for writing Equity research research reports, reports, Business plan, plan, Strategy reports reports and other consulting Assignments Logic in Writing, Thinking, & Problem Solving
Introduction The Pyramid Logic Structure: What is It ? The Pyramid Logic Structure: Why Use It ?
The e Py Pyra rami mid d Lo Logi gic c St Stru ruct ctur ure: e: Ap Appl plic icat atio ion n Th Summary
Pr Pres esen enta tati tion ons s ar are e ty typi pica call llyy a su summ mmar aryy of fac actt-ba base sed d an anal alys ysis is
Major se sec cti tion ons s of doc ocum umen entt are not cle lea arl rlyy lin ink ked tog oget eth her
Individual slides are not clearly linked to each other or a commo co mmon n th theme eme
Individual sl sliides lack a clearl rlyy defin ine ed or art rtiicula latted main point or “headline”
Pre rese sent nta ati tion ons s sh shou oulld ma mak ke a st strron ong g rec ecom omme men nda dati tion on,, provi vide de fact cts s
and conclusions in support of the desired option, and present the rati ra tion onal ale e for no nott se sele lect ctin ing g oth ther er al altter erna nati tiv ves Presentations
should create client alignment around our reco re comm mmen enda dati tion on an and d co con nvin ince ce th the e cl clie ient nt th that at ac acti tion on is ne nece cess ssar aryy
tio ons sh sho ould convey infor orm mation to build client knowledge Presentati rega re garrdi ding ng th the e de desi sire red d ou outc tcom ome e Presentations should become an integral par t of the client’s
decision-ma decis ion-making king pr process ocess
Develop the Supporting Arguments
Introduce the Hypothesis
Directs
the reader’s attention to the question that th at do doe es or sh sho ould exi xist st in his/he his /herr min mind d
States
a hypothesis answe ans werr tha thatt qu quest estion ion
to
Develops the context for
t he more detailed inform inf ormati ation on to com come e
Build the logic to suppor t
the hypo hypothes thesis is
Introdu Intr oduce ce facts
Draw con conclus clusions ions
Summarize the Argument
Draw w log logica icall con conclu clusio sions ns Dra hypothes thesis is “Prove” the hypo
The e pyr yram amid id wi will ll ha have ve as ma man ny le leve vels ls as nee eede ded d to su supp ppor ortt th the e lo logi gica call hi hier erar arch chyy * Th
xxx
s xxx a e d I d e t a l e R y l l a c i t r e V f o e l p m a x
xxx
l a t n o z p i r i o h H s a n o f i o t a l e l e p R m a x E
Pyramid logic structure builds
suppor t for the main hypothesis by linking vert rtiical and hor horizo izonta ntall rel relati ations onship hips s rtiical relationships suppo port rt Vert the main hypothesis summ su mmary ary po poin intt
or
ela ationships bu buiild Horizontal rel the logic to suppor t summ su mmary ary po poin intt
each
The m ind instinctively instinctively sorts informat inf ormation ion into into dis distincti tinctive ve pyramidal groupings in order to comp comprehe rehend nd it.
A grouping of ideas is easier to compr comprehe ehend nd if it arrive arrivess presorted into its pyramid.
Thus, every written document should be deli delibe bera rate tely ly stru struct ctur ured ed to form a pyramid of ideas.
The mi mind nd at atttem empt pts s to im impo pose se or ord der on ever eryt ythi hing ng it pe perrce ceiives The mind tends to consider any sequence of things that occur together as
belo be long ngin ing g tog oget ethe herr (t (thi his s al also so ap appl plie ies s to li list sten enin ing g to or re read adin ing g id idea eas) s) hap ped like a pyramid The pattern for ideas is sha
The Th e pyr yram amid id st stat ates es th the e lo logi gic c of th the e re rela lati tion onsh ship ips s of id idea eas s
Idea Id eas s ar are e gr grou oupe ped d in intto a lo logi gica call hi hier erar arch chyy an and d th the e lo log gic of th the e re rela lati tion onsh ship ips s is sh sho own
A th thou ough ghtt at on one e le lev vel su sugg gges ests ts th the e th thou ough ghts ts be belo low w it
Thou Th ough ghts ts at on one e le leve vell su sugg gges estt th the e id idea ea ab abo ove th them em
It meets the mind nd's 's ne nee eds to st sto op at the "magical" nu num mber seven
The herre is a li limi mitt to th the e numbe berr of ide deas as a pers rso on can co com mpr pre ehe hen nd at an anyy one tim ime e
The mind cannot hold more than about seven items in its short rt--term memory at any one time (some can hold as man anyy as nine, others can hold only five -- a convenient number is
)
The m ind instinctively instinctively sorts informat information ion into into distincti distinctive ve pyramidal groupings in order to comprehe comprehend nd it.
