For tips on writing an evaluative summary, see our Week 11 folder and review the steps you followed in the homework for that week. For tips on writing workplace reports see Writing for the Workplace chapter 6. And for tips on finding research, review the steps you followed in your Week 10 homework. For citation help, see the Purdue Owl website: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/
Format: Memo, single-spaced, 500-700 words, with source citations in MLA, APA, or Chicago style.
Audience: Your imagined supervisor at a job in your field.
Purpose: To report on a possible solution to a workplace problem, as requested by your supervisor.
Content: Executive summary of an academic journal article in your field.
For this assignment, you need to imagine yourself in a job you would like to have, in a company where you would like to work. Make up a name for your company and your supervisor. Your report will be addressed to your supervisor. Imagine your supervisor has asked you to research and present on a possible solution to a workplace problem your company is experiencing. You can use your imagination here, but invent a problem that you will be able to research. You may simply revise and expand on your week 11 homework submission here.
In a report to your supervisor, summarize a problem at your workplace, and provide an evaluative summary of an academic article that studies a possible solution to your workplace problem. (If you don’t know which are academic or scholarly journals in your field, search for the library’s research guide specific to your field here: https://guides.lib.uh.edu/?b=s )
Example– Problem: A growing customer base at your company has slowed down your company’s efficiency in managing customer data. Customers are complaining. You look for a possible solution in a researched article in a credible journal in your field. You find an article in which a particular software was successfully implemented to increase efficiency in managing data for a company similar to yours.
Be sure to paraphrase carefully, use quotation marks for any language you use from the article, and include in-text citations for any facts or images from the article that you include (whether you are quoting or not). Also include a bibliographic citation at the end of your document in APA, MLA, or Chicago style (you may use the citation style that is typical in your field).
In your evaluative summary, explain the authors’ reasoning, and include information needed to understand the authors’ logic. Any details you include should be information that would be of interest to your supervisor such as costs, features, and data showing why this solution is promising for your company’s situation. Evaluate the content and style of the article in order to evaluate the article’s credibility and applicability to your company’s interests and needs.
Conclude by delivering a recommendation to your supervisor about how to use this information.
A successful Recommendation Report will:
- Use appropriate memo formatting and professional style.
- Display a logical organization (especially avoid long, unfocused paragraphs).
- Cite sources correctly in APA, MLA, or Chicago style and avoid plagiarism.
- Present a clear summary of the workplace problem you are addressing.
- Provide a purposeful, well-supported evaluative summary of the article’s content and style for the benefit of your supervisor’s needs.
- Provide a persuasive recommendation to your supervisor about what to do with this information.
- Display proper grammar and mechanics.
- Present material with concision, clarity, and fluency.
Project 3, Part 2: Short Report Presentation
Overview:
Read the assignment for Project 3: Short Report, Part 1, and readWriting for the Workplace chapter 7 on creating presentations. You will deliver the key language and highlights of your Short Report in PowerPoint format. Imagine that you will deliver these slides in a workplace meeting with decision makers in your organization. Persuade them of your recommendations based on the solid research you found in a credible article.
You do not need to include a script or audio for your PowerPoint since I’ll already have your Short Report. Instead, focus on effective visual design, content, and ordering of your slides. Review the Week 12 materials on designing visuals so that you can demonstrate these skills in your slide designs.
Note that because your slides need to be very concise, many details from your report will not appear here. Focus on key words and phrases, specific slide titles, strong design, informative use of graphics, and excellent spelling and grammar. Because many of your slides may include bulleted lists, be sure to review the grammar rule of parallelism.
Instructions:
In a PowerPoint, provide at least one slide for each of the following:
- Title slide
- Introduction/Purpose (What is your background in this field? What is the purpose of your presentation?)
- Background/Problem (Consider any background information your audience may need to understand the problem. What is the cause of the problem you’re addressing? How has it/will it impact your company?)
- Overview of Solution (Introduce your academic article. How does it address the problem you’ve described? What areits main and supporting points?)
- Evaluation ofContent / Style of the Article. (Include any details from the article that would be of interest to your supervisor such as costs, features, or data showing that this article is credible and this solution is relevant to your company’s situation.)
- Recommendation:Aclear, concreteset of steps for your company to take in light of the information in this article.
- Further Research: Acknowledge questions that still need to be resolved and/orother resources/articlesof interest to support this plan.
- Conclusion: Restate the benefits of your plan, and invite questions.
- References slide (include MLA, APA, or Chicago style bibliography)
Tips:
See the example student PowerPoint in our Project 3 folder. You will have a chance to revise your PowerPoint. However, for now, keep in mind a few tips:
- Limit your text on slides. As you would in a resume, steer away from paragraphs, using fragments and bullet points rather than full sentences.
- Make your text large enough for an audience to see—use at least 24-point font.
- Use graphics toclarifycomplex info, but avoid distracting, unnecessary graphics.
- Make user-friendly, professional design and color choices.