Business english student coursebook by Cosmina

BUSINESS ENGLISH Student coursebook

Cosmina Almăşan Sibiu, 2015

Table of Contents Unit 1: BUSINESS AND PLEASURE .......................................................................................................... 3 Cultures and culture............................................................................................................................ 3 Entertainment and hospitality ............................................................................................................ 6 Corporate events ................................................................................................................................ 8 Making conversation......................................................................................................................... 10 Unit 2: JOBS .......................................................................................................................................... 11 Job descriptions ................................................................................................................................ 11 Recruitment and selection ................................................................................................................ 12 People and workplaces ..................................................................................................................... 17 Managers, executives and directors ................................................................................................. 19 Departments ..................................................................................................................................... 21 Unit 3: MATERIAL WORLD.................................................................................................................... 24 Success .............................................................................................................................................. 24 The language of success and failure ................................................................................................. 25 Upward mobility ............................................................................................................................... 26 Money issues..................................................................................................................................... 27 Unit 4: ON THE PHONE ......................................................................................................................... 28 Telephones and beyond .................................................................................................................... 28 Getting through................................................................................................................................. 29 Messages ........................................................................................................................................... 31 Arrangements ................................................................................................................................... 32 Dealing with complaints.................................................................................................................... 36 Tackling problems ............................................................................................................................. 37 Unit 5: PRESENTING IDEAS ................................................................................................................... 38 Types of presentations...................................................................................................................... 38 Presentations – the main part .......................................................................................................... 39 Presentations – closing and questions.............................................................................................. 41 Voice and visuals ............................................................................................................................... 45 Unit 6: PROMOTING IDEAS .................................................................................................................. 51 Customers and clients ....................................................................................................................... 51 Markets and competitors.................................................................................................................. 52 Marketing and market orientation ................................................................................................... 54

SWOT analysis ................................................................................................................................... 58 Promotion ......................................................................................................................................... 59 Sales and costs .................................................................................................................................. 61 The art of speaking............................................................................................................................ 65 Unit 7: MY BUSINESS ............................................................................................................................ 67 The challenge .................................................................................................................................... 67 What’s in a name .............................................................................................................................. 68 The business plan .............................................................................................................................. 69 Project – roles distribution................................................................................................................ 72 Business presentation ....................................................................................................................... 73 Unit 8: MEETINGS ................................................................................................................................. 75 Types of meetings ............................................................................................................................. 75 The role of the chairperson............................................................................................................... 78 Points of view .................................................................................................................................... 80 Agreement and disagreement .......................................................................................................... 82 Discussion techniques ....................................................................................................................... 84 Making things clear ........................................................................................................................... 85 Unit 9: BUSINESS DOCUMENTS............................................................................................................ 89 Types of documents .......................................................................................................................... 89 Emails ................................................................................................................................................ 92 EXTRA GRAMMAR PRACTICE ............................................................................................................... 98 BUSINESS ENGLISH COURSEBOOK BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................... 107

Unit 1: BUSINESS AND PLEASURE All things being equal, people will buy from a friend. All things being not quite so equal, people will still buy from a friend. (Mark McCormack, What They Don't Teach You at Harvard Business School)

1. CULTURES AND CULTURE Culture is the "way we do things here". "Here" may be a country, an area, a social class or an organization such as a company or school. You often talk about: • company or corporate culture: the way a particular company works, and the things it believes are important. • canteen culture: the ways that people in an organization such as the police think and talk, not approved by the leaders of the organization. • long-hours culture: where people are expected to work for a long time each day. • macho culture: ideas typically associated with men: physical strength, aggressiveness, etc..' DISTANCE AND FAMILIARITY Distance between managers and the people who work under them varies in different cultures. Look at these two companies: In Country A, managers are usually easy to talk to - accessible and approachable - and there is a tradition of employees being involved in decision-making as part of a team of equals. This company is not very hierarchical, with only three management layers. In Country B, managers are usually more distant and remote. Employees may feel quite distant from their managers and have a lot of deference for them: accepting decisions but not participating in them. Companies in Country B tend to be more hierarchical than those in Country A, with more management layers. Deference and distance may be shown in language. Some languages have many forms of address that you use to indicate how familiar you are with someone. English only has one form, 'you', but distance may be shown in other ways, for example, in whether first names or surnames are used. (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 98) 1.1. Which word combination with 'culture' describes each of the following? 1 The men really dominate in this company, they don't make life easy for women at all. All they talk about is football. 2 Among the management here we try to be fair to people from different minorities, but there are still elements of racism among the workforce. 3 Of course, the quality of the work you do after you've been at it for ten hours is not good. 4 There was a time when managers could only wear white shirts in this company - things are a bit less formal now. 5 Here the male managers talk about the market as if it was some kind of battlefield. 6 They say that if you go home at 5.30, you can't be doing your job properly, but I'm going anyway. (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 99)

1.2.Read this information about two very different companies and answer the questions. The Associated Box Company (ABC) and the Superior Box Corporation (SBC) both make cardboard boxes. At ABC there are three levels of management between the CEO and the people who actually make the boxes. At SBC, there is only one level. Managers at ABC are very distant. They rarely leave their offices, they have their own executive restaurant and the employees hardly ever see them. Employees are never consulted in decision-making. At SBC, managers share the same canteen with employees. Managers have long meetings with employees before taking important decisions. Managers and the CEO of SBC have an open-door policy where employees can come to see them about any complaint they might have. At ABC, employees must sort out problems with the manager immediately above them. At ABC, employees call their managers 'sir'. At SBC, everyone uses first names. 1. Which company: a. is more hierarchical? b. is more informal in the way people talk to each other? 2. In which company are managers more approachable? 3. In which company are employees a. more deferential? b. on more equal terms with their bosses? (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 99)

NAMES first name

My real name‘s Thomas, but please

family name/ surname

Tom Brewster MARKETING DIRECTOR

call me Tom.

