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Chapter 10—Test Bank
Proposals and Formal Reports
DIFFICULTY (DIF) TYPE OTHER CODES
5 = Most difficult Ap: Application question ANS: Answer
3 = Average difficulty Con: Conceptual question REF: Page Reference
1 = Least difficult Def: Definition OBJ: Chapter Objective
NOT: Note (feedback/explanations)
AAC: AACSB Competencies
Multiple Choice
1. A company might prepare a proposal for which of the following reasons?
a. To show its compliance with Homeland Security rules and regulations
b. To solicit competitive bids for a new building
c. To inform company shareholders of an attempted hostile takeover
d. To bid for a contract to retrofit a local bridge
2. An RFP (request for proposals) can best be defined as
a. a document that solicits competitive bids on a project.
b. an offer to provide a service, sell equipment, or solve a problem.
c. an internal report justifying a request for additional staffing and equipment.
d. a persuasive sales presentation emphasizing benefits for the reader.
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3. Which of the following situations would most likely result in the writing of a request for
proposals (RFP)?
a. Your consulting firm has openings for two sales reps.
b. Your consulting firm wants to attract new clients.
c. Your consulting firm wants to completely renovate its offices.
d. Your consulting firm, which specializes in global business communication, wants to
start branching out into other specialty areas.
4. In addition to an introduction, the background information, and the proposal, informal
proposals often contain
a. staffing requirements, a budget, and an authorization request.
b. service dates, applicable laws and statutes, and a signed contract.
c. a bill for services rendered and a signed contract.
d. free prizes and other gimmicks.
5. You can make the introduction of a proposal more persuasive if you
a. explain in great detail how much better you are than your competitors.
b. hint at the problem you will solve but avoid explaining the reasons for the proposal.
c. remain as vague as possible to keep the reader intrigued.
d. provide a “hook,” such as mentioning a remarkable resource available exclusively to
the writer.
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6. Which of the following is the best tip to fight writer’s block when writing proposals?
a. Drink a lot of coffee to make your mind sharp.
b. Begin by making a bulleted list of what the customer wants and needs.
c. Start with a list of personal benefits to the writer of receiving the contract because
you know what these are.
d. If you experience writer’s block, you can’t write proposals because proposals must
adhere to deadlines.
7. In which part of a solicited proposal would you most likely convince your reader that
you understand the problem completely?
a. Introduction
b. Background
c. Authorization
d. Budget
8. If you decide to include a timetable for a project to be completed in your informal
proposal, in which section would you most likely put it?
a. Staffing
b. Authorization
c. Budget
d. Proposal
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9. What may be included in the staffing section of an informal proposal?
a. Credentials and expertise of project leaders
b. Size and qualifications of support staff
c. Resources such as computer facilities
d. All of the above may be included in the staffing section
10. The budget included in a proposal should
a. reflect careful research because a proposal is a legal contract.
b. provide only rough estimates so that you can raise the price later if costs increase.
c. never itemize hours and costs but offer only a total sum.
d. include a disclaimer to ensure that the budget is not legally binding.
11. Jeremy has decided to include a deadline for acceptance in his proposal to install
energy-efficient workstations for a local manufacturer. In which section should Jeremy
place the deadline?
a. Introduction
b. Background
c. Authorization Request
d. Proposal
12. The main differences between informal and formal proposals are
a. the primary and secondary audiences.
b. the style and need for correctness.
c. identification of resources used and placement of documentation.
d. tone, structure, format, and length.
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13. Although formal reports are similar to formal proposals, a primary difference is that
a. formal reports represent the end product of thorough investigation and analysis.
b. formal reports use a more conversational tone.
c. reports are written for internal audiences only.
d. more formal reports are written than formal proposals.
14. What is the first step in preparing to write a formal report?
a. Analyze your audience.
b. Research primary and secondary data.
c. Define the project and limit its scope.
d. Decide how many pages the report will be.
