Effective Report Writing
On this half day, highly practical workshop participants will learn how to write clear, concise, polished reports in a business context. The focus is on ensuring reports are readable, well-structured and effective.
On completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Feel confident they are delivering written messages successfully
- Create strong, readable, polished documents (for a variety of audiences)
- Build a clear plan, to speed up the process
- Write with clarity, simplicity, brevity – and confidence
Course content
- Part 1 – Planning: Clear thinking leads to clear writing
- Define your purpose and identifying your target audience(s)
- Create an effective objective – using a template
- Step-by-step guide to planning an effective report
- Use mind mapping to assess content and structure
- Create a detailed outline – using a skeleton structure
- Edit the outline, focusing on content and structure
- Write a first draft quickly, by expanding the outline
- Practice (applying the planning tools to authentic examples)
- Part 2 – Writing effectively: Using strong clear English to meet objectives
- Write in a suitable style and tone of voice for your target audience(s)
- What is plain English in a polished report?
- Make complex information clear and concise:
- Make every word count / cut dead wood
- Take care with jargon, ‘business speak’ etc.
- Use strong, precise, active verbs
- Create effective sentences and paragraphs
- Use headings, bullet lists and topic sentences for navigation
- Use signposts and linking words for flow and readability
- Presentation with impact – create reports etc that look accessible and readable
- Practice
- Resources: Useful tools and materials
Duration: Half day
All courses are bookable on Upcoming Courses page.
3 CPD credits awarded. Please contact staff_l&d@rcsi.com if you need a certificate of attendance.