I‘m from the US. The ‗R‘ stands for Robert – that‘s my middle name. My dad is also called Douglas R. Baxendale, so he puts Sr after his name and I put Jr.

They stand for John Gregory, if you really want to know. initials

Douglas R. Baxendale Jr CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

J. G. Cutler TAX INSPECTOR

In the English-speaking business world, people use first names, even with people they do not know well. But if you aren‘t sure, use Mr. and the family name for men, Mrs or Miss and the family name for women, depending on whether they are married or not. Ms often replaces Mrs. and Miss.



Do not use Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms with a first name only (Mr John) or by itself (use Sir or Madam by itself) (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 100)

BUSINESS CARDS

DRESS In Alphaland, businesspeople dress quite formally. The business suit is common, but for men, wearing non-matching jacket and trousers is also a possibility. In Betatania, the dark business suit is obligatory for men. Some companies allow women to wear trouser suits. In Gammaria, the business suit is almost always as necessary as in Betatania, but with more variation in colours. Some companies require employees to wear formal clothes from Monday to Thursday, and allow less formal ones on what they call casual Fridays or dress-down Fridays. In some places, many banks and shops require people dealing with customers to wear uniforms so that they all dress the same. In Deltatonia, people dress more casually at work than in the other countries. For men, suits and ties are less common than elsewhere. This is smart casual. (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 100)

1.3. Decide whether these pieces of advice about the English-speaking business world are true or false. 1 It's possible to introduce yourself by saying your family name then your first name. 2 It's possible to use Mr, Mrs or Miss on its own, or with a first name. 3 British people use Sr and Jr to refer to a father and his son. 4 Americans often show their middle name with an initial. 5 You can always use someone's first name to talk to them, even if you don't know them very well. 6 Ms is being used more and more as a tide for women. 7 You can show your qualifications after your name on your business card. (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 101)

2. ENTERTAINMENT AND HOSPITALITY TIME Attitudes towards time can vary enormously. In Busyville, people start work at eight, and officially finish at six, though many managers stay much longer. There is a culture of presenteeism: being at work when you don't need to be. There is a two-hour lunch break, and a lot of business is done over restaurant lunches. (Lunch is the main meal. The working breakfast is rare.) There are no snacks between meals, just coffee, so eat properly at meal times. As for punctuality, you can arrive up to 15 minutes 'late' for meetings. If invited to someone's house (unusual in business), arrive 15-30 minutes after the time given. Don't phone people at home about work, and don't phone them at all after 9 pm. There are a lot of public holidays (about 15) during the year. Busyville is empty in August, as many companies close completely for four weeks. Employees have five weeks' holiday a year and they usually take four of them in August.

CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION Here are some other areas of potential cultural misunderstanding: a distance when talking to people: what is comfortable? b eye contact: how much of the time do people look directly at each other? c gesture: do people make lots of facial gestures? How much do they move their arms and hands? d greetings/goodbyes: do people shake hands every time? Are there fixed phrases to say? e humour: is this a good way of relaxing people? Or is it out of place in some contexts? f physical contact: how much do people touch each other? g presents: when should you give them? When should you open them? What should you say when you receive one? h rules of conversation and the role of silence: how long can people be silent before they feel uncomfortable? Is it acceptable to interrupt when others are speaking? (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 102)

2.1. Tick (/) the things this visitor to Busyville does right, and put a cross (X) by her mistakes: I phoned my contact in her office at 7.30 pm. (1...) I suggested a working breakfast the next morning. (2...) She wasn't keen, so I suggested lunch. (3...) We arranged to meet at her office at 12.30.1 arrived at 12.45 (4...) and we went to a restaurant, where we had a very good discussion. That evening I wanted to check something, so I found her name in the phone book and phoned her at home. (5...) She was less friendly than at lunchtime. I said I would be back in Busyville in mid-August (6...). Not a good time, she said, so I suggested September. (7...) (Business Vocabulary In Use, p 103)

