For proper viewing of these pages, use Netscape. The answer lies not in the topics of formal reports, but in the expectations of the audiences for formal reports. In a formal report, the audience expects a methodical presentation of the subject that includes summaries of important points as well as appendices on tangential and secondary points. Note that the readers for a formal report are often two or more distinct audiences. These distinct audiences include professionals specializing in the report's subject matter, professionals not specializing in the report's subject matter, and managers overseeing the report's subject matter.
Format distinguishes formal reports from an informal reporting of information.
A well-crafted formal report is formatted such that the report's information is readily accessible to all the audiences. For that reason, formal reports are split into different sections. One way to group these sections is in terms of the front matter, main text, and back matter. The front matter, which presents preliminary information for the report, serves to orient all intended audiences to what the report contains. The text delivers a methodical explanation of the report's work to the report's primary audience.