How can we make analysis report purposeful-01421

Analysis Reports

The important thing to remember is that no report format isperfect. Company documentation standards attempt to resolve the issue by prescribing a format into which all analysis reports are poured. Report design should be flexible enough to meet a variety of writer purposes and audience needs.

Title page

A title page should be designed with visual order in mind. It should bebalanced from top to bottom and from left to right. It should provide enough information for readers to be able to tell what the context of the report is and what the report is about.

Abstracts

Abstracts are condensation of entire reports, focusing on the main issues: what was done, what was found out, and its significance. Abstracts are self-sufficient. The procedure for many companies is to take the abstract from the analysis report, copy it a number of times, circulate it to readers, and allow readers to order the full report if they feel like they need the information.

Table of contents

The table of contents provides an outline of analysis reports for readers who do not wish to read the entire report or flip through it looking for the section which contains what they are looking for. It should be made up of headings and subheadings of the report, word-for-word, with the accompanying page numbers.

List of symbols

This is an optional addition to the front matter of an analysis report.

Include it if you think the readers will need to have symbols defined. The same thing applies to the inclusion of a glossary.

Introduction

This is the place for the three-part purpose statement introduction. It will orient readers to the main issue of the report, to the technical issues or specifics which are important to the report, and to what the report is intended to accomplish.

Discussion

The discussion contains an analysis of the technical issues important to the report. It supports the main issue to the report by providing evidence and explanations. It should be subdivided into topics, each with a subheading.

Conclusion

This section presents the results of the analysis, the evaluation of what was presented in the discussion. Sometimes listing the conclusion is a good way to organize them. It calls attention to the conclusion individually, but still enables writers to explain them as is necessary.

Recommendations

Recommendations are optional, not all analysis reports havethem. Those reports that do have recommendations, tell the readers what to do with the information provided in the report.

Appendix

Usually this would include derivations of equations, tables of raw data,sample equations, and so forth. But the only way to be certain that what is placed in the appendix belongs there is to assess it within the context of audience needs