GROUP EChapter 22Ruben Beltrandelrio, Michael Durling, Lisa Hairston, Sara McKinley and Eva Olivas

MICHAEL DURLINGBasic Features of Activity Reports

BASIC FEATURES OF ACTIVITY REPORTS

Common Components: IntroductionSummary of activitiesResults of activities or researchFuture activities or research Incurred or future expensesGraphicsConclusion

Format not concrete; can/should be modified to suit needs of report

PRIMARY GOAL OF ACTIVITY REPORTS

To inform intended audience about:What happenedWhat is currently occurringWhat will occur in the future

DIFFERENT TYPES OF ACTIVITY REPORTS

Progress Reports Briefings and White

Papers Incident Reports Laboratory Reports

PROGRESS REPORTS

Also called status reports Purpose: to inform superiors or peers about

progress or status of a project Frequency: at regular intervals, ideally

weekly, biweekly, or monthly Common components:

Summary of finished activitiesDiscussion of current activitiesForecast of future activities

PROGRESS REPORT TEMPLATEVisual Example

BRIEFINGS AND WHITE PAPERS

Purpose: to inform management or clients about an important issueBriefings:

provided verballyWhite Papers:

provided in print

Both include:Summary of the

factsDiscussion of the

importance of the facts

Forecast about the future

•Should be straightforward and objective•Do not select a side or course of action

INCIDENT REPORTS

Description of event, usually an accident or unfortunate occurrence

Present facts objectively Answers the following questions:

What occurred?Why did it occur?How was the situation handled?How will problem be avoided in the future?

Example

LABORATORY REPORTS

Purpose: to describe experiments, tests, or inspections

Should include:Summary of experiment (methods)Presentation of resultsDiscussion of results

SARA MCKINLEYDetermining the Rhetorical Situation of an Activity Report

PLANNING AND RESEARCHING ACTIVITY REPORTS

Minimal planning and research

Keep activity journal/work logLotus Notes, Microsoft

Outlook, or PDAsKeeps you on taskSaves time

ANALYZING THE RHETORICAL SITUATION

Begin by asking:Who?What?Where?When?Why?How?

ANALYZING THE RHETORICAL SITUATION

Think about the rhetorical situation to outline the activity reportSubject

Recent activitiesNeed-to-know information

PurposeWhat happened and what will happen

State purpose directly in the introduction

Use action verbs

ANALYZING THE RHETORICAL SITUATION

Think about the rhetorical situation to outline the activity reportReaders

Supervisors, clients, testimonyCompose report to suit every readers needs

Context of UseStatements should reflect actions and results

Needs to be accurate

RUBEN BELTRANDELRIOOrganizing and Drafting Activity Reports

ORGANIZING AND DRAFTING ACTIVITY REPORTS

Activity reports should be brief, i.e., should not be longer than one page

If you are spending more than one hour developing an activity report, you are spending too much time

WRITING THE INTRODUCTION

Stick to the facts Jack

A brief framework explaining the facts should be provided to the reader, i.e., concisely define your SUBJECT, PURPOSE, and MAIN POINT

WRITING THE BODY

Should include a “Summary of Activities”   Summarize in chronological order the

projects two to five major events since the last report

Be sure to highlight any advances or setbacks since the last activity report

 WHAT ARE YOUR RESULTS?

List two to five significant results or outcomes of the project since the last report

Future activities or research

Tell the reader what you plan to do during the next work cycle

EXPENSES

You should be able to state the costs incurred over the previous week or month and if these costs are deviating from the projects budget

WRITING THE CONCLUSION

Again, be as brief as possible

Restate the main point

Restate the purpose Restate your outlook

for the project’s future

EVA OLIVASDesigning and Formatting Activity Reports

WHAT ARE ACTIVITY REPORTS?

“Activity reports are used to objectively present ideas or information within a company”.

EXAMPLE OF AN ACTIVITY REPORT

DIFFERENT KINDS OF ACTIVITY REPORTS

Progress Reports: Informs

management about the progress or status of a project

Briefings and White Papers Informs

management or clients about an important issue

Incident ReportsDescribe an

event, or accident, and identify what corrective actions have been taken

Laboratory ReportsDescribe

experiments, tests, or inspections

HOW MIGHT THEY BE USED

Electrical Engineer Scientist Chemist Technician

USING STYLE ACTIVITY REPORTS

Sentences:Subject should be the “doer” of most

sentencesVerb should express the action in most

sentences Paragraphs:

Topic sentence Tone:

No sarcasm or humorProfessional toneNegative information stated candidly with

no apologies

REMEMBER, ACTIVITY REPORTS ARE MOSTLY INFORMATIVE, NOT OVERLY PERSUASIVESo try to keep them straightforward

USING DESIGN AND GRAPHICS

Also straightforward Governed by a standard format Company will specify format for activity

reports Visuals should be centered and placed after

being mentioned Label graphic and refer by number in the text Oral presentation

Photos help audience visualizeGraphs show trends in the data

LISA HAIRSTONThe Importance of Editing and Proofreading Activity Reports.

PULLING IT ALL TOGETHER

Basic features Determining the

rhetoric Organized and draft Strategy for style Designing and

formatting

WHY PROOF?

Informal Disposable Discarded Buried

ETHOS AND ERRORS

Quality of Work Professionalism Dedication Considerate

Respect Management Co-Workers

Team Work Promotions

Reputation Reciprocity

REVISING AND PROOFREADING

Subject Purpose Readers Content

Carefully Spell Check Print Out Send

Electronically Physical

Revising Proofreading

QUESTIONS?2 minutes per answer.