Informal Reports: Different Types
Informal Report Types and Functions
In your professional life, you will find that there are many different types of short reports to respond to the many different activities, duties, and responsibilities in business organizations. Table 10.3.2 below provides an overview of numerous types of short reports and their functions.
--From Business Communication Skills for Managers Links to an external site.
The types of reports identified in the informational report column above left are distinctly different from those shown in the right column. In the video lesson "Writing a Business Report" Links to an external site. (available on LinkedIn Learning1), Judy Steiner-Williams says of this type of report that "even though all reports present information, simply put, the purpose of Informational Reports is to provide information in an organized, objective way, without analysis or recommendations; in other words, to report the facts."
The list of informational reports also includes
- Sales reports, which summarize sales for a designated period of time;
- Trip reports, which recount the events of work-related travel;
- Conference reports, which describe or summarize information gained from conference attendance;
- Instructions, which tell readers how to perform a task;
- Job descriptions, which summarize the requirements and responsibilities of a particular position;
- Progress reports, which tell clients or employers about work that has been done and is scheduled on a project; and
- Annual reports, which recount for investors and the public the past year's activities (successes, projects, etc) at a particular company or organization.
1 In order to access this video, you will need to log in to LinkedIn Learning via your vt.edu account.