A grouping of ideas is easier to com compr prehe ehend nd if it arr arrive ivess presorted into its pyramid.
Thus, every written document should be deli delibe bera rate tely ly stru struct ctur ured ed to form a pyramid of ideas.
Al Alll me ment ntal al proce cess sses es (e (e.g .g., ., th thin inki king ng,, re reme mem mber eriing ng,, pr pro obl blem em-s -so olv lvin ing) g) ut utiili lize ze
the th e gr group oupin ing g and sum summa mariz rizin ing g pr proc oces ess s Information in the mind can be considered as organized into a large
conglo con glomer merati ation on of rel relat ated ed pyr pyrami amids ds To communicate most easily to another mind, it is best to ensure that the
messa me ssage ge fi fits ts so some mewhe where re in into to ex exis isti ting ng py pyram ramid ids s
The Th e re read ader er ca can n cl clea earl rlyy gr gras asp p th the e re reas ason onin ing g
The read ade er ca can n focus mor ore e on wh whe eth the er he/ e/s she ag agre rees es wi witth it tha han n on tr tryi yin ng to co com mpr pre ehe hen nd it
The Th e re read ader er ca can n mo more re ea easi sily ly ra rais ise e lo logi gica call qu ques esti tion ons s re rega gard rdin ing g th the e me mess ssag age e
The m ind instinctively instinctively sorts information ion into into distincti distinctive ve informat pyramidal groupings in order to comprehe comprehend nd it.
xxx
A grouping of ideas is easier to compr comprehe ehend nd if it arrive arrivess presorted into its pyramid.
Thus, every written document should be deli de libe bera rate tely ly st stru ruct ctur ured ed to form a pyramid of ideas.
The st stru ruc ctur ure e he hellps the re rea ader to "see" the group upiings of ideas the sa sam me way
the aut author hor int intend ended, ed, inc increa reasing sing com communi municat cation ion eff effect ectiv ivene eness ss Use of the pyramid structure provides other benefits for the writer and
read re ader er as wel elll
Red educ uces es ti time me ne need eded ed to pr prod oduc uce e a qual alit ityy fi fina nall dr draft aft
Decr De crea ease ses s th the e le leng ngth th of fi fin nal dr draf afts ts
Ensu En sure res s th that at th the e ar argu gume ment nt
and an d su supp ppo ort ar are e com ompl plet ete e an and d lo logi gic cal
xxx
e r u t c u r t S c i g o L d i m a r y P
g n i t i r W d n s a e g s n i s k e c n i o h r T P e t a r a p e S
xxx
Comp Complet lete e the the thin thinki king ng and develop logi ogical structure
Write the document
Use a format format which which reflect reflectss the the logi logica call struc tructu turre and and appears professional professional
xxx
xxx
e r u t c u r t S c i g o L d i m a r y P
xxx
Situation:
Rev even enue ue gr gro owt wth h for th the e Reg egio iona nall Be Bell ll Op Oper erat atin ing g Co Com mpa pani nies es (R (RBO BOCs Cs)) has been slowing over the past five years
The majority of the RBOCs revenues come from access fees paid by long-d lon g-dis istan tance ce serv service ice Pr Provi ovider ders s
Comp mpli licat catio ion n / Qu Ques esti tion on:: Co
The FCC is considering an auction of additional radio spectrum to be used for short rt--distance cellular telephone service (personal comm co mmun unic icat atio ion n se servi rvice ce -- PC PCS) S)
This additional radio spectrum will allow long-distance carriers to byp ypas ass s the RBO BOCs Cs in ga gain inin ing g acc cces ess s to cust custo ome mers rs
The RBOCs must improve their growth prospects to increase their stoc st ock k pr price ice
Re Resol soluti ution on / Hyp Hypot othes hesis* is*::
The RBOCs should invest in the PCS market to improve their growth
xxx
xxx
xxx
xxx
xxx
