Whether one is writing a report or preparing a presentation, it is important that the communication be well organized and presented in a clear manner that emphasizes the main recommendations of the study. The following are general guidelines for such presentations.

While not leaving out important details, get to the point. Managers do not like to read lengthy reports or attend lengthy presentations. In general, the fewer words needed to make a point the better, and the more the report is appreciated. Do not fill the report with extraneous material. When choosing which what-if analyses to include, make sure the scenarios are plausible and have a reasonable likelihood of occurring.

The terminology and symbols used to represent decision variables and parameters in management science models may be familiar to the analyst, but avoid the use of technical terms and symbols in a report. For example, while the Delta Hardware problem included both the symbol, X1; which was used to represent the number of truckloads of paint shipped from Phoenix to San Jose, and the term reduced cost, neither should appear in a business report. Know your audience and express the information in terms they can understand.

Whenever possible, let someone else proofread the report carefully for clarity and style. The proofreader should also check the report to ensure that it contains no misspellings and that paragraphs are well constructed and written in complete sentences.

The use of properly labeled charts, graphs, and pictures, and the minimization of text, make a report much more readable and appealing to the eye. A business report or presentation is one place where the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" is actually an underestimation of a picture's worth. Managers prefer visualizing results that allow them to make comparisons easily. No one wants to find results or recommendations buried in lengthy, hard-to-find paragraphs.

The actual presentation of figures is also important. All charts and graphs should be large, easy to read, and properly labeled, including the conditions under which the graph applies. Common sense should always guide a chart's preparation. For example, tables and graphs should not be split over two or more pages, if at all possible.

Although there is no rigid structure for business reports, the following format has served the authors well in their industrial and consulting experiences.

Introduction-problem statement

Assumptions/approximations made

Solution approach/computer program used

Results-presentation/analysis

What-if analyses

Overall recommendation

Appendices

The introduction should outline the problem that management and the management science team mutually agreed upon, so that there are no misunderstandings of the results discussed in the presentation. The actual length and style of the introduction will vary, depending on the audience for which the report is intended. Since the recipient is interested primarily in the recommendations, however, the introduction should be just long enough to explain the problem fully.

This section could be included either as part of the introduction or as a separate section. Because the recommendations are based on a mathematical model that is an idealization of real life, the decision maker should be aware of any simplifying assumptions or approximations that are made. This allows the decision maker to make an independent judgment as to the model's usefulness.

This section should be very brief (a sentence or two) and could also be part of a general introduction. In a slide presentation, it would most likely appear on one overhead outlining the procedure used. No details should be presented. A statement indicating that the problem was modeled as a linear program, a transportation model, or a periodic review inventory model may be all that is needed. For an audience not familiar with these terms, a brief one- or two-sentence description of the approach will suffice. Finally, a sentence detailing the computer program used (Excel, specialized software, etc.) lends credence to the validity of the results.

This is the "meat" of the report and should be written concisely and clearly and include graphics. Charts and graphs should not only present the solution, but should also show how the solution meets the restrictions of the problem. "Try to analyze the implications of the solution as they affect the business and note any unusual or striking conclusions that can be drawn from the results.

In this section, the management science team demonstrates to the decision makers that they have considered contingencies that might result from changes in the assumptions and parameters of the model. Some information can be obtained from sensitivity reports contained in standard computer output; other results may be generated by resolving the model to account for these changes. Although several possibilities may be analyzed, this section may lose some of its appeal if too many contingencies are considered.

This section differs from the Results section in that it gives the best overall recommendations after considering the what-if contingencies. These recommendations may indeed differ from those of the basic model. These recommendations can be prominently displayed through the use of boxes, color, or some other highlighting device. Again, using charts, tables, and pictures were possible is preferable to presenting results in paragraph form.

Material in appendices can be much more technical. An appendix is the place to put supporting computer output or hand calculations, or to detail any approaches used. Depending on the recipients of the report, an appendix may include a complete mathematical model formulation, replete with mathematical symbols and notation.