17.4: Complete the Study
- Page ID
- 179295
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A good staff study report should represent completed staff work. This means the staff member has completed the analysis and presented a complete solution-a complete study-to the boss. The solution should be complete enough that the decision maker has only to approve or disapprove. Inexperienced staff members may succumb to the impulse to ask the chief what to do when the problem is difficult. However, your job is to advise your boss what should be done-provide answers, not questions. Of course, it’s okay to inquire at any point in the problem-solving procedure if you need to find out whether you are on the right track. This coordination often saves untold hours.
Tips
Consider the following tips for problem-solving and preparing a staff study:
- Be creative! Completed staff work provides the opportunity to be heard.
- Schedule time to work the problem. Most problems worthy of analysis require considerable study and reflection.
- Do not assume there is a "school solution" and avoid reductionist "solutions" that assume obstacles do not exist. Conversely, a complex study with a thick report is not necessarily better. Good decision makers focus on the relevance and accuracy of the material and the logic of the argument: be relevant, accurate, and logical in the study.
- Do not work a study in isolation. If you point your finger at someone or some unit, or if the solution requires a change in someone’s operation, you’d better get their reaction before you drop the bomb. You can look mighty foolish if you find out later they were operating under a constraint of which you were unaware.
- Does the study answer the mail? If you were the boss, would you be willing to stake your professional reputation on the study? If the answer is "no," it is time to start over.
Format
The format of the final staff study report will certainly be less important than the content; but a poor format will distract readers. Start with the format for the official memorandum: all the elements of the official memorandum may be used (i.e., references, attachments, courtesy copies, and distribution lists). For long studies, an official memorandum as a cover letter followed by the study (as an attachment) may be in order. Your work environment may drive the need for a different format or additional information; but, in the end, these reports are simply specialized applications of the official memorandum.
The Staff Study Report Outline
Figure \(17.4.1\)