To give a brief depiction about how to effectively
7/15/2017
Academic
REPORT
WRITING TECHNIQUES
Objective
To give a brief depiction about how to
Write Reports
effectively
Dr. Eng. Risdiyono
risdiyono@uii.ac.id
081325000201
FB : Risdy Adja
Agenda
Framing Motive
Writing Problems and Expectations
Before Writing
Basic Knowledge and Preparations
Part 1
Framing Motive
Problems in Writing
and Expectations
Writing Skills
Planning, Drafting and Editing
1
7/15/2017
What is the most critical skills an
employee should have?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Teamwork
Leadership
Critical/Analytical Thinking
Active Listening
Customer Orientation
Oral Communication
Time Management
Written Communication
Decission Making
2010 Skills Gap Report by University of Missouri
2
7/15/2017
What employers say…
• 1/3 of the employees in America’s top
companies are poorly trained in writing and
cannot compose a coherent business response
(National Commission on Writing)
• Conscientious employers are retraining
employees to write in the workplace
What does all this mean?
ALL universities must
help students become
better technical writers
so that they will be
prepared for the writing
they will have to do as
successful competencies
in the workplace.
3
7/15/2017
Miscommunication is dangerous
He is beautiful
4
7/15/2017
How to be a Good Writer ?
5W + 1H
How to be a Good Writer ?
Know the Purpose of your report
Find, Read, Analyze some well known
good reports
Adopt them in your writing
How to be a Good Writer ?
Learn from the
Samples given by Experts
Need to go Faster?
Let’s
Learn
Together
5
7/15/2017
Part 2
List of Problems in report writing :
-
Before Writing
Basic Knowledge and
Preparations
•
•
•
•
2
How to write the worst report ?
A high quality report
Why do reports fail ?
Basic Skills
Before Writing
Basic Knowledge and
Preparations
Please List
15 things you
could do to write the world’s
worst report.
6
7/15/2017
Here are some of the ideas
from a group of participants at
one of training sessions:
• Write it on toilet paper
• No clear aim to the report
• Not enough paragraphs and bullet
points
• Report on something everyone knows
about
• Badly spelled
• Boring
• No date or name on it
• Too much information
• No structure
• Too many technical details no one can
understand
• Not enough information
• Use really long words no one can
understand
• No conclusion
•
•
•
•
•
No summary
Text too small
Weighs 10 kilograms
Not sure who you’re writing for
Makes rude comments about the
company
• Write it as a rap song
7
7/15/2017
A High Quality Report
The report must be
– Clear
• Well structured, clear, concise, suitable for the
intended audience
– Professional
• statistically correct, correctly spelled, produced with a
decent word processor
– Well illustrated
• illustrations that aid understanding, integrated with
text
Clear
(Clarity of Thought)
• Written in a simple, clear and lucid language.
Its language should not be difficult and
confusing.
• There should be no ambiguity as regards the
statements made in the report.
• A reader should be able to understand the
entire report easily, exactly and quickly. In fact,
this is the basic purpose of report writing.
5 C’s of Effective Writing
• Clear
• Concise
• Complete
• Correct
• Courteous
Concise
(Compact but Comprehensive)
• A lengthy report is not necessarily a good report.
• In fact, report should be a brief and compact
document.
• At the same time, it should give complete
picture of the problem under investigation.
• Irrelevant and unnecessary words should be
eliminated
8
7/15/2017
Complete
(Self Explanatory)
• A good report is always a complete and selfexplanatory document.
• It should give complete information to the
readers in a precise manner.
• Repetition of facts, figures, information,
conclusions and recommendation should be
avoided.
Courteous
(Convenience to read)
• A good report should be drafted in an impersonal
and impartial manner.
• The report is prepared for the benefits of a person
who needs it and not for the benefit of the person
who prepares it.
Correct
(Accurate in all Aspects)
• A good report is always factual and reliable.
• The findings, conclusions and recommendations
included in the report should be supported by
information and data collected from reliable
sources and verified.
• Statistical tables, should support statements
made in the report. Attention needs to be given
to this reliability aspect in report writing
Part 3
Writing Skills
Planning, Drafting
and Editing
• Emotions, sentiments, personal views etc. should
be kept away while drafting a report.
• The approach of report writer should be positive
and constructive.
9
7/15/2017
The challenge
Writing Skills
A high quality report vs time constraints
1. Planning
Adopt a systematic approach
1. Planning
o Define the problem
o Gather the necessary information
o Analyse the information
2. Drafting
Organize the information
Write the draft report
3. Editing
• Check the flow
• Proof read
• Finalize
Organising ideas coherently
Message
o Define the problem
o Gather the necessary information
o Analyse the information
New question:
Why?
Key point
Key point
Key point
Key point
10
Writing Skills
7/15/2017
2. Drafting
Organize the information
Write the draft report
Grouping and summarising
• Report formats are designed to help you group
and summarise ideas.
• Designing the structure first will save you time
and improve the quality of the report.
Drafting: top tips
•
•
•
•
•
Write quickly.
Write in your own voice
Write without interruption.
Write without editing.
Keep to the plan of your
outline.
Argument: core techniques
• Deductive
(and)
You should buy
if the market is
failing to factor
element x into
McCrackle’s
share price.
• Inductive
McCrackle’s new risk
mitigation system is
not factored into its
current price.
