week 3 Business
Research and Writing Business Reports © 2016 South University
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Business Communications
©2016 South University
2 Research and Writing Business Reports
BUS2023 W3 L1
Planning and Organizing Content
Writing a business report requires that you plan, prepare, and organize the content of your report. Certain questions that you need to consider before starting to write a business report are:
• What is the purpose of the report? What decisions should follow from the information in the report?
• Who is the decision maker? If the decision maker is you then you should include all the supporting information that explains how and why you arrived at your decision. But if the decision maker is another person then you should include all the findings and other factual details that will help him or her in making a well-informed decision.
• Who is the audience for the report? Is it possible that there might be multiple audiences for it?
• What, where, and who are the information sources? Sources may be primary or secondary, or internal or external, but they should be reliable.
• What is a reasonable and realistic timeline for the report you need to create? You should bear in mind the time allotted, and accordingly, devote enough time for research, compilation, and preparation.
• What resources are available to help collect and collate the required information?
Collecting Information and Using Specifications
Often, while preparing reports, you need to depend on other departments in the office for collecting required data and information. While doing this, following the proper chain of
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Business Communications
©2016 South University
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BUS2023 W3 L1
command is crucial—Request your department manager to talk to the manager of the concerned department. This will help you gather credible information.
The final report should be concise and comprehensible, and as learned in Week 2, bear in mind the pertinent audience.
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Business Communications
©2016 South University
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BUS2023 W3 L1
Overview of Basic Methods to Collect Information
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Business Communications
©2016 South University
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BUS2023 W3 L1