Deck 1: Understanding Business Communication

Question 1

You can emphasize the importance of the problem discussed in a formal report by using first-person and second-person pronouns.

Answer 1

False

Question 2

A text-based report is written as a narrative.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

You should avoid using he as a generic pronoun when referring to an unidentified person.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The purpose of selecting an organizational plan for your findings is to show order, logic, and unity.

Question 5

Do not omit relevant information from a report.

Question 6

A report header typically includes the report title, subtitle, page number, and an excerpt from the text.

Question 7

The findings in most reports are organized in chronological order.

Question 8

You should use the verb tense (past, present, or future) that is appropriate at the time the reader reads the report--not necessarily at the time that you wrote the report.

Question 9

Reports may be primarily text or a mix of text and graphics.

Question 10

Reports written in programs such as Microsoft Word are still common, but more companies, particularly financial services and consulting firms, are using programs such as PowerPoint for reports that combine text and graphics.

Question 11

When you write a report you follow these steps: planning, drafting, revising, and proofreading.

Question 12

For busy readers, a writer must "frontload" the opening by grabbing the reader's attention in the first paragraph.

Question 13

"Decks" are reports that were created using presentation software such as Microsoft PowerPoint.

Question 14

When your report is formatted as a letter, you do not have the option of including headings and subheadings.

Question 15

Internal proposals may be written within an email message.

Question 16

For analytical and recommendation reports, the most logical organization is by criteria.

Question 17

In a recommendation report, there is no need to explain the alternatives you investigated in addition to presenting the one you recommend.

Question 18

Long reports may also require a title page, cover note, executive summary, table of contents, appendix, and a reference list.

Question 19

To avoid plagiarism, a writer must not copy someone else's idea, language, data, or report without using source citations.

Question 20

Decision makers may prefer shorter documents as time-saving devices.

Question 21

Facts that can be verified easily do not need to be documented in a report.

Question 22

Conclusions are often given at the end of a report.

Question 23

The amount of space you devote to an idea will emphasize or subordinate it.

Question 24

Headings and subheadings in the table of contents should be worded as they appear in the body of the report.

Question 25

The purpose of the report introduction is to provide information that the reader needs to understand the summary.

Question 26

The three major forms for documenting the ideas, information, and quotations of other people in a report are endnotes, footnotes, or author-date references.

Question 27

One aspect of revising a report for style is to check that you have used active and passive voice appropriately.

Question 28

The direct approach is preferred when the report topic is very complex and needs detailed explanations to help the reader understand and accept the conclusions.

Question 29

Make your report easy to read by limiting the number of headings.

Question 30

Even if you carefully paraphrase or summarize source material, you still must provide documentation of the source.

Question 31

The findings section is generally the largest in the report.

Question 32

Ending a report with a concluding statement provides a definite sense of project completion and signals the reader not to look for additional pages.

Question 33

Reserve direct quotations for definitions and for text passages that are so precise, clear, or noteworthy that you cannot improve them.

Question 34

You should not only present your findings but also analyze and interpret them in the same section of the report.

Question 35

Most formal reports use generic headings to identify the topic of each section.

Question 36

When writing a report, use verb tenses that reflect the reader's time frame, not your time frame.

Question 37

If you want to divide a longer report section, you should include at least two subsections.

Question 38

Your summary should be at least one page long and possibly longer, depending on your report's complexity and length.

Question 39

Always include your conclusions and recommendations in the report's executive summary.

Question 40

When summarizing the main points immediately before the conclusions and recommendations, review for the reader by using the same wording used in the presentation.

Question 41

The most logical organization for analytical and recommendation reports is by

A) Using an outline
B) Criteria
C) Presenting ideas
D) Offering a thesis

Question 42

Which of the following is not a conclusion?

A) The network is not functioning correctly.
B) Employees do not know how to use the new network properly.
C) Both managers and employees are concerned about invasion of privacy.
D) All employees should receive formal training in network use.
E) Employees lack the confidence to use the new network.