(therefore)
The market is
failing to factor
element x into
McCrackle’s
price.
Buy
McCrackle.
You should buy
McCrackle.
McCrackle is
improving its
debt profile
rapidly.
McCrackle is
expanding into
profitable
markets.
11
7/15/2017
Explanation: six types
•
•
•
•
•
•
Examples
Categorisation
Process
Definition
Cause and effect
Comparison and contrast
Effective paragraphs:
Four characteristics:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Unity
Topic sentence
Coherent support
Adequate development
Effective paragraphs:
1. Unity
• A paragraph should be about one topic
• A topic (Greek topos, ‘place; location’) is your
position on the subject of the paragraph: your
point of view
• What do you want to say about the subject?
Effective paragraphs:
2. Topic sentences
• Key characteristics:
– Single idea
– What you want to say about the paragraph’s
subject
– 15 words maximum
• In a draft paragraph, look for a potential topic
sentence at the end / start
12
7/15/2017
3. Coherent support
Effective paragraphs:
• Create coherence by using transitional devices
• For a list of transitional devices, go to:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/574/02/
Effective paragraphs:
Use the topic sentence to identify how you will
develop the topic.
• Are you arguing or explaining in the paragraph?
• What type of argument or explanation are you
using?
- argument: deductive or inductive?
- explanation: which of the six types?
13
• Check the Flow
• Check the Format
• Proof read and Finalize
Editing efficiently
• Edit on three levels:
- paragraph
- sentence
- word
• Use a colleague
• Take a break
Writing Skills - Editing
3. Editing
Writing Skills - Editing
Writing Skills - Editing
Writing Skills
7/15/2017
Why edit?
• To make reading easier
• To create quality more quickly
• Because you must
(you can’t get it right first time)
A. Checking the FLOW
14
• Use topic sentences as
– Margin summaries
– Sequence of sentences
in the summary black box
– Supporting text for graphics
• cutting long sentences into
separate sentences
• separating ‘multiple’ sentences
• cutting down long sentences
• making non-sentences
grammatically correct
• finding strong subjects and verbs
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Deal with long sentences by:
• Topic sentences should make sense in order
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
FLOW : Editing paragraph sequences
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
7/15/2017
Managing your sentences
Follow the ‘15-25’ rule
• 15 words maximum for all messages, key points and
topic sentences
• 25 words maximum for all other sentences
Plain English
• Make your average sentence length 15 to 20
words.
• Use only the words that your reader is most
likely to understand.
• Use only as many words as you need.
• Use the strongest, clearest and most specific
verbs you can.
• Say what you mean.
• Punctuate clearly and simply.
15
• Depend on your focus (what will be
emphasized)
• Usually, a technical report uses passive
voices
• ACTIVE VOICE:
Risdy detected tiny shifts
in blood flow to parts of
the brain with functional
magnetic resonance
imaging.
• PASSIVE VOICE:
Tiny shifts in blood flow to
parts of the brain were
detected with functional
magnetic resonance
imaging.
• ACTIVE VOICE: Adam
prepared a 50ml
solution using distilled
water in volumetric
flasks.
• PASSIVE VOICE:
A 50ml solution was
prepared using distilled
water in volumetric
flasks.
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Passive or Active?
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
7/15/2017
Active Voice vs. Passive Voice
• ACTIVE FOCUSES
ON THE PERSON:
• PASSIVE FOCUSES
ON THE PROCESS:
Risdy used the Davie
method to test the
oxygen saturation in
all three locations.
Oxygen saturation
was tested in all three
locations using the
Davie method.
Repetition & Signpost
It is important that each part tells the same story
at the appropriate level of detail.
– Only summary may be read by a manager seeking
an “executive summary”.
– Only conclusions or introduction may be read by
someone interested in the subject but only
wanting to adopt the main findings.
– The whole document may be read by someone
wishing to follow-up on the work
• Repetition and signposts help the reader who
is not reading the document sequentially.
16
How to Repeat Yourself
• Say what you will say (in brief) in the
Summary
• Say what you will say (in more detail) in the
introduction
• Say what you have to say (in full in the body)
with signposting
• Say what you have said (in the conclusions)
• Emphasise the good bits in an extended
abstract or executive summary
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
7/15/2017
How to Signpost
• Open each section with a statement of context:
– In the [last section] we ….
– In [this section] we now …
• Close each section with a statement of context:
– In this [section] we ….
– In the [next section] we will …
• Provide cross references
– As we saw in [a previous section] …
– As we will show in [a later section] …
B. Checking the FORMAT
(c) Swansea University. All Rights Reserved.
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills - Editing
(c) Swansea University. All Rights Reserved.
Numbering
• Numbering important parts of the report helps
with signposting
– Figure 2 shows ….
Better than the figure on page 3 shows
• Things that should usually be numbered
– Parts, Chapters and Sections
– Figures and Tables
– Equations
• Things that can be numbered
– Citations
17
Use numbers very sparingly.
• Use no more than one number in any topic
sentence of a paragraph.
• Try to use no more than two or three
numbers in any other sentence.
Figures and Tables (Floats)
Golden rules for Figures and Tables:
• Describe float in text (integration), make sure it
matches description
• Place after the first mention in the text
• Make sure float conveys the desired message clearly:
keep it simple!
