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This instruction sheet is intended to give you some guidance on how to start and on how to write a report that is credible, understandable, and readable. Please review this rubric for detailed grading information.
In a business case study, you are presented with a business problem that requires analysis and perhaps recommendations so that the reader, presumably a manager, will be able to make a good business decision based on your report. Managers want to read a report that is clear, succinct, brief, but with the statistical analysis presented in enough detail to prove your report credible.
Case Study Report Components
Your report will be graded on the following components: 
Requirements:
For a class case study this means answering every question in the case problem statement. Don’t just start writing. Understand what problem(s) you are asked to solve and stick to that.
Presentation:
Your paper should have three sections:
(1) an introduction which is a short statement of what you intend to show (or a statement of the requirements). You might want to have a short statement about your conclusion here – some managers are too busy to read further;
Note: by short statement about your conclusion, we intend to say that you should provide some foreshadowing indication of what you will present as your major argument regarding findings. For example, you might write “The case will be made that productivity of sales professionals is inversely related to their base compensation, and sales-based bonuses could be an innovative approach to increase productivity especially of the most senior employees.” Notice that this is just one sentence about key findings that prepares the reader for conclusions that will later be made in greater detail.
(2) the body of the report, which includes your statistical analysis (you need to have some formulas and calculations), tables, charts, graphs, and an explanation of your analysis in clear, concise terms – remember, most managers are not statisticians and a report full of formulas and math will leave them confused. Lead your reader through the analysis with the language they can understand;
Note: The case details (e.g., where you find information about Sherwin Williams) tell you things that must be addressed. These items go in the body of your report.
(3) a restatement of your conclusions and any recommendations if requested. 
This is where you will bring your ideas together from the body of your analysis to make clear and well-supported statements of conclusion. What you write here should reconcile (be consistent) with what you included in your introduction and throughout the body of your paper.
Please make detailed recommendations based on your analyses. Those should be very clearly expressed. Tell the employer what you found and what they should do about it.
If you need to make some assumptions along the way, that is encouraged, but be clear about communicating those assumptions in your writing. For example, imagine a case where “seniority” is a variable, but you don’t have information about exactly what that means. If you want to assume that seniority is years on the job, that is appropriate, and you should describe that in your write-up. Another student might decide that seniority has more to do with education and prior work experience. That is also a fair assumption to make and would need to be explained. 
Grammar and Spelling:
These are a very important part of your report. People may become annoyed and quit reading, or certainly suspect your results, if your report contains misspellings, incorrect punctuation, and grammar that is stilted or incorrect. I recommend that you have someone proof-read your report prior to submitting it.
Visuals
Pie charts, trend and scatter plots, tables, histograms, bar charts, etc. are great ways to show data for statistical comparison; if you use tables make sure they are simple enough to be read and understood quickly; it does not help the reader to merely reproduce the raw data table that is being analyzed; do not split tables over two pages. If you use pie charts be sure that all the slices of the “pie” add up to 100% – not over or under. You must use Tableau to provide the visual charts and graphs to insert into your word document. 
There is no requirement for a specific chart or graph. The purpose of using Tableau is to introduce you to the program. You can create scatter plots, bar charts, or histograms to display the data. You also need to explain the visualization you created.
Correctness
This is what the report is all about. Check your work. If you use EXCEL or another statistical package look over the results to see if they pass the test of reason. EXCEL will almost always give you an answer, but it may not make sense. After all the work of writing the report, you will want to make sure it is accurate.
Originality
This assignment will be submitted to Turnitin. This assignment is to be your own work and not a collaborative effort. If your Turnitin score matches another paper, you will receive a score of 0 on the assignment.

Major Writing Assignment #4 – Workplace Issue Formal Report
The purpose of this assignment is to research and analyze a workplace issue of your choosing. You will then write a formal report in which you present your research findings and recommend solutions to address the issue.
Assignment Goals
Apply research skills to a real-world workplace problem.
Develop and support well-reasoned recommendations.
Practice professional writing and formatting techniques for formal reports.
Choosing a Workplace Issue
Select a workplace issue that interests you and has practical relevance. Some examples include:
Diversity and inclusion challenges
Work-life balance issues
Employee engagement and motivation
Communication breakdowns
Technological disruptions
Workplace harassment or discrimination
Cybersecurity threats
Ethical dilemmas
You can also explore emerging issues or challenges specific to your field of interest.
Research Requirements
Conduct thorough research using credible sources such as:
Academic journals
Industry reports
Government publications
Reputable news outlets
Company websites or internal documents (if applicable)
Your research should include:
Background information on the issue
Relevant statistics and data
Analysis of the causes and effects of the issue
Different perspectives on the issue
Potential solutions and their pros and cons
Report Structure
Your formal report should follow this structure:
Title Page: Include the report title, your name, course information, and date.
