The Complaint Analysis Worksheet will allow you to make a list of complaint categories, the possible causes of the problems, and possible solutions. Use the Complaint Assessment worksheet to document your analysis. You will submit this worksheet to complete this lesson.
On the Internet, find a site (examples such as complaints.com or planetfeedback.com) that includes complaints filed against a business organization. Select one of the organizations listed below and analyze the complaints for that company and develop solutions.
Company I chose: DELL computer
for the causes of the problems.
Include at least one chart and one table.
The parts for the case analysis include:
Formal letter that presents the decision report (1 page or less)
Title page
Table of contents
Executive summary (Executive summaries are covered in Chapter 9 of the WS4B.)
Body (3 to 5 pages):
Introduction: identify the background for the case analysis and the need for the study.
Purpose and methodology: explain how you researched the problems and, if necessary, any solutions.
Analysis of findings: Explain in detail the findings, causes, and impact of the problems (NOT the recommendations yet, just the impact).
Conclusion(s): A summary of the analysis.
For a review of the research process and developing thesis statements and outlines, take some time to read the information contained in the two links listed in the Reading Material to the Purdue OWL.
Chapter 9 lists a seven-step process for writing a report. Use that process as well as the tips and guidelines listed below:
Applying OABC
Developing an outline
Writing the first draft, including how to integrate source information
Connecting the parts
Editing the draft
Putting Together the Report
Once you?ve collected and analyzed your research or data, you?re ready to start building your report (both the case analysis and the briefing article). Below are three steps that can take you from a collection of data or research to an organized set of information ready to write about.
Apply OABC
You can still use the OABC structure to organize both the case analysis and the briefing article. The following table identifies some key information to include in each of the sections (OABC) of each type of paper.
Note: See the sample long report in chapter 9 of WS4B for examples of each part.
OABC
Briefing Article
Case Analysis
Opening
Attention-grabbing introduction such as:
– An anecdote
– A description (for example, if you?re writing about management styles, describe the behavior readers might see if they could watch a day in the life of a manager)
– A relevant quotation
– A compelling or engaging question (Make sure you neither ask an obvious question nor a series of questions, which can get annoying.)
Background
Brief background of client?s past service or the topic you researched (but only the information the reader needs to follow your paper; avoid unnecessary background information).
– What has led up to the current need/state
Agenda
The thesis statement or key point
The main sections of your paper
Body
The research and ideas that support the thesis statement
The analysis of the problems, their causes, and their solutions
Close
The close should generally refer to your thesis and sum up the key points. You can also tie back to your introductory element by:
– Finishing the anecdote
– Revising the description in terms of the key points
– Giving a quote by the same source as the opening quotation and relating it to the concluding idea
– Answering the opening question
Note: Think in terms of bookends for the introduction and the conclusion.
1) Conclusion
– What the client may conclude from the findings (data)
– No recommendations yet
2) Recommendations
– What the client might do to address the issues/conclusions
– Restatement of client?s goal or need
Outline the Paper.
Keeping in mind OABC, use the techniques explained in WS4B chapter 2 for planning and outlining. While you may not wish to create a formal outline, applying a brainstorming technique such as three-column outlining can be a critical way to ensure your paper or report is thorough and logically organized. Don?t forget to look at classifying and sequencing the information appropriately. (Again, see chapter 2.)
For your case analysis, you need to also decide on an indirect or a direct approach. Most business professionals prefer reports in a direct structure that uses a traditional agenda to raise the issue/problem and outline the general categories/solutions.
Example: This report provides the following:
An analysis of the most serious issues
Recommendations for addressing the issues
Tip: You might even start noting in your outline where specific data points or research will go.
Evaluate the Outline.
Use the STEP test in chapter 2 to see if your outline is complete and in the best order.
Write the First Draft
This draft should be stress-free. That is, don?t worry about the mechanics or grammar of what you?re writing, or even about whether sentences, paragraphs, and sections are perfectly tied together. Just get the ideas out according to your outline. Use the following list as guidelines developed by Geraldine Woods Research Papers for Dummies for writing your first draft.
Start with the body, not the introduction. (You can come back to it once you see how the paper shapes out.)
Approach each section as a separate essay.
Develop your first point first; the rest in any order.
Type double- or triple-spacing.