Exhibits: its: Text Exhib Conve Con veyy sp spec ecif ific ic fac acts ts or id idea eas s Elim imin inat ate e er errror ors s in in intter erpr pret etat atio ion n El of th the e in inffor orma mati tion on pr pres esen ente ted d information on Summarize prev pr evio ious us or su subs bseq eque uent nt sl slid ides es large amounts of Organize information Diagrams: Conveyy cause / effect, ef fect, sequential Conve relationships between observations Organize ize inf informati ormation on Organ Explain ain con concep ceptua tuall id ideas eas Expl Graphs: Summar marize ize num numeri erical cal dat data a Sum Draw aw at atte tent ntio ion n to sp spec ecif ific ic fa fact cts s Dr Expl plai ain n tr tren ends ds in un unde derl rlyi ying ng da data ta Ex
s e i r o g e t a C e d i l S
xxx
s e p y T e d i l S t i b i h x E t x e T
xxx
s e p y T e d i l S m a r g a i D
xxx
s e p y T e d i l S h p a r G
Message
Comparison
Identify
the specific poi oin nt you wan antt to ma mak ke
Should
distinct
be
clear
and
Message
Char t Form
selected impli lie es on one e of fiv ive e types of com comparis parison: on:
Select the graph to best
– Component
There
– Item
Time me ser serie ies s – Ti Frequ equenc encyy distr distribu ibution tion – Fr – Correlation
depict the comparison you ar are e tr tryi yin ng to mak ake e are several alter alt ernat native ive cha chart rt fo forms rms
xxx
xxx
b m u h T f o s e l u R g n i h p a r G a t a D
The selected graph should be as simple as possible to convey the
message Axis labels should all be horizontal to enable easy reading
Zerros sh shou ould ld omi mitt tted ed fr from om axi xis s sc sca ale les s and le lege gen nds Ze No more than one decimal point of detail should be presented in
graphs Colors (or darker shading) can be used to emphasize points of
interest and increa ease se the eff ffe ectiveness of the gra rap phic se sellected (the sam sa me color or sh sha ading sh sho ould be used for each compan anyy throughout the pre presen sentat tation ion))
Acti tion on ti titl tles es and su subt btit itlles sh shou oulld be sh shor ortt and pun unch chyy
Target should be 7 +/- 2 words for the length of your title
Limit all forms of the verb “to be” (am / is / are; was / were) to save room
Foc ocu us on th the e co corre me mes ssa sag ge of ea each ch sl sliide
Poin Po ints ts co con nve veyyed sh shou ould ld be a hi high gh le leve vell su summ mmary ary of de deta tail iled ed in inffor orma mati tion on
Titl Ti tles es sh shou ould ld be al alll “caps”, ex exce cept pt for pr prep epos osit itio ions ns an and d co conn nnec ecto tors rs
Alll ve Al verb rbs s ar are e ca capi pita tali lize zed, d, in incl clud udin ing g “is”, “are”, “can” and “be”
If “to” is part of a verb (To Reengineer) it is capitalized; If “to” is part of a prep pr epos osit itio ion n (t (to o th the e cl clie ient nt)) it is no nott ca capi pita tali lize zed d
Slides sh sho ould be limited to three or fewer key messa sag ges
Slid ides es sh shou ould ld be or orga gani nize zed d hi hier erar arch chic ical ally ly Sl
Logic should flow through slide, from general premises to specific implications
Move Mo ve fr from om ea easy sy-t -too-gr gras asp p id idea eas s to ha hard rd-t -too-un unde ders rsta tand nd id idea eas s
Mak Ma ke lo logi gic c pa para rall llel el
Grap aphs hs an and d di diag agra rams ms sh sho oul uld d be us used ed to co con nve veyy po poin intts whe here re po poss ssib ible le Gr Att ttem empt pt to move beyon ond d bas asic ic bul ulle lett po poin intt sl sliide des s Thin ink k ab abou outt al alte tern rnat ativ ive e ways to pr pres esen entt in inffor orma mati tion on Th Alll so Al sour urce ces s of da datta, id idea eas, s, an and d quo uottes sh shou ould ld be id iden enttif ifie ied d ttri ribu buti ting ng so sour urce ces s bu buil ilds ds cr cred edib ibil ilit ityy for th the e pr pres esen enta tati tion on Att Sources should be identified with enough detailed to enable spec sp ecif ific icit ityy if as ask ked Footnotes sh sho ould be use sed d to provi vid de add ddiitional detail or explana nattion