• Provide informative captions
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Using numbers
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
7/15/2017
Using numbers
Always subordinate numerical information
to a non-numerical idea.
Used vehicle prices have almost certainly
turned the corner. According to the Manheim
Index, prices rose 0.7% in November,
reversing a nine-month decline.
Figures
• Give all figures a numbered caption
Figure 1: A Document
• Refer to figure in text. “Figure 1 shows a document.”
• Use auto-captioning and cross-referencing.
18
Tables
• Give all tables a caption. Caption goes above table.
Table 1: Name analysis
Name
Score
Risdy
98
• Refer to table in text. “Table 1 shows the result of
name analysis.”
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
7/15/2017
Multiple
1012
109
106
103
Prefix
tera
giga
mega
kilo
Symbol
T
G
M
K
10-1
deci
d
Multiple
1012
109
106
103
Prefix
tera
giga
mega
kilo
Symbol
T
G
M
K
10-1
deci
d
Too busy
Better
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
• Use auto-captioning and cross-referencing.
Tables
• Always label and give a caption over the
table
• Be aware of rules for good tables:
– avoid vertical lines
– don’t have too many decimal places
– compare columns not rows
Multiple 1012
Prefix tera
Symbol
Multiple
1012
109
106
103
10-1
T
109
giga
106
mega
103
kilo
10-1
deci
G
M
K
d
Prefix
tera
giga
mega
kilo
deci
Symbol
T
G
M
K
d
Horizontal
hard to read
Vertical easier
to read
19
Time (secs)
1
4
8
28.35221
7.218812
3.634951
16
1.929347
Number of
Processors
1
Busy – too
many DP’s
Time (secs)
28.35
4
7.21
8
3.63
16
1.92
Better
Equation is part of the language
• Avoid:
We have the following result.
F = ma
( Is F = ma part of the sentence, or a
sentence of its own? )
• Do:
We have the following result:
F = ma.
( The equation is part of the sentence! )
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Number of
Processors
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
7/15/2017
Equations
• Give all equations a label
(1)
• Refer to equation in text. “Equation (1) shows
the formula for a quadratic.”
• Use your word processor’s equation editor to
get auto-captioning and cross-referencing.
Equation is part of the language
• Good
• Bad
20
Writing Skills - Editing
7/15/2017
C. Proof Read and Finalize
Re-Check Technical Issues
• Sectioning
• Table of Contents
• Spelling and Grammar
Sectioning
• Proper division of your work into sections and
subsections makes the structure clear and the
document easy to follow
• Use styles in word/ sectioning commands in
Latex
\begin{section}….\end{section}
Table of contents
• Provides “navigation aid”
• Make sure TOC agrees with main body of text
• If you use styles (Word) and sectioning
commands (Latex) this will happen
automatically
21
7/15/2017
Acronyms
Spelling and Grammar
•
•
•
Use a style manual/dictionary if in doubt
Spell check!!!!
Proofread!!!!
Be precise
• Avoid: “Method A is much better than method B."
• Do: “Method A is 60% faster than method B.“
•
•
•
•
Avoid UA (useless acronyms)
DUAT: Do not use acronyms in titles.
DUAA: Do not use acronyms in abstracts.
Defined once the first time you encounter it
(“The Nuclear Terminator – henceforth NT –
blew up.")
• Use sparingly.
Keep It Simple
• Employ uncomplicated terms.
• Use simple words.
• Avoid : “The speed of test A depends on X."
• Do: “Test A is faster when X is larger."
22
7/15/2017
Be assertive without lying
• Avoid: “Test A might be the best approach."
• Do: “We know twelve tests. A is the fastest of
them."
Begin sentences in English
• Avoid: “Ω is larger than one"
• Do: “The parameter Ω is larger than one."
Use strong verbs
• Avoid: “We made use of categorization."
• Do: “We categorized."
Figures
Write good
Papers
How?
23
7/15/2017
Tables and Figures
What's a good title
• Tables, figures, references must be referenced in
the main text
What's an abstract?
• First sentence is key: avoid rambling.
• Sexy: why must I read this paper absolutely?
• The strong points must be there. (Sometimes,
people won't read your paper.)
• Self-contained: no reference, no hyperlink, no
image.
• Must be precise.
• Must be sexy and compelling.
• No acronym.
Recipe for a good 4-sentence abstract
•
•
•
•
State the problem.
Why is it interesting?
What did you achieve?
What follows from your work?
24
Example
7/15/2017
Abstract/executive summary
Describes the problem and the solution in a few
sentences. It will be all the big boss reads!
Remember the 2 rules
– Keep it short
– State problem and solution
The report finds the prospects of the company in its current position
are not positive. The major areas of weakness require further
investigation and remedial action by management.
Recommendations discussed include:
• improving the average collection period for accounts receivable
• improving/increasing inventory turnover
• reducing prepayments and perhaps increasing inventory levels
The report also investigates the fact that the analysis conducted has
limitations. Some of the limitations include:
forecasting figures are not provided, nature and type of company is
not known nor the current economic conditions, data limitations as
not enough information is provided i.e. monthly details not known
while results are based on past performances not present.