15. What is the best advice when writing a statement of purpose for a formal report?
a. Write a statement of purpose only for external formal reports.
b. Omit limitations because that will make the statement of purpose too negative.
c. Use action verbs in the statement of purpose that tell what you intend to do.
d. Do all of the above when writing statements of purpose.
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16. Primary research data can be defined as
a. information that comes from reading what others have experienced and observed.
b. information gained from firsthand experience and observation.
c. statistics collected during the first stage of research.
d. data you get from the Web.
17. Your boss asks you to write a formal report on the impact of smoking on employee
healthcare costs. Like nearly every writer of a research project, you should begin your
research by
a. reviewing secondary data in the library or on the Internet.
b. interviewing your colleagues on how they feel about the topic.
c. preparing a questionnaire to distribute to your colleagues.
d. conducting a field experiment.
18. Although researchers are increasingly using electronic data, you should learn to use
print resources because
a. electronic sources are never considered as reliable as books and magazines.
b. print sources provide primary data and electronic sources provide secondary data.
c. some data is available only in print.
d. audiences respect only writers who include data from print sources.
19. Many researchers today begin by looking in electronic databases because
a. they know that all data found in electronic databases is valid and reliable.
b. electronic databases are always a free resource if you have Internet access.
c. it is easy to cite sources found in an electronic database.
d. electronic databases are fast, cheap, and easy to use.
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20. Searching the Web requires a(n)
a. e-mail address.
b. Web browser.
c. handheld wireless device.
d. master’s degree.
21. What is the best advice for conducting a Web search?
a. When connecting to a search tool for the first time, always read the FAQs
(Frequently Asked Questions), Help, and How to Search sections.
b. Use one search tool only so that you can master it.
c. Use all uppercase letters for your searches.
d. Include articles and prepositions in search phrases to make searches more specific.
22. Surveys to collect firsthand data have advantages including that
a. those who respond to mailed or online surveys exactly represent the overall
population.
b. respondents can be relied on to respond openly and truthfully to anonymous surveys.
c. data can be gathered economically and efficiently.
d. return rates for online and mailed surveys are typically over 90 percent.
23. Brittany is writing a business report about protecting workplace data and will be
conducting an interview with a data security expert. What is the best advice you can
give her?
a. Call before the interview to confirm the arrangements, and then arrive on time.
b. Learn about the individual she is interviewing, and research the background and
terminology of the topic.
c. Use open-ended questions rather than yes-or-no questions to draw the expert out.
d. Brittany should do all of these things.
24. Which of the following statements about documenting data is not accurate?
a. Documenting data can strengthen your argument.
b. Documenting data protects you from charges of plagiarism.
c. Documenting data is not necessary if you put the information in your own words.
d. Documenting data helps the reader pursue the topic further.
25. Which of the following statements would need to be documented in a report?
a. Hurricane Ike caused extensive loss of property and lives in Texas.
b. You can get an idea of how dangerous a hurricane is by its rating.
c. Damaging wind and flooding rains, common in strong hurricanes, caused problems
for Texas during Hurricane Ike.
d. The Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale rates hurricanes with wind speeds of 114 to 131
knots as Category 4 storms.
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26. Which of the following is the best advice about using direct quotations in a report?
a. Beware of overusing quotations because you may appear as if you have no ideas of
your own.
b. If you use a direct quotation, don’t dilute its impact by summarizing it or
introducing it in your own words.
c. Place the direct quotation in quotation marks, but change a few words to show you
have your own ideas.
d. Direct quotations do not need to be placed in quotation marks if the audience is
already familiar with the quote, such as, “The buck stops here.”
27. Tyler is writing a report that analyzes the GlobalCom, Inc., market share of cell phone
subscriptions worldwide by region. He will probably organize his report
a. chronologically by the date the cell phone subscriptions reached their maximums.
b. around extensive secondary data to assure the reader that he conducted adequate
research before he wrote the report.
c. using a functional arrangement to show types of subscriptions globally.
d. geographically, with sections representing each region’s market share.
