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How to write a business document

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effective business communication skills

What is a business document?

A business document can be any form of writing connected with commerce, administration, government, industry, or non-personal communication — any of the following:

Business document

These are normally documents printed onto paper, but modern business also includes documents in the form of email messages, web pages, Powerpoint presentations, and online instruction manuals.

You should follow the same principles for writing such documents, no matter in which form they will finally appear.

Five stages of planning

There are five basic stages in the process of writing a business document.

If you are conscious of each one as a separate activity, it will help to make the task of writing a business document easier.

  1. Visualise the document
  2. Determine the content
  3. Create a structure
  4. Write the first draft
  5. Make any revisions
Visualise the document

Visualise the finished document as a material object. We now know that visualisation is a great aid to achievement.

For this stage you need to know what the business document looks like. Make sure you have at least one good example of the following:

  • a letter
  • a report
  • a proposal
  • a memo
  • a bulletin

Keep these examples in a handy place in your office where you can refer to them at any time. It is a good idea to keep them in a binder, each in its own plastic wallet, so that you can browse and find them easily.

Set up some templates in your word-processor which correspond to the list of document types shown above. This way, you save yourself the repeated task of creating a new layout for every document.

Your templates should conform to the principles outlined in How to Write a Report as follows:

  • Modules — write text in bite-size chunks
  • Relevance — one topic only – exclude anything which doesn’t belong
  • Navigation — use headings and sub headings to guide your reader
  • Consistency — of vocabulary, expression, layout, visual features
  • Hierarchy — multi level text with correspondence between levels
Writing the content

Be sure you know exactly what it is you need to write. If you are not sure about your purpose, it makes the writing more difficult.

Here are some tips for making sure that you start out with a confident and accurate idea of what is required.

Write down the purpose(s) of your document and the response you require.

Put yourself in the place of the person receiving the letter. Answer the three crucial questions yourself before you start writing your document. There are three questions a reader asks about a document:

  1. What is this? — a letter, proposal, memo, report
  2. What’s it about? — new rules, I’m fired, I’m going on a trip
  3. What do I do? — reply, accept an invitation, disagree with the points, give my permission
Creating the structure

Create an overall structure using diagrams or titles in a hierarchy. This will give you confidence – because you can see the complete outline of your document before you fill in the detailed content.

Create a structure using a form you find useful:

  • Lists of topics — every important topic you wish to include
  • Diagrams — which works for you – spider, matrix, mind-map
  • Boxes — a page with several rows of blank boxes, each representing a level of your document

This writing strategy will also deter you from meandering from the topic, because you are writing your text according to the part titles you have created.

You may also wish to use the OUTLINER facility in your word-processor.

You can also create an overall structure using working titles in a hierarchy. Make up quick working titles for your modules chapters and sections.

Don’t agonise about them. You can always change them easily after you have written your draft document.

Here’s an example of an outline in titles

  • New services available
  • Advantage to customer
  • New pricing structure
  • Special discounts
  • Ordering details
  • Names, contacts, numbers

If the document contains a lot of material which needs to be organised in some way or other, use one of the common approaches to creating structure. The parts can be arranged in –

  • logical progression
  • increasing significance
  • equal significance
  • chronological order
  • narrative sequence
  • category groupings
Document titles

There are three kinds of title in business documents.

  1. function title
  2. topic title
  3. combination title

A function title — tells your reader what the section or module is doing. This kind of title is independent of the topic in the text. Here are some examples:

  • Introduction
  • Problems
  • Background
  • Criteria
  • Solution
  • Comment
  • Recommendation

A topic title — tells your reader what the section or module is about. Examples of topic titles:

  • Additional monthly benefits
  • Loan payment methods
  • Calculating overtime
  • Cash-flow difficulties
  • Recruitment methods

A combination title — is made up of two parts, which are topic and function. The combination title does most work in terms of communication. Examples of combination titles:

  • Problem of information overload
  • Solution to staffing problems
  • Way forward for programmers
  • Introduction to new parking rules
  • Action by team members
  • Decision on compliance issues
Titles in general

Be clear — Use titles that clearly describe the function or the content of the module.

Be brief — Make titles brief. Shorter titles are better than longer ones, provided they don’t create any ambiguity. Use no more than three to five words.

Be consistent — Use the same vocabulary in the title as you use in the text module.

Be familiar — Use terms which are generally familiar to any reader. Avoid technical jargon except when you write as one specialist to another.

Be independent — Make each title stand alone and act as an advance organiser for a document, section, chapter, module.

Write the first draft

Write your initial draft in separate sections, parts, or modules. This is a very efficient way of writing your first draft.

You already have your data and the structure of your argument worked out. Now you write the separate sections for each title you have created.

This is much less stressful than trying to write the whole document at once. If you find one section getting out of hand, then break it down into two or three smaller parts.

You can also re-write any individual part which is not successful.

Make revisions

Now is the time to take an overview of what you have done so far. First check the structure of your document and put the parts in order.

Put yourself into the shoes of your reader and ask yourself if the content is properly structured. If you are satisfied that you have created a clear and logical arrangement for the contents of your document, then you can complete the piece with confidence.

If you have followed the five stages, any alterations required at this stage will be minor ones and easily carried out. This process is very easy if you use the editing facilities of a word-processor.

You might also wish to save different versions of the document – in which case, make sure you label them clearly.

© Roy Johnson 2014

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How to write a cover letter

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introducing your job application and curriculum vitae

What is a cover letter?

A cover letter is written when you’re applying for a job. You send it along with your personal details ( your curriculum vitae or CV) It’s quite a specialized form of communication, because it does three things at the same time. It provides –

  1. Information – your formal job application
  2. Presentation – your interest in the position
  3. Advertisement – your suitability as a candidate

You need to express each of these items as briefly as possible. You should strike the right tone – formal but engaging. And most important of all, you should not merely repeat what’s in your curriculum vitae.

Length

The cover letter should be brief – certainly no more than one A4 page. Nobody is going to spend a long time reading it – but the letter must be well composed and presented so that your application will be taken seriously. Its purpose is to lead your reader into the full curriculum vitae.

You should be able to cover everything required in no more than five or six short paragraphs. Short sentences and paragraphs are important, because they are easy to read. Give the reader enough white space for easy reading.

Style

Write in short, clear sentences. These will be easy to read, and you are less likely to make grammatical mistakes. Use a plain style of writing, and keep your statements brief and straight to the point.

Purpose

The cover letter introduces you to the prospective employer. You’re hoping to obtain a personal interview, so you need to make a good impression.

Getting your application letter right is crucial to making a good first impression and is often the only opportunity to position yourself prior to being selected for an interview.

However, the employer’s decision will be largely based on your experience and qualifications, which are listed in your curriculum vitae. So there’s no need to go into that detail in the cover letter.

Information

The most important item should come first – the exact title of the job for which you are applying. You can use the job title as a centred heading in the letter to make this quite clear.

If there is a job reference number quoted in the job advertisement, make sure you quote it.

Position of business development manager: Ref 2011-H405

Your opening statement may be nothing more than the fact that you wish to be considered for the job – and that you are available for interview.

Presentation

Here you need to say something about why the job is of interest to you. This might be because you are interested in the role (sales, data control, personnel management) or that you wish to join a bigger (or smaller) company.

You should try to link some aspect of your previous experience to the job in question. This will show that you are aware of what the job entails and that you have some good reason for applying.

I am very interested in developing my management skills. My previous position in the Human Resources team at Data-Tech Ltd gave me responsibility for north-west England, but I would welcome the challenge of a leadership role at national level.

Advertisement

This is where you flag up some interesting detail of your skills or experience that will make you an attractive prospect to the employer. It might be some additional expertise you have, or something unusual you have accomplished.

Keep it short and to the point, and avoid any temptation to exaggerate. Back up your skills claims with evidence of past successes. Here’s an example from the advertisement part of the letter.

I enjoy working as part of a team. In my last position as admin assistant, I trained all the departmental staff in using spreadsheets for record keeping.

