Sample student writing: An investigative report and a proposal

Different business situations require different types of reports. Formal reports are comprehensive discussions of a topic from multiple angles, while investigative reports often focus on a specific issue. If you are asked to write a report, you should always be sure that you understand the expectations of your audience.

Investigative report

This investigative report was written for an introductory course in business writing. The student was asked to research the problem of employee motivation at a small company. He used the style guidelines of the American Psychological Association (APA) to format the paper and to cite and list sources.

Internal proposal

Proposals are written to convince a specific audience to adopt a plan. If you are asked to write a proposal, you might start by identifying the purpose and the audience for the document.

This internal proposal was written for a course in business writing. The student wrote her proposal in the form of a memorandum to the senior vice president of human resources at the medium-sized company at which she was an intern. Her goal was to convince the vice president to adopt a wellness program for employees.

Spencer, “Positively Affecting Employee Motivation”

Ratajczak, “Proposal for a Wellness Program”