Abstract
This article presents a curated collection of four teaching innovations presented at the Association for Business Communication 90th conference in Long Beach, California, as well as online, in October 2025. These My Favorite Assignment presenters demonstrated various activities in helping students learn skills in analyzing and summarizing research results within business contexts. This My Favorite Assignment 33rd edition introduces readers to a wide variety of classroom-ready ideas that integrate research, analysis, and summary skills. Teaching support materials—instructions to students, stimulus materials, slides, rubrics, frequently asked questions, links, and sample student projects—are downloadable from the Association for Business Communication website.
Albert Einstein is reported to have said, “If I were given one hour to save the planet, I would spend 59 minutes defining the problem and one minute resolving it” (O’Rourke & Smith, 2023, chapter 5, para. 2). Students in business communication classes often find themselves with crises to address and problems to solve. However, as Einstein indicates, defining and communicating the problem or crisis is often the most important step in solving it. Or as Harvard Online (2026) suggests, “Meaningful innovation doesn’t start with answers. It starts with a better question” (para. 4).
To come up with the right questions for an audience of decision makers, business communication students need skills in researching, strategies in collecting data, and principles in communicating the data in written and verbal form. They need skills in analyzing and summarizing information. These skills will help them accurately define a problem, understand a potential crisis, and deliver the appropriate information to an audience in informing a solution. These concepts are invaluable for professional communication.
In helping students understand these principles, the presenters at the Association for Business Communication (ABC) conference in October 2025 outlined several ideas that can help instructors teach skills in analyzing and summarizing research results and data. This collection of assignments features four My Favorite Assignment presentations selected from the 55 teaching innovations presented at these popular sessions. All four of them focused on assisting students in carrying out primary and secondary research, in gleaning key points from large amounts of data, and in presenting data to an audience. Analysis and summary skills are key concepts for the world of business, and these teaching activities shared at the ABC conference provide excellent groundwork for instructors teaching these principles in their business communication classes.
In the My Favorite Assignment sessions at the ABC conference, presenters have just 3 min to present their My Favorite Assignment idea to a receptive audience. If a presenter speaks beyond three minutes, a bell is rung, signaling the end of their time on stage. At this point, each presenter receives the traditional My Favorite Assignment “thunderous applause” from their supportive Association for Business Communication (ABC) colleagues.
From this collection of assignment ideas in this issue, readers can acquire several classroom-proven assignments that are designed to help learners improve their research skills, understand elements of surveying and conducting other forms of data collection, glean and analyze data from their textbooks and other resources, and use artificial intelligence applications to create data stories for an audience. The assignments involve different combinations of researching, writing, and speaking skills. Overall, they feature excellent classroom-tested approaches to teaching important concepts to students.
If you are interested in exploring this article’s My Favorite Assignments in greater depth, you can download additional materials from http://www.businesscommunication.org/page/assignments, where readers can peruse learning objects, instructions, stimulus and exercise materials, slides, grading rubrics, frequently asked questions (FAQs), and sample student work products.
Communicating Sustainability: Research, Insights, and Action
University of Illinois Chicago, USA
Genre
BCom Fundamentals
The Assignment
In this group assignment, students analyze the sustainability practices of a locally based company and communicate their findings through a memorandum and an in-class presentation. In this way, students learn to research, work in teams, and integrate sustainability analysis while demonstrating core business communication skills.
In class, students are taught commonly reference environmental criteria. They are given assigned readings on emissions reduction, energy use, waste management, supply chain transparency, and alignment between sustainability goals and reported outcomes. This information will be pivotal as they complete the assignment.
Students are then put into teams. Each team is directed to select a company.
Companies can be selected based on the geographical location of the institution at which the task is assigned. For example, a university in the Chicago area could ask teams to select one of the top 50 Chicago-area firms for annual revenue, ensuring a strong local connection and the availability of public information. An added benefit of this approach is that these companies often recruit from the local school because of its proximity to the company. Overall, selecting local companies has pedagogical and long-range benefits for the assignment.
Students are not required to contact the company directly, although they may do so if they wish. However, they must conduct secondary research, drawing on reputable business publications (e.g., The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Bloomberg, and Reuters), and proprietary databases available through the institution’s library. They can also conduct primary research through the company’s annual and sustainability reports.
Students evaluate sustainability practices using commonly referenced environmental criteria discussed in class and in assigned readings. To assess effectiveness and transparency, students compare company performance over time and, when appropriate, benchmark against key competitors. Basic financial analysis introduced in the course (e.g., revenue and EPS trends) can be incorporated to assess sustainability performance.
Using this research, the student teams then write a memo describing their findings, and they also present their analysis to the class. In their presentations, students recommend practical consumer actions that support sustainability. After each team presentation, the class engages in a question-and-answer session that allows all participants to demonstrate critical thinking and audience awareness.
Thus, all team members participate in research, writing, and oral delivery. Students apply memo-writing conventions, organizational strategies, and presentation principles.
