How to Write a Formal Report

Question 1 

While writing my contribution to the group’s formal report, there are certain changes I anticipate needing to make. When writing the informal report, I had the freedom to use a personal tone, and was not very keen on the in-depth details of my proposal. This time, however, I will need to consider writing a longer paper, with more details regarding the proposed technology. The paper will also have several sub-sections. Since the readers may involve persons other than the internal leadership of the organization, I will also need to be more impersonal, eliminating personal pronouns, contractions, and emotions or tone. The paper will have to be coherent and deeply researched, with a clear and achieved purpose. 

Since I have been working with other members of my team during the accomplishment of the given tasks, I have learned essential lessons about working collaboratively. Working with others accords one a chance to observe how different individuals work; their strategies and processes. Consequently, an individual can effectively reflect on their own approach. The best piece of advice I can give to members of other groups about working collaboratively is to establish team goals for each member within a given period. In this way, members are given achievable tasks within a given time and achievements can be celebrated. The approach further creates a positive momentum for both individuals and groups. 

Question 2 

From previous experiences, the most difficult thing about giving or receiving feedback from peers or colleagues has been avoiding being personal. Often, correcting a mistake in work done does not in any way imply that the person who made the mistake is incapable of doing better. Nonetheless, there is often the tendency to feel belittled whenever such mistakes are pointed out, a concept that members need to avoid. When giving or receiving feedback, I acknowledge the good while pointing out what can be improved in a person. This way, a person is less inclined to consider corrections as a personal attack. Other than this, and further considering materials and experiences encountered so far this summer, I need to foster cohesion with others to make giving and receiving feedback easier in the future. Members should interact more, participate uniformly, and be included in decision-making. If all members feel included, mistakes can easily be corrected and the group can be more successful.