Integrate source information (see the next section in this discussion material).
Track notes you have used.
Cite sources immediately.
Using Research and Data
For your two papers, data will fall into one of the following categories: (1) statistics and facts, (2) theories or findings from experts in the field, (3) general opinions from non-experts based more on casual observation, and (4) anecdotes or examples.
Data Category One: Statistics and Facts
Statistics?scientifically acquired measurements and numerical information?are obviously one of the most powerful types of data?as long as they?re accurate, complete, unbiased, and represented honestly.
If statistics are biased in any way, they can still be useful; you need to make sure, though, that you point out in your report the bias behind the statistic. (Example: Statistics show that 68 percent of teenagers prefer snowboarding to surfing. The bias is that 9 out of 10 teenagers surveyed live in the Rocky Mountain states that have snow-skiing facilities and no surfing locations.)
Group like examples together rather than give each one separately.
Not this: Fifteen percent of customers ranked XYZ?s service as poor; 45 percent rated it below average; 15 percent rated it average; 24 percent rated it above average; and 1 percent rated it excellent.
This: Three-quarters of customers rated service below average or poor. (Or, Only one quarter of customers rated service above average or excellent.)
General or common-knowledge facts don?t need to be cited. Example: The Norman conquest occurred in 1066.
Data Category Two: Theories or Findings from Experts
Some might argue that theories and findings from professionals are still only opinions; however, these opinions carry credibility because of who they come from. Most reliable experts? opinions are based on an accumulation of knowledge and experience, which is part of the reason why you need to carefully evaluate the credibility of the source.
When you cite or paraphrase expert opinions, you need to identify who the expert is. Example: Dr. David Goodsell, noted professor of education administration at Harvard, believes?
Data Categories Three and Four:
I?ve grouped these together because both come from personal experience but aren?t necessarily backed up either by experts in the field or by data-driven studies. That?s not to say personal experiences can?t be useful in reports. The caution is this (and probably somewhat obvious): One person?s experience does not represent another person?s experience, much less a larger group?s experience. Consequently, using as main support someone?s personal experience risks reducing the credibility and validity of your ideas because it makes it easy for readers to think, ?Well, that?s not my experience, and if it?s not mine, it?s real? and therefore disagree with you without further consideration of any data, etc.
Having said that, your briefing article topic may benefit from personal experience. For example, an opening anecdote that talks about someone?s experience with a company?s service might be a perfect interest-grabbing way to open the article. The key is that the anecdote actually represents a larger group?s experience, which the rest of your article then goes on to demonstrate.
Other Data/Research Tips
Provide context and/or analysis. Don?t just present a data point and expect the reader to figure out its meaning; interpret it for the reader.
Sum up by topic sentence. Going along with the first tip, use topic sentences to let the reader know the main point of the data in the paragraph; don?t just dive into the data.
Relate to the argument you?re making. Remind the reader of the main point and how the data supports that point.
Don?t over explain the evidence.
Integrate Source Information
Part of what makes a report or article successful is its flow and readability. When quoting or paraphrasing others? ideas or when presenting statistics and facts, work them into your writing seamlessly (while still crediting the source, of course).
Here are some tips on using and integrating source material:
Pay attention to tense and voice.
Provide necessary lead-ins and transitions to both direct quotations and paraphrases. The table below shows some before and after versions of paragraphs that use direct quotes.
Before
After
What Was Done
Van Halen?s last album was not a success. ?The music business isn?t what it used to be; I mean, what can you expect from cookie-cutter performers like Brad Defron, The Jimmy Brothers, and Chris Tan! Right! Cookie-cutter consumers!? The producer sold only 450 copies out of 13,000 made.
Van Halen?s last album was not a success. Eddie Van Halen attributed the failure to the demand for dime-a-dozen pop singers, not to the music itself, commenting, ?The music business isn?t what it used to be; I mean, what can you expect from cookie-cutter performers like Brad Defron, The Jimmy Brothers, and Chris Tan! Right! Cookie-cutter consumers!? Consequently, Van Halen?s album sold only 450 copies out of 13,000 made.
A lead-in to the quote tells the reader who said it and why. A transition (?Consequently?) helps show cause and effect between the quotation?s point and the summary point.
Explain the source information?s relevance in your own words.
Look for quotations that express interpretations or opinions, not just facts.
