Informal Analytical Report

Informal Analytical Report

Objectives |Guidelines |Grading
Rubrics

Objectives

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Previously you were introduced to a transportation issue that was going
to affect E227 GS’s shipping schedule between our manufacturing facility and
the shipping and distribution facility in Indonesia. Last week, you suggested
cultural/audience considerations for the PR team as they plan to reach out to
the public in an effort to mitigate whatever negative feelings this change in
shipping will cause. This week, after sharing the cultural considerations with
your team, you will collaboratively write an analytical report to your division
manager, Anne Brown, that will discuss PR options and state a recommended
strategy.

This week, your team members will identify several audience
considerations your team deems most relevant to developing potential PR
strategies (for example, if research shows that most of your intended audience
is illiterate, you can rule out a PR campaign that relies heavily on written
components such as flyers or announcements placed in local newspapers or social
media). This week the team will develop three or four options that the
PR department could use in their campaign and recommend one of the options.
These options should incorporate the cultural research that members described
in their week 3 memos.

You and your team will then write and assemble the informal analytical
report your manager is counting on to forward on to the PR team.

Guidelines

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The informal analytical report your team will write this week will be
organized as a PDR, or Problem, Discussion, Resolution report.

Write this informal analytical report as a memo addressed to Anne Brown,
formatting it to include the following sections (identified with headings):

Start with a positive opening and a sentence or two that introduces the
general purpose of the report.

• Problem: State the background of the problem
  succinctly, so that anyone reading this memo will understand the trucking
  and PR issues.
• Discussion of Options: In several paragraphs,
  discuss three or four different PR campaign strategies the group
  considered, including strengths and weaknesses of each strategy.
• Resolution: From the three or four
  options discussed above, state the one strategy your team recommends for
  the PR campaign to address the Indonesian residents. Explain the rationale
  for your decision.

Conclude the report with a brief statement that expresses a positive
sentiment or statement.

Start a new page at the end of the informal analytical report to add the
group participation memo (the group participation memo template is in Doc
Sharing) it is at the end of this page. The group
participation memo is a collaborative document that will report on the
participation and contribution of individual teammates. This must explain what
each group member contributed to the final report. If there were problems, you
are expected to be specific and explain how they were or were not resolved. The
team will collaboratively assign each individual member participation points
(out of 50 points possible). The professor will transfer this score to the
participation section of the informal analytical report rubric; therefore, each
team member may earn different scores on the group report.

ONE student from each group will submit the informal analytical report
and group participation memo (both in the same Word document) to the dropbox on
behalf of the entire group.

A successful informal analytical memo will:

• Be between 800-1200 words (excluding the participation memo).
• Be formatted appropriately as an informal report memo with headings
  identifying each section.
• Accurately represent the problem.
• Discuss three or four different PR campaign strategies, including
  strengths and weaknesses of each strategy.
• Clearly present a resolution that takes all cultural factors into
  consideration.
• Demonstrate that the team fully grasps the purpose/goals of the
  message.
• Include full and complete original text that reflects audience
  needs in relation to the message.
• Include proper use of formatting and style (e.g., bullets,
  headings, lists, etc., as appropriate).
• Reflect an awareness and proper use of all ten writing conventions
  for professional writing (as appropriate), covered in Week 2.
• Demonstrate proper grammar, spelling, punctuation, and
  capitalization.
• Include on the final page a collaboratively produced participation
  memo that evaluates each group member’s performance.

ENGL 227
Informal Analytical Report

Objectives
In Week 3
you will be introduced to a transportation issue that will affect E227 GS’s
shipping schedule between our manufacturing facility and the shipping and
distribution facility in Indonesia. You will suggest ways to reach out to the
public in an effort to mitigate whatever negative feelings this change in
shipping will cause. Then, in Week 4, you will be part of a team that will
suggest a strategy the company will implement. Each group member will share
their Week 3 document with the team. The team will develop the best of these
ideas, and create a single document explaining the strategy the team is
suggesting. In Week 4 you and your team will write and assemble the informal
analytical report your manager is counting on to address the problem.

Guidelines
The informal
analytical report your team will write in Week 4 will be organized as a PDR, or
Problem, Discussion, Resolution report.

Write this
informal analytical report as a memo addressed to your division manager,
formatting it to include the following sections (identified with headings):

• Begin the informal analytical
  report with a sentence or two that introduces the general purpose of the
  report.
• Problem: State the problem succinctly
  in a sentence or two, so that anyone reading this memo will understand the
  purpose of the memo.
• Discussion of Options: In three or four paragraphs
  (approximately 500 words), discuss the different options the group
  considered.Explaintheirrelativestrengths
  and/orweaknesses.
• Resolution: Explain what your team
  recommends to address the problem. What does the reader need to do
  to make this happen?Isthere
  a timelineforimplementingthissolution?
• Conclusion: Thank the reader for giving
  the team the opportunity to address the problem.

Start a new
page at the end of the informal analytical report to add the group
participation memo. The group participation memo is a collaborative document
that will report on the participation and contribution of individual teammates.
This must explain what each group member contributed to the final report. If
there were problems, you are expected to be specific and explain how they were
or were not resolved.

A successful
informal analytical memo will:

• be between 800-1200 words in
  length (excluding the participation memo).
• be formatted appropriately as
  an informal report with headings identifying each section.
• accuratelyrepresenttheproblem.
• reflect a clear understanding
  of the factors that affect the situation.
• clearly present a unique
  resolution that takes all factors into consideration.
• demonstrate that the team fully
  grasps the purpose/goals of the message.
• include full and complete
  original text that reflects audience needs in relation to the message.
• include proper use of
  formatting and style (e.g., bullets, headings, lists, etc., as
  appropriate).
• reflect an awareness and proper
  use of all ten writing conventions for professional writing (as
  appropriate), covered in Week 2.
• Demonstrate proper grammar,
  spelling, punctuation, and capitalization.
• Include on the final page a
  collaboratively produced participation memo that evaluates each group
  member’s performance based on the criteria the group established and
  reported in the Week 3 memo.

Week 4 Group Project Team Participation Memo

TO: Professor [last name]

FROM: List
the full names of all group members

DATE:

SUBJECT: Team
Participation in Week 4

Prior to submitting the informal report, the
group will work together to evaluate
individual team members on the specific criteria the group established in the
week 3 memo assignment.

In the participation memo, include an opening
paragraph to present the purpose of the message. Also include an ending
paragraph to summarize what the group learned about working collaboratively and
to end with some sort of positive closing.

The body of the participation memo should
clearly identify the contribution of each member to the collaborative week 4
informal analytical report such as attendance at scheduled meetings,
communication between/among members, delivery of materials by scheduled due
date, quality of work, and adherence to rules of the group. Include points that
each person should receive for participation out of 50 points total for each
student. NOTE: These points assigned will be used by the professor on the
individual student’s week 4 grading rubric.

Use the following format to display this information.

Remember
that this memo is written collaboratively. Paste this memo to the final page
of the group’s informal analytical report. (To create a new page at the end of
the group’s report, place the cursor after the final word of the report and
press CONTROL and ENTER.)

Submit the group report and participation memo by the due date/time
indicated by the professor. NOTE: Only one person per team is to submit the
report and participation memo (in one document) to the dropbox on behalf of the
entire team.