Informal Reports: When To Use Each One by Andrew Kam

Informal reports have become an everyday facet in our life in the working environment. Whether it is to write a review about your colleague, or to write a memo to the boss updating the progress of a project; determining which type of informal to write will ease communication between organizational layers and smoothen the operation process. In this post, I will explain to you what are the different kinds of informal reports you can write for different circumstances to prevent any confusion!

Trouble Report
Trouble reports are incidents involving personal injuries, accidents, and work stoppages (those caused by equipment failures, worker illnesses) occurring in many industrial and construction settings. The trouble report or also known as the accident report is usually a memo written by the person in charge of the site where the incident occurred because they would have direct insight into the accident.

Investigative Report
Investigative reports are often written in response to a request for information. For example, you might be asked to find the best hotel rates for executives in your company and you will need to conduct a thorough research on the price, location and availability of the hotels. These reports are often prepared as memos if written within an organization and in a letter format if written to outside consultants.

Progress Reports
The purpose of a progress report is to keep management or a client informed of the status of a project. Often, it will include recommendations for changes in procedure or will propose new courses of action. Progress reports are generally prepared when a particular stage of a project is reached. More complicated projects will require more progress reports to keep management abreast of the issues at hand. Every report should end with some conclusion or recommendation.

Periodic Reports
Periodic reports are issued at regular intervals (daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually) where employess routinely submit status reports to their supervisors about their ongoing projects. Quarterly and annual reports are usually presented as formal reports. Most other reports are seldom longer than 2 pages. Because the report is written to someone completely familiar with the background details of the projects discussed, the writer can use abbreviated narratives in the letter.

Trip Reports
Trip reports are written by employees of a firm to record their trip activities and provide a permanent record of a business trip. The purpose of this report is to pen down the accomplishments of the trip and also enables employees to benefit from the information that one employee has gained. It is normally written as a memo or an email message and addressed to the immediate supervisor.

Test Reports
Test reports are also called laboratory reports. These are reports on experiments conducted in a laboratory, where researchers write these test reports as part of their work. When writing such a report, accuracy of information is crucial to the reader. Findings need to be stated in clear and straight-forward language. The use of graphs and illustrations are also generally recommended because it will help the readers understand the material. One important to note also is that because a test report is meant to have an objective view, it is better to write in a passive voice, rather than an active voice. A memo format will be used to internal communication and a letter format for outside readers.

Now you know which kind of report to write for each situation, you can have the confidence that you will never have another misstep in writing an informal report!



Resources:
Oliu, Walter E., Charles T. Brusaw, and Gerald J. Alred. Writing That Works: Communicating Effectively on the Job. 9th ed. New York: Bedford/St. Martin's.