This shows both initiative and co-operation at work, in addition to IT skills. It gives concrete evidence of what’s being claimed. The statement is much easier to grasp than the following version of the same thing written in an over-elaborate manner.

In all matters relating to interaction with fellow members of staff, my personal preference is for collaborative and user-negotiated decision-making. My talents and information technology skills were recognised by Burlington Industries Company when I was given the opportunity to head up staff development in the company’s training module related to office documentation.

Graphic presentation

You should present this cover letter as a formal business document. It should be typed or word-processed. Even with all the features of a good word-processor at your disposal, you will need to take care to create good page layout

Presentation
The most important part of presentation is the layout of the page. You should leave plenty of blank space around what you write. Do not attempt to cram the maximum amount of text onto a page. Use extra wide page margins.

Fonts
For the main text of your letter, choose a font with serifs such as Times New Roman or Garamond. Avoid the use of sans-serif fonts such as Arial or Helvetica. These make continuous reading difficult. The size of your chosen font should be eleven or twelve points. This will make your work easy to read, and the font will appear proportionate to its use when printed out on A4 paper.

Paragraphs
If you use double spaces between each paragraph, you do not need to indent the first line. The reason for having the double spaces is that it will help the reader to ‘see’ each paragraph as a separate part of your letter.

Spelling
Use the spelling-checker before you print out your document. Remember that a spell-checker will not make any distinction between They washed their clothes and They washed there clothes, because the word there is spelt correctly even though it is being used ungrammatically. Spell checkers also don’t know people’s names. Nevertheless, it’s worth doing. Spelling mistakes always create a bad impression.

Template

Your contact information

The heading of the letter should include your full postal and email address, and phone number(s)

Employer contact information

Name and job title of recipient (if known)

Company name and full address

Date

Dear Mr / Mrs (ideally address your letter to a named person)

Dear Sir or Madam (only if you don’t know the recipient’s name)

Subject

If applying for an advertised position, insert job title and reference

First paragraph

The first paragraph of your cover letter should express your interest in the position, and indicate why the role is particularly attractive to you.

Second paragraph

Introduce your curriculum vitae and briefly summarise your strengths – qualifications and experience or knowledge of the company’s market sector.

Third paragraph

This paragraph should draw attention to the most relevant aspects of your career – making strong connections between your skills that dovetail with their requirements. Ideally, include two to three bullet pointed examples of your initiatives as they relate to the key requirements in the job description.

Fourth paragraph

This could briefly refer to experience and achievements in your earlier career, but only if relevant to the job description

Final paragraph

Express confidence in your ability to contribute to the success of the company, and indicate that you look forward to taking your application a step further at interview

Close

Yours sincerely if you know the recipient’s name

Yours faithfully if you don’t know the recipient’s name

Signature

Handwritten signature

Typed signature

© Roy Johnson 2011

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How to write a letter of complaint

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guidelines for effective business communications

letter of complaintIf you have received bad service, faulty goods, or unfair treatment, it’s often a good idea to write a formal letter of complaint.

It is perfectly within your rights to register a genuine complaint.

Modern business practice is to put the customer first, and a letter of complaint will register the fact that you have a serious grievance.

A letter of complaint can be more effective than a verbal response because –

  • you are less likely to become angry
  • it avoids a heated argument
  • the letter is a permanent record
  • your complaint is more difficult to ignore
Writing the letter of complaint

First decide what specific outcome you want from your letter.

Choose one or more of these outcomes:

  • action to rectify a problem
  • compensation in goods or services
  • your money returned
  • the goods replaced
  • a written or spoken apology

If you don’t know, then don’t bother writing.

Step Two

Decide where you are going to direct your complaint.

If it is a small business, you should address your remarks to the manager.

If it is a large company, you might do better addressing your letter to its customer services department at the firm’s head office. They have good reasons to help you:

  • it’s their job
  • protecting their reputation
  • monitoring their staff

The size or ‘cost’ of your complaint will be a much smaller matter to a head office than to a local branch – so you have a better chance of success.

In both cases you need the full postal address.

Step three

You need to make the letter of complaint look as business-like as possible.

It needs to contain a number of key items as a minimum

  1. your name and address
  2. the name and address of the recipient
  3. the date
  4. a title announcing the subject
  5. the body of the letter
  6. your signature

Use A4 sized paper, not a notepad or lined writing paper.

If you are writing by hand, write as neatly and clearly as possible.

If you are typewriting or using a word processor, select a legible font.

If you are using email this will put you to less trouble, but make sure the letter contains all the basic minimum requirements.

In all cases, follow the layout shown in the example that follows.

Example
The Manager
Polly’s Boutique
Market Hall Street
Stockport SK3 1BU		 Mrs C Bailey
24 Westleigh
Clifton Road
Stockport SK4 6RT
14 December 2009

To whom it may concern

Complaint about faulty goods purchased at ‘Polly’s Boutique’

I write to ask for a full refund on the handbag I bought in your Stockport branch on 12 December this year.

I took the handbag back to the store but the shop assistant was most rude in telling me that I wasn’t entitled to a refund as I had used the handbag.

This is not a case of my having changed my mind but one of goods not being fit for purpose. The stitching has come apart and this shouldn’t happen as a result of normal wear.

Please contact me immediately and assure me that you will give me a refund. I do not want a replacement as this model of handbag is obviously flawed in its design.

You can contact me at the address shown above or by phone on 0161 432 9763

Yours sincerely

Christine Bailey
Step four

When writing the letter of complaint it’s important to keep these things in mind

  • don’t get angry or abusive
  • stick clearly to the facts
  • keep calm and respectful
  • don’t make any threats

If you vent your anger on the person reading the letter, you are less likely to gain their sympathy or a positive response.

If you make any sort of threat, they could classify your letter as abuse and call in their lawyers.

If you get the facts wrong, they are entitled to challenge your claims.

Step five

Always keep a copy of your letter.

© Roy Johnson 2010

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How to write a newsletter

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guidelines for effective communication skills

newsletterA newsletter is designed to keep people up to date with events and activities.

It can be issued as a printed document, an email message, or even a blog posting.

Some online companies issue a newsletter every few days, whereas big organisations might issue only two a year.

Some newsletters are just a humble sheet of A4 printed on both sides: others may be multi-page glossy brochures.

A newsletter is a vehicle for spreading information to members of a group, and can also contain amusement and entertainment.

How to be an editor

Your number one task is to gather interesting and relevant news and information, then make it available to your readers.

The biggest part of that task (unless you are very lucky) is likely to be gathering enough information to fill each issue.

The simplest way to do that is to add each news item as it comes in. This saves you the trouble of relocating it again later. Keep a file (paper or electronic) with a copy of each item for the next issue.

Make a note of any important details attached to the news item – such as times, dates, URLs, prices, contact addresses.

Don’t leave all the information gathering until just before a newsletter issue goes out, otherwise you will put yourself under a lot of pressure

Readership

An in-house newsletter for a large business has the advantage of a stable and known readership. But this presents you with the difficulty of coming up with newsworthy stories from one source.

This type of newsletter also has the double-edged characteristic of being driven by company policy.

A newsletter that is aimed at a wide readership has the disadvantage of a largely unknown audience. But by way of compensation, you can take more risks in selecting the content.

Asking for contributions

Lighten the burden of writing a newsletter by inviting contributions from your readers.

People are often willing to write a short article, particularly if it is drawing attention to an event they wish to publicise

Invite readers to notify you of product launches, forthcoming events, or novelties which might interest your readers.

It is quite common to attract such contributions by offering prizes or free gifts in return.

House style

It’s very useful to establish a house style, then stick to it. Choose colours, images, font types, vocabulary, and layout to create your house style.

Tailor your style to reflect your organisation or line of business. This means that your readers will know what to expect.

It also means that any potential contributors know how to present their work.

Editing tips

Every editor’s nightmare is to publish a newsletter then suddenly realise that it contains a silly mistake – a mis-typed phone number, the wrong date for an event, or a URL that doesn’t work.