2.2.Choose the best word to fit the gap: 1 It‘s important to understand how other cultures behave so you don‘t cause___________ . A offence B problem C disaster D behaviour 2 In some countries it is quite _________ to use the correct title when talking to business colleagues. A offensive B likely C formal D tricky 3 Having good ________may help you to make deals more easily. A entertaining B manners C demonstrations D handshaking 4 Ian has to be very organised as his work involves meeting tight ___________. A problems B responsibilities C challenges D deadlines 5 Lesley doesn‘t like having to wait for other people to___________ work for her. A generate B solve C resolve D tackle 6 Paul enjoys working at Small World because he finds the _________stimulating. A installation B environment C application D opportunity 7 If someone looks me straight in the eye without ___________I tend to think they are honest. A yawning B sighing C blinking D sniffing 8 Your body ___________usually gives other people information about how you really feel. A appearance B impression C language D relationship 9 Bob and Tony are business ___________and have arranged to meet at the sales conference. A delegates B customers C associates D officers 10 I‘ve given the latest sales ___________to Mr Allen but he hasn‘t had a chance to look at them yet. A systems B figures C worksheets D facts 2.3. Reading - Put these sentences in the best order: 1 A Very well, thanks. Let's get down to business, shall we? B I'm fine, thanks. How are you? C Hello again! How are you getting on? D Yes, all right. 2 A Miss Smith, I'd like you to meet Mrs Jones. B Oh, please call me Liz. C How do you do, Mrs Jones? D And I'm Claire. 3 A Oh, yes. I've heard of you. B The name's Alex White. C I'd like to introduce myself. D Pleased to meet you. 4 A I wondered if I might take Friday off? B Yes. Tony, of course. C Oh, Friday's rather difficult. D Mrs Lang, could I have a word please? 5 A What do you think? B Yes, sure, Bob. C Geoff, could you come over here a minute? D Aha, yes, you've put a lot of work into it (New International Business English, 3)

3. CORPORATE EVENTS 3.1

Discuss the following questions.

a Is it easier to work with friends or more complicated? b Would you be worried about doing business with a member of your family? c The Japanese spend $40 billion a year on corporate hospitality almost as much as the country's annual defence budget! In what ways can entertaining clients and colleagues be good for business? 3.2 Complete the following extract from a corporate entertainment company's website using the words in the box. Are you persuaded by what it says? service team experience clients seats relationships box reception setting office members viewing What better way to build and maintain _______________ with key _______________and to reward star _______________ of your _______________ than to offer them a unique and unforgettable _______________ far away from the pressures and constraints of an _______________ environment? Whether it‘s front row _______________ at the Metropolitan Opera in New York, a VIP _______________ at the World Cup Final, a private _______________ at the Guggenheim Gallery in Bilbao or a champagne _______________ at the Paris Ritz, we can provide the ideal _______________ and first-class _______________ that will leave your guests simply saying ―Wow!‖ 3.3. Work in groups and read the presentation of the events from the following page. 3.4. Then team up with people from the other groups. You all work in the PR department of a British engineering company. Using the information you read, hold a meeting to decide which would be the best event to invite each of the following to: a your top fifty sales reps and their partners b six Finnish engineers with whom you have just completed a very successful two-year project c a delegation of twelve Chinese government officials with whom you are currently negotiating an $80 million contract d the CEO of your biggest Dutch customer, her husband and teenage son Also think of a suitable gift you could give to each of your guests. (In Company, 4) 3.5. What sort of corporate events could be organized in the area where you live?

c Banquet on board the Royal Yacht Britannia

British Grand Prix, Silverstone

Engines roar, tyres squeal and sparks fly as two-million-dollar supercars accelerate from 0 to 250kph in under seven seconds. 200,000 spectators descend on Silverstone for this fabulous sporting occasion that attracts a worldwide TV audience of 350 million. From your trackside seat you'll soak up all the atmosphere of one of the most glamorous and spectacular events in the motor-racing calendar. VIP treatment; breathtaking action!

Dinner on board Britannia is a once in a lifetime experience - oysters and aperitifs, tables decorated with ice sculptures, waiters in white gloves and music played on the very piano Princess Diana used to practise on. You'll be seated in the state dining room where the Queen once entertained world leaders like Boris Yeltsin, Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela. Why not really roll out the red carpet for your guests and make your corporate hospitality event a truly 'royal' occasion?

VIP box and hospitality tent: £1,000 per person b

All England Lawn Championships, Wimbledon

Tennis

5-course dinner, military band, fireworks: £500 per person

Experience the nail-biting climax to the world's premier international tennis tournament as the true giants of the game clash in the men's Wimbledon final. All the tradition of vintage champagne and strawberries and cream combine with 140mile-an-hour serves and awesome cross-court shots to make what many consider to be the greatest sporting event on Earth. Game, set and match!

London Eye and Private Tour of Tate Modern Your evening begins 130 metres above London in your very own capsule on the London Eye. A waiter serves champagne. On a clear day you can see for 25 miles - all the way to Windsor Castle. You are then transferred to the Tate Modern for a private tour of one of the world's most cutting-edge contemporary art galleries, followed by a superb dinner in the tasteful surroundings of the Level 2 Cafe. High altitude; high culture! London Eye, tour of Tate Modern, dinner: €.1,600 per party of 20

Men's final, lunch, champagne, music: €.3,000 per person

(In Company, 5)

4. MAKING CONVERSATION Listen to some business people chatting at two of the corporate events and answer the questions. Conversation 1 a What's the connection between Helen Keating, James McRae and Alan Sullivan? b When Helen asks James 'Mind if I join you?', how does he reply? c What excuse does Helen make for leaving the rest of the party? d Helen and James use several expressions to refer to memories. Can you remember the first three words of each expression? Contractions (.it's, you're, etc.) count as one word 1. _________ __________ _________ somewhere before? 2. _________ __________ _________ me to forget a face. 3. _________ __________ _________ recognised you. 4. _________ __________ _________ back to me now. 5._________ __________ _________remember spending most of the evening fighting off some creepy little guy called Alan. Conversation 2 a

