In Unit 2, we began our formal report with a research proposal, outline, and progress report. In addition, we had the opportunity to set up a LinkedIn profile and connect with our peers to review and provide constructive criticism in terms of ways to improve their online professional profile.

There was a steep learning curve involved, as I have never created a research report outside of science academia targeted towards an audience to address and provide recommendations for a real life problem. However, unit 2 was broken down into pieces that assisted in establishing a backbone for our research formal report. The formal report proposal was written in a professional tone towards an audience in a public place setting whereby we investigate and provide recommendations for a problem or deficiency. The peer review from Julianne was very helpful as it helped me find some minor grammatical errors and redefine my purpose. After rereading my proposal, I realized the only clear problem I stated was in my first sentence “[T]here has been an increase in demand for Junior Achievement business programs from schools more so than the current supply of volunteers…”, but I don’t explicitly state the purpose of my research proposal. As Julianne recommends me to redefine my purpose in the proposed solution category, I realized that I should clearly state that the purpose of my research proposal is to increase the number of volunteers at Junior Achievement through finding efficient ways to promote volunteer opportunities for students at UBC. When peers reviewing Julianne’s research proposal, I was again able to learn a lot from her concise and methodical way of writing.   Julianne’s writing is very well organized and I appreciate her conciseness. For example, in her methods section, instead of restating the scope questions she simply refers back to them as “For questions 1 and 2…”, making her sentences much shorter.

For the LinkedIn profile assignment, it was my first time creating an online profile and utilizing
LinkedIn for professional networking. The assignment exposed myself to the enormity of users on LinkedIn and made me realize the significance of having an online formal profile. Robele’s peer review was incredibly helpful because it made me realize that my online profile was lacking certain important elements such as a profile photo, technical skills, and a short concise summary. Initially my summary resembled a cover letter but after researching ten best LinkedIn practices I realized that I had to break down my summary with a short introduction and include my strengths validated with problem, action, and result (PAR) statements. In addition, after reading through professor Paterson’s profile, I recognized how unique it was because she differentiated herself with visual elements like videos, documents, and pictures. In terms of creating a peer review template, it exposed myself to the importance of organization and visuals. Initially one aspect I found difficult with peer reviews is that I don’t know if I’ve addressed every single point in a clear and concise manner. However, the template peer review allowed our critique to be more organized and objective. As Professor Paterson emphasized, page design and document are as important as text. Prior to completing my template I perused through the group forum and immediately noticed some stylized and unique peer review templates. Two templates that immediately stood out to me were the ESL Boys logo and Paul Sullivan’s colorful visual peer review template. Therefore, I utilized a personalized logo for our team Professional Banters and used different fonts. The template also provided direction for my peer review that forced me to answer questions I often forget. For example, one aspect that I noticed in Robele’s LinkedIn profile was that his summary was too short. However, in my peer review template I addressed why it was too short, what elements were missing, and how he could improve on that element. Likewise, if a certain element of Robele’s profile was amazing, I addressed why it was impressive.

Lastly, the memorandums we wrote in unit two was good practice as the feedback I received in unit 1 was that my memorandums were written incorrectly. This time around, I included initials and avoided salutations. In addition, the outline and progress report have been instrumental in clearly setting up a backbone for what needs to be completed when. As the semester gets busier I will definitely utilize my progress report and outline for keep up to date with the schedule.

Overall, unit 2 was a steep learning curve but it also created a foundational basis for starting our formal report. In addition, the peer reviews we’ve conducted and received have been great practice in terms of exposing the strengths and weaknesses of everyone’s documents. The most helpful feedback I’ve provided in my peer reviews is addressing areas of improvement. When conducting Robele’s LinkedIn peer review, I browsed through several popular profiles of career coaches and recommended expansions to his profile based on what others have. The most helpful feedback I’ve received has been recognizing areas of my writing where I’m far too wordy and unclear. Peer reviews have positively impacted my writing because it points out weaknesses, allowing me to revise, reflect, and rewrite.