GOOD example of Executive Summary
(Accounting & Finance)
• Executive Summary
This report provides an analysis and evaluation of the current and
prospective profitability, liquidity and financial stability of
Outdoor Equipment Ltd. Methods of analysis include trend,
horizontal and vertical analyses as well as ratios such as Debt,
Current and Quick ratios. Other calculations include rates of
return on Shareholders Equity and Total Assets and earnings per
share to name a few. All calculations can be found in the
appendices. Results of data analyzed show that all ratios are
below industry averages. In particular, comparative performance
is poor in the areas of profit margins, liquidity, credit control, and
inventory management.
• Executive Summary
This report provides an analysis and evaluation of
the current and prospective profitability, liquidity
and financial stability of Outdoor Equipment Ltd.
Methods of analysis include trend, horizontal and
vertical analyses as well as ratios such as Debt,
Current and Quick ratios. Other calculations include
rates of return on Shareholders Equity and Total
Assets and earnings per share to name a few. All
calculations can be found in the appendices.
Results of data analyzed show that all ratios are
below industry averages. In particular, comparative
performance is poor in the areas of profit margins,
liquidity, credit control, and inventory management.
Subject
Matter
Method of
Analysis
Finding
25
7/15/2017
The report finds the prospects of the company in its
current position are not positive. The major areas of
Conclussions
weakness require further investigation and remedial
action by management.
Recommendations discussed include:
• improving the average collection period for
Recommendations
accounts receivable
• improving/increasing inventory turnover
• reducing prepayments and perhaps increasing
inventory levels
The report also investigates the fact that the analysis
conducted has limitations. Some of the limitations
Limitations
include: forecasting figures are not provided, nature
of the
and type of company is not known nor the current
report
economic conditions, data limitations as not enough
information is provided i.e. .....
Over the next two years, although Choice
Chocolate retained its market share the volume of
sales in the whole market decreased to $29 million.
Further investigations reveal that this market
shrinkage coincided with an increase in health
awareness amongst consumers who regard the
milk and sugar ingredients in chocolate as negative;
moreover, since the second half of 1999, an
increasing number of rival ‘health candies’ had
appeared on the market. These claimed to offer
the consumers a healthy alternative. These factors
appear to be the major causes of the decreased
sales volume of Choice Chocolate.
Key Findings
Summarized
GOOD example of Executive Summary
(Marketing)
• Executive Summary
This report was commissioned to examine why the
sales volume of Choice Chocolate has dropped over
the past two years since its peak in 1998 and to
recommend ways of increasing the volume.
The research draws attention to the fact that in 1998,
the market share of Choice Chocolate was 37%. The
shares of their key competitors such as Venus and
Bradbury were 22% and 18% respectively. The size of
the chocolate market then was $36 million.
Slim Choice is the latest chocolate range put
forward by the R & D Department of Choice
Chocolate. The report evaluates this range and
concludes that it would be an ideal candidate to
meet the challenge presented by the market and
could satisfy the new consumer demand since it
uses significantly reduced milk and sugar
ingredients and is endorsed by renowned health
experts. According to 97% of the 2000 subjects
tested recently, it also retains the same flavor as
the original range.
Statement of
problem/ topic
Key Findings
Summarized
Problem
Solutions
Summarized
26
7/15/2017
It is recommended:
• that Choice Chocolate take immediate measures
to launch and promote Slim Choice alongside its
existing product range;
• that Slim Choice adopt a fresh and healthy
Recommendation
image;
Summarized
• that part of the launch campaign contains
product endorsement statements by renowned
health experts;
• that Slim Choice be available in health food
shops as well as in traditional chocolate retail
outlets
POOR example of Executive Summary
(Marketing)
• Executive Summary
Every time a business or consumer purchases
products or services they display forms of buyer
behaviour that are influenced by many factors.
Background
to Problem
The following report looks at the fast food
industry and will analyze four McDonalds’ key
products and services.
Report’s
aims
POOR example of Executive Summary
(Marketing)
• Executive Summary
Every time a business or consumer purchases products or services
they display forms of buyer behaviour that are influenced by many
factors. The following report looks at the fast food industry and will
analyse four McDonalds’ key products and services. It highlights
what type of consumer buying or business buying behaviours are
displayed in the purchase of a product or service and explains why
each behaviour may occur. This enables a conclusion to be drawn
from applying theory to reality. Although a full comprehension of
buying behaviour is impossible, since everyone is an individual, it is
useful to reflect on common behaviours and attempt to divide
behaviours in types and stages. Even McDonalds, a leader in
marketing cannot always predict consumer behaviour.
It highlights what type of consumer buying or business
buying behaviours are displayed in the purchase of a
product or service and explains why each behaviour
may occur. This enables a conclusion to be drawn from
applying theory to reality.
Outlines what information the report deals with but
FAILS to provide a summary of the results gained,
conclusions drawn and recommendations made. These
are the functions of an executive summary and are
absent in this example
27
7/15/2017
Although a full comprehension of buying behaviour is
impossible, since everyone is an individual, it is useful to
reflect on common behaviours and attempt to divide
behaviours in types and stages. Even McDonalds, a
leader in marketing cannot always predict consumer
behaviour.
The information in this executive summary is vague
rather than summarizing what the report found.