for a point made in the body of the slide Most st co comm mmon only ly us used ed to su supp pple leme ment nt qua uant ntit itat ativ ive e an anal alys ysis is Mo Inclu cludi ding ng foo ootn tnot otes es bu buil ilds ds cre credi dibi bilit lityy for th the e pr pres esen enta tati tion on In Bull Bu llet eted ed text ou outl tlin ines es ar are e ea easi sie er to re read ad whe hen n wri rittten as co colu lumn mns s Always ensure consistency of font type, font sizes on a page (when poss po ssib ible le), ), ta tabl ble e sh shad adin ings gs,, ta tabl ble e st styl yle, e, li line ne an and d ar arro row w th thic ickn knes ess, s, sh shad ado ows off-s off -set etti ting ng sh shad ado ow co colo lorr fon ontt co colo lorr th thrrou ough ghou outt an anyy do docu cume ment nt
Subb-po poin ints ts mu must st an answ swer er th the e que uest stio ion n th the e su summ mmary ary po poin intt ra rais ises es,, am ampl plif ifyi yin ng, cl clar arif ifyi ying ng or pr pro ovi vidi ding ng Su cont co ntex extt fo forr th the e su summ mmary ary po poin intt
The Th e an answ swer ers s to "w "why hy"" qu ques esti tion ons s ar are e re reas ason ons s
The Th e an answ swer ers s to "h "ho ow" qu ques esti tion ons s are st step eps s
ffiicient logical support to show that the summary Sub-points must provide necessary and suff state sta temen mentt fo follo llows ws fr from om the su sub-p b-poi oints nts chart art do docu cume ment nts, s, ex exhi hibi bits ts al also so mu must st su supp pport ort th thei eirr he head adli line nes s In ch
Clas ass s gr grou oupi ping ngs s mu must st be pr prop oper erly ly de defi fine ned d an and d gr grou oupe ped d Cl
No misf sfiit ideas - those that are at a diff ffer ere ent level of abstraction or that do not poin intt to the same con conclus clusion ion
No ov overl erlaps aps (co (conf nfus used ed log logic) ic)
No gap gaps s (in (incom comple plete te thi think nkin ing) g)
Orde derr of th the e gr grou oupi pin ng mu must st be val alid idat ated ed Or
xxx
s d o h t e M n o i t a c i n u m m o C
Create a story line and outline be beffore you write new sl sliides
n Storybo oryboard ard the pre present sentati ation on St o i t gic c to re rea ach the “so what” Focus on developing logi a t lysi sis s do doe es not ha hav ve to be in incl clu ude ded d Remember: All of your analy n e Use Use th the e st stor oryybo boa ard to dri riv ve th the e pr pres esen enta tati tion on s e r Draft slide titles to tell the story P g Crea eatte blan ank k sli lide des s with title les s, fi filll in exhibit or text whe hen n avai aila lab ble Cr i e n t v i i t r Be aware of your audience c W e Identify “hot buttons” f f Ada dapt pt pr pres esen enta tati tion on st styl yle e to th the e client’s cul ulttur ure e (e.g. g.,, data vs vs.. cli lip p art rt)) E r Be aware of your medium o f Dettai aile led d gr grap aphi hics cs do no nott wor ork k wel elll on over erhe head ads s De s p i Some colors do not appear well on overheads or data displays (e.g., T yellow)
The Pyra rami mid d Lo Logi gic c Str truc uctu turre en ena abl ble es per ersu sua asi siv ve, hypoth thes esis is-d -dri riv ven
pres pr esen enta tati tion ons s to be wr writ itte ten n A storyboard of each presentation should be created before any
s t h g u o h T l a n i F
sliides are written to build the logic for the Pyrami sl mid d Structure The slide titles should tell the complete story by laying out the
horriz ho izo ont nta al log ogic ic of th the e Pyr yra ami mid d The information included in the body of each slide, as well as the
groupings of these slides into sections, should create the vert rtiical log lo gic of th the e Pyr yra ami mid d Following these slide writing and graph selection rules of thumb will
ensu en sure re a pe pers rsua uasi siv ve, ac acti tion onab able le pr pres esen enta tati tion on is cr crea eate ted d
