Business reports are one of the most effective means of communication in today's business world. The benefits of business reports are many. Companies or individuals can use business reports to make important decisions. If you want to write a good business report, learn how and understand the purpose of writing a report.
Step
Part 1 of 2: Decide what type of business report you want to write
Step 1. Use business reports to convey ideas
This report is called a “justification/recommendation report”. You can use this report to share ideas with your manager or director. Usually, you will need to prepare a summary and body of the report. Summary is a means of conveying ideas. The body contains information about the benefits, costs, risks, and other information related to your idea.
For example, you want to buy a printer for your division. To convince the manager that the printer is really needed, prepare a justification/recommendation report for formally submitting a printer purchase request to management
Step 2. Present the risks that accompany the business opportunity
"Investigative reports" help decision makers to consider the risks that must be faced when they want to take certain actions so that management is able to anticipate unintended impacts. This report consists of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. The preface contains important information about the issue under investigation. The body contains an explanation of the facts and the results of the investigation. The conclusion contains a summary of the report.
For example, pharmaceutical company X wants to work with pharmaceutical company Y who is facing a problem. Company X does not want to work with companies that are currently or have experienced financial problems. Therefore, company X seeks complete information about company Y and then prepares an investigative report to discuss the financial data of company Y with the finance director
Step 3. Present compliance information to government agencies
This report, commonly referred to as a "compliance report", is useful in demonstrating corporate accountability by proving to government agencies (city, province, central, etc.) that management is working according to applicable laws/regulations and managing finances according to procedures. This report consists of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. The preface contains an explanation of the main topics covered in the report. The trunk contains data, facts, and other information that government agencies need to know. The conclusion contains a summary of the report.
For example, the board of directors of a government insurance company must present to the minister of finance that the management of the company is carried out in accordance with the laws and regulations in force in 2019. For this, the board of directors prepares an annual compliance report to present the company's activities during 2019
Step 4. Present the feasibility of the proposed idea or project
A report that contains an explanation to determine whether an idea is accepted or rejected is called a "feasibility report". This report consists of a summary and a body. The summary contains ideas, while the body outlines the benefits, possible problems, costs, and other issues related to the proposed idea. Management can use the feasibility report to answer the following questions:
- Can this project be completed within the financial budget?
- Is this project profitable?
- Can this project be completed according to a predetermined schedule?
Step 5. Present the research results obtained through the study
A "research report" presents the results of a detailed study of a very specific issue or problem. This report consists of an abstract (summary), foreword, methods used, research results, conclusions, and suggestions. When making a report, you must inform the results of the studies that are used as references.
For example, management wants to conduct a study involving all personnel to decide whether or not it is necessary to prohibit employees from smoking in the company canteen. The person conducting the study will write a report on the research results
Step 6. Help the company improve its policies, products, or procedures through consistent oversight
Then, prepare a "periodic report" that is written every certain time frame, for example weekly, monthly, quarterly, etc. This report presents the company's efficiency level, profit/loss, and other data for a certain period.
For example, a pharmacy owner will ask his salesperson to present a monthly sales report every 3rd of the following month
Step 7. Provide a report in case of certain situations
In contrast to periodic reports, "situational reports" are written for specific needs, such as simply providing information in meetings or reporting on efforts to cope with natural disasters. This report consists of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. The introduction contains an explanation of the events reported and provides a brief overview of the issues discussed in the body of the report. In conclusion, explain the solutions that have been and will be carried out.
For example, the governor asks the mayor to provide a situational report after a hurricane occurs in the area under his responsibility
Step 8. Present some solutions to solve the problem
The "benchmark report" presents several solution options for making decisions. According to its purpose, the author recommends several actions that need to be taken. This report consists of an introduction, a body, and a conclusion. The preface explains the purpose of writing the report. The torso reveals the situation or problem at hand along with several possible solutions. Conclusion conveys the best solution.
For example, an automotive company wants to build a factory in Asia. When writing the benchmark report, list a maximum of 3 countries according to the company's needs and propose the best location in the conclusion
Part 2 of 2: Writing a Business Report
Step 1. Determine the purpose of writing and format of the report
Ask yourself why you want to write a business report. Choose the type of report in the list above according to the objectives to be achieved.
- Whatever the reason, make sure you set goals that are short and clear. Readers of the report become confused if the formulation of the objectives is long-winded so that the credibility of the report is doubted.
- For example, your department needs additional promotional funds. When writing the report, focus on the currently available promotional budget budget and present an effective work plan to make the most of the additional funds.
Step 2. Consider the audience that will be reading the report
Report readers may come from outside the company (not employees) or from within the company. When writing a report, consider how well the reader understands or has information about the issue being discussed. Also, think about how useful the information presented in the report will be to the reader.
