In business and corporate offices, official reports are very essential and used to summarize facts, findings, provide recommendations and analyze a specific situation, outcome or event. Reports can range from just a few pages to several pages depending on the kind of report you’re writing and for whom you’re writing it.
Reports could have graphs, pictures and images. It’s important however to always consider your audience and the specific and general information they need to know. There are several reasons why you might be required to write a report.
Official report writing helps your employer to understand specific business activities and official events. Reports can also enable external stakeholders such as the government, regulatory bodies and customers to learn more about the value of your organization and prospects for the future.
You might be required to write a report summarizing business development activities and results for the month, or to recap the marketing campaigns and their results over the last year, with recommendations for what to consider next year.
It could also take the form of a review of the performance of a specific vendor or partner and how they have added expertise to your organization.
Your boss might ask you to attend an official event or seminar on behalf of the organisation, at the end of the programme you will be mandated to write a report summarizing the facts and relevant activities that took place. It could also be a review of the office expenses and how they can be consolidated to reduce costs for the business or company.
The first and most important step to official report writing is to gather the facts. Before you begin writing, you’ll need information. In the case of that seminar you attended on behalf of your boss, you will need to be observant and take note of relevant activities and information that will be of interest to your boss or the company.
If your report is a review of business activities or accounts you still need to gather the facts and relevant information regarding the matter as these will all go into your report. You’ll also need to know the goal of the report.
Figure out your recommendations based on the data and your analysis. How can your report help your business improve performance? What do you want to tell your audience with the report? Carefully outline your recommendations so it’s clear what the next steps are for your business.
Make sure your report is short and succinct. Remember that your audience may not have the time to read a lengthy report, so it’s important to keep it brief and straight to the point. Be sure to be formal, your report should use a formal tone and language in conveying information.
Summarize your findings from the body of your report. Follow the logic of the report, and concisely state the themes you developed in the body. Finally make sure to structure your report along the following line.
You can always consult more Professional and Official Report Format Here.
Chinonso Kenneth Onwurah is an SEO trained web content writer, copywriter and research writer with over three years experience in helping websites and small business achieve content goals and Google ranking. Chinonso has an Msc in Political Economy and Development studies. he is also detail and result oriented.