Example Recommendation Report 7:
Voice Recognition Software—Annotations

Audience note. This note, which is addressed to the instructor and niot a formal part of the report, explains the assumptions about readers' minimal knowledge and background. Do you think the report says within these assumptions, or you think the target audience might have trouble understanding the report considering its technical level?

Introduction. This introduction provides the necessary elements of an introduction. The background section establishes the importance of voice-recognition software to medical transcription work. Purpose and overview are established in the second part of this introduction: we know what this report sets out to do and roughly in what order it will do so. The intended audience is indicated at various points: medical transciptionist and medical office administrators.

Technology background. While the first part of the introduction reviews background in terms of the need for the technology, this background section provides background in terms of the technology itself. Not only do we get some history on the development of voice-recognition software but also an overview of the way it works and its limitations.

Requirements. This report lists the requirements that any voice-recognition software must meet if it is to be considered in this study. And it's entirely possible that none of the software applications will meet all of the requirements—in which case, while there may be a best choice of the four, the report may actually recommend against any purchase.

Sources of borrowed information. Throughout this report you see bracketed numbers. These are the indicators of information that the writer has borrowed from other sources to write this report.

Second-level headings. This report has six second-level headings for the major sections: technological background, requirements, comparisons, summary, recommendations, and sources. Notice that a heading is not used for the introduction: for a relatively short document like this one, we can assume that the paragraph just after the title is—or ought to be—introductory in nature.

Third-level headings. This report used third-level headings in the technology-background section and in the comparisons section.to mark each of the six individual point comparisons.

Individual conclusions. Each comparison section states a specific conclusion as to which option is best in terms of that point of comparison. Each of these conclusions is stated at the end of the comparison section. While these conclusions could be stated at the beginning of the sections in which they occur, you wouldn't want them buried anywhere in the middle—readers apparently focus most on the beginnings and endings of sections and paragraphs.

System requirements table. Notice that this table re-presents the information occurring in the preceding discussion. This repetition illustrates a common strategy in business and technical writing: give readersmultiple looks at the same information.

Summary. This conclusion section provides a review of the key comparative points discussed in the preceding sections of the report. The primary conclusions review the individual conclusions reached in the comparative sections. The secondary conclusions address conflicting primary conclusions—in this case, cost versus function. The final conclusion states which options is the overall best in terms of the requirements.

Recommendation section. This recommendation report includes a heading to indicate the recommendation. Design your reports so that readers go straight to the stuff they want to see!