An effective report can move people towards taking a desired course of action. Moreover, the quality of a report can influences how its subject matter is perceived by the reader. In this course, we will describe the different types of reports. We will master the structuring and scoping of reports, from conception to completion. We will also learn to write for our specific audience with a tangible sense of purpose. We will discover a logical approach towards developing visual aids to support our representation of the facts, conclusions and recommendations that comprise the report.

As part of being an effective communicator and influencer, it is essential to be able to present with confidence and professionalism. Through this course, participants will be given live coaching around their presentation style. They will be shown best practice on how to use their voice, body movements, and choice of wording. Through repetition, they will grow in confidence as one by one, the skills are layered. They will also be shown how to create a well-structured presentation and how to interact professionally with their visual aids, including PowerPoint.

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Write purposeful business and technical reports that meet readers requirements
• Utilize different templates and report types to achieve reporting objectives
• Generate reliable conclusions effectively by researching, analyzing and organizing information
• Provide evidence-backed recommendations to support management decision making
• Use visual aids appropriately to support the presentation of information
• Apply advanced methodologies to make every report a winning report
• Utilize the pillars of effective communication
• Control difficult conversations without feeling guilty
• Apply the win-win mind-set and become assertive
• Design and deliver an impactful, professional presentation
• Overcome anxiety when presenting
• Become a confident, professional communicator

Course outline

• The report writing process
• Report writing overview
• 5 easy steps to report writing
• Understanding your audience
• Articulating intended purpose
• Planning content and style
• Employing essential writing building blocks
• Business writing: express or impress?
• Reporting structure
• Structuring tools
• Arranging different sections of a report
• Writing captivating introductions
• Conducting research and analysis
• Delivering evidence-backed findings
• Deriving unbiased conclusions
• Tools and methodologies for deriving recommendations
• Bringing it all together: a cohesive and coherent report
• Story telling elements
• Report types and templates
• Recognizing different reporting structures
• Matching reports to situations
• 6 reporting types
• Investigative reports
• Progress and status reports
• Periodic reports
• Instructional reports
• Proposals
• Financial reports
• Reporting templates
• The power of visual aids
• Using visual aids
• Principles for designing visual aids
• Recognizing different visual aids
• The role of visual aids
• Applying principles of design
• Using images, diagrams, graphs, charts and tables for impact
• Integrating visual aids into a report
• Essential visual aid checklist
• Reports that win
• Elements of winning reports
• Using writing tone effectively
• Applying scientific tools and methodologies
• Mastering the so what?
• Building rapport
• Mastering editing techniques
• Designing a professional presentation
• The key elements
• Problem: what problem?
• PowerPoint Its uses and flaws
• Other methods of presenting
• Delivering a presentation that has impact
• The 3 channels of communication and presenting
• Posture
• Legs and feet
• Arms and hands
• Gestures
• Delivering without notes or props
• Use of the voice
• Facial expressions
• The words used
• Overcoming anxiety when presenting
• Planning and preparation
• Rehearsal
• Top tips for calming nerves
• Visualizing success
• Powerful communication skills
• Understanding perceptions and how we create them
• Knowing how to make small adjustments for big changes
• Realizing the power of confident communication
• Staying calm in a crisis

Methodology

Participants will be required to put their acquired knowledge into practice through the development of progress, status, periodic, investigative and instructional reports. They will also practice the development of charts and performance dashboards.