For this reason, rigorous editing and proof-reading is required before every publication date. Here are some antidotes that work

  • edit and proof-read your newsletter rigorously before every publication
  • check all factual details, but in addition check your spelling and grammar
  • ask someone else to check the text before you send it off
  • don’t try to edit for several features of the writing at the same time

Read through the text several times with only one of these issues in mind:

How to present the content

If you want people to read a newsletter, it’s got to be interesting – to the readers. Pack your newsletter with items that are fresh and newsworthy.

Grab your readers’ attention in the first sentence of any item.

You can make any collection of news more attractive by adding smaller items of entertainment.

Take a tip from newspapers. Almost all of them have crosswords, cartoons, pictures, recipes, and horoscopes scattered amongst their main items.

Add a selection of not-directly-related news items. Remember that –

  • scientists also practice the arts
  • housewives follow current affairs
  • politicians enjoy sports

Here are some tips on regular stand-by extras that can help give your newsletter variety:

  • a quiz
  • an advice column
  • seasonal recipes
  • personal profiles
  • questions and answers
  • how-to articles
  • top 10 lists
  • votes and polls
Legal issues

Even if your newsletter is a small-scale affair, you should take care not to leave yourself open to legal prosecution. Be careful not to libel or defame people – which means making sure that everything you say is true.

Tread carefully with your content: you might be amazed at how easily some people take offence..

On a large-scale circulation newsletter keep in mind that there may be subscribers with views and beliefs quite unlike your own.

Unless you wish to be daring or radical, treat sensitive issues such as religion, politics, and ethical beliefs with care.

[I once printed some of George W. Bush’s famous ungrammatical statements during his illegal invasion of Iraq. Even though they were all things he had actually said, I was heavily criticised by patriotic Americans. I refused to retract the quotations, but lost a lot of subscribers. So decide which is more important – your circulation figures or your political commitment.]

Advertising

If you reach a big enough audience, you may be able to attract paid advertising.

Knowing how much to charge is the biggest problem – especially if you are starting from scratch.

Try to find out how much newsletters like yours charge for both small insertions or paid features (advertorials).

Don’t be greedy. A smaller but regular income will be more useful than a larger but one-off payment.

Make a clear distinction between any advertising and your own content. Readers will be annoyed if they feel they have been duped into reading what turns out to be an advert.

Evading spam filters

If your newsletter is an email message or an HTML attachment, spam filters on the reader’s server will block messages containing certain words.

They are obviously on the lookout for obscene words. But that’s not all. They are checking for the tell-tale signs of get-rich-quick offers, ponzi schemes, and the Nigerian letter scam.

These are some of the hallmarks of spam message that you can easily avoid:

  • titles in all capital letters
  • over-use of exclamation marks
  • satisfaction guaranteed
  • lose weight – cash bonus

Even the simplest and most innocent-looking words can become spam alerts if viewed in a certain way. The easiest was round this problem is to insert characters in such a way that the words are still legible – f.r.e.e   k.n.i.c.k.e.r.s   to cover your   b.o.t.t.o.m.

What to avoid

I receive two dreadful newsletters every quarter – one from my local council, and the other from a university. They both display just about every feature of a useless newsletter publication.

  • all articles heavily self-conratulatory
  • small issues blown out of proportion
  • celebrity profiles – of nonentities
  • financial news with no critical analysis
  • no invitation for reader feedback
  • all negative news omitted

Both of these organisations (at the time of writing) are suffering enormous cuts in government funding, and making huge numbers of staff redundant. These is no mention of this in either publication.

The net result of their phoney optimism and lack of honesty is to debase the value of any serious news they report. Few people read these newsletters. They go straight into the bin.

Email newsletters

Format the newsletter so that it can easily be read on screen. Use narrow columns and plenty of white space between each item of news.

Use shorter sentences than you would for printed materials. Long sentences are particularly difficult to read on screen

Use clear headings for each topic. This gives readers a chance to scan the newsletter for topics which interest them.

Avoid the use of continuous capitals for emphasis. This decreases the chance of being trapped by spam filters.

Always make it quite clear how readers can unsubscribe. Nobody wants to feel trapped. Keep in mind this good joke from Dick Vosburgh: “I haven’t been so happy since the day that Reader’s Digest lost my address”.

Offer a list of topics to be covered in the next isue. This gives reader’s an incentive to keep reading.

Template

Title

——– MANTEX NEWSLETTER ——–

Create a title for your newsletter – then stick to it.

Issue number

Number 165 – December 2010 – ISSN 1470-1863

The ISSN (International Standard Serial Number) is an identification number for serial publications and other continuing resources in the electronic and print world.

The number is issued by the national library of any country, and is free of charge.

Sub-title

Arts, Culture, and Technology as seen from
the digital hub of Media city Manchester UK

This is a brief explanation of the topics covered by the newsletter, and a hint at its general approach.

Advertising

** 13,000+ subscribers will see your AD **

This is an internal announcement, letting potential adveritisers see where their advert would appear.

News item One

0— ‘Here Comes Everybody’

Here Comes Everybody

This is without doubt my outstanding reading experience
of the last few weeks. Clay Shirky is what some people
are now calling a ‘futurologist’.

He analyses the latest developments in computer technology
and uncovers new shifts in social and economic forces.

His prime target is the newspaper industry, which used to
have what seemed like a monopoly on the distribution of
information about current events.

That has now been completely undermined by something as
apparently innocuous as personal blogs.

He also shows *why* Wikipedia has become the greatest
encyclopedia the world has ever seen – even though nobody
gets paid for writing it.

His study is a very engaging mixture of technology, sociology,
politics, and anthropology. Full review here –

This is the lead article – the news item to which you attach most importance, and which you think might be most interesting to your readers.

Make the clickable links as clear as possible. They can be shortened if necessary using services such as TinyURL.com and Bit.ly

Entertainment item one

0— Pub Quiz Question #1

What part of the body suffers from glaucoma?

Quizzes are a popular way to add variety. You could also try jokes, odd facts, today in history, famous birthdays, or handy household tips.

News item Two

0— Language Skills

http://mantex.blogspot.com/2010/10/language-skills.html

This is an amusing YouTube video of a young kid
speaking English in 24 different accents.

Warning! It’s not safe for work (NSFW) or for
showing your maiden aunt.

What’s even more remarkable is the fact that
he nails so many UK dialects – which as all
good linguists know is not the same thing as
regional accent.

http://mantex.blogspot.com/2010/10/language-skills.html

This is a lighter news item with a link to a YouTube video clip. Keep in mind that these are sometimes removed and may become copyrighted.

Formalities

Copyright (c) 2010, MANTEX
All Rights Reserved

PO Box 100
Manchester
M20 6GZ UK

Tel +44 0161 432 5811
www.mantex.co.uk

This is a formal declaration, claiming copyright and stating a business address.

Promotion

If you like this newsletter, PLEASE
FORWARD IT to friends and colleagues.
subscribers should register at the
following address —

https://mantex.co.uk/

BACK ISSUES featuring news items,
reviews, and product details at –

https://mantex.co.uk/articles/news/

Please retain the copyright and
list-joining information. It may be
posted, in its entirety or partially,
to newsgroups or mailing lists, so
long as the copyright and list-joining
information remains.

This encourages your subscribers to create new subscribers by forwarding the newsetter to their friends. It’s free promotion.

Interaction with readers

If you have any requests, observations,
or items you would like to be included
in our next issues, just mail us at —

news@mantex.co.uk

Unsubscribe instructions

You receive the MANTEX newsletter
because you subscribed to it. If you
wish to leave the list, send a message to

unsubscribe@mantex.co.uk

It is important and respectful to your subscribers to know that they can unsubscribe at any time.

Always respect their wishes. Some people subscribe by mistake; others change email address.

And incidentally, you should never sell or pass on your subscription lists to advertisers. This would be sure to annoy subscribers; they would lose faith in your integrity; and they would certainly unsubscribe – in large numbers.

