MGMT2100 Chap.10 Business Writing and the In-Class Report
Business Writing and the In-Class Report
This chapter prepares you for the In-Class Report, worth 30 percent, and for any written answer in the exam. It sets out the report's conditions: a case allocated at random in the Week 11 tutorial, 45 minutes, handwritten, without notes or devices. It explains the marking table, which puts the most weight on identifying and analysing communication issues, and the structure the tutorial requires.
It then covers the Week 8 lecture on business writing: bottom line up front, the Minto pyramid, report types and components, the executive summary, the difference between findings, conclusions and recommendations, memos, emails and cutting clutter.
What this chapter covers
- 01
In-Class Report conditions and marking table
- 02
Executive summary and introduction
- 03
Issues, analysis and recommendations
- 04
Bottom line up front and the Minto pyramid
- 05
Report types and components
- 06
Findings, conclusions and recommendations
- 07
Memos, emails and cutting clutter
Worked example · free
Divide 45 minutes in proportion to the report's marks
- 1Writing time is 45 - 5 - 3 = 37 minutes. Language is marked throughout, so allocate the 37 minutes across the 80 marks for the four written sections.
- 2Issues and analysis: 35 of 80 = 43.75% of 37 minutes, about 16.2 minutes. Recommendations: 25 of 80 = 31.25% of 37, about 11.6 minutes.
- 1Summary and introduction, and conclusion: 10 of 80 each = 12.5% of 37, about 4.6 minutes each; check 16.2 + 11.6 + 4.6 + 4.6 = 37.0.
Key terms
- Executive summary
- The opening section that condenses a report's purpose, scope, methods, findings, conclusions and recommendations, written last.
- Bottom line up front
- A writing principle that puts the main conclusion or request at the start of a document.
- Minto pyramid principle
- Barbara Minto's approach of building a document downward from its main point to grouped supporting ideas.
- Analytic report
- A report based on research and analysis that leads to recommendations.
- Self-protection memo
- A memo used to record disagreement, often in politicised or legal situations.
Business Writing and the In-Class Report FAQ
What are the conditions for the In-Class Report?
It is worth 30 percent and held in your Week 11 tutorial. Four cases are released beforehand and each student is randomly allocated one. You write by hand on paper provided, without notes or smart devices, in 45 minutes, and references are not required. The slides estimate about 1,000 words.
How is the report marked?
The marking table gives 10 marks to the executive summary and introduction, 35 to identifying and analysing communication issues with theory, 25 to recommendations that flow from the analysis, 10 to the conclusion and 20 to clear, professional language, out of 100.
What is the difference between findings, conclusions and recommendations?
Findings are factual and verifiable. Conclusions are your own ideas deduced from the findings. Recommendations are what you want done, written in order of importance and often as dot points. Keeping the three apart makes a report read as analysis rather than opinion.
How should I prepare without memorising a whole report?
The tutorial advises against memorising a report for each case. Review the four topics, understand when and how each theory applies, practise applying concepts to different scenarios, and practise writing clear, structured answers by hand, so you are ready for any of the cases.
What types of memo does the lecture describe?
Request memos ask for action or resources, announcement memos tell a large audience about an event or development, instruction memos set out procedures that staff often keep for later use, and self-protection memos record disagreement where a situation is politicised or legal. Memos stay inside the organisation.
Exam move
Practise the report as a timed, handwritten exercise at least twice before Week 11, using cases you invent from news stories or your own work experience rather than the published cases. Use the tutorial chain of issue, evidence, theory, analysis and recommendation for each paragraph of analysis. Allocate time roughly in proportion to the marks, with the most on analysis.
After each attempt, check three things: every theory is applied to a case fact, every recommendation traces to a diagnosed issue, and the conclusion adds nothing new. For the exam, learn the report components, the executive summary contents, the memo types and the email rules.
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