How to write a report for work.

[mja691]

I've been on a work secondment for 6 weeks. The idea of the secondment was for me to gain experience and see how another business does things. I, unfortunately, did not really learn that much but my boss has asked me to write a report on my time there. How do I do this, I have never done anything like this before?

Start with an introduction saying how when/where/how long.

Think about the areas of work, culture, procedures, anything really.
Do a compare and contrast on each topic.

Write a set of conclusions / recommendations.

For example:
Complaint handling.
The complaint handling at X is more formal than we have here at Y. There is a an electronic logging system where all complaints are logged and which can produce summaries for management. Some of the staff find it cumbersome, however the quality manager informed me that it had reduced recomplaints by half since it was introduced.

You must have learned stuff, even if you don't realise it.
Even if all you learned was that you could fit in well to another company, or that they are rubbish at onboarding.

Go through your diary - it might prompt some thoughts.

First ask yourself what is the objective of the report?

For you, your objective is to show that you are worth investing in and that you would value further opportunities to receive training.

Your boss arranged cover for your job that cost them time and company money

The other company facilitated you being there for 6 weeks they spent time (money) showing you the way they do business.

You were there to learn what exactly?

if you want to go on additional placements you need to prove that the 6 weeks provided value for money.

What is your current role?
Are you competent in carrying this out?
Why are you competent, was it internal training?, good processes?, transferable skills learned elsewhere?
How did you demonstrate that when you were in the other company?

What is the secondment role how did what you do day to day fit. As TeenDivided points out do your company do better, or where could they improve.

And remember both companies senior management could end up reading your report so give positive criticism with possible solutions where possible.

If nothing else you were given a valuable oppertunity to meet staff so a summary of staff you met and an overview their roles could be included.

I sometimes find it easier to put information into a table format before writing a report. So, your table might have five headings: Task/Procedure; Our Company Method; Secondment Company Method; Significant Differences; and Recommendations. I'll put the info into the table in the form of bullet points, then pad the info out when writing the report.

You could also add the table to the report as an addendum.