Chapter 10 Business Communication

Which of the following is not a conclusion?

All employees should receive formal training in network use.

The conclusions and recommendations part of a report should

Answer all research questions raised in the introduction

Which statement best describes the use of pronouns for most business reports?

Because formal reports focus on the information instead of on the writer, third-person pronouns should be used.

Which of the following is not a good guideline for documentation?

Carefully document facts that are common knowledge to the reader.

What time sequence is appropriate for meeting minutes?

Chronological

The three distinct steps for revising reports are

Content, style, and correctness

The most logical organization for analytical and recommendation reports is by

Criteria

Most business reports use the

Direct organizational plan

A report header typically includes the report title, subtitle, page number, and an excerpt from the text.

FALSE

A table or figure should be placed immediately above the first paragraph that refers to the graphic.​

FALSE

Conclusions are often given at the end of a report.

FALSE

For text-based reports, 8 to 12 words is the right length for most headings.​

FALSE

The direct approach is preferred when the report topic is very complex and needs detailed explanations to help the reader understand and accept the conclusions.

FALSE

The findings in most reports are organized in chronological order.

FALSE

When proofreading a report, use a grammar software program to identify incorrect word usage and incorrect page order.

FALSE

You can emphasize the importance of the problem discussed in a formal report by using first-person and second-person pronouns.

FALSE

Your summary should be at least one page long and possibly longer, depending on your report's complexity and length.

FALSE

When summarizing the main points immediately before the conclusions and recommendations, review for the reader by using the same wording used in the presentation.

False

The body of the report consists of

Findings, summary, conclusion, recommendation

To make the report read clearly and smoothly, use

Lots of data

Formal detailed documents issued by organizations looking for bids from a variety of sources are called:

Request for Proposals

"Decks" are reports that were created using presentation software such as Microsoft PowerPoint.

TRUE

A text-based report is written as a narrative.

TRUE

Decision makers may prefer shorter documents as time-saving devices.

TRUE

Do not omit relevant information from a report.

TRUE

Ending a report with a concluding statement provides a definite sense of project completion and signals the reader not to look for additional pages.

TRUE

Even if you carefully paraphrase or summarize source material, you still must provide documentation of the source.

TRUE

Facts that can be verified easily do not need to be documented in a report.

TRUE

For analytical and recommendation reports, the most logical organization is by criteria.

TRUE

For busy readers, a writer must "frontload" the opening by grabbing the reader's attention in the first paragraph.

TRUE

Headings and subheadings in the table of contents should be worded as they appear in the body of the report.

TRUE

If you want to divide a longer report section, you should include at least two subsections.

TRUE

Internal proposals may be written within an email message.

TRUE

Long reports may also require a title page, cover note, executive summary, table of contents, appendix, and a reference list.

TRUE

Most formal reports use generic headings to identify the topic of each section.

TRUE

One aspect of revising a report for style is to check that you have used active and passive voice appropriately.

TRUE

Reports may be primarily text or a mix of text and graphics.

TRUE

Reports written in programs such as Microsoft Word are still common, but more companies, particularly financial services and consulting firms, are using programs such as PowerPoint for reports that combine text and graphics.

TRUE

Reserve direct quotations for definitions and for text passages that are so precise, clear, or noteworthy that you cannot improve them.

TRUE

The findings section is generally the largest in the report.

TRUE

The purpose of selecting an organizational plan for your findings is to show order, logic, and unity.

TRUE

The three major forms for documenting the ideas, information, and quotations of other people in a report are endnotes, footnotes, or author-date references.

TRUE

To avoid plagiarism, a writer must not copy someone else's idea, language, data, or report without using source citations.

TRUE

When drafting your report, avoid colloquial expressions, attempts at humor, subjectivity, bias, and exaggeration.​

TRUE

When writing a report, use verb tenses that reflect the reader's time frame, not your time frame.

TRUE

You should avoid using he as a generic pronoun when referring to an unidentified person.

TRUE

You should not only present your findings but also analyze and interpret them in the same section of the report.

TRUE

You should use the verb tense (past, present, or future) that is appropriate at the time the reader reads the report--not necessarily at the time that you wrote the report.

TRUE

Some examples of numerical information given in reports are displayed in

Tables and figures

Identify the correct guideline for constructing a table of contents.

Use the same wording for the headings as in the report body.

When revising your draft for style you should

Use words that are clear, simple, and concise

An effective executive summary should not

assume that the reader will also read the entire report.

When referring to primary and secondary data in the findings section, you should

call attention to key trends and contradictions.

The answers to research questions are presented in the part of the report that covers your

conclusions.

You can distinguish among major and minor heading levels by using all of the following except

different heading lengths.

Revising for correctness involves

fixing any grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors.

When proofreading a document, you need not check

for short, simple words.

A reader's first impression of your report is based on

how professional it appears.

When revising for content you should

include sufficient information

The direct organizational plan should be used when the reader

is receptive to the conclusions or prefers the direct plan.

When writing a business report, use the ____ tense to describe findings from other studies and your procedures; use the ____ tense for your conclusions.

past; present

In case readers want to locate the source of secondary data used in your report, make your ____ accurate in both content and format.

reference list

An effective writing style for a report

should be less conversational than a casual email.

You should use direct quotes

sparingly

When planning a report, you should base the structure, formality, and length on

the needs and desires of the reader.

When you include another person's ideas in a report, you should

use direct quotations when you cannot improve on the wording.

A formal report about a complex, serious problem typically includes all of the following except

use of the pronoun you.

You can achieve coherence in a lengthy report by

using previews, summaries, and transitions in each section

In a report, the largest section is

your findings