Chapter 10 Business Comm

The credentials and expertise of the project leaders and support staff; Use the staffing section of the proposal to promote the credentials and expertise of project leadership and staff.

Budget; The budget section of your proposal should present a list of project costs.

identify a serious problem and promise a solution to be revealed later in the proposal; Most proposals begin by briefly explaining the reasons for the proposal and by highlighting the writer's qualifications. However, you can make your proposal more persuasive by providing a hook that identifies a serious problem and promises a solution to be explained in greater detail later in the proposal. Analyze your audience and evaluate what will engage it immediately in your report. Sometimes it is a good idea to put off writing your introduction until after you have completed other parts. You can then better connect your introduction to the content of your message and the interests of your readers.

The constraints and limitations of the investigation and analysis; The scope refers to the constraints and limitations of the investigation. Defining the scope will help you narrow your research and analysis and define your purpose.

The team's findings will be established; Use strong, active verbs when writing the purpose statement of your formal report. A strong purpose statement that pinpoints the research and uses action verbs will help guide your research and writing.

Where should I place the conclusions/recommendations? How should I organize the findings?; As you begin to organize your report, ask yourself these questions: Where should I place the conclusions/recommendations? How should I organize the findings? A well-organized report will help you get your points across more effectively than a poorly organized report.

Lack of search tools; Because there is so much information on the Web, your research might be time-consuming and frustrating.

They provide initial background information on topics that require more in-depth research.; Online encyclopedias like Wikipedia are good sources for initial background information on topics that will require more in-depth research.

In-depth historical data; Although books can quickly become outdated, they provide excellent historical, in-depth data and can be located through print or online listings.

Express your appreciation, and ask for permission to telephone later to verify points.; End the interview graciously by expressing your appreciation. Make sure to ask for permission to telephone later if you need to verify points.

include good data from reputable sources; Strengthening your argument by including good data from reputable sources will convince readers of your credibility.

Read the original material carefully, and then write your own version without looking at the original.

The month of publication; The documentation data you will need for a book include the title, author(s), publisher, place of publication, year of publication, and pages cited.

another person's words, ideas, opinions, examples, or theories; Avoid plagiarism by giving credit when using another person's words, ideas, opinions, examples, or theories.

5 to 200 pages; Formal proposals do not differ from informal proposals in style. They differ in tone, structure, and length. Formal proposals can range from 5 to 200 pages and often contain additional sections, such as an executive summary and a letter of transmittal.

Informal; In this case, you would send a letter or informal proposal. Submit an informal proposal or letter proposal for small projects. Use formal proposals for large projects.

An announcement of the topic and affirmation of the proposal authorization; Letters of transmittal should address the recipient of the proposal; state the topic and affirm the proposal authorization; describe the project; briefly present major findings, conclusions, and recommendations; and close with appreciation for the assignment or instruction for follow-up action. Your letter of transmittal does not need to include a review of the formal RFP or a résumé listing previous projects.

A letter or memo of transmittal acts as an introduction to a formal report.; A letter or memo of transmittal acts as an introduction to a formal report. It announces and describes the project, highlights the report's findings, and closes with appreciation for the assignment.

Body; The body is the division of a final report that contains the introduction, discussion of findings, summary, conclusions, and recommendations.

explain what the findings mean in terms of solving the original problem; The conclusion to a report explains what the findings mean, particularly in terms of solving the original problem.

Background; The background section describes events leading up to the problem or need.

external; Proposals are persuasive written offers to solve problems, provide services, or sell products. While internal proposals may take the form of justification or recommendation reports, most proposals are external and are a critical means of selling services or products that generate income.

Solicited; External proposals fall into two categories: solicited and unsolicited. Most proposals are solicited through a request for proposal (RFP) posted by an organization that needs a specific product or service.

infrequently; Formal reports are infrequently seen in the workplace; however, they fulfill an important function and are used to provide vital data to be used in the decision-making process.

To make an offer to solve problems, provide services, or sell products; A proposal is a written offer to solve problems, provide services, or sell products. See page 299.

proposals are informative documents that use formal language; Proposals can be informal or formal, internal or external, and solicited or unsolicited. In addition, proposals are persuasive documents that use easy-to-understand language to show the value and benefits of the product or services being recommended. See pages 299-301.

Formal business reports present findings and recommendations.; Although formal business reports and formal proposals are similar in length, organization, and tone, formal business reports present findings and recommendations based on research and data analysis. See page 305.

determine the precise boundaries of the report The planning of every report should begin by defining the project and by writing a statement of purpose that explains the goal, significance, and limitations of the report. See page 305.

To assess the credibility of a Web page, you must scrutinize what you find for its currency, authority, content, and accuracy. See pages 311-312.

strengthen their arguments and add credibility to their reports; Documenting information strengthens arguments and builds credibility, helps readers learn more about the topic, and provides protection from charges of plagiarism. Documenting sources also provides proper credit to the ideas of others that are often borrowed in the dynamic, fast-paced business world. See page 316.

Common knowledge

Executive summary; The executive summary is a condensed version of an entire report; it is a time-saving device that summarizes the report's major sections, such as the purpose, background, conclusions, and recommendations. See pages 326-327.

True; All proposal types should use easy-to-understand language and show the value and benefits of the product or services being recommended. See page 299.

False; The budget section of a proposal lists the projected costs. Therefore, this section needs to be prepared carefully because it represents a contract and cannot be altered. Even if your costs increase, you cannot raise the project costs later. See page 304.

True; Surveys collect information from groups of people, making them an efficient and economical means to collect primary data for reports. See page 313.