Document Analysis Assignment Summer 2014 -- Group

Written Report Due: Monday, June 16

Oral Presentations: Monday, June 16

Grading Rubric

Oral Briefing Rubric

Your Mission

A group of technical personnel in another department within your company has requested help with a proposal they are writing. They have drafted the proposal, but they need help revising the proposal with correct writing, spelling, and grammar, as well as effective layout and format.

You agree to take on the project. You conduct a thorough analysis and write a memo explaining your findings in detail and then deliver a presentation to the group highlighting your recommendations. They have asked you specifically to take a look at document style, document design, and the visuals in the document.

Your Procedures

Each group's document to be analyzed is linked in the sidebar. Examine your document thoroughly, analyzing for errors in style, format, design, and illustrations. Write a report summarizing your analysis to the original authors and recommend necessary changes.

Your final report will be in memo format and must include these major sections:

1. Introduction
2. Style
3. Document Design
4. Illustration
5. Conclusions/Recommendations

Follow these specific steps:

1. Analyze the text in the proposal assigned to your team. Find and describe specific examples of both effective and ineffective style passages you found.  In the case of ineffective passages, make specific suggestions for correcting these problems.
2. Analyze the document design in the proposal assigned to your team. Describe specific examples of both effective and ineffective document design you found.  Create improved designs for ineffective sections. 
3. Analyze the illustrations and all other visual elements in the proposal assigned to your team, like tables, charts, pictures, etc
4. Summarize your findings. Describe specific examples of both effective and ineffective illustrations you found.  In the case of ineffective illustrations, create improved options. 
5. Write the report summarizing your findings and address it to the original authors. A good report will have examples of issues you find along with recommendations for improvement, and will be at least 3-5 pages long.

Deliverables for the Assignment

A report in memo format that summarizes your analysis of the document and presents specific examples of strengths, weaknesses, and solutions in (1) style, (2) document design, and (3) illustration. Your audience is the author of the proposal. See the examples in the sidebar for comparison.