Question 43

The body of the report consists of

A) Findings, summary, conclusion, recommendation
B) Statistics
C) Policies
D) Solution

Question 44

Generic headings are used

A) to identify the section topic and the major conclusion.
B) in newspapers and magazines.
C) as a preview or executive summary of the entire report.
D) when the report is written according to the indirect plan.
E) to focus attention on conclusions.

Question 45

The direct organizational plan should be used when the reader

A) prefers to read the conclusions and recommendations last.
B) is receptive to the conclusions or prefers the direct plan.
C) needs detailed explanations because the topic is complex.
D) is initially not interested in the topic.
E) is expected to resist the recommendations at first.

Question 46

The conclusions and recommendations part of a report should

A) Summarize what was said in the first part of the report
B) Summarize what was said in the body of the report
C) Answer all research questions raised in the introduction
D) Develop the solution to a problem

Question 47

When revising for content you should

A) include sufficient information
B) describe your policy
C) give an answer
D) look for negative language

Question 48

Some examples of numerical information given in reports are displayed in

A) Tables and figures
B) The textual content
C) At the beginning of a report
D) The conclusion

Question 49

When planning a report, you should base the structure, formality, and length on

A) the writing style you use.
B) your decision to include supplementary parts.
C) the needs and desires of the reader.
D) the unity and coherence of the report.
E) how you collect and interpret your data.

Question 50

Most business reports use the

A) Direct organizational plan
B) Indirect organizational plan
C) Structure plan
D) Clustering plan

Question 51

The findings section of the report should

A) be the most concise in the report.
B) focus on the factors and subfactors of the problem.
C) appear before the hypotheses and problem statement.
D) accurately discuss and interpret relevant data.
E) summarize all conclusions for the reader.

Question 52

In a report, the largest section is

A) Your research
B) Your findings
C) Your language
D) Your thesis

Question 53

When proofreading a report, use a grammar software program to identify incorrect word usage and incorrect page order.

Question 54

The answers to research questions are presented in the part of the report that covers your

A) references.
B) procedures.
C) findings.
D) conclusions.
E) purpose statement.

Question 55

What time sequence is appropriate for meeting minutes?

A) Functional
B) Chronological
C) Eastern Daylight Savings
D) Global Time

Question 56

A formal report about a complex, serious problem typically includes all of the following except

A) a formal writing style.
B) use of the pronoun you.
C) a table of contents.
D) an executive summary.
E) many supplementary parts.

Question 57

You should use direct quotes

A) Sparingly
B) Often
C) One in each paragraph
D) Only in the conclusion

Question 58

To make the report read clearly and smoothly, use

A) Passive voice
B) Easy language
C) Emphasis, subordination, preview, summary, and transitions
D) Lots of data

Question 59

When referring to primary and secondary data in the findings section, you should

A) call attention to key trends and contradictions.
B) present less important information in tables and figures.
C) allow readers to come to their own conclusions about implications.
D) present facts and figures in rapid succession for busy readers.
E) refer to research procedures when necessary.

Question 60

When revising your draft for style you should

A) Vary your ideas
B) Use as much jargon as possible.
C) Avoid active voice
D) Use words that are clear, simple, and concise

Question 61

In case readers want to locate the source of secondary data used in your report, make your ____ accurate in both content and format.

A) executive summary
B) conclusion
C) appendix
D) reference list
E) cover letter

Question 62

When proofreading a document, you need not check

A) closely for typographical errors.
B) that the pages are in the correct order.
C) that pages are free of wrinkles and smudges.
D) whether you inadvertently deleted a line when moving text.
E) for short, simple words.

Question 63

When writing a business report, use the ____ tense to describe findings from other studies and your procedures; use the ____ tense for your conclusions.

A) past; present
B) present; past
C) past; past
D) present; present
E) present; future

Question 64

An effective writing style for a report

A) incorporates colloquial expressions.
B) should be humorous to lighten the mood.
C) should be less objective than the cover letter.
D) should be as subjective as possible.
E) should be less conversational than a casual email.

Question 65

A reader's first impression of your report is based on

A) how professional it appears.
B) how many headings are in the table of contents.
C) how you use passive and active voice.
D) how you apply formal and informal writing styles.
E) how you document your sources.

