Impress Your Boss (and his boss and the CEO)
 
by editor Wordmaster (currently offline)
 

The most important business writing you may ever do is the series of never ending reports that your boss (or his boss or the CEO) demands from you.   Reports are a way of life in today’s business world.  While nobody enjoys writing them, they can make or break your reputation not only for writing, but also for your work itself.

It doesn’t matter how good you are at your job, if you can’t write about it clearly and succinctly, you are not communicating your work or its worth.   An engineering and science institute in the Midwest used to base 10% of a student’s grade on required written reports, even in the engineering and science curriculum, because no matter how good the research, if the students couldn’t write a comprehensible report, it was worthless to others in the field.

One of the biggest complaints managers have today is that their employees (even new college graduates) can’t write clearly and accurately.   Spelling and grammar errors are common, even though automated spelling and grammar checking are part of virtually all word processing programs.

Follow these ten suggestions, and you not only will impress your superiors, you also will make it easier for them to understand your reports.

1) Consider your audience.  Is it the Vice President of R&D?  The Division Manager?  The CEO?  Or is it some combination of these?  You must tailor your writing to what makes your audience comfortable, or they will tune out before you’ve made your point.   If you must address an audience from multiple departments, either write individual sections addressing each department’s concerns, or write for the audience with the least knowledge of the subject, keeping it easy for them to understand.   If others want more information you can either supply it later or include it in an appendix.

2) The first page should always be an Executive Summary, or just a Summary.   Use either a few paragraphs highlighting the salient points, or a list of items highlighted by bullets.  This page is the most important one, because it may be the only page that is read, particularly by those with limited time (and whose time isn’t limited today?).   Write and rewrite this page until it is as perfect as you can make it.

3) Keep paragraphs in the body of the report short, and use headings and subheadings to separate and emphasize topics.   These headings and subheadings should relate directly to the Executive Summary/Summary, so if the reader wants to read more information about only one section of the summary, it is easy to find as they page through the entire report.

4) Likewise, keep sentences short.   Don’t write one long sentence that takes up a whole paragraph—break it up into shorter sentences, one or two thoughts per sentence.   Long sentences are difficult to follow, and the reader may lose interest part way through.

5) Use easy to read typefaces.   Serif faces are easier to read than sans serif.   Times New Roman is always a safe choice.   Avoid fancy typefaces.

6) Don’t try to impress with your vocabulary.   Simple words can express complex subjects.   In fact, they make complex subjects easier to understand (note I didn’t say “comprehend”).   Fancy words only introduce a “fog factor” into your writing.   You also run the risk that your audience will either not know the words, or will think you are putting on airs.

7) Remember that today not everyone’s first language is English (or whatever your native language may be).  Even if they are well educated, some may find it harder to follow your thoughts if they are not familiar with your words.   A bonus to a written report is that many people understand the written word better than the spoken word when it is not their native language.   A written report also gives them more time to determine your meaning.

8) Limit (or eliminate entirely) jargon and acronyms.   Even if you and your boss know that “TBDW” means “The Best Darn Widget”, everyone else may not.   Acronyms in particular can make a report almost unintelligible.   The higher up the hierarchy your intended audience is, the more important it is that you use plain English, because the less likely they are to know the shorthand terms you use routinely.   If you must use an acronym, spell it out the first time, then show the acronym equivalent:  e.g., World Health Organization (WHO).

9) Use spell check and grammar check.   But remember, these automated programs can make a mistake, because they don’t always allow for the context of a word.   Keep a dictionary and a grammar handy if you don’t feel confident about this automatic proofreading.

10) Even after you use spell check and grammar check, proofread your report yourself word-by-word to catch the errors that still may be there.   Better yet, after you proofread it, have someone else (or several people) proofread it also.   The more eyes that look at your report the more likely errors will be caught.   While you’re at it, ask them to comment on the report in general—is it easy to understand; are any parts unclear; have you left a thought unfinished?  Even professional writers have their work reviewed before publication!

The next time you must write a report, keep these points in mind, and you will stand out head and shoulders above the rest of the crowd.