How would you describe relations between Mr Ishida and Mr Thompson? warm amicable cordial cool strained frosty b Mr Thompson uses the word 'so' five times during the conversation: So, Mr Ishida, let me fresh en your glass. So, how are you enjoying the match? So, tell me, have you been to one of these big tournaments before? So, do you still play? So, shall we return to our seats? Why does he need to use it so often? c Mr Ishida says he's too old to play table tennis now. Mr Thompson replies 'Oh, I'm sure that's not true.' Is he: paying Mr Ishida a compliment or calling him a liar? d Mr Thompson tries to use his background knowledge to keep the conversation going. Complete his remarks below: 1. I h_______you're quite a tennis fan. 2. I u_____the Japanese are world table tennis champions. 3. I s_____the Nikkei's looking strong. That m_____be good news for you. 4. I r______ somewhere that things were improving. Or a_____ I mistaken? (In Company, 6)

Roundâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;up: Comment on the following quote illustrated in the image below:

Unit 2: JOBS Every day I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I'm not there, I go to work. (Robert Orben) 1. JOB DESCRIPTIONS 1.1.

Pierre is talking about his work. Correct what he says. ―I work for a French supermarket company. (1) I work about the development of new supermarkets. (2) In fact, I running the development department and (3) I am manage for a team looking at the possibilities in different countries. It's very interesting. (4) One of my main is to make sure that new supermarkets open on time. (5) I'm also charged with financial reporting. (6)1 deal at a lot of different organizations in my work. (7) I'm responsible of planning projects from start to finish. (8)1 work closely near our foreign partners, and so I travel a lot.‖

1.2.

Fill in the blanks with the correct prepositions: Rebecca lives in London and works in public relations. She leaves home for work at 7.30 am. She drives (1) __________ work. The traffic is often bad and she worries about getting (2) __________ work late, but she usually arrives (3) __________ work at around none. She finishes work quite late, at about eight. ―Luckily, I‘m never ill,‖, she says. ―I could never take time (4) __________ work. She loves what she does and is glad to be (5) __________ work. Some of her friends are not so lucky: they are (6) work. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 11)

1.3

The guessing game  Think of a job for yourself and have your classmates guess it. They can ask you questions about the job, but the answers to those questions can only be ‗yes‘ or ‗no‘.  Think of a job and write down a list of skills and abilities you need to do that job. The teacher will collect the papers and read them out in a random order. The other students will have to guess what job is being described.

2. RECRUITMENT AND SELECTION RECRUITMENT The process of finding people for particular jobs is recruitment or, especially in American English, hiring. Someone who has been recruited is a recruit or, in American English, a hire. The company employs or hires them; they join the company. A company may recruit employees directly or use outside recruiters, recruitment agencies or employment agencies. Outside specialists called headhunters may be called on to headhunt people for very important jobs, persuading them to leave the organizations they already work for. This process is called headhunting. APPLYING FOR A JOB Fred is a van driver, but he was fed up with long trips. He looked in the situations vacant pages of his local newspaper, where a local supermarket was advertising for van drivers for a new delivery service. He applied for the job by completing an application form and sending it in. Harry is a building engineer. He saw a job in the appointments pages of one of the national papers. He made an application, sending in his CV (curriculum vitae -the 'story' of his working life) and a covering letter explaining why he wanted the job and why he was the right person for it. BrE: CV; AmE: resume BrE: covering letter AmE:cover letter

SELECTION PROCEDURES Dagmar Schmidt is the head of recruitment at a German telecommunications company. She talks about the selection process, the methods that the company uses to recruit people:

'We advertise in national newspapers. We look at the backgrounds of applicants: their experience of different jobs and their educational qualifications. We don't ask for handwritten letters of application as people usually apply by email; handwriting analysis belongs to the 19th century. We invite the most interesting candidates to a group discussion. Then we have individual interviews with each candidate. We also ask the candidates to do written psychometric tests to assess their intelligence and personality. After this, we shortlist three or four candidates. We check their references by writing to their referees: previous employers or teachers that candidates have named in their applications. If the references are OK, we ask the candidates to come back for more interviews. Finally, we offer the job to someone, and if they turn it down we have to think again. If they accept it, we hire them. We only appoint someone if we find the right person.' (Business Vocabulary in Use, 15) Check the model for the Europass CV on the website and then discuss it in class:

https://europass.cedefop.europa.eu/en/documents/curriculum-vitae

2.1. Complete the crossword. Use appropriate forms of words from the previous page. Across 5 I phoned to check on my application, but they said they'd already .................... someone. (9) 6 This job is so important, I think we need to ……. someone. (8) 8 The selection process has lasted three months, but we're going to .................... someone next week. (7) Down 1 and 2 I hope she................. , because if she… the job, we'll have to start looking again. (7,5,4) 3 That last applicant was very strong, but I understand he's had two other ….already. (6) 4 They've finally ............... a new receptionist. (5) 7 Computer programmers wanted. Only those with UNIX experience should ……...(5)

2.2. Now divide the words in the exercise above into two groups: 1 what a company personnel department does. 2 what a person looking for work does.

2.3. Replace the underlined phrases with correct forms of words and expressions from the previous page: Fred had already (1) refused two job offers when he went for (2) a discussion to see if he was suitable for the job. They looked at his driving licence and contacted (3) previous employers Fred had mentioned in his application. A few days later, the supermarket (4) asked him if he would like the job and Fred (5) said yes.

