Module 14 Writing Assessment

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Chapter 18 Overview:
Writing Recommendation Reports

  • Understanding the role of recommendation reports
  • Using a problem-solving model for preparing recommendation reports
  • Writing recommendation reports

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Recommendation reports
address four kinds of questions:

  • What should we do about Problem X?
  • Should we do Function X?
  • Should we use Technology A or Technology B to do Function X?
  • We currently use Method A to do Function X. Should we be using Method B?

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Feasibility reports

answer three kinds of questions:

  • questions of possibility
  • questions of economic wisdom
  • questions of perception

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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  • Identify the problem or opportunity.
  • Establish criteria for responding to the problem or opportunity.
  • Determine the options.
  • Study each option according to the criteria.
  • Draw conclusions about each option.
  • Formulate recommendations based on the conclusions.

Use a problem-solving method

when preparing a recommendation report:

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Use logic boxes to plot a series of options:

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Use a matrix to

compare and contrast options:

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

Explain your decision matrix:

  • Explain why you chose each criterion—or didn’t choose a criterion readers might have expected.
  • Explain why you assigned a particular weight to each criterion.
  • Explain why you assigned a particular rating to each option.

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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You can present your

conclusions in one of three ways:

  • Rank all the options.
  • Classify all the options in one of two categories: acceptable and unacceptable.
  • Present a compound conclusion.

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Most recommendation reports

have three major sections:

  • the front matter
  • the body of the report
  • the back matter

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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A typical recommendation report

has five body elements:

  • introduction
  • methods
  • results
  • conclusions
  • recommendations

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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A report introduction typically answers
nine questions:

  • What is the subject of the report?
  • What is the purpose of the report?
  • What is the background of the report?
  • What are your sources of information?
  • What is the scope of the report?

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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A report introduction typically answers
nine questions (cont.):

  • What are the most significant findings?
  • What are your recommendations?
  • What is the organization of the report?
  • What key terms are you using in the report?

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Address the following four questions

when writing the body of your report:

  • Methods. What did you do?
  • Results. What did you see or determine?
  • Conclusions. What does it mean?
  • Recommendations. What should we do?

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Consider these four factors

when writing your recommendations:

  • content
  • tone
  • form
  • location

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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A typical recommendation report

contains seven elements in the front matter:

  • letter of transmittal
  • cover
  • title page
  • abstract
  • table of contents
  • list of illustrations
  • executive summary

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Understand the difference between

a descriptive and an informative abstract:

  • A descriptive abstract describes the kinds of information contained in the report.
  • An informative abstract presents the major findings.

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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Follow these five guidelines

when writing an executive summary:

  • Use specific evidence in describing the background.
  • Be specific in describing research.
  • Describe the methods briefly.
  • Describe the findings according to your readers’ needs.
  • Ask an outside reader to review your draft.

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Chapter 18. Writing Recommendation Reports © 2015 by Bedford/St. Martin's

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A typical recommendation report

includes three elements in the back matter:

  • glossary and list of symbols
  • references
  • appendixes

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