Rules on Report Writing

Report writing aims to present a report in a format that is both professional and appealing to the readers. It therefore must be typed and not hand written, the spelling and grammar are checked, and it must be proof-read and neatly collated. With regards to its content, it should be an account of some event, situation, project, etc. prepared for the benefit of others, which usually provides information obtained through research and investigation.

In report writing, you must highlight the difference between facts and opinion. Your facts need to be reliable and accurate, while opinions should be objective and based on facts. A report is as much a communication tool as it is a decision making tool and as such can have far-reaching consequences. It is therefore important that they are well-written, reliable and easy to read. They are challenging to write because you have to collect, summarize and interpret quantities of data for a specific readers and users. They are also written for a specific purpose and you need to compile your report with this purpose in mind.

There are many types of reports: financial, progress, project, research, case- study, proposal, cost-benefit analysis, health and safety, technical, periodic, workplace accidents, useless, full-of-it and you have to select the rightful kind of report to present, determined by the needs of your readers and users.