Tailpiece

News-165-December-2010
ISSN 1470-1863
The British Library

This isn’t strictly necessary, but it forms a neat reminder of the status of the publication.

© Roy Johnson 2010

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How to write a personal statement

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making a good impression on paper

What is a personal statement?

A personal statement is an account of your own qualities, skills, and ambitions which is made to accompany job applications, funding bids, sponsorship requests, and applications for a place in further or higher education.

Think of it as being like a personal introduction, presenting yourself to an individual or an organization, and putting a human personality to a formal request.

Personal Statement

do yours with a word-processor

A personal statement is separate from your curriculum vitae (CV) which lists your formal qualifications and your previous experience.

A personal statement is most commonly required in the UK by the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) when you are applying for a place at a university.

The personal statement is where you can tell your preferred universities why they should offer you a place on the course you have chosen.

Who will read a personal statement?

The reader of your statement will be a potential employer, a personnel manager, or an admissions tutor in your chosen faculty of study – arts, science, or technology.

The admissions tutor might be a lecturer on your chosen course (if you are lucky). He or she will decide whether to offer you a place on the course or an interview, based on the information you have written on the form.

First they will look at your academic achievements and decide whether you seem capable of completing their course.

Then they will read your personal statement, and judge whether you are the kind of person who has the motivation and personality to complete the course successfully.

First impressions

Your personal statement is an opportunity to make a positive impression. You will need to convince them that you are also a person who should be accepted on the course or considered for employment.

You need to show the reader that you are:

  • able to express the reasons for your choice of course
  • motivated, and committed to your subject
  • aware of your career options and have some clear ambitions
  • somebody who has outside interests, apart from your studies

You may be applying to several different universities in the hope of securing a place. But your personal statement should not be identical in each case. You need to tailor the statement to your chosen subject of study, or the ethos of the institution.

The same would be true of a personal statement made in conjunction with a job application. You’re trying to convince that particular employer that you are suitable for the position and interested in working for the company.

The same would be true if you were applying for a bursary, a grant, or funding of some kind. Your personal statement confirms that there is a fully rounded human being making the application. It is also an opportunity to say what you would do with the funding if it were granted.

Interviews

If the university or the employer does not interview prospective applicants, then a personal statement is your only chance to convince them to accept you.

Many institutions and employers no longer conduct interviews with all prospective applicants, because of the costs involved. They make a preliminary choice by skim reading through written applications, and only interview the few they select on written evidence.

If you are offered an interview, the interviewers will use the personal statement as a starting point for the questions they ask you. So it’s important for your statement to be interesting, fresh, and honest.

If you’ve written something which isn’t true, you’re likely to become confused if you’re asked a question about it at the interview.

Warning

There are lots of web sites that show you examples of personal statements. Many of them ask you to pay for this service. You should avoid using these services because they may encourage you to do two things:

  • pay to see other people’s personal statements
  • copy parts of other peoples statements instead of writing your own original words

It’s far better to write your own statement, honestly and imaginatively. Everyone is different, and you should be proud of your achievements and aspirations, and pleased to express them.

You can apply online using the UCAS Apply system – but you should prepare all your information in advance.

Use the UCAS guidelines if necessary.

How to write the personal statement

Don’t imagine you can sit down and write your personal statement in one attempt. First you need to plan the structure of the statement, and then generate its content in several drafts.

Planning

Sit down and make a list of all the general areas you might wish to cover in your statement. The list might include items such as:

  • hobbies
  • personal achievements
  • part-time jobs
  • life skills
  • social activities
  • special interests

If the personal statement is to accompany a curriculum vitae (CV) do not list your formal educational qualifications or a record of your employment.

These items should be arranged to create a clear structure. Show your first ideas to family and friends. They might think of skills or advantages that you possess but have taken for granted or forgotten.

Here are some general points about generating ideas for writing your personal statement.

Multiple drafts

Do it all your preliminary writing in rough first, and be prepared to do two or three versions before you get the right combination of words.

Do not be tempted to cut and paste materials off the Internet. There are now plagiarism checkers which will spot text that has been copied from somewhere else.

If you are applying to university, try to link your hobbies and experience(s) to the courses you are applying for. You need to show why you are interested in your chosen subject.

Write the final draft in short clear sentences, and use short paragraphs that make the content easy to read. Use sub-titles that indicate clearly what each section is about.

When you have produced your final draft – no matter how long it has taken – always check your spelling, grammar, and punctuation before submitting the final document.

© Roy Johnson 2014

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How to write a report

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planning, structure, writing, and presentation skills

What is a report?

How to write a ReportA report is a detailed and well-organised document that defines and analyses a subject or a problem.

A report should always be accurate, concise, clearly written, and well structured.

A report might also record a sequence of events, evaluate a product or a process, discuss a series of proposals, or make a number of recommendations.

A report should include all the information necessary for the reader to understand the topic under discussion and make informed decisions about it.

The purpose of a report

Reports are used in education, business, finance, government, manufacturing, and scientific research.

In small and medium companies they usually communicate information from one company to another. In large companies they communicate information between personnel.

You might write a report when applying for a grant; to accompany a business proposal; or to describe a project which has been commissioned.

Reports might also be important to record the progress of a business – as in a company’s annual report.

Reports do not have to be long – or boring. They should be clear and easy to understand, especially if they are written for somebody else.

How to write a report

Writing a report is often a major undertaking for many people. The task can be made easier by breaking it down into a series of steps. The following are recommended as guidelines for writing reports.

Stage 1 – Choose the type of report

Stage 2 – Decide the purpose of report

Stage 3 – Choose report sub-headings

Stage 4 – Assess your data

Stage 5 – Draft the report

Stage 6 – Edit and proof read

If you need to produce a report whose type is not discussed here, follow the same principles. That is – first of all think carefully about the form or kind of document you are going to produce.

It will help you enormously if you get hold of an example of the type of report you need to produce. In particular, study its structure, and use that as a model for what you have to write.

You might need to adapt another type of report for your purposes. If you need to create your own type of report, follow the guidelines for creating good structure in documents.

Acquaint yourself with some examples of various report types. This will help you to decide which type of report you need.

Stage 1 — Types of report

1. A meeting report communicates the details of a meeting to people who did not attend. It may also go to people who did attend, as a summary of events for future reference.

The minutes of a meeting record the major points made by a group of two or more people who conduct a meeting.

2. A project report is a record kept by the project manager, and is presented to management or sponsors. It usually details chronologically the events, achievements and attainment of a project’s targets and objectives.

3. A feasibility report is similar to a problem-recommendation report but it describes one possible solution in detail and makes recommendations.

4. A sales report gives the details of a salesperson’s contact with a specific customer or company – indicating whether or not sales have been made.

5. A status report tells the management what has been happening on a project, and to what degree it is going according to plan.

6. A problem recommendation report outlines the writer’s investigation into a particular problem and recommends a course of action to solve the problem

7. A site-visit report summarises the conditions which obtain at a particular location in relation to a project – such as the construction of a building.

8. A company report is the record of a business and its recent history, made usually at the end of a financial year. It combines management strategies, sales results, and accounts.

Stage 2 — The purpose of your report

The purpose of a report will have an effect on both its content and the manner in which it is presented.

A good starting point is to write out the purpose of the report in a sentence or two. This ‘purpose statement’ will help you to focus on your primary needs. It will help you by giving the report both a starting point and a goal.

Typical examples of purpose are to inform, instruct, persuade, or to record.

A report may have more than one purpose – just as it might have more than one audience. For instance, a company’s annual report is a statement for the directors, the shareholders, and the public in general.

An academic report (say, in science or engineering) may have a double purpose. First the recording of an experiement or a field visit. Second, demonstrating that the author is familiar with the conventions of academic writing in that discipline.

A commercial sales report might be used by regional and national sales managers, a finance controller, and the chief executive officer (CEO).