Harry didn't hear anything for six weeks, so he phoned the company. They told him that they had received a lot of (6) requests for the job. After looking at the (7) life stories of the (8) people asking for the job and looking at (9) what exams they had passed during their education, the company (10) had chosen six people to interview, done tests on their personality and intelligence and they had then given someone the job.

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 15)

2.4. In pairs, prepare a job description and candidate specification for the job of marketing specialist by filling in the provided form (see below), which are then discussed in class CANDIDATE SPECIFICATION Job title: Sex: Age range: Essential Desirable Working experience Educational record Personal details Non-working life Attitudes

Undesirable

2.5. Listen to a conversation between the Personnel Manager and the Marketing Manager of a firm, concerning the recruitment of a marketing specialist. Check your predictions and fill in the missing details on the candidate specification form provided. CANDIDATE SPECIFICATION Job title: Sex: Age range: Essential Desirable Working experience

- 5 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

experience in

Undesirable - over-specialised -

industry -

Educational record

Personal details

- resident in

- business

diploma

diploma but no science degree

area

- someone with no ties

Non-working life

- ability to mix

Attitudes

- solitary pursuits

-creative,

well with people

enthusiastic

(Business Targets, 16)

2.6. Choose one of the jobs below and prepare a job interview to act out in pairs. One person will get the interviewer’s guide sheet and the other the interviewee’s guide sheet as help. PA/SECRETARY to Managing Director of electronics firm based in Tokyo. Must have experience of, or willingness to accept responsibility for executive decisions in the absence of superiors. Language an advantage but not essential. Salary commensurate with experience. Prospects for promotion. MARKETING EXECUTIVE required for leading manufacturer of pharmaceutical products, based in Switzerland, but with offices in London and Paris. Language skills and experience in overseas markets an advantage. Salary negotiable SALES ORIENTED EXECUTIVE an exceptional challenge for a young (mid 30s) executive in the UK subsidiary of a multi-national company manufacturing computer and software. If you have an impressive record in sales and possess management abilities, write immediately for an application form. Box NO 43 (Business English Recipes, 36)

LETTERS OF APPLICATION LAYOUT AND STYLE The letter should be limited to one page and a few paragraphs will normally be sufficient. It is better to address a letter to a specific person, e.g. Dear Miss Chan, rather than to Dear Sir or Madam . However, in some job advertisements the name of the person you are writing to is not given. It is good practice to try to find out the following information before you write your letter:   

the full name of the person you are writing; their title - Mr., Mrs., Miss, Ms, Dr, Professor, etc, and; their position - Personnel Manager, Human Resources Manager, etc.

Remember, never write Dear Miss W. Chan. It should be Dear Miss Chan. Do not use the initial except in the address. If you start with Dear Sir/Madam, it is accepted practice to finish with Yours faithfully. Whereas, if you start with Dear Miss Chan, you may finish with Yours sincerely.

LETTER STRUCTURE Paragraph 1 - state clearly why you are writing and where you saw the job advertised.   

I would like to apply for the post of ... as advertised in today's issue of .. With reference to your advertisement in ... on ..., I am writing to apply for the position of ... I would like to apply for the above post (of Trainee Manager) as advertised ...

Paragraph 2 - give a little information about your qualifications and experience. Make sure the information you give is relevant to the job that you are applying for.  



As you can see from my enclosed CV, I have worked in my present position for five years. During this time I have gained invaluable experience in ... I am currently a student at HKPU studying ........ I am due to graduate in....... Although I have been studying full time, I have had a number of summer jobs which have helped me to gain experience in ... My experience over the past two years has been at the managerial level, where I have had responsibility for ...

Paragraph 3 - say why you believe you are suited to the job and what you can offer the company. Those currently employed can state the reason for wishing to change their present job. However, you should not sound critical of your present employer. 



 

I am currently working as a receptionist in ...The reason for my seeking a new position is that I wish to pursue a secretarial career. Unfortunately, there are no openings for advancement in my present employment. For the last two years I have been working as a receptionist in ...Unfortunately the company is moving its main offices overseas and I have therefore decided to look for a new position. I believe that the experience I have gained in ... has given me the qualities you are looking for ... I believe I would be an asset to your company. I will be able to bring with me my experience of ... which I believe would be useful in this position ... I feel that my ability to ... will help/enable me to ...

Paragraph 4 - tell the reader when you are available for an interview and how to contact you.   

I would like to have the opportunity to talk to you further about my application. I am available for interview at any time and I can be contacted at/on ... I am available for an interview at any time but would appreciate two days‘ notice. I can be contacted on/at ...I look forward to hearing from/meeting you soon. As requested in the advertisement, I enclose a copy of my resume together with a recent photograph. I look forward to meeting with you to discuss my application further. I am available ... and can be contacted on/at ...

Now write a letter of application for one of the jobs from the previous unit, using the following structures: ―response, suitable, to conduct, to coordinate, to provide, responsible, available, look forward‖

3. PEOPLE AND WORKPLACES Employees and management management

CEO

manual/blue-collar workers

The people who work for a company, all the people on its payroll, are its employees, personnel, staff, workers or workforce. But these words can mean just the people carrying out the work of a company, rather than those leading it and organizing it: the management. MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION A company's activities may be spread over different sites. A company's most senior managers usually work in its head office or headquarters (HQ). Some managers have their own individual offices, but in many businesses, most employees work in open-plan offices: large areas where many people work together. Administration or, informally, admin, the everyday work supporting a company's activities, is often done in offices like these by administrative staff or support staff. For example, those giving technical help to buyers of the company's products are in technical support. LABOUR Labour is spelled labor in AmE. Labor unions, organizations defending the interests of workers (AmE) are called trade unions in BrE. When workers are not happy with pay or conditions, they may take industrial action: • • •

a strike, stoppage or walk-out: workers stop working for a time. a go-slow: workers continue to work, but more slowly than usual. an overtime ban: workers refuse to work more than the normal number of hours.