Paraphrase rather than quote statements of fact.
Not this: ?Eddie Van Halen was born in Nijmegen, Netherlands to a Dutch father (Jan) and an Indonesian mother (Eugina)? (source).
This: Born in Nijmegen, Netherlands, Eddie Van Halen?s father (Jan) is Dutch and his mother (Eugina) Indonesian (source).
Insert a quotation if it adds a special edge.
Not this: Eddie Van Halen first started with the piano but, bored, moved on to learn how to play the drums (source).
This: Eddie once said in an interview, ?Who wants to sit in front of the piano? That?s boring? (source). Consequently, he next took up playing the drums.
Best advice? Read other well written reports and articles to see how their authors? use and integrate source information. I?ve provided one example; many more exist, including many of the articles in the Ensign magazine. Part of this lesson?s assignment has you look up and evaluate a business report.
Citing Sources
Remember to use endnotes and the Chicago style for citing sources.
Connect the Parts
Make sure the reader can clearly see how each part connects to the previous and to the next part. Use the following techniques to create this connectivity:
Use OABC.
Use preview and transition phrases/sentences. Make sure each subsection starts with an opening and agenda for the ideas in that subsection. Refer to the report?s main idea as part of the preview. Below is an excerpt from the sample long report in chapter 9 with the preview and transitions highlighted.
Use descriptive and parallel subheads. Review WS4B chapter 2 for guidelines on creating header and subheader titles.
Revise Content and Structure and Edit for style, conciseness, clarity, tone, and word choice.
Follow all the guidelines in WS4B chapter 5 to review and revise your draft.
An Important Note on Voice and Tone
Only the most academic of reports (scientific studies, etc.) use passive voice frequently. For business reports and for your briefing article, you should be able to tighten your writing and avoid passive voice except for those circumstances that justify passive voice.
The main reason reports end up using passive voice is to avoid pronouns such as ?I believe? or ?We discovered.? Pronouns in most business reports, as well as many articles, are more than acceptable, though ultimately your audience and purpose determine whether you use pronouns or third person. If your audience is clearly very formal, avoid pronouns. But even if you need to avoid using pronouns, you can still find ways to write in active voice.
Below are examples of passive sentences made active with and without pronouns.
Informal: I mailed the questionnaire to nearly 300 customers.
Passive: This questionnaire was mailed to nearly 300 customers.
Active: Nearly 300 customers received the questionnaire.
Informal: I found that seven out of ten employees had low morale.
Passive: It was found that seven out of ten employees had low morale.
Active: The survey showed that seven?
About Tense in Reports Research Papers, and the Briefing Article
Only use past tense for things that have already happened and future tense for things that have yet to happen. Most of the paper should be in present tense, including references to later parts in the paper. Since by the time someone reads the paper, it will have been written and therefore exists in the present, those references can be in present tense.
By the way: Did you notice the passive voice in the last sentence of the previous paragraph? I deliberately used a passive voice because I wanted to emphasize the paper, not either the writer or the writing.
Examples:
Not this: The issue will be discussed in the next section.
This: The next section discusses the issue.
Not this: The president thought the project should be canceled.
This: The president thinks the project should be canceled. (He still thinks this even though he may have talked about it in a past interview.)
Review the section ?Tense? in the Appendix of WS4B for more information about tense.
Putting Together the Rest of the Report
Chapter 9 explains the parts of the report, which go beyond the main body of findings. Your final case analysis should have the following parts:
Cover letter
Title page
Table of Contents
Executive summary
Report
References
Appendix
Again, see chapter 9 for details and for an example of a long report with all parts.
Format
For the case analysis: Apply the format recommended in chapter 6 for reports. For the case analysis use the sample long report about Utah State Parks in chapter 9 as a visual example of what your pages should look like (e.g., where page numbers go, how the title page is centered, etc.).
Final Tips
Spell out %: 2% should be 2 percent.
Write dollar amounts in numerals: Two million dollars should be $2 million.
Use and spell the company?s name how they use it.
Only capitalize formal names and terms.
Be logical: Examine cause and effect and present the elements of each in the appropriate order.
Avoid ?We can clearly see?? Instead, focus on the data/findings: ?The data strongly supports??
Apply sentence and word guidelines outlined in WS4B.
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