These various parties will be interested in different aspects of the report. And since each reader has different interests in the report’s content, it is important to plan the report so that it includes the information each reader is looking for.

Stage 3 — Report headings and sub-headings

Choose the sub-headings for your report from the following list. Doing this at the planning stage will help you to write a clear report which is easy for your recipient to read.

Arrange the sub-headings in conjunction with your main headings at a later stage. The following list of headings which belong with report types is arranged in alphabetical order.

Action needed

Example
Please select an appropriate time and place to meet and inform the members of the team.

Assumption

Example
The project team will consist of one half-time systems analyst and two full-time, experienced programmers.

Attachment

Example
You will find the following attachments which establish the legal status of this policy.

Background

Example
I met the Chair of Needwell last Thursday and we agreed that I would send you information regarding the expansion plans.

Benefit

Example
The benefits of a fully implemented WebCT system are as follows:

  • better utilisation of resources
  • a balanced production load
  • decreased stock in inventory
  • decreased order expediting
  • reduced production costs

Caution

Example
Although there is a new policy for internal promotion, there are more people qualified for advancement than there are slots available.

Constraint

Example
The union contract permits only eight hours work per day before overtime must be paid.

Contact

Example
If you or anyone in your department wants to submit comments on our new word processing equipment, send them in writing to J.Bloggs Staff Depot

Deadline

Example
These changes apply to all applications we receive on or after 10 October 2015

Decision needed

Example
Please let me know when we can meet to design a new form for travel reimbursement.

Implication

Example
If the Company adopts the proposed retirement policy we can anticipate the following:

  • a large pool of experienced executive talent for our T Project
  • improved morale among all employees approaching retirement age
  • slightly higher costs of medical expenses and insurance

Importance

Example
If we do not have our new word-processing equipment running by 17 September 2010, we will not be able to support the production goals.

Introduction

Example
The Fine Food Marketing Company has recently entered the health food industry with a brand new type of food supplement called Gatewell.

Law

Example
The commissioner of environmental quality engineering or his designee may issue orders in the name of the department of environmental quality on being presented with proof of the violation of any statute, rule, regulation, or code which the department is authorized to enforce.

Objective

Example
We expect that the new system will be fully operational by May 2006

Options

Example
The company has two staffing options available for this project

  1. use entirely new employees
  2. use a mix of employees and contractors

Policy

Example
This company will employ individuals without regard to race, colour, gender, or national origin.

Problem

Example
Our work processing system does not have the capability to handle special graphic presentations. This causes a loss of business.

Purpose

Example
The purpose of the meeting is to make and document an action plan for opening the Greenleaf Site.

Rationale

Example
Our decision to avoid genetically modified elements in our wines is based on the lack of evidence currently available concerning the effects of GM elements.

Recommendation

Example
In conclusion, we strongly recommend that new measures be put in place for testing our boilers for corrosion.

Reference

Example
Please refer to the Critical Quarterly for reviews on the publications mentioned in the body of this report.

Schedule

Example
The schedule below gives details of the staffing responsibilities

  • Week 1 Payroll
  • Week 2 Personnel
  • Week 3 Support Team

Source

Example
I found the statistics for the Boston Flyer in The Engineering Journal published May 2000.

Speaker

Example
Tuesday’s speaker will be Sir Harold Busby, Chairman of Astrolux.

Summary

Example
This report has examined the feasibility of a merger between Minibok and Fair Trading. It has examined the financial and social implications.

Stage 4 — Assess the data

Before sitting down to write your report, make sure you have all the research data to hand. Mark out each part of the data, allocating it to one of your sub-headings.

If you have some data which doesn’t fit any of the sub-headings, think carefully about whether to create a heading which fits the data or whether to discard the data as irrelevant.

It is perfectly normal to gather data which is not needed in the final report. Do not feel obliged to include material just because it exists.

Stage 5 — Draft the report

Draft your report in short sections, under each one of your headings or sub-headings. This way, you will be able to rearrange the sequence, or delete some content.

Working in short sections makes writing an easier process. Use the following guidelines for drafting the sections.

Create readability by structure

Your reader will digest the document most efficiently if the text is broken down into bite-size sections. Large dense blocks of text are overfacing and difficult for the eye to deal with.

Your sections should comprise no more than ten lines. Here is an example of the bite-size section.

Increased sales

New customers
The sales team has broken all records this month.
The number of new customers has rocketed from last month’s total of 10,000 to 12,975.

Additional bonuses
In view of this we are giving all members of the sales team an additional bonus of 0.5 per cent.

Create readability by relevance

Each section should contain one idea. Nothing else should be added. Extra ideas, even if they are connected with the subject, should be given their own paragraph.

In the example given above, the topic of increased sales stands alone. The extra topic of bonuses is related, but comprises a separate paragraph.

Create readability by navigation

Each topic in your report should have a signpost or a sub-heading. This prepares your reader for what is to follow.

It also helps the reader in referring back efficiently to a specific point or topic. In the example given above, each topic is signposted to prepare the reader for what is coming.

The heading ‘Increased sales’ introduces the main topic, whilst ‘new customers’ and ‘additional bonuses’ announce the sub-topics.

Create readability by verbal consistency

Your reader will digest your report quickly and efficiently if you use layout, headings, font style, and vocabulary consistently.

Reports are entirely functional and therefore quick, efficient reading is your objective.

In the example given above, vocabulary is used consistently. The word ‘sales’ is used both in the main heading and in the body text The word ‘customer’ is used both in the sub-heading and in the body text

Create readability by visual consistency

Consistency helps readers to find their way in a document. At every level of the document you should use consistency in:

Visual presentation

  • Font type and size
  • Page layout
  • Main Headings
  • Sub-headings
  • Bulleted lists
  • Numbered lists
  • Page numbering
  • Justification (right, left, centre, full)

Consistent language

  • Vocabulary
  • Sentence size
  • Sentence construction
  • Style of expression


Follow the guidelines on How to present documents to give your report a professional appearance.

Stage 6 — Edit and proof read

Editing and proof reading a substantial report might be a lengthy and time-consuming process. But it will make the difference between an amateur and a professional piece of work.

Editing is the process of checking your work very carefully in order to –

  • remove any spelling mistakes
  • check your grammar
  • make your punctuation consistent
  • re-write any clumsy expressions

Proof reading is the very last stage of making any changes. At this point it is assumed that the content of the report has been checked for accuracy, grammar, and punctuation.

Proof reading looks at the presentation of the text in even greater detail – mainly for matters of bibliographic and typographic consistency.

  • Capitalization of headings
  • Font size and style
  • Spacing between paragraphs
  • Regularity of indentation
  • Consistent use of italics and bold

Follow the guidelines on Editing your writing to produce a document which is free from minor blemishes.

Sample report structure

Title page

[This should normally include the following as a basic minimum]

the title of the report

the name of the author

or

the name of the organisation

the date

Acknowledgements

[If necessary – in longer reports]

A list of people and organisations who have helped in the production of the report.

Contents page

[Always included in any reports of more than a few pages]

A clear list of all the sections and sub-sections in the report – with page numbers.

If applicable, there should be a separate list of tables, figures, illustrations and appendices after the main index.

The headings in this list should correspond exactly with those in the main body of the report. Generate the list of contents after completing the report.

Terms of reference

[Sometimes included]

A definition of the task or the brief you were given. This is statement of the specific objective and purpose behind writing the report.

Even if you don’t include this as a heading, it is a vital process to go through in your planning.

  • What exactly is your report going to be about?
  • Who exactly is responsible for what?
  • How long have you got? What is your task timescale?
  • Why are you writing the report?
  • Who are you writing the report for?
  • What does your reader want to see?

Procedure

[sometimes included]

How your research was carried out; how the information was gathered and treated.

This section might also be called ‘methodology’ in some reports.

Materials and methods

[included if appropriate]

Similar to methodology or procedure, but more appropriate to scientific or engineering report writing. The following advice comes from Robert Barrass’ book Scientists Must Write (Chapman & Hall, 1978, pp.135-136).