Presentation Resources
•
•
•
•
Jobling, C. P., How to Write a Technical Report
Daniel Lemire, Write good papers
Alan Barker, Writing an equity research report
Academic Skills Center, University of Canberra,
Report Writing
• http://unilearning.uow.edu.au/main.html
28
Academic
REPORT
WRITING TECHNIQUES
Objective
To give a brief depiction about how to
Write Reports
effectively
Dr. Eng. Risdiyono
risdiyono@uii.ac.id
081325000201
FB : Risdy Adja
Agenda
Framing Motive
Writing Problems and Expectations
Before Writing
Basic Knowledge and Preparations
Part 1
Framing Motive
Problems in Writing
and Expectations
Writing Skills
Planning, Drafting and Editing
1
7/15/2017
What is the most critical skills an
employee should have?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Teamwork
Leadership
Critical/Analytical Thinking
Active Listening
Customer Orientation
Oral Communication
Time Management
Written Communication
Decission Making
2010 Skills Gap Report by University of Missouri
2
7/15/2017
What employers say…
• 1/3 of the employees in America’s top
companies are poorly trained in writing and
cannot compose a coherent business response
(National Commission on Writing)
• Conscientious employers are retraining
employees to write in the workplace
What does all this mean?
ALL universities must
help students become
better technical writers
so that they will be
prepared for the writing
they will have to do as
successful competencies
in the workplace.
3
7/15/2017
Miscommunication is dangerous
He is beautiful
4
7/15/2017
How to be a Good Writer ?
5W + 1H
How to be a Good Writer ?
Know the Purpose of your report
Find, Read, Analyze some well known
good reports
Adopt them in your writing
How to be a Good Writer ?
Learn from the
Samples given by Experts
Need to go Faster?
Let’s
Learn
Together
5
7/15/2017
Part 2
List of Problems in report writing :
-
Before Writing
Basic Knowledge and
Preparations
•
•
•
•
2
How to write the worst report ?
A high quality report
Why do reports fail ?
Basic Skills
Before Writing
Basic Knowledge and
Preparations
Please List
15 things you
could do to write the world’s
worst report.
6
7/15/2017
Here are some of the ideas
from a group of participants at
one of training sessions:
• Write it on toilet paper
• No clear aim to the report
• Not enough paragraphs and bullet
points
• Report on something everyone knows
about
• Badly spelled
• Boring
• No date or name on it
• Too much information
• No structure
• Too many technical details no one can
understand
• Not enough information
• Use really long words no one can
understand
• No conclusion
•
•
•
•
•
No summary
Text too small
Weighs 10 kilograms
Not sure who you’re writing for
Makes rude comments about the
company
• Write it as a rap song
7
7/15/2017
A High Quality Report
The report must be
– Clear
• Well structured, clear, concise, suitable for the
intended audience
– Professional
• statistically correct, correctly spelled, produced with a
decent word processor
– Well illustrated
• illustrations that aid understanding, integrated with
text
Clear
(Clarity of Thought)
• Written in a simple, clear and lucid language.
Its language should not be difficult and
confusing.
• There should be no ambiguity as regards the
statements made in the report.
• A reader should be able to understand the
entire report easily, exactly and quickly. In fact,
this is the basic purpose of report writing.
5 C’s of Effective Writing
• Clear
• Concise
• Complete
• Correct
• Courteous
Concise
(Compact but Comprehensive)
• A lengthy report is not necessarily a good report.
• In fact, report should be a brief and compact
document.
• At the same time, it should give complete
picture of the problem under investigation.
• Irrelevant and unnecessary words should be
eliminated
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7/15/2017
Complete
(Self Explanatory)
• A good report is always a complete and selfexplanatory document.
• It should give complete information to the
readers in a precise manner.
• Repetition of facts, figures, information,
conclusions and recommendation should be
avoided.
Courteous
(Convenience to read)
• A good report should be drafted in an impersonal
and impartial manner.
• The report is prepared for the benefits of a person
who needs it and not for the benefit of the person
who prepares it.
Correct
(Accurate in all Aspects)
• A good report is always factual and reliable.
• The findings, conclusions and recommendations
included in the report should be supported by
information and data collected from reliable
sources and verified.
• Statistical tables, should support statements
made in the report. Attention needs to be given
to this reliability aspect in report writing
Part 3
Writing Skills
Planning, Drafting
and Editing
• Emotions, sentiments, personal views etc. should
be kept away while drafting a report.
• The approach of report writer should be positive
and constructive.
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7/15/2017
The challenge
Writing Skills
A high quality report vs time constraints
1. Planning
Adopt a systematic approach
1. Planning
o Define the problem
o Gather the necessary information
o Analyse the information
2. Drafting
Organize the information
Write the draft report
3. Editing
• Check the flow
• Proof read
• Finalize
Organising ideas coherently
Message
o Define the problem
o Gather the necessary information
o Analyse the information
New question:
Why?
Key point
Key point
Key point
Key point
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Writing Skills
7/15/2017
2. Drafting
Organize the information
Write the draft report
Grouping and summarising
• Report formats are designed to help you group
and summarise ideas.
• Designing the structure first will save you time
and improve the quality of the report.
Drafting: top tips
•
•
•
•
•
Write quickly.
Write in your own voice
Write without interruption.
Write without editing.
Keep to the plan of your
outline.
Argument: core techniques
• Deductive
(and)
You should buy
if the market is
failing to factor
element x into
McCrackle’s
share price.
• Inductive
McCrackle’s new risk
mitigation system is
not factored into its
current price.
(therefore)
The market is
failing to factor
element x into
McCrackle’s
price.
