• A minimum of six sources must be selected. All source information must be thoroughly and consistently documented in Chicago style, i.e., using correct in-text citations along with a reference page (bibliography).
• The report must include at least four graphics (charts, tables, photographs, etc.).
• The report MUST be formatted correctly, i.e., top, side, and bottom margins along with correct vertical line spacing between the various sections.
• Your report proper (excluding prefatory and appended parts) must have a minimum of 2,500 words.
• Type the report in a 12-point font (avoid italics fonts) except for the title page which may be somewhat larger.
• The report is worth 20% of your grade.
Prepare a step one-report or a step two-report. That is, include all the prefatory parts: a title fly (optional), title page, memo of transmittal, table of contents, list of illustrations, executive summary, report proper, and appended parts.
a. Title Page. Prepare a 4-spot title page
Spot 1 – THE TITLE OF YOUR REPORT
Spot 2 – Prepared for
Dennis Mohle
BA105W Instructor
Spot 3 – Prepared by
Your Name
Spot 4 – California State University, Fresno
The Craig School of Business
(date when report is finished, e.g., May 4, 2008)
b. Memo of Transmittal. Direct it to me, Dennis Mohle. This should be written personally, i.e., in first and second person.
c. Table of Contents. Prepare a table of contents with dot leaders. Your report must have at least two levels of headings.
d. List of Illustrations. Include tables and charts. List the number and title of each table and/or chart. (You can refer to a chart as a Figure if you choose.
e. Executive Summary. Write this in either direct or indirect order.
f. The Report Proper. Write formally without personal pronouns (i.e., no I, we, or you) in the indirect order.
i. Introduction – Include (1) authorization, (2) problem and purpose, (3) methodology, and (4) report preview sections. You should include additional introductory parts of there is a need for them. In the authorization, indicate the report was authorized by Dennis Mohle. In the methodology section, tell your readers how you collected the information in the report. Explain your research methodology and justify it. Indicate whether you used published research, surveys, experiments, etc. Since this report will probably not include a great number of sources go ahead and list them in this section.
ii. Report body – This is your work and will be the major portion of your report. The information in this section is based on all the information you collected. This section will include your tables and charts.
iii. The Ending Section. The ending section will vary depending if you have an informational report or an analytical report.
If the report is an informational report, place the SUMMARY at the end of the report body and make the heading that identifies this section as a Level 1 heading.
If the report is an analytical report you will have three sections: (1) SUMMARY, (2) CONCLUSIONS, and (3) RECOMMENDATIONS. There are several ways one may construct the ending section of the report. One way is to have separate headings for each section; thus each section will have its own Level 1 heading. Another way is to place a Summary-Conclusion at the end of each major section in the report body as the example in chapter 12 illustrates. When done this way, each Summary-Conclusion section should have a level 2 heading. Finally, Recommendations still need to be at the end of the report which will be a level 1 heading.
g. Bibliography. List your source information in Chicago format.
h. Appended parts. You may need to include sample documents in your report, e.g., a copy of a survey form, a telephone interview form, etc.