1. List the equipment used and draw anything that requires description (unless this is very simple).

2. State the conditions of the experiment and the procedure, with any precautions necessary to ensure accuracy and safety. However, when several experiments are reported, some details may fit better in the appropriate parts of the Results section.

3. Write the stages in any new procedure in the order of implementation, and describe in detail any new technique or modifications of an established technique.

4. If necessary, refer to preliminary experiments and to any consequent changes in technique. Describe your controls adequately.

5. Include information on the purity and structure of the materials used, and on the source of the material and the method of preparation.

Summary

[usually included in longer reports]

This is a short summary of the entire report, created for those people who may not have time to read the entire document.

This is often called the Executive Summary (in business reporting), Abstract (in a dissertation or thesis) or Synopsis (in a scholarly work).

It’s a very brief outline of the report to give the potential reader a general idea of what it’s about. A statement of:

  • overall aims and specific objectives
  • method or procedure used
  • key findings
  • main conclusions and recommendations

Introduction

This might be optional, but writing an introduction will help you to describe your overall purpose.

This should show that you have fully understood the brief and that you are going to cover everything required. Indicate the basic structure of the report.

Include just a little background or context and indicate the reasons for writing the report. You may include your terms of reference and procedure or research methods if not covered elsewhere.

Your introduction will often give an indication of the conclusion to the report.

Write this last of all so that you know what it is you’re introducing. You could have a working introduction that is edited when the body of the report is complete.

Main body of the report

This is the substance of your report. The structure will vary according to the nature of the material being presented, with headings and sub-headings used to clearly indicate the different sections.

Charts, diagrams, tables, and illustrations can be used to reinforce the points your are making.

Sometimes it may be better to include these as an Appendix, particularly if they are long or complicated.

Do not include opinions, conclusions or recommendations in this section.

Results

[included mainly in scientific or engineering reports]

This section records your observations and would normally include statistics, tables or graphs.

These are called ‘findings’ in a business context.

Conclusion

[always included]

Your conclusion should state the implications of your findings, with deductions based on the facts described in your main body. Don’t include any new material here.

Recommendations

[if required]

These should follow on logically from your conclusion and be specific, measurable and achievable. They should propose how the situation or problem could be improved by suggesting action to be taken. A ‘statement of costs’ might be included if you are recommending changes that have financial implications.

Recommendations can be numbered for the sake of clarity.

Appendices

(if required)

An appendix (plural=appendices) is detailed documentation of points you outline in your findings, for example, technical data, questionnaires, letters sent, tables, sketches, charts, leaflets.

It is supplementary information which you consider to be too long or complicated or not quite relevant enough to include in your main body, but which still should be of interest to your reader.

Each appendix should be referred to in your text. You should not include something as an appendix if it is not discussed in the main body.

References

[if required]

This is a list giving the full details of all the sources to which you have made reference in the body of your report.

Bibliography

[sometimes included]

This is a list of all the sources which you have used during your research – books, articles, and web sites. It should include those you have made reference to in your writing, as well as any other materials you may have consulted but not quoted.

Glossary

[occasionally included]

A glossary contains specialist terms with their contextual definitions. This is particularly useful when specialist terms have been used in the report.

Include a glossary of terms if the report includes a lot of specialised vocabulary, technical jargon, or acronyms which may not be familiar to the reader.

© Roy Johnson 2013

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How to write a thesis abstract

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tutorial – guidance notes – example – tips

A thesis abstract – definition

A thesis abstract is a digest or a shorter version of the whole thesis. The abstract draws out in summary what’s in the complete thesis. It might also be known as a précis or a synopsis. The term abstract derives from the Latin ab— (away from) and tract— (to draw).

Purpose of an abstract

The original purpose of an abstract is to give an overview of the whole work. This enables a reader to determine the relevance of the thesis for their own purposes.

For instance, a librarian might read the abstract in order to know how to catalogue the thesis. Specialist researchers would read the abstract to see if the work as a whole covered the same topic on which they were working.

The function of the abstract is to prepare the reader for the full document. This is why the substance of the abstract must reflect the essence of the research in terms of —

  1. topic
  2. focus of the hypothesis
  3. methodology
  4. results
  5. rationale

For a supervisor, it sets the work in a useful context of overview. For a fellow student it facilitates research by indicating the content in summary and therefore making selection of resources more efficient.

Form

The abstract is a detachable, unbound section of the thesis normally comprising a single A4 page.

Length

The abstract should be very concise – maybe as little as a single paragraph of (say) 500 words. That’s why an abstract is quite difficult to write. You need to compress the whole of the thesis into an abbreviated series of statements, omitting illustrative details. There is no room for any padding. It requires good summarizing skills.

Example

Here’s an example of an abstract from a study of fire in plant-mammal interactions. Below it is an edited version showing that the abstract follows the criteria enumerated above.

The Latitudinal Defense Hypothesis predicts that levels of defense are highest near the equator and decrease toward the poles. This hypothesis is based mainly on insect herbivory that occurs during the summer. Mammilian herbivory in the winter is a more likely driver of plant defense levels in northern latitudes. Early successional trees such as birches are favored by fire and provide an important food source for mammals like snowshoe hares. In order to test the Latitudinal Defense Hypothesis, we collected birch seeds from eight locations in northwestern Canada and grew seedlings in a common garden. We assessed levels of defense by counting resin glands because resin glands are negatively correlated with snowshoe hare preference. This research will provide valuable information regarding the biogeography of defense and address the role of fire in plant-mammal interactions on a continental scale.

Analysis of an example abstract

1. Initial statement of the overall topic.

The Latitudinal Defense Hypothesis predicts that levels of defense are highest near the equator and decrease toward the poles. This hypothesis is based mainly on insect herbivory that occurs during the summer.

2. Brief statement of the specific focus of the hypothesis.

Mammilian herbivory in the winter is a more likely driver of plant defense levels in northern latitudes. Early successional trees such as birches are favored by fire and provide an important food source for mammals like snowshoe hares.

3. Explanation of the methodology

In order to test the Latitudinal Defense Hypothesis, we collected birch seeds from eight locations in northwestern Canada and grew seedlings in a common garden. We assessed levels of defense by counting resin glands because resin glands are negatively correlated with snowshoe hare preference.

4. Indication of the results

We found that the number of resin glands from the seedlings raised in a common garden was less than those collected in the eight locations chosen for our study….

4. Rationale of research

This research will provide valuable information regarding the biogeography of defense and address the role of fire in plant-mammal interactions on a continental scale.

Structure of the abstract

The chronological structure of the abstract is not as important as the crucial need to include the four topics exemplified in the example given above.

In some cases, ‘Rationale’ might precede ‘Results’. But it does make obvious sense to begin with the ‘Initial statement of the topic’.

How to write the abstract

Your abstract should be written after you’ve finished your thesis. The difficult part is to summarise in one page a substantial research project which might have taken up to two years to complete.

Preparation

  1. Tell one of your enlightened peers what your thesis is about
  2. Ask if they’ve understood your account
  3. If they have understood, write down what you said as quickly as possible in rough draft
  4. If they haven’t understood, tell them again in a different way
  5. Write down that version in rough draft form

Writing process

  • Write the title of your thesis then add the word ‘abstract’
  • Type the numbered headings shown above.
  • Use your notes to fill in the content in each case.
  • Read the abstract through.
  • Remove the headings but keep the separate paragraphs
  • Tidy up the expression so that the prose is fluent
Notes

Make sure that you –

  • Write your abstract in the same style and tone as the thesis
  • Remember it’s just a taster to the main event – but like a menu it has to show what’s there
  • Include all four elements shown in the sample
  • Don’t boast about your research or your achievements in the abstract. Let the work speak for itself.
  • Don’t be tempted to rush the abstract, thinking it’s less important than the thesis. It’s all part of the same project
  • Don’t use personal references or colloquial expressions. This is a professional document.
  • Don’t include sentimental acknowledgements in the abstract.
Details

The abstract is normally written in the past tense. That’s because it is written when the research has been completed and the thesis has already been written. The abstract should also be written last.