PERSONNEL AND HUMAN RESOURCES In larger organizations there is a human resources department (HRD) that deals with pay, recruitment, etc. This area is called human resources (HR) or human resource management (HRM). Another name for this department is the personnel department. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 20)

3.1.

Look at the previous page to find the answers to the crossword.

Across 2 and 17 Office workers may wear this. (5,6) 5 All the people working for a company. (5) 7 workers use their hands. (6) 8 When people stop working to protest. (6) 10 One of the people working for an organization. (8) 11 Occasions when workers stop working to protest: walk13 Another name for the human resources department. (9) 14 Workers seen as a group.(6) 18 and 15 down Various forms of protest at work. (10,6)

(4)

Down 1 Everyone working for a company is on this. (7) 2 Everyone, or everyone except top managers. (9) 3 These are trade in the UK and labor in the US. (6) 4 and 17 across Manual workers may wear this. (4,6) 5 The place in a factory where the production lines are. (4, 5) 9 When people stop work to complain about something. (8) 16 and 12 When workers intentionally produce less. (2,4)

3.2

Manuel Ortiz is the founder of a Spanish computer sales company. Use the words from the previous page to complete what he says about it. I founded Computadoras Creativas 20 years ago. We started with a small (1)_________ in Madrid. Our (2) ________________ , our (3) __________________ is still here, but now we have sites all over Spain, with about 500 employees. Many of the offices are (4) _____ - ______ : everyone works together, from managers to (5)_______________ _, as well as people selling over the phone, and people in technical (6)___________ giving help to customers over the phone. Recruitment is taken care of in Madrid, by the (7) ____________ or (8) _______ (Business Vocabulary in Use, 21)

4. MANAGERS, EXECUTIVES AND DIRECTORS MANAGERS AND EXECUTIVES: UK

All the directors together are the board. They meet in the boardroom. Non-executive directors are not managers of the company; they are outsiders, often directors of other companies who have particular knowledge of the industry or of particular areas. The marketing director is the head of marketing, the IT director is the head of FT, etc. These people head or head up their departments. Informally, the head of an activity, a department or an organization is its boss. An executive or, informally, an exec, is usually a manager at quite a high level (for example, a senior executive). But 'executive' can be used in other contexts to suggest luxury, as in 'executive coach' and 'executive home', even for things that are not actually used by executives. MANAGERS AND EXECUTIVES: US

In the US, the top position may be that of chairman, chairwoman or president. This job is often combined with the position of chief executive officer or CEO. Some companies have a chief operating officer to take care of the day-to-day running of the company. The finance director may be called the chief financial officer. In the US, senior managers in charge of particular areas are often called vice presidents (VPs). (Business Vocabulary in Use, 26)

Match the business cards with the job descriptions 1. I buy all the things that the company needs. 2. My job is to make sure the company has a good image. 3. My job is to find and test new products. 4. I‘m in charge of the people who sell our products. 5. I type letters, file papers and make appointments for my boss. 6. I have general responsibility for the whole company. 7. I make sure we have the products which the people want to buy. 8. I look after the company money. 9. I do the books and prepare the balance sheets. 10. I‘m the company people‘s manager. 11. I make the products which the company sells 12. I‘m responsible for everything when the boss is away. (Test Your Professional English Business General, 11)

(

John Sutton

Li Wan

Jim Hicks

Managing Director

Secretary

Production Manager

Linda Gabbiadini

Lena Johansson

Patrick Byrne

HR Director

Purchasing Manager

Marketing Director

Dietrich Hoffmeister

Francois Barbot

Santi Brunello

Finance Director

Assistant General Manager

Sales Director

Alice Hernandez

Yuri Manocich

Kate Hogg

Chief Acountant

R&D Director

PR Manager

5. DEPARTMENTS

(Test Your Professional English Business General, 14) 21

5.2. BUSINESS FUNCTIONS Match each group of words with the correct business function on the second column:

laboratory, set, scientist, trial

2 3

parts, assembly line, shift, supervisor b PR event, press release, company c image, house magazine retail outlet, monthly figures, d TRAINING discount, commission capital, dividend, cash flow, share e LEGAL price recruitment, training, safety, f IT employee relations invoice, bookkeeping, vat, credit g AFTER-SALES note network, screen, hard disk, memory h THE BOARD questionnaire, mailshot, prospect, i FINANCE advertisement bulk buying, office supplies, order, j DISTRIBUTION delivery shareholder, executive director, nonk SALES executive director, chairman course design, student, needs l PRODUCTION analysis, timetable hot line, telephone support, m RESEARCH AND complaint, 24-hour service DEVELOPMENT stock control, lorry, warehouse, n ACCOUNTS packaging contract, patent, copyright, signatory o COMMUNICATIONS (Test Your Professional English Business General, 47)

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

HUMAN RESOURCES PURCHASING MARKETING

5.3.Choose the best word to fit the gap.

