 1. Past Work 2. Future Work

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's10 Project an appropriate tone in a progress or status report If the news is good, convey your optimism but avoid overstatement. Don’t panic if the preliminary results are not as promising as you had planned or if the project is behind schedule.

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's11 Use this strategy in writing incident reports: Briefly summarize the accident. Present background information. Present your main conclusion about what caused the accident. Explain the root cause of the accident. If appropriate, state your recommendations.

Chapter 17. Writing Informational Reports © 2010 by Bedford/St. Martin's12 Use this strategy in writing meeting minutes: Record the logistical details of the meeting. Record the purpose of the meeting. Record the action taken at the meeting. Be objective; do not interpret events. Do not record emotional exchanges between participants.