Do not use headings in an abstract. For instance – Introduction, Objectives, Methods, Results, and Conclusions. Your explanation of the thesis should be written in continuous prose.

The abstract should be written using the third person passive mode. ‘Samples of the oxides were analysed by …’. It’s possible that the thesis itself is written using the first person – ‘I (or we) collected samples using …’ – but the abstract needs to be more impersonal and objective.

Don’t use abbreviations, contractions, and acronyms in the abstract. If this is unavoidable, you should write out the term in full the first time it is used, followed by the abbreviation in brackets. For example – “Magnetic Photo-Scanning (MPS) was used to …”

© Roy Johnson 2012

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How to write a web page

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creating effective text for on-screen reading

Web PageIn order the communicate effectively on the Internet, you need to know how to write a web page that is successful.

Web pages are available for the whole world to see – but you will no doubt have an audience in mind.

Your audience is the people you hope to be addressing. They might be – fellow hobbyists, opinion makers, customers for products, or fan club members.

So – you have your own target audience, but anybody else can read your pages. There is therefor another audience about which you can know nothing (in advance).

If you want to reach as many people as possible, keep this invisible audience in mind. Write in a clear and simple manner. Avoid jargon and complicated expressions.

Layout

A web page is not the same thing as printed document. It might look similar, but it does different things. Your writing needs to be grammatically correct and free from mistakes. But it will not be read in the same way as a book or even a magazine.

People scan a web page before they read it. They glance at the overall content first. They read headings and sub-headings, glance at pictures, and even look for links.

Reading text on a screen is much harder than reading it on a printed page. This means that your writing needs to be different in style.

Your objectives

The function of a web page will depend upon your objectives. The page could be designed to offer a number of things:

  • news
  • information
  • entertainment
  • instruction
  • advice

This will have an effect on the way you deliver the content. But no matter what the function, there are certain golden rules that will help to make any web page effective.

Style

All your writing should be split up into small chunks. Huge blocks of writing on a screen are very difficult to read. The short paragraph is an important part of writing for the Web. This allows readers to grasp what you have to say more quickly.

Have a look at online newspapers. They use short and even one-sentence paragraphs.

Employ as many devices as possible to break up dense blocks of writing. Use headings, sub-headings, bold, and italics. Add graphics where appropriate and use bulleted lists.

Short sentences are easier to read than long ones. This is true on paper, but even more so when writing for the screen. Put a limit of twenty words per sentence on your writing – and watch its effectiveness improve!

The most effective way to communicate with general readers is to write directly in a simple, friendly manner.

Don’t forget that only a small part of a long web page will appear in the monitor screen at any one time. In such cases it’s important that you offer readers clear signals to find their way around.

Vocabulary

The language you use will be conditioned by your subject and the audience you are trying to reach (as well as the extent of your own vocabulary).

If you have a specialist subject and audience (agricultural biology, jet engine design) you will naturally be using the specialist language of your subject (jargon). But if you wish to reach a wide and general public, it’s better to keep you language plain and simple.

There’s no point in using a term such as aerated beverages when fizzy drinks will be understood just as well.

Conventions

It’s not necessary to know HTML coding to write a web page. Most software will do this for you. But a little knowledge will help you control the appearance of the page.

Use the text editing menus that appear in Microsoft Word and the page creation panels of most blogging software (Blogger, WordPress). These will give you the option to put text in bold, italics, and even colour.

A screen of text with different fonts, colours, and emphasis splattered all over the page looks bad. The golden rule here is this – Less is more. Restraint will help you achieve a more impressive appearance.

  • Headings in bold and a larger font size
  • Sub-headings in bold
  • Italics for emphasis and foreign words
  • No use of underlining at all

Underlining makes text hard to read, and the underlining can be confused with a hyperlink.

Examples

You are looking at an example of a web page right now. This type of page is called a ‘How to’ in the language of Web commerce. That is, it offers simple guidance notes on a single topic. Here are three more very different types of page.

Historical document
The first is from the nineteenth century. None of the above guidance notes apply, because readers want the document in a form that is as similar as possible to the original.

Red button Henry James on ‘The Art of Fiction’

Essay
The second is to a short illustrated essay on an artistic movement. This is the sort of article that might normal occupy a few pages in a magazine or a weekend newspaper supplement. It has graphics, links to related subject, and it also contains advertising.

Red button The Omega Workshops

Newspaper
The third is the online version of a daily newspaper. Notice how this page is made up of very short extracts, with links to the full articles, which are located on separate pages. The front page is packed with links, graphics, and advertising. It is also composed ‘dynamically’ – which means that it is updated every few minutes with new content.

Red button The Guardian

© Roy Johnson 2010

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How to write an executive summary

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tutorial, guidance notes, and examples

What is an executive summary?

Business reports often have an introductory section called an ‘executive summary’. This is a self-contained part of the total document – sometimes known as a ‘management summary’.

Executive SummaryIts purpose is to summarise the most important points expressed in the main document. It will usually contain brief statements regarding proposed actions, background information to the document, concise statistics or factual evidence, and principal conclusions.

The summary is usually placed at the beginning of the report or proposal. It might be printed as a separate document and circulated either along with or separately from the main report or proposal.

An executive summary is often written for an audience of senior managers, important decision-makers, potential customers, or committee members. In some cases it might also be circulated to members of the public – to demonstrate the effectiveness and proper conduct of the organisation.

It is a summary available for people who might not have time or may not need to read the entire report. But they might need to know its main points or recommendations, in order to participate in some decision-making process.

The audience for an executive summary might also include members of the public or employees of another organisation – for instance in cases where you might be applying for a grant or offering a product or service.

How is it different to an abstract?

An executive summary is different to the ‘abstract’ of a document – in that an abstract is normally a neutral précis of the whole document. The purpose of an abstract is to give readers an outline of the subject, so that they can decide whether to read the whole document or not.

An executive summary on the other hand normally contains concrete proposals for further action, and the evidence on which these decisions will be taken. It contains within it, even if by implication, calls to action.

It has its own separate heading, and is often constructed so that it can be detached from the main document if necessary.

The structure of an executive summary

The executive summary might even begin with its conclusions! This can act as a sort of a summary of the summary.

For example, in a feasibility report, the executive summary would contain a statement about the main findings of the report, and its recommendations. What follows might be the arguments or the evidence upon which these decision have been taken.

That level of detail is used by those who have a significant responsibility in the decision-making and the implementation of the project.

An executive summary should occupy only one or two pages of text maximum. If it goes on much longer than that, it ceases to be a summary and loses its purpose.

It might normally include an introductory statement, a summary of the findings, and a conclusion containing recommendations or action points. In some cases, its structure might usefully echo that of the main document. You should use clear sub-headings to make the structure clear.

Here is an example of an executive summary which is part of a feasibility report on ‘Setting Up a Company Website’.

Executive Summary

Findings so far

From the responses I have received so far, we already have the following information:

  • key benefits we would derive from a company Website
  • key issues to be addressed before developing the site

Decisions to be made

We need to be able to make the following decisions at the meeting arranged for Friday 2 June.

  • establish the benefits of a company Website
  • identify any key issues which must be addressed
  • identify any possible solutions to potential problems
  • estimate approximate costs for design and maintenance
  • agree on the next stage of the project

Key benefits

We have already established the following key benefits of introducing a company Website:

  • identify new products
  • establish new contacts
  • provide a 24 hour information service for Sales staff
  • provide an effective sales support system
  • widen the audience for our products
  • allow customers to sample our products
Writing the executive summary

If you have written the complete version of the report, your task is simply to make a digest of the full document. For this you will require good summarizing skills.

For a long report, you should make a summary of each section using just a few sentences – then if necessary, reduce these even further, or list them as short bullet points.

Readers can absorb complex data more easily if it is translated into diagrams or ‘information graphics’. Use tables, pie charts, and graphs in which trends and statistics can be seen clearly, without specialist knowledge.