Buy
McCrackle.
You should buy
McCrackle.
McCrackle is
improving its
debt profile
rapidly.
McCrackle is
expanding into
profitable
markets.
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7/15/2017
Explanation: six types
•
•
•
•
•
•
Examples
Categorisation
Process
Definition
Cause and effect
Comparison and contrast
Effective paragraphs:
Four characteristics:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Unity
Topic sentence
Coherent support
Adequate development
Effective paragraphs:
1. Unity
• A paragraph should be about one topic
• A topic (Greek topos, ‘place; location’) is your
position on the subject of the paragraph: your
point of view
• What do you want to say about the subject?
Effective paragraphs:
2. Topic sentences
• Key characteristics:
– Single idea
– What you want to say about the paragraph’s
subject
– 15 words maximum
• In a draft paragraph, look for a potential topic
sentence at the end / start
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7/15/2017
3. Coherent support
Effective paragraphs:
• Create coherence by using transitional devices
• For a list of transitional devices, go to:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/574/02/
Effective paragraphs:
Use the topic sentence to identify how you will
develop the topic.
• Are you arguing or explaining in the paragraph?
• What type of argument or explanation are you
using?
- argument: deductive or inductive?
- explanation: which of the six types?
13
• Check the Flow
• Check the Format
• Proof read and Finalize
Editing efficiently
• Edit on three levels:
- paragraph
- sentence
- word
• Use a colleague
• Take a break
Writing Skills - Editing
3. Editing
Writing Skills - Editing
Writing Skills - Editing
Writing Skills
7/15/2017
Why edit?
• To make reading easier
• To create quality more quickly
• Because you must
(you can’t get it right first time)
A. Checking the FLOW
14
• Use topic sentences as
– Margin summaries
– Sequence of sentences
in the summary black box
– Supporting text for graphics
• cutting long sentences into
separate sentences
• separating ‘multiple’ sentences
• cutting down long sentences
• making non-sentences
grammatically correct
• finding strong subjects and verbs
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Deal with long sentences by:
• Topic sentences should make sense in order
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
FLOW : Editing paragraph sequences
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
7/15/2017
Managing your sentences
Follow the ‘15-25’ rule
• 15 words maximum for all messages, key points and
topic sentences
• 25 words maximum for all other sentences
Plain English
• Make your average sentence length 15 to 20
words.
• Use only the words that your reader is most
likely to understand.
• Use only as many words as you need.
• Use the strongest, clearest and most specific
verbs you can.
• Say what you mean.
• Punctuate clearly and simply.
15
• Depend on your focus (what will be
emphasized)
• Usually, a technical report uses passive
voices
• ACTIVE VOICE:
Risdy detected tiny shifts
in blood flow to parts of
the brain with functional
magnetic resonance
imaging.
• PASSIVE VOICE:
Tiny shifts in blood flow to
parts of the brain were
detected with functional
magnetic resonance
imaging.
• ACTIVE VOICE: Adam
prepared a 50ml
solution using distilled
water in volumetric
flasks.
• PASSIVE VOICE:
A 50ml solution was
prepared using distilled
water in volumetric
flasks.
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Passive or Active?
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
7/15/2017
Active Voice vs. Passive Voice
• ACTIVE FOCUSES
ON THE PERSON:
• PASSIVE FOCUSES
ON THE PROCESS:
Risdy used the Davie
method to test the
oxygen saturation in
all three locations.
Oxygen saturation
was tested in all three
locations using the
Davie method.
Repetition & Signpost
It is important that each part tells the same story
at the appropriate level of detail.
– Only summary may be read by a manager seeking
an “executive summary”.
– Only conclusions or introduction may be read by
someone interested in the subject but only
wanting to adopt the main findings.
– The whole document may be read by someone
wishing to follow-up on the work
• Repetition and signposts help the reader who
is not reading the document sequentially.
16
How to Repeat Yourself
• Say what you will say (in brief) in the
Summary
• Say what you will say (in more detail) in the
introduction
• Say what you have to say (in full in the body)
with signposting
• Say what you have said (in the conclusions)
• Emphasise the good bits in an extended
abstract or executive summary
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
Writing Skills – Editing FLOW
7/15/2017
How to Signpost
• Open each section with a statement of context:
– In the [last section] we ….
– In [this section] we now …
• Close each section with a statement of context:
– In this [section] we ….
– In the [next section] we will …
• Provide cross references
– As we saw in [a previous section] …
– As we will show in [a later section] …
B. Checking the FORMAT
(c) Swansea University. All Rights Reserved.
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills - Editing
(c) Swansea University. All Rights Reserved.
Numbering
• Numbering important parts of the report helps
with signposting
– Figure 2 shows ….
Better than the figure on page 3 shows
• Things that should usually be numbered
– Parts, Chapters and Sections
– Figures and Tables
– Equations
• Things that can be numbered
– Citations
17
Use numbers very sparingly.
• Use no more than one number in any topic
sentence of a paragraph.
• Try to use no more than two or three
numbers in any other sentence.
Figures and Tables (Floats)
Golden rules for Figures and Tables:
• Describe float in text (integration), make sure it
matches description
• Place after the first mention in the text
• Make sure float conveys the desired message clearly:
keep it simple!
