2. Reports for Decision Making:

2. Reports for Decision Making: Types of Reports. Report formats differ

depending on their purpose and nature. Reports may be:
 Formal, or informal
 Routine (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annual, etc.), or occasional
 Professional, or for a wider audience
Uses of Reports. Reports are meant to be useful by providing information for decision
making They may be used
- to assist management in decision making based on clearly written, concise information
which may consist of:
 Information, retrieved from files or other sources
 Narrative or description, i.e. of one-off events or procedures (accident,
installation of new equipment, etc.)
 Analysis
 Evaluation and recommendation
- as a permanent record and source of reference
- to convey information to other interested parties
The use, or purpose of the report must be clear to both the person requesting the report
and to the report writer. Routine reports have their purpose and use specified in procedure
manuals. Occasional reports often require „terms of reference‟ explaining the purpose of
the report and any restrictions on its scope.
3. General Points of Style: The general principles of business communication, such
as conciseness, completeness, courtesy, correctness, clarity, logical organization
and attractiveness all apply in report writing.
Readability (clarity) may be facilitated by various display techniques, such as headings,
references, font types, spacing, etc.
Since reports provide objective information regarding facts or processes, passive
constructions (emphasis on the process, not the doer of the action) are typical in report
writing.