The assignment can be adapted for online courses using virtual collaboration and presentations.
Target Learners
This assignment is intended for undergraduate students enrolled in a business communication course.
Learning Objectives
Analyze and evaluate a locally based company’s sustainability practices using established environmental standards and criteria.
Communicate research findings effectively through a well-organized memo and an in-class presentation.
Propose practical consumer actions that support environmental sustainability in the students’ daily lives.
Engage in thoughtful discussions about the complexities of corporate and consumer roles in addressing environmental challenges.
Time to Complete the Assignment
Students should expect to spend an estimated 6–8 hours on this assignment, including time for research, drafting, collaboration, revision, and presentation rehearsals.
Materials, Equipment, Special Considerations
Recommended materials include reputable business publications such as The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Bloomberg, and Reuters, as well as proprietary databases available through the school’s library, such as ABI/INFORM Global, Gartner Research, Mergent, and Nexis Uni.
Students also receive a detailed assignment memo outlining expectations and deliverables, along with a grading rubric that explains evaluation criteria for both the memo and the presentation.
Evaluating Outcomes
Student performance will be assessed using a combination of qualitative and quantitative measures aligned with the course learning objectives.
The memo will be evaluated for clarity, organization, depth of analysis, and use of evidence from reputable sources.
The presentation will be assessed on clarity, coherence, organization and appearance of visual aids, and the presenters’ ability to engage the audience.
Students’ proposed consumer actions will be evaluated based on their practicality, relevance, and strength of connection to established environmental sustainability guidelines.
Participation in the question-and-answer session will serve as a measure of students’ ability to think critically, respond thoughtfully to questions, and reflect on the complexities of corporate and consumer roles in sustainability.
Support Materials
instructions to students
grading rubric
Which? What? Why? A Survey Research Presentation Project
Hiroshima Shudo University, Japan
Genre
Research
The Assignment
In this multifaceted assignment, students choose a theme related to improving themselves, create and send out a survey on the theme, and give a presentation on the results from the survey.
Through this process, students learn various methods of inquiry and reporting. These are methods that are often applied in real-world situations, where external input from consumer feedback or polling reports is gleaned to make decisions.
The assignment also can be used to teach internal business communication genres that would be applied to a recommendation pitch or an insight briefing.
Overall, the assignment’s pedagogical task cycle includes the following:
The assignment is completed through the following steps:
1. Students select a title from the 10 Ways To series published by Halico Creative Education (Boon et al., 2019-2020). The series covers various themes, including the following: achieve work-life balance be more productive understand the news solve problems choose a career
Offering a choice of topics to read about and research supports learner autonomy and makes the project more personalized and meaningful. At this step, students select which six “ways” they identify with from the theme that they have chosen.
2. Students are taught various question-and-answer types available with Google Forms to help them collect data suitable for basic quantitative and qualitative analysis.
At this step, various closed-end approaches to survey questions are introduced, such as the following:
closed question types such as True/False
various multiple-choice questions (including ranges)
top-3 rating checkboxes
Likert scales for agreement or disagreement
Open-ended question formats are also covered, such as the short-answer and longer paragraph options.
3. Students create a survey that focuses on asking respondents what their top three “ways” are for the chosen theme, and why these are their top three “ways.” The surveys are created using the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools available in Google Forms. Each survey must have at least four closed-ended questions and two open-ended questions.
4. Students send the survey to a group of individuals.
5. Each student analyzes the data from the survey responses. They are directed to highlight three key findings and identify two unexpected surprises.
6. Each student prepares graphs and designs a presentation using 9–12 slides.
7. Each student presents the data in class. (The presentations could also be delivered remotely or submitted online as needed.)
Delivering novel content in this way makes the project less susceptible to AI use and keeps the other members of the class engaged to ask follow-up questions.
Target Learners
ESL/EFL language learners in high school or university, IT literacy learners
Learning Objectives
design a survey that follows ethical principles and uses Google Forms with at least four closed-ended question types and two open-ended question types to capture both quantitative and qualitative data
analyze results to highlight three key findings and identify two unexpected surprises
apply critical thinking and problem solving to develop an oral presentation (supported by graphs in a 9–12-slide template) to interpret the findings and offer a recommendation
Time to Complete the Assignment
one class period (or two half periods) to introduce the project and teach survey question-and-answer types in Google Forms together with frameworks for consent, anonymity, and confidentiality.
one live presentation day in class (or submitted online as recordings, as the number of students dictates).
Materials, Equipment, Special Considerations
hard copies or digital access to 10 Ways To titles published by Halico Creative Education (Boon et al., 2019-2020). Another source of material could be used for the assignment, if needed.
access to Google Forms
computer
projector
Evaluating Outcomes
Survey questions can be graded as complete or incomplete.
