BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS
CHAPTER 12 REVIEW
True/False
- A business report is any factual, objective document that communicates information about some aspect of business.
- Reports are essentially a management tool.
- When developing a report, you have only one goal--to make the information clear.
- When writing a report, you should tailor the content to include only those facts that support your theories or that you personally find interesting.
- When writing a voluntary (as opposed to an authorized) report, you need to provide more background on the subject and explain your purpose more carefully.
- The subject of a business report affects its vocabulary and format.
- Even if the intended reader of a report is very familiar with the subject, the writer needs to define terms and explain basic concepts.
- External reports of fewer than ten pages should usually be done in memo format.
- Informational reports are usually organized to highlight conclusions, recommendations, or reasons.
- Electronic reports fall into two basic categories.
- A new class of software known as "report writers' actually creates business reports for you.
- Electronic reports offer several advantages over paper reports, including cost and space savings and faster distribution.
- Electronic reports, unlike paper reports, cannot be tampered with.
- In general, the more routine the report, the less flexibility you have in deciding format and length.
- If a report to an outsider is five or fewer pages long, it can be presented in letter format.
- Reports done in memo form should not include subheadings or visual aids.
- Short reports are more common in business than long ones.
- All effective reports contain a mix of broad concepts and specific detail.
- When you expect your audience to be receptive, use the indirect approach to organize your business report.
- Using the indirect approach makes for a more forceful report that is particularly convenient to readers.
- The longer the report, the less effective the indirect approach is likely to be.
- An indirect argument is harder to follow than a direct argument.
- The direct and indirect approaches should never be combined in a business report.
- A primary concern when preparing informational reports is the readers' emotional reaction to the content.
- In an analytical report, facts are a means to an end rather than an end in themselves.
- Because readers often respond emotionally to informational reports,you should present your material in the most indirect fashion possible.
- A memo summarizing an employee's trip to a trade show would be an example of a personal activity report.
- Analytical reports are primarily intended to educate readers.
- The indirect approach should always be used for analytical reports.
- A justification report is an internal report designed to persuade top management to approve a proposed investment or project.
- A good organization for a justification report would be one built around recommendations.
- All analytical reports are best organized around recommendations or conclusions.
- A business plan documents an organization's overall goals and the operational methods it will use to reach those goals.
- One good way to organize a troubleshooting report is around a list of reasons that gradually build toward your conclusions and recommendations.
- Using I and you gives a report a more informal tone.
- To guarantee the objectivity of your report, use a formal style of writing.
- Most organizations expect business reports to be written in an unobtrusive, impersonal style.
- The opening should provide readers with clues to the structure of a report.
- If one main heading in a report is a noun phrase, all such headings should be noun phrases.
- Transitional words and phrases can make a poorly organized report seem logically and clearly written.