- Whoever will read the report, the financial aspect is always the top priority for management or clients.
- For example, you want to implement a job share program in your division. For this, you will need to write a business report that will be read by the director of personnel, director of operations, and chief executive officer. Consider the possibility that they already know about the program so that you can provide relevant information in the report. If management has never discussed a job share program, your report is informative and useful. If the company has already planned this program, your report will be ineffective and less persuasive.
Step 3. Determine what needs to be learned
The most difficult step when preparing a business report is not writing. Drawing conclusions and gathering supporting data is the most difficult. You need to have a wide range of skills, for example collecting data and analyzing the market. What do you and management need to know in order to be able to make informed decisions about the topics covered in your report?
Step 4. Collect relevant data to write a report
Make sure the supporting data you provide is the result of research. Otherwise, you could lose credibility. Data collection is also determined by the type of report to be written. Make sure you use data that is accurate and relevant to the purpose of writing the report.
- Data from internal sources is usually faster to collect. For example, product sales data can be requested from the sales department by telephone. Thus, the data is immediately received and included in the report.
- External data can be obtained from the company. If other departments have collected and analyzed consumer data, request that data so you don't have to do your own research. The data needed must be tailored to the field of business, but business report writers usually don't need to do research first.
- For example, if you want to write a justification/recommendation report, do some research to find out the benefits of the ideas presented and then include the results of the research in the report.
Step 5. Decide how to structure the report before writing
This decision is influenced by the purpose of writing the report. For example, how to prepare a compliance report and a feasibility report are different. Start writing when you can figure out how to compile the report.
- Sort the supporting data into several groups. Business reports usually contain a wealth of data and information. Dividing data into groups is the key to successful writing a good business report. For example, present sales data separately from customer data and include a title for each data recap.
- Compile reports by sorting recap data by title to make it easy to read and understand. Thus, the data presented can support the main purpose of writing the report.
- Sometimes, you need to wait for someone else to analyze or input data. While waiting, you can process the complete data set.
Step 6. Draw conclusions and give specific suggestions
Make sure you draw logical conclusions using the data contained in the report. Explain the actions that need to be taken based on these conclusions.
Each solution you propose must be followed by specific, measurable actions. Describe any changes to the job description, schedule, or allocation of funds needed to implement the new work plan. Make sure your suggestions are supported by data that proves that management is able to achieve targets by implementing the solutions presented in the report
Step 7. Prepare an executive summary
This summary will be the first page of the business report, but is written at the very end. The executive summary is a means of presenting the results of the study and conclusions to provide a glimpse of the contents of the report if someone does not have time to read it to the end. As an illustration, an executive summary is like a film trailer or a thesis abstract.
This report is called the executive summary because busy executives may only read this summary. Convey important information to your boss in 200-300 words in the form of an executive summary. He could read further if he wanted to know the details
Step 8. Use infographics to convey specific data
Sometimes, you need to provide quantitative data using graphs or charts. Present data with various colors to make it more attractive and easy to understand. Use bullet points, sequential numbers, or tables to make the data easier to read. This step makes the presentation of the data look different to show its significance.
- Usually, images make business reports look more attractive. Reports seem monotonous if they only contain text and numbers. Present relevant and useful infographics, but don't overdo it.
- Write the information in boxes on a page that is almost entirely text, no tables or numbers. Full text pages tend to be boring. Summary of important information may be presented in the box.
Step 9. List the sources of information
Depending on the type of research being conducted, you may need to list the information provider. In a business report, a bibliography or source page aims to provide information to the reader if he wants to check or look for other data.
Use the correct format when including citations in reports by type of business
Step 10. Check the report 2 times
You don't seem serious when you report any spelling or grammatical errors. These errors put the credibility of your study into question. In addition, present clear and unambiguous information.
- For example, don't use words that are difficult to understand or sentences that are too long.
- Avoid variety of conversations.
- If the report reader is in the same business, you may use jargon or technical terms, but don't overdo it.
- Usually, business reports are written using the passive voice. This report is one example that shows that writing using passive sentences is better than active sentences.
- When checking reports, errors can be overlooked because you typed yourself. Have a supportive coworker read your report and then ask for feedback. It's much better to know mistakes from coworkers, than from superiors. Take advantage of peer input to improve reports while taking suggestions into account.
Step 11. Create a table of contents
Write a business report according to the official format by creating a table of contents that is useful as a reference when searching for a specific page. Include the page numbers of each section of the report in the table of contents, especially the executive summary and conclusion.
Step 12. Time to bind the report
The best way to improve a report that provides a useful full review is to bind it as well as possible, for example using spiral wire, binders, or cardboard covers. Thus, the report looks neat and attractive so that others will want to read it to the end.