The presentation rubric covers the following items: delivery content use of visuals handling of questions
Support Materials
instructions to students
slides
grading rubric
Data Headlines: Crafting Compelling Narratives in a Flash
Indiana University, USA
Genre
Visual/Data Communication
The Assignment
The term data often evokes notions of complexity and rigidity. This preconception creates a barrier to effective communication and engagement. Through this active experiential assignment, the professor tears down that prohibitive scaffolding through a quick, enjoyable learning activity.
Using artificial intelligence (AI), students create concise, impactful headlines for data stories. They seek to foster a reader’s response where data is seen not as an intimidating entity but as a powerful tool for storytelling. This exercise encourages students to do the following:
distill key insights from data sets rapidly
enhance their ability to communicate essential information clearly and convincingly.
By integrating creativity and brevity, this activity not only demystifies data but also empowers students to leverage it effectively across various disciplines.
Target Learners
Undergraduate, graduate, and executive education
Learning Objectives
Students will do the following:
Analyze data sets to identify key insights for effective data communication.
Apply generative AI tools to create concise, impactful headlines that convey data-driven narratives.
Evaluate the persuasiveness of data headlines for an intended audience.
Time to Complete the Assignment
30–45 minutes
Materials, Equipment, Special Considerations
data set distribution via paper or electronic sharing
place for students to write takeaway titles and intended audience: electronic or poster
slides with directions and sample success on a case project
Evaluating Outcomes
This assignment serves as a formative assessment. The goal is to allow students to practice the concepts in a low-stakes format. It may be revisited for future summative assessments (see student samples on provided slides).
Support Materials
stimulus and exercise materials
slides with instructions to students, grading rubric, and sample student work
grading rubric
instructor guide
Pick Up Your Phone
Pfeiffer University, USA
Genre
Presentation Delivery
The Assignment
Students produce a video designed to brief their professor on what they have learned in the course thus far.
Learners are directed to create a 3 to 5-minute video of themselves via their phones or laptops.
In the video, they use the content from specific course material from a three-week period.
Students select the top three concepts that they have learned.
Students complete the following in their videos:
Explain why they feel these are the top three concepts learned thus far.
Provide personal reflection as to how these concepts apply/could apply to their personal and professional lives or provide guidance in these areas of their lives.
Explain what concepts they still need help with and why.
Upload the video to the LMS.
The assignment can be repeated three times in a semester; each time it is completed, it brings different results and content.
This assignment’s advantages are many:
Students must originate and create this work. AI cannot complete the required personal reflection with personal examples.
Students must have read the posted assigned material in order to complete the task.
It is quicker for an instructor to grade a video than to read a paper.
Part of the grade depends on how well students present themselves virtually, so students build experience and skills in presenting themselves and their ideas in a video format.
These skills apply well to real-life situations.
The professor is given the opportunity to know more about the student individually.
Professors assess and provide feedback via video format as well, allowing the assignment to provide feedback in a medium different from that usually used.
The grading rubric shows the breakdown of weighting between content knowledge, application, and presentation.
Target Learners
Undergraduate and graduate
Learning Objectives
Students will do the following:
reflect upon their learning
analyze and assess the value of the course materials
package a briefing message
present a concise oral argument supported by evidence
present themselves virtually and develop familiarity and confidence in doing so
Time to Complete the Assignment
Three weeks is allotted.
The video is limited to 3–5 minutes.
Most students wait until the last week of the three-week period.
Materials, Equipment, Special Considerations
Nearly all the students have a phone or laptop. Also, students can use campus facilities to record.
The instructor should check with the institution’s leaning management system (LMS) or IT department to see which software is compatible with the LMS. For example, Blackboard works well with both iOS and Android as well as MP4 files.
Evaluating Outcomes
The students are graded on their conciseness, their content (evidence, analysis, and application of the concept), and their polish and presentation skills.
Support Materials
instructions to students
grading rubric
FAQs
These My Favorite Assignment ideas were presented at the Association for Business Communication (ABC) conference in October 2025. This article is the last of four articles in BPCQ that feature My Favorite Assignment ideas from that conference. Special thanks to BPCQ Editor Robyn Walker for her vision for this series of articles.
These My Favorite Assignment submissions were each anonymously peer-reviewed by three leading communication education scholars. We give special thanks to these dedicated individuals who lent their time and expertise in contributing to this article’s pedagogical creativity. Technical formatting was performed by DePaul University’s Liudas Davis. Liudas also helps curate My Favorite Assignment’s growing library of over 900 sets of teaching support materials.
As you read your colleagues’ ideas, perhaps you found yourself inspired to share your favorite assignment in business communication. We hope you will take the opportunity to share one of your teaching innovations at a future ABC conference.
Footnotes
Contributors
Wang, Jie
University of Illinois Chicago, USA
Rouault, Greg
Hiroshima Shudo University, Japan
Butters, Rebecca
Indiana University, USA
Susan Luck
Pfeiffer University, USA
Funding
The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.