Question 66

One reason for using the author-date form of documentation is that

A) many writers prefer tracking endnotes and footnotes consecutively.
B) omitting citations would leave an inaccurate impression of the report's conclusions.
C) subsequent citations in the narrative will require less space.
D) it subordinates sources based on direct quotations rather than paraphrased text material.
E) it provides some information about the source on the page where the citation occurs.

Question 67

When you include another person's ideas in a report, you should

A) include the entire section so readers can see it in context.
B) put quotation marks around any information you paraphrase.
C) avoid plagiarism by rearranging or omitting a few words.
D) paraphrase various sources, without attribution, as needed for your purpose.
E) use direct quotations when you cannot improve on the wording.

Question 68

Identify the correct guideline for constructing a table of contents.

A) Use the same wording for the headings as in the report body.
B) Include all levels of headings in the table of contents.
C) List both the starting and the ending page number of each section.
D) Draft the table of contents as an outline for writing the report.
E) Use the table of contents to emphasize important headings.

Question 69

Revising for style involves all of the following except

A) ensuring that you have used nondiscriminatory language.
B) checking to see that you have used a variety of sentence types.
C) ensuring that you have not included extraneous information.
D) ensuring that paragraphs are both unified and coherent.
E) checking for an overall tone of confidence, sincerity, and objectivity.

Question 70

You can achieve coherence in a lengthy report by

A) emphasizing the most important headings in each section.
B) repeating the words of your headings in the narrative.
C) dividing subtopics before you factor the main headings.
D) using previews, summaries, and transitions in each section.
E) omitting text when you follow one heading with another.

Question 71

An effective executive summary should not

A) be written in the same writing style that is used for the report body.
B) assume that the reader will also read the entire report.
C) be more than 10% of the length of the report.
D) be used if the reader is resistant to the recommendations.
E) hint at the conclusions or recommendations shown in the report.

Question 72

You can distinguish among major and minor heading levels by using all of the following except

A) different horizontal placement.
B) different heading lengths.
C) different font sizes.
D) different font styles, such as bold and italic.
E) different fonts.

Question 73

The ____ method of citing sources provides the complete reference at the bottom of the report page on which the citation occurs.

A) endnote
B) footnote
C) author-date
D) reference list
E) documentation

Question 74

Which statement best describes the use of pronouns for most business reports?

A) The phrase the writer is a good substitute for first-person pronouns.
B) Using passive voice is a good alternative to using first-person pronouns.
C) Because formal reports focus on the information instead of on the writer, third-person pronouns should be used.
D) Second-person pronouns should be used to draw the reader into the report.
E) Use the word he as a generic pronoun when referring to an unidentified person.

Question 75

Which of the following is not a good guideline for documentation?

A) Include documentation of any unpublished source in the narrative.
B) If you mention a certain study twice on the same page, you need not cite it more than once.
C) Include enough documentation in your citation that your reader can locate the source.
D) Carefully document facts that are common knowledge to the reader.
E) Facts that can be verified easily do not need to be documented with source citations.

Question 76

The statement "Two of the three previous surveys showed that employees prefer Health Plan A" uses

A) the present tense to report data from the current study.
B) the past tense to describe the findings of earlier research.
C) the past tense, reflective of the writer's time.
D) the present tense to describe the conclusion of the report.
E) the past tense to describe the procedure of the surveys.

Question 77

Revising for correctness involves

A) ensuring that your writing is clear and confident.
B) being sure you have included sufficient supporting evidence.
C) checking for distortion by omission or commission.
D) checking that you have met the reader's needs.
E) fixing any grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors.

Question 78

The three distinct steps for revising reports are

A) Clarity, conciseness, and redundancy
B) Tone, language, and wordiness
C) Content, style, and correctness
D) Passive voice, action verbs, and mechanics

Question 79

Distortion by omission occurs when

A) you base your conclusions on a small database.
B) the statistics you quote reflect hypotheses, not conclusions.
C) you do not explain how you factored the problem.
D) you use quotations out of context.
E) you do not document all sources.

Question 80

The topics and amount of detail in an introduction vary according to

A) The length of the report
B) The type and complexity of the report and the audience's needs
C) A well-developed thesis
D) The sources used for support