28. Which of the following is the best advice when using graphics in reports?
a. Don’t overuse color because too much color can be distracting and confusing.
b. Good graphics communicate clearly and need no further explanation in the body of
the report.
c. Misleading graphics in a report if their inclusion was unintentional.
d. All answer choices are good advice when incorporating graphics into reports.
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29. In her letter to policyholders, Min Yi needs a graphic depicting the procedure a
policyholder follows when filing a claim. Which of these would be most appropriate?
a. Organizational chart
b. Flowchart
c. Illustration
d. Table
30. The Discussion of Findings section of a report should do all of the following except
a. use graphics to illustrate key points.
b. use first-person pronouns.
c. analyze and interpret the research findings or solution.
d. present evidence to justify your conclusions.
True-False
1. The goal when writing business proposals and formal reports is to make them accessible
and useful to your readers.
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2. Proposals may be internal or external, but most proposals are external.
3. External proposals may be solicited or unsolicited, but most proposals are unsolicited.
4. Informal proposals are often presented in short (two- to four-page) letters.
5. Most proposals begin by explaining briefly the reasons for the proposal and by
highlighting the writer’s qualifications.
6. In a solicited proposal, your goal is to convince the reader that a problem exists.
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7. If you are responding to a request for proposals (RFP), avoid using the same language
of the RFP as doing so will show a lack of creativity.
8. Don’t include a deadline for acceptance in the budget section of a proposal because
doing so puts too much pressure on the reader.
9. Like proposals and informal reports, formal reports begin with a definition of the
project.
10. Secondary data come from reading what others have experienced and observed.
11. An advantage of secondary data over primary data is that secondary data are easier and
cheaper to develop.
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12. Books provide historical, in-depth data, whereas periodicals provide limited but current
coverage.
13. If you find information on the Web, you can be assured that it is reliable.
14. Businesses should avoid using social networking sites because they are for
entertainment and leisure only.
15. Both observation and experimentation produce firsthand data to clarify cause and effect.
16. Documenting data is necessary only when writing long reports and proposals.
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17. Because Web sites are used so often for research, you need provide only its URL when
documenting a Web site.
18. If you are worried about plagiarizing from your source, you can avoid the problem if
you use the grammatical structure of the original and just replace words with synonyms.
19. Katrina has decided to organize her business report using the direct organizational
pattern. Therefore, she should begin the report with her conclusions and
recommendations.
20. Most writers agree that the clearest way to show the organization of a report is by
recording its divisions in an outline.
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21. Probably the most frequently used visual aid in reports is the table.
22. The major advantage of line charts is that they show changes over time, thus indicating
trends.
23. The title page is a prefatory part of a business report.
24. The body of a formal report typically includes an introduction; the discussion of
findings; and a summary, conclusions, or recommendations.
25. Regardless of the referencing format used, citations include the author, title, publication,
date of publication, page number, and other significant data for all sources used in the
report.
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Fill-in-the-Blank
1. _____________ are written offers to solve problems, provide services, or sell
equipment.
2. In the _____________ section itself, discuss the plan for solving the problem. In some
proposals this discussion is tricky because you want to disclose enough of your plan to
secure the contract without giving away so much information that your services aren’t
needed.
3. The ___________ section promotes the credentials and expertise of project leaders and
support staff.
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4. The planning of every report begins with a statement of ____________ that describes
the goal, significance, and limitations of a formal report.
5. A _____________ is a collection of information stored electronically so that it is
accessible by computer and digitally searchable.
6. A __________ tool is a service such as Google that indexes, organizes, and often rates
and reviews Web pages.
7. An online diary or journal that allows visitors to leave public comments is called a
weblog or __________.
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8. A __________ is collaborative software, typically a collection of Web pages, that a
group of users can edit.
9. Business reports often rely on __________ data from firsthand experience, such as
surveys, interviews, observation, and experimentation.
ANS: primary
10. Using the ideas of someone else without giving credit is called __________ and is
unethical.