The executive summary should contain less jargon than the full report. That’s because there might be non-specialists involved in the decision-making process. In some cases the executive summary might be something intended for a public audience – such as the summary of a charity’s annual report, demonstrating how it had spent last year’s money, and what its priorities are for the coming year.

The executive summary is written last – after the full formal report has been completed. Yet paradoxically, it comes first when the full contents are assembled for consideration – either as a PowerPoint presentation or in the form of a printed booklet.

The structure of an executive summary

The structure or the sequence headings in your executive summary can follow the same sequence as in the main document or report – with one exception. The conclusions of an executive summary come first, whereas in the main report they are likely to come at the end, followed only by appendices and bibliographies.

Sample summary structure

This is an example of an executive summary in abbreviated form, so as to reveal more effectively its structure. It comes from an imaginary report into a proposal to build a new vehicle access road into an airport.

Conclusions

Manchester Airport Authority (MAA) recommends that its proposal for the new vehicle access road be accepted in the recently modified format dated 12 June 2012.

Consultation with the government’s transport select committee over shared funding of this project will continue, but should not be allowed to delay the commencement of building in March 2014.

Responsibility for the management of the project will rest with RoadBuild Projects Ltd, answerable to the Department of Transport and Greater Manchester Transport Executive

Evidence from Transport Select Committee

This is summarised in Appendix A of the full report.

Evidence from public enquiry

This is summarised in Appendix B of the full report.

Environmental factors

The two principal environmental concerns raised during the consultation period have been related to traffic density on the new approach road and loss of greenfield sites.

It is estimated that building the new approach road will result in a 50% rise in traffic density on a daily basis on the western approach to the airport. This will require considerable expansion in both parking facilities and modifications in existing roads to maintain traffic flow.

Compensation costs for greenfield site acquisition have been built into the project budget, and wherever possible existing brownfield sites have been designated for any expansion of parking facilities.

Costings

These are shown in Table II of the full report.

Building schedule

This is given in Appendix C of the full report.
The writer’s responsibilities

In order to produce the executive summary, you need to have a very clear understanding of the document as a whole. You will also need to know exactly what conclusions can be drawn from it, and the nature of any decision which are to be taken.

If you have only been actively engaged in a part or only one aspect of the whole process with which the report deals, you will need to check with the ‘core participants’ that your understanding of the details is complete and correct.

For instance, you might be given the responsibility for preparing an executive summary simply as a secretarial task. You might not have attended crucial decision-making meetings or done any of the original research with which the report deals. In such cases you should prepare the summary in close liaison with the principal figures associated with the report.

These might be a managing director, a lead researcher, or the chair and secretary of a committee.

© Roy Johnson 2012

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How to write book reviews

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book reviewsnotes and style guide for reviewers

1. Good book reviews should as a bare minimum be informative, but if they are good they will also be entertaining. Keep three things in mind whilst writing – your readers, the type of review, and the purpose of the review.

2. Your readers may be beginners – or advanced specialists. You should write reviews in different ways, according to the audience. A general reader will not have detailed technical knowledge. Advanced readers will want specialist information. The type of audience is likely to be determined by the publication – either in print or on the Web.

3. The kind of publication will also determine the type of review that is required. Popular newspapers and magazines have very short reviews – some as short as 100-200 words. Specialist journals might have reviews up to 2,000 words long. Make sure you have a clear idea of the type of review you are writing by getting to know the publication first.

4. The purpose of a review is to give an account of the subject in question (the book, film, play, or event) and offer a reasoned opinion about its qualities. Your main task is to report on the content, the approach, and the scope of the work for the benefit of your readers.

5. Even short reviews will be more successful if they have a firm structure. Here’s a bare-bones plan for a review:

  • Brief introduction
  • Description of contents
  • Assessment of value
  • Comparison with others
  • Conclusion

6. Unless you are writing for a specialist journal, you should write in an easy reader-friendly manner.

7. Some publications give their reviewers scope for showing off or being controversial. (Pop music, restaurant, and television reviewers seem particularly prone to this.) In general however, you will be doing your readers a favour by putting their interests before your own.

8. If you are writing for the Web (in pages like these) remember to write in shorter sentences and shorter paragraphs than you would for a print publication. Reading extended prose on a computer screen is not easy. You will keep your reader’s attention by ‘chunking’ your information.

9. Apart from professional journalists, most reviewers do not get paid. However, you will get to keep the book, CD, or the object you are reviewing.

Review Structure

Here is the structure of a typical book review from this Mantex web site.

1. Title

2. Sub-title

3. One-sentence summary (ten words maximum)

4. Opening paragraph. This should be attention-grabbing, conversational in tone, and it might be slightly provocative. It’s purpose is to introduce the work under review – and to encourage the site visitor to read on. (Fifty words maximum)

5. Body of review. This will be a series of short paragraphs – around fifty words each in length. The total length of the review should be between 500 and 1,000 words – with longer reviews for exceptionally good or interesting works.

6. The review should give some account of the work’s positive qualities.

7. A typical review might take into account any of the following topics:

  • What is the intended audience?
  • Is it physically well produced?
  • Is it pitched at the right level?
  • Does it have any unusual features?
  • What distinguishes it from similar publications of its type?

8. Concluding paragraph (fifty words maximum). This can summarise the reviewer’s opinion and may offer a personal flourish which echoes the introduction.

9. Full bibliographic details of the work under review – Author(s) – Title and Sub-title – Place of publication – Publisher – Date of publication – Number of pages – Full ISBN

10. The review should be accompanied by a graphic file of the book jacket or the software package design. These can be taken from the publisher’s site, or from Amazon.

Some Do’s and Don’ts

Do give examples
A brief quotation to illustrate good qualities of the work will brighten up your review. But keep it very short. Alternatively, use it as a ‘pull quote’. This is a statement which can appear separated from the main text of your review – placed in a box or highlighted in some way. These are usually chosen to capture the flavour of the work under review.

Don’t go on too long
Reviews which are short and to-the-point are more effective than ones which go on at great length. Unless you have lots of interesting things to say, readers will quickly become bored.

Don’t be over-negative
If you think something is entirely bad, then it’s probably not worth writing the review. After all, why bother giving publicity to bad work? There are only a couple of exceptions to this. One is if you wish to counter other reviews which you think have been mistaken or over-generous. The other is if the author is very well known and seems to you to have written badly. In such cases, make sure you give convincing reasons for your negative opinions – otherwise you risk seeming prejudiced.

How to write reviews of fiction

1. When reviewing fiction you are writing as an experienced reader, and your review is a personal response to your reading experience. A first person mode of address is permitted more than normal.

2. If possible you should consider the text in the context of the type or genre to which it belongs. It’s no good judging science fiction against the conventions of a traditional realist novel.

3. However, it always helps to have the full range of literary traditions in mind. If somebody writes about ‘floating islands’ you will look fairly silly if you don’t know that Jonathan Swift did it in 1726.

4. Give a brief summary of the plot – but don’t on any account give away any surprise or trick endings. You can say that the book ends in a dramatic or unexpected manner, but don’t spoil the reader’s pleasure.

5. Consider the book in the light of others of its kind. Is it offering something new, or just a variation on an old theme? Maybe the variation itself reflects some contemporary issue?

6. Comment on the quality of the writing. Is the prose style worthy of mention? Here is where a brief quotation can be very telling. Does the author do anything original in the way of presentation?

7. Are any large scale contemporary themes being explored? What are the underlying issues beneath the surface story-line? These may not be immediately evident, and sometimes authors write about one subject as a metaphor or a symbol for another.

8. Are the characters vividly portrayed and memorable? If so, try to give a brief example.

9. Has the author given obvious thought to the plot and the structure of the novel? Plot is usually easy to perceive, but structure can be a more difficult feature to isolate and describe.

10. You do not need to cover every detail of the book. It will be enough if you deal with the most important issues. Make your review as interesting as possible.

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© Roy Johnson 2004

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