• Provide informative captions
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Using numbers
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
7/15/2017
Using numbers
Always subordinate numerical information
to a non-numerical idea.
Used vehicle prices have almost certainly
turned the corner. According to the Manheim
Index, prices rose 0.7% in November,
reversing a nine-month decline.
Figures
• Give all figures a numbered caption
Figure 1: A Document
• Refer to figure in text. “Figure 1 shows a document.”
• Use auto-captioning and cross-referencing.
18
Tables
• Give all tables a caption. Caption goes above table.
Table 1: Name analysis
Name
Score
Risdy
98
• Refer to table in text. “Table 1 shows the result of
name analysis.”
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
7/15/2017
Multiple
1012
109
106
103
Prefix
tera
giga
mega
kilo
Symbol
T
G
M
K
10-1
deci
d
Multiple
1012
109
106
103
Prefix
tera
giga
mega
kilo
Symbol
T
G
M
K
10-1
deci
d
Too busy
Better
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
• Use auto-captioning and cross-referencing.
Tables
• Always label and give a caption over the
table
• Be aware of rules for good tables:
– avoid vertical lines
– don’t have too many decimal places
– compare columns not rows
Multiple 1012
Prefix tera
Symbol
Multiple
1012
109
106
103
10-1
T
109
giga
106
mega
103
kilo
10-1
deci
G
M
K
d
Prefix
tera
giga
mega
kilo
deci
Symbol
T
G
M
K
d
Horizontal
hard to read
Vertical easier
to read
19
Time (secs)
1
4
8
28.35221
7.218812
3.634951
16
1.929347
Number of
Processors
1
Busy – too
many DP’s
Time (secs)
28.35
4
7.21
8
3.63
16
1.92
Better
Equation is part of the language
• Avoid:
We have the following result.
F = ma
( Is F = ma part of the sentence, or a
sentence of its own? )
• Do:
We have the following result:
F = ma.
( The equation is part of the sentence! )
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Number of
Processors
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
Writing Skills – Editing FORMAT
7/15/2017
Equations
• Give all equations a label
(1)
• Refer to equation in text. “Equation (1) shows
the formula for a quadratic.”
• Use your word processor’s equation editor to
get auto-captioning and cross-referencing.
Equation is part of the language
• Good
• Bad
20
Writing Skills - Editing
7/15/2017
C. Proof Read and Finalize
Re-Check Technical Issues
• Sectioning
• Table of Contents
• Spelling and Grammar
Sectioning
• Proper division of your work into sections and
subsections makes the structure clear and the
document easy to follow
• Use styles in word/ sectioning commands in
Latex
\begin{section}….\end{section}
Table of contents
• Provides “navigation aid”
• Make sure TOC agrees with main body of text
• If you use styles (Word) and sectioning
commands (Latex) this will happen
automatically
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7/15/2017
Acronyms
Spelling and Grammar
•
•
•
Use a style manual/dictionary if in doubt
Spell check!!!!
Proofread!!!!
Be precise
• Avoid: “Method A is much better than method B."
• Do: “Method A is 60% faster than method B.“
•
•
•
•
Avoid UA (useless acronyms)
DUAT: Do not use acronyms in titles.
DUAA: Do not use acronyms in abstracts.
Defined once the first time you encounter it
(“The Nuclear Terminator – henceforth NT –
blew up.")
• Use sparingly.
Keep It Simple
• Employ uncomplicated terms.
• Use simple words.
• Avoid : “The speed of test A depends on X."
• Do: “Test A is faster when X is larger."
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7/15/2017
Be assertive without lying
• Avoid: “Test A might be the best approach."
• Do: “We know twelve tests. A is the fastest of
them."
Begin sentences in English
• Avoid: “Ω is larger than one"
• Do: “The parameter Ω is larger than one."
Use strong verbs
• Avoid: “We made use of categorization."
• Do: “We categorized."
Figures
Write good
Papers
How?
23
7/15/2017
Tables and Figures
What's a good title
• Tables, figures, references must be referenced in
the main text
What's an abstract?
• First sentence is key: avoid rambling.
• Sexy: why must I read this paper absolutely?
• The strong points must be there. (Sometimes,
people won't read your paper.)
• Self-contained: no reference, no hyperlink, no
image.
• Must be precise.
• Must be sexy and compelling.
• No acronym.
Recipe for a good 4-sentence abstract
•
•
•
•
State the problem.
Why is it interesting?
What did you achieve?
What follows from your work?
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Example
7/15/2017
Abstract/executive summary
Describes the problem and the solution in a few
sentences. It will be all the big boss reads!
Remember the 2 rules
– Keep it short
– State problem and solution
The report finds the prospects of the company in its current position
are not positive. The major areas of weakness require further
investigation and remedial action by management.
Recommendations discussed include:
• improving the average collection period for accounts receivable
• improving/increasing inventory turnover
• reducing prepayments and perhaps increasing inventory levels
The report also investigates the fact that the analysis conducted has
limitations. Some of the limitations include:
forecasting figures are not provided, nature and type of company is
not known nor the current economic conditions, data limitations as
not enough information is provided i.e. monthly details not known
while results are based on past performances not present.