1. Telecommunication companies belong to the tertiary__________of industry. A section B sector C area D part 2. She took the job there because they provide good child-care__________. A equipment B conveniences C schemes D facilities 3. Siemens is a highly__________leader in the electrics and electronics market. A innovative B reliable C extensive D traditional 4. Over the decades, the name of Siemens has become__________with progress. A symptomatic B synonymous C systematic D synthetic 5. The development of new technologies means that there are fewer jobs for manual ____ A workforce B staff C employees D workers 6. Buying in__________can reduce unit costs. A bulk B amounts C volume D weight 7. The__________Department is responsible for sending out invoices. A Accounts B Purchasing C Sales D Production 8. For many people job________ is more important than a high salary. A satisfaction B expectation C achievement D acceptance 9. Employees are allowed up to three weeks unpaid________ a year. A absence B vacation C time D leave 10. Many people would jump ________the chance of working for this travel company. A off B in C at D over 11. Unfortunately there is still a lot of ________against older people in the workplace. A distraction B discrimination C discretion D distortion (New International Business English, Unit 5) 5.4. Match each group of human resources terms (a-k) with an appropriate heading (1-11) a. retire b. accident c. strike d. contract e. leadership f. course g. interview h. wages i. interview j. returner h. duties

portable warning deal tribunal team building role-play objectives bonus apply homeworking hours

period of service inspector dispute dismissal assertiveness training visual aid performance commission CV flexible hours holidays

1. WORKING CONDITIONS 2. RECRUITMENT 3. TRAINING 4. MANAGEMENT DEVELOPMENT 5. EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

contribution first aid agree union rights time management self-study review incentive headhunt crĂ¨che facilities full-time

6. PAY 7. HEALTH AND SAFETY 8. EMPLOYEE RELATIONS 9. EMPLOYMENT LAW 10 APPRAISAL 11.PENSION (New International Business English, Unit13) 23

Unit 3: MATERIAL WORLD You canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have everything. Where would you put it? (Steven Wright, comedian) 1. SUCCESS 1.1. Think of three different ways to complete the following quotation. Then compare with other people in your group. 'If at first you don't succeed,

_______________________

1.2. Work with a partner. Match the beginnings and endings of these famous quotations. a Success comes to those who ...

1 doesn't know where to shop. Imelda Marcos, wife of ex-President Marcos 2 is in the dictionary. Vidal Sassoon, hairstylist and businessman 3 stands a surprised woman. Maryan Pearson, wife of Canadian exPremier 4 It can only rent them. Spike Milligan, comedian 5 why do they keep the score? Vince Lombardi, American football coach 6 Others must fail. Gore Vidal, writer 7 All it ever said to me was 'Goodbye'. Cary Grant, film actor 8 are too busy to look for it. Benjamin Franklin, US President 9 the more success, the more relatives. John F. Kennedy, US President 10 you have to work for it? George Bernard Shaw, dramatist 11 not a destination Mark Twain, writer 12 turning up. Woody Allen, film-maker and actor

b Money can't buy you friends.

c Success is a journey,...

d Success is relative -.. e What is the use of money if...

f Eighty percent of success is ... g The only place where success comes before work ... h Behind every successful man ... i If winning isn't everything,... j Anyone who says money can't buy happiness ... k It is not enough to succeed.... l Money talks, it says....

(In Company, 15) 1.3 With your partner, choose one of the quotations in 2 and prepare a 90-second team presentation on it. Open your presentation with a rhetorical question and close it with your chosen quotation: As... said, '...'

1.4. According to Benjamin Franklin, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Success is getting what you want, happiness is wanting what you getâ&#x20AC;?. What does success mean for you? Complete the following using the pairs of words in the boxes.

2.THE LANGUAGE OF SUCCESS AND FAILURE 2.1. Who's the most successful person you know? How did they become so successful? 2.2. The following sentences refer to either success or failure. Mark them S or F. a It was a very fruitful meeting. b The whole thing came to nothing. c The investment paid off in the end. d It all went smoothly. e It was a total flop. f The deal went through. g The deal fell through. h The whole idea was a non-starter. i We pulled it off. j It was a major publicity coup. k We've blown our chances. I We tried in vain to reach agreement. 2.3.Tell a partner about a situation in your own life to which one of the sentences in 4 could apply. (In Company, 17)

3. UPWARD MOBILITY   

adj someone who is upwardly mobile moves into a higher social class by becoming richer and moresuccessful whizzkid noun [C] informal a young person who is very intelligent or successful yuppie /jApi/ noun [C] someone who is young, earns a lot of money, and lives in a city hi a style that is too expensive for most people. This word usually shows that you dislike people like this. (Macmillan English Dictionary)

3.1. Listen to the story of the collapse of Barings Bank. What do the following figures in the story refer to? $10 million________________________________________________ 10% _______________________________________________________ £50,000____________________________________________________ £150,000 $________________________________________________ 1.3 billion ________________________________________________ 6 1/2 years _________________________________________________ 233 years ________________________________________________ £1_____________________________________________________________ 3.2. Who do you think was to blame for the disaster? Has anything similar happened at a bank in your country? 3.3. Match the halves of the following expressions you heard. a land hard b enjoy the bottom c work hard and play your touch d work your way up from a U-turn e do a job f lose the high life Which of the above mean: 1 rise from the lowest level in a company? 2 completely change direction? 3 put a lot of effort into having fun as well as into your job? 4 partying, travelling, spending money on expensive things? 5 no longer have the special ability that made you successful? 6 get a job you really wanted? 3.4Which noun can be preceded by these adjectives? a mounting b crippling c outstanding d heavy _ Which adjective means: unpaid?

damaging?

increasing?

large?

