Business or management reports

Introduction
Body
Conclusion and Recommendations

Business reports or management reports present information and (usually) make recommendations on a situation or problem. Typically, this format requires you to collect information and analyse it according to one or more theoretical frameworks. (Note that some reports may require ethics approval.) Business and management reports typically conform to the IBCAR outline: 'Introduction', 'Body', 'Conclusion' and 'Recommendations'.

Introduction

The introduction clearly states the problem being studied, the purpose and scope of the report, and the sources of information used.

Body

The body should be organised under appropriate headings and provide the following:

A statement, in detail, of the problem and its background
A description of the investigation
A statement, in detail, of the data or facts collected
An analysis of the findings and results

Conclusion and Recommendations

The conclusion and recommendations may be presented as one or two sections as appropriate. Conclusions should arise clearly from the data given in the body, and it should be explained why one conclusion is preferred over another. New data or ideas should not be introduced here.

Note that while the terms 'introduction', 'conclusion' and 'recommendations' are typically used as headings, the term 'body' is never used as a heading.