The planning stage of report writing is the most time-consuming. If the report is not properly planned, you can waste valuable time and risk producing a report that does not meet your objectives. The following steps are a suggested set of guidelines for effectively planning your report.

Step 1: Define the problem and the purpose of the report

Step 2: Define the audience

Step 3: Determine the Ideas to Include

Step 4: Collect the Information

Step 5: Sort and Evaluate the Information

Step 6: Organise the Information

Step 7: Prepare the Outline