Executive Summary: Summarize the main findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
Table of Contents: List the report sections and their page numbers.
Introduction: Provide an overview of the issue and its significance.
Methodology: Describe your research methods and sources.
Findings: Present your research findings in a clear and organized manner.
Analysis: Discuss the implications of your findings and analyze different perspectives.
Recommendations: Propose solutions to address the issue and provide a rationale for each recommendation.
Conclusion: Summarize your main points and reiterate your recommendations.
References: List all sources cited in your report using a consistent citation style (e.g., APA, MLA).
Appendices: Include supplementary materials such as charts, graphs, or survey results.
Formatting and Style
Your report should be:
Well-organized and easy to follow
Written in a professional tone
Free of grammatical errors
Formatted consistently throughout
Use headings, subheadings, and bullet points to improve readability.
Length
The report should be approximately 10-12 pages (double-spaced) TOTAL, including everything.
Evaluation Criteria
Your report will be evaluated based on:
The quality and depth of your research
The clarity and organization of your report
The strength of your analysis and recommendations
The professionalism of your writing and formatting

Description
Assignment Details
Scenario: Nurse Staffing Ratios and Performance Improvement
Many studies have documented associations between nurse staffing levels, performance, and patient outcomes over the years. Adequate nurse staffing is associated with the following:
Reduced hospital re-admissions
Lower incidence of adverse patient events
Fewer errors
Reduced mortality
Effective staff performance and other positive outcomes
Regulatory bodies, including state boards and accreditation organizations, have enforced staffing level recommendations.
Despite the enforcement of staffing policies, many healthcare managers still take chances to assign nurses to a much larger number of patients. Ms. Adams, the night shift supervisor on the children’s unit at the Global Medical Behavioral Hospital, assigned the entire unit to one nurse instead of three. Her reason was that other nurses had called in earlier that afternoon.
It was late that very night that fight broke out in the unit. The nurse was alone and could not control the children who overpowered her and caused many damages to property.
An investigation was ordered, and the HR department was blamed for not pushing fast enough to hire nurses. The HR department cited several problems with recruiting, and in fact, the director of the HR department had said that staff turnover is their biggest problem. She further stated that they had relied on traditional recruiting methods instead of using technology such as recruitment apps, social medial, other Web sites, agencies, and the human resource information system (HRIS).
The American Nurses Association (ANA) identifies three general approaches to ensure adequate staffing, as follows (Wolters Kluwer, 2018):
Requiring hospitals to have a nurse-driven staffing committee
Mandating specific nurse-to-patient ratios through legislation or regulation
Requiring facilities to disclose staffing levels to the public or a regulatory body
This facility has not followed the ANA recommendation, and now Nurse Adams is holding the hospital liable for her injuries. In addition, some of the parents are now suing the hospital for injuries to their children.
You are now hired to address this issue and advance recommendations to prevent these problems in the hospital. Prepare a 5-page report (excluding cover page and references) addressing the following issues:
Provide HR with information regarding the use of technology in recruiting, selection, and retention.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of Internet recruiting?
What types of information are available in HRIS data, and how are they used in the recruitment process?
What are the benefits of using job sites in recruiting candidates?
What is the importance of workforce development, and how does it help combat workforce shortages and the changing dynamics of healthcare?
What are the critical issues in managing staffing and workloads?
What steps can a healthcare manager take to deal with staff turnover?
What recommendations would you give healthcare managers to improve staff relationships in their units or organizations?
Why is performance evaluation necessary for all staff?
Name some tools you would use in performance evaluation and their uses.
Cite 4–5 sources in APA format.
Submitting your assignment in APA format means, at a minimum, you will need the following:
Title page: Remember the running head. The title should be in all capitals.
Length: 5 pages minimum
Body: This begins on the page following the title page and must be double-spaced (be careful not to triple- or quadruple-space between paragraphs). The typeface should be 12-pt. Times Roman or 12-pt. Courier in regular black type. Do not use color, bold type, or italics, except as required for APA-level headings and references. The deliverable length of the body of your paper for this assignment is 5 pages. In-body academic citations to support your decisions and analysis are required. A variety of academic sources is encouraged.
Reference page: References that align with your in-body academic sources are listed on the final page of your paper. The references must be in APA format using appropriate spacing, hanging indent, italics, and uppercase and lowercase usage as appropriate for the type of resource used. Remember, the Reference page is not a bibliography but a further listing of the abbreviated in-body citations used in the paper. Every referenced item must have a corresponding in-body citation.