978-0134562186 Chapter 14 Solution Manual

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14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-1

TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE

14.1. Informational reports confine themselves to the delivery of information, whereas analytical

Written and oral communication

and oral communication

14.3. The work plan should at least include a statement of the problem or opportunity and a statement

of the purpose and scope of the investigation. It can also include: a discussion of tasks to be

MyBCommLab for additional insights)

14.4. Reports that monitor and control operations focus on vital organizational performance statistics.

Written and oral communication

14.5. The three major ways to organize analytical reports are focusing on conclusions, recommendations,

14.6. Feasibility reports explore the wisdom of making a particular choice or decision; justification

communication

14.7. Problem factoring is the technique of breaking a complex problem into a series of logical,

communication

14.8. To attract a large number of bidders, an RFP (request for proposals) supplies guidelines for submitting

a formal proposal (or bid) by describing the organization’s exact needs, deadlines, and preferred work

APPLY YOUR KNOWLEDGE

14.9. “Look into employee morale problems” would not be an effective problem statement for a report

because it doesn’t provide enough focus for the reporting effort. What does “look into” mean? Is

the writer supposed to verify that morale problems exist, or identify specific problems, or look

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-2

additional insights)

14.10. Power outages tend to have a ripple of causes and effects (e.g., a regulator malfunction in the

thermal test oven triggered an automated fire control system, but when it failed to operate

14.11. A report writer should include all relevant information, whether or not it supports the writer’s

recommendation. Omitting information deprives the reader of facts that might affect the decision

—and ultimately destroys the writer’s credibility. Most readers expect pros and cons and are

MyBCommLab for additional insights)

14.12. The yardstick approach would be an effective structure for this report because it would show how

[LO-3] AACSB: Analytical thinking (See MyBCommLab for additional insights)

14.13. Students should recognize that often an unsolicited proposal must first convince readers that a

problem or opportunity exists and that the proposal offers a viable response to that situation. Such

proposals are potentially unwelcome advances (or at least unexpected) made by the business

insights)

PRACTICE YOUR SKILLS

14.14. Message for Analysis

Note that the “Year in Review” section might be titled “Letter to Shareholders” or something more

specific. Whatever it is called in a specific report, it’s the narrative review and summary that preceded the

Form 10-K section.

Students should surmise that the Year in Review has the broader audience, those readers looking for a

narrative summary of the company’s performance over the past year. The average shareholder, the general

media, and the general public would be typical readers of this document. Besides the SEC, others

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-3

Students will probably agree that the Year in Review is easier and more interesting for them to read, and

they may attribute this to its narrative content, visuals, organization, and the level of the presentation.

Exercises

14.15. Developing a statement of purpose for this report is a straightforward task. The shop owner has

observed a sales decline for three consecutive months and wants to know why this is happening.

However, this situation does involve two subtle points that should be considered in the statement

of purpose: an investigator may not be able to identify precisely why sales have declined, and the

oral communication

14.16. Preparing the work plan will give students a chance to consider all the factors that go into report

planning and research. Their draft plan should reflect thoughtful analysis of the difference

between the problem statement and the statement of purpose and scope. Their plan should also

[LO-1] AACSB: Written and oral communication

Planning: Organizing Reports This exercise gives students practice in applying organizational

approaches to various subjects, even though more than one approach could be used with each item.

[LO-1] AACSB: Written and oral communication

14.17. Since this is a recurring (monthly) report, the direct approach would be better because the

14.18. The indirect approach would be better in this situation. First, the accountant is still

building credibility with the audience. Second, such a report from a new employee is

14.19. As with most unsolicited proposals, the indirect approach is likely to work better here

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-4

14.20. The best organization strategy would depend on the CEO’s preference, but using the

14.21. Since the board recently rejected a proposal on the same issue, the direct approach would

14.22. Before students begin analyzing their own choices, you might want to walk them through a

practice session. Locate a brief, but substantive, article and have students read it ahead of class.

Construct the outline together so that students will clearly see the differences between the two

14.23. A topical organization for the informational report might be outlined as follows:

I. Availability of parking places

II. Security problems

III. Parking fees

IV. Maintenance of lots

[LO-2] AACSB: Written and oral communication

Planning: Organizing Reports (Analytical Reports) Here are suggested answers to this set of

questions. [LO-2] AACSB: Written and oral communication

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-5

14.24. The 2 + 2 = 4 approach would be a good choice for convincing a skeptical audience to

14.25. To preserve a neutral tone in the report, restate the headings in a manner that does not

14.26. A few conclusions that might be drawn from the information include the following:

14.27. Although the following outline uses informative phrasing to guide the writing effort, the

headings of the report itself would be worded more descriptively.

Planning Reports and Proposals If students mention that they need more information to categorize these

reports, suggest that they try to find specific examples—or they can simply use their imagination to make

communication

14.28. City crime report

Based on the description given, this would be an informational report, without analysis or

recommendations. The audience would depend on the purpose of the report and the person or

14.29. Seed company report

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-6

This analytical report would include both logical argumentation and presumably data

based on field trials (either company’s own trials or a combination of those results and

14.30. Cold-remedy test report

This analytical report would be based on experimental data collected by the testing

agency. Because the data on cold remedies would be largely statistical, they could be

14.31. Trip report

This report would be written in memo format or perhaps using an electronic form on a

management information system. There may be some quantitative and factual data (e.g.,

date of call, person contacted, time spent, business booked or discussed), as well as some

14.32. Land development report

This analytical report would offer geographic and demographic characteristics of the area

plus financial analyses of alternatives for converting the vacant land to industrial use.

14.33. Annual report

The primary audience of the annual report is the company’s shareholders, as indicated, but

government regulators at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission are also a target

audience, as are reporters and financial advisors who comment on the company. Data about

the operations of the company would include both descriptive material and financial

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-7

14.34. Wildlife report

This internal report would use both descriptive material and statistics on the condor

population. The report would be in standardized memo or manuscript format, depending on

14.35. Retail stores report

The audience for this analytical report would most likely be company executives. Data

would consist of facts and figures related to sales and costs, and the author would need to

explain whether the data justifies closing the stores and moving the business online. If the

14.36. The emergency procedures report might be tailored this way:

Who: Authorized

What: Emergency procedures

When: Special (periodic update if necessary)

Where: Internal, downward

Why: Informational

How: Receptive readers

communication

14.37. Students will want to ask and answer questions that will help them focus on audience needs. First,

they’ll ask questions to define that audience. Then, since an unsolicited proposal must first

convince readers that a problem exists, students will want to ask questions similar to those used

The benefits students describe should demonstrate their understanding of audience focus and the

14: Planning Reports and Proposals 14-8

14.38. When reviewing students’ work, look for their ability to define the problem and break it into

smaller components for analysis (if appropriate). To keep the exercise manageable, they’ll need to

avoid any extensive research, which they should be able to do either through team brainstorming

(using questions described in the chapter for use with analytical reports) or through problem

AACSB: Written and oral communication

ASSISTED GRADING QUESTIONS (ACCESSED ON MYBCOMMLAB)

14.39. A conventional business plan can contain most of all of these components: executive summary,

mission and objectives, company and industry overviews, product and service overviews, market

communication

14.40. No, when responding to an RFP, it is not wise to try to stand out from the crowd by organizing

[LO-2] AACSB: Written and oral communication