GOOD example of Executive Summary
(Accounting & Finance)
• Executive Summary
This report provides an analysis and evaluation of the current and
prospective profitability, liquidity and financial stability of
Outdoor Equipment Ltd. Methods of analysis include trend,
horizontal and vertical analyses as well as ratios such as Debt,
Current and Quick ratios. Other calculations include rates of
return on Shareholders Equity and Total Assets and earnings per
share to name a few. All calculations can be found in the
appendices. Results of data analyzed show that all ratios are
below industry averages. In particular, comparative performance
is poor in the areas of profit margins, liquidity, credit control, and
inventory management.
• Executive Summary
This report provides an analysis and evaluation of
the current and prospective profitability, liquidity
and financial stability of Outdoor Equipment Ltd.
Methods of analysis include trend, horizontal and
vertical analyses as well as ratios such as Debt,
Current and Quick ratios. Other calculations include
rates of return on Shareholders Equity and Total
Assets and earnings per share to name a few. All
calculations can be found in the appendices.
Results of data analyzed show that all ratios are
below industry averages. In particular, comparative
performance is poor in the areas of profit margins,
liquidity, credit control, and inventory management.
Subject
Matter
Method of
Analysis
Finding
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7/15/2017
The report finds the prospects of the company in its
current position are not positive. The major areas of
Conclussions
weakness require further investigation and remedial
action by management.
Recommendations discussed include:
• improving the average collection period for
Recommendations
accounts receivable
• improving/increasing inventory turnover
• reducing prepayments and perhaps increasing
inventory levels
The report also investigates the fact that the analysis
conducted has limitations. Some of the limitations
Limitations
include: forecasting figures are not provided, nature
of the
and type of company is not known nor the current
report
economic conditions, data limitations as not enough
information is provided i.e. .....
Over the next two years, although Choice
Chocolate retained its market share the volume of
sales in the whole market decreased to $29 million.
Further investigations reveal that this market
shrinkage coincided with an increase in health
awareness amongst consumers who regard the
milk and sugar ingredients in chocolate as negative;
moreover, since the second half of 1999, an
increasing number of rival ‘health candies’ had
appeared on the market. These claimed to offer
the consumers a healthy alternative. These factors
appear to be the major causes of the decreased
sales volume of Choice Chocolate.
Key Findings
Summarized
GOOD example of Executive Summary
(Marketing)
• Executive Summary
This report was commissioned to examine why the
sales volume of Choice Chocolate has dropped over
the past two years since its peak in 1998 and to
recommend ways of increasing the volume.
The research draws attention to the fact that in 1998,
the market share of Choice Chocolate was 37%. The
shares of their key competitors such as Venus and
Bradbury were 22% and 18% respectively. The size of
the chocolate market then was $36 million.
Slim Choice is the latest chocolate range put
forward by the R & D Department of Choice
Chocolate. The report evaluates this range and
concludes that it would be an ideal candidate to
meet the challenge presented by the market and
could satisfy the new consumer demand since it
uses significantly reduced milk and sugar
ingredients and is endorsed by renowned health
experts. According to 97% of the 2000 subjects
tested recently, it also retains the same flavor as
the original range.
Statement of
problem/ topic
Key Findings
Summarized
Problem
Solutions
Summarized
26
7/15/2017
It is recommended:
• that Choice Chocolate take immediate measures
to launch and promote Slim Choice alongside its
existing product range;
• that Slim Choice adopt a fresh and healthy
Recommendation
image;
Summarized
• that part of the launch campaign contains
product endorsement statements by renowned
health experts;
• that Slim Choice be available in health food
shops as well as in traditional chocolate retail
outlets
POOR example of Executive Summary
(Marketing)
• Executive Summary
Every time a business or consumer purchases
products or services they display forms of buyer
behaviour that are influenced by many factors.
Background
to Problem
The following report looks at the fast food
industry and will analyze four McDonalds’ key
products and services.
Report’s
aims
POOR example of Executive Summary
(Marketing)
• Executive Summary
Every time a business or consumer purchases products or services
they display forms of buyer behaviour that are influenced by many
factors. The following report looks at the fast food industry and will
analyse four McDonalds’ key products and services. It highlights
what type of consumer buying or business buying behaviours are
displayed in the purchase of a product or service and explains why
each behaviour may occur. This enables a conclusion to be drawn
from applying theory to reality. Although a full comprehension of
buying behaviour is impossible, since everyone is an individual, it is
useful to reflect on common behaviours and attempt to divide
behaviours in types and stages. Even McDonalds, a leader in
marketing cannot always predict consumer behaviour.
It highlights what type of consumer buying or business
buying behaviours are displayed in the purchase of a
product or service and explains why each behaviour
may occur. This enables a conclusion to be drawn from
applying theory to reality.
Outlines what information the report deals with but
FAILS to provide a summary of the results gained,
conclusions drawn and recommendations made. These
are the functions of an executive summary and are
absent in this example
27
7/15/2017
Although a full comprehension of buying behaviour is
impossible, since everyone is an individual, it is useful to
reflect on common behaviours and attempt to divide
behaviours in types and stages. Even McDonalds, a
leader in marketing cannot always predict consumer
behaviour.
The information in this executive summary is vague
rather than summarizing what the report found.
Presentation Resources
•
•
•
•
Jobling, C. P., How to Write a Technical Report
Daniel Lemire, Write good papers
Alan Barker, Writing an equity research report
Academic Skills Center, University of Canberra,
Report Writing
• http://unilearning.uow.edu.au/main.html
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