3.5. Listen and find out what happened to Leeson after he got out of prison. (In Company, 18)

4. MONEY ISSUES 4.1. Match the sentence beginnings (1-6) with the correct endings (a-f).

1 2 3 4 5 6 a b c d e f

For a group sitting on a cash mountain of £2 billion, GEC's sale of The group had a cash pile of nearly £300 million at the end of March The airline has built its cash reserves MCA's earnings for the fourth quarter rose 26 per cent to $21.8 million, Raytheon has announced the $2.9 billion acquisition The UK tax system encourages the distribution of earnings because of higher revenue from home video and pay TV. to finance plans for global expansion. to shareholders, rather than encouraging companies to invest. of Texas Instruments' defence electronics business. - plenty of money for acquisitions. Satchwell to Siebe for £80 million will make little difference.

4.2. Complete the sentences with the following words:

ailing burden comeback recovery

crisis repayment

collapse turning

1 Our economy could ............................................ under its huge debt................. - we owe $100 billion to foreign investors and banks alone. 2 The railway company made a profit of 140 billion yen, even after paying out 300 billion yen in debt………………….. ......................... 3 MidWest bank has made a strong ........................................... from the dark days of the farm debt crisis. 4 The IMF's………………….. might not be enough to pull the country back from debt……. 5 Mr Owen, chairman of Energis, is to receive a bonus of nearly £900,000 for his work in……………round the ...... ………..company. 4.3.

Rachel is an accountant. Correct the mistakes in italics.

I work in the corporate recovery department of a London accountancy firm, with companies that are in financial difficulty. They may be in (1) administer, and we try to find ways of keeping them in operation. We may sell parts of the company and this, of course, means laying people off. Our US office works with a system where a company in difficulty can get (2) protectors from (3) credit, giving it time to reorganize, and pay off debts. If the company can't continue as a going concern, it (4) goes into receivers: we (5) wind off the company and it (6) ends business. We sell the assets and divide the money up among the creditors in a process of (7) liquification. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 75)

Unit 4: ON THE PHONE If E-mail had been around before the telephone was invented people would have said "hey, forget e-mail - with this new telephone invention I can actually talk to people” 1. TELEPHONES AND BEYOND •

public telephone / payphone: phone in a public place operated with money, a credit card or a phone card. • mobile phone, mobile (BrE) / cellphone, cellular phone, cellular (AmE): a phone you can take with you and use anywhere. • WAP phone: a mobile phone with access to the Internet (WAP = wireless application protocol). • extension: one of a number of phones on the same line, in a home or office. • cordless phone, cordless: an extension not connected by a wire, so you can use it around the house or in the garden. • pager: allows you to receive written messages • webcam: a camera attached to a computer and phone line, so two people talking on the phone can see each other. • videophone: a special phone with a screen so you can see the other person. Webcams and videophones enable videoconferencing: holding a meeting with people in different locations. PHONE, CALL AND RING

NUMBERS When saying numbers, use rising intonation for each group, except for the last group, when you should use a falling tone. This shows you have reached the end of the number.

DOING THINGS OVER THE PHONE Phone numbers where you can get information or advice, buy things, make reservations, etc. may be called: •helpline

• hotline • information line

• reservations line

People who answer and deal with calls like these work in call centres (AmE: call centers). A number that is free of charge is: BrE •an 0800 number* • a Freephone number AmE • a 1-800 number • a toll-free number (Business Vocabulary in Use, 104) 28

1.1.

Which

1.1. Which of these sentences are correct? Correct the mistakes. 1 It would be good to see Anna soon. I'll phone to her and see when she's free. 2 I gave Brian a call yesterday and we had a long chat. 3 Why don't you ring up at Pizza Palace and order some takeaway pizza? 4 I rung them five minutes ago but there was no answer. 5 Call me up next time you're in New York. 6 Give me a ring when you're next in London. 7 I'll give her the bell and we'll fix up a meeting. 8 When you get some news, make me a buzz. 1.2. Match what the people say below with the type of telephone line:

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 105)

2. GETTING THROUGH PHONING SCENARIO You want to phone someone in a company. You pick up the phone. You hear the dialling tone and dial the number on the keypad. You don't know the person's direct line number, so you dial the number of the company's switchboard. One of these things happens: a The number rings but no one answers. b You hear the engaged tone (BrE) / busy tone (AmE) because the other person is already talking on the phone. You hang up and try again later, c You get through, but not to the number you wanted. The person who answers says you've got the wrong number. d The operator answers. You ask for the extension of the person you want to speak to. e You are put through to the wrong extension. The person offers to transfer you to the right extension, but you are cut off - the call ends. f The person you want to speak to is not at their desk and you leave a message on their voicemail. You ask them to call you back or to return your call. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 106)

ASKING TO SPEAK TO SOMEONE

VOICEMAIL - If the person you want to speak to is not there, you may hear this

2.1

Annelise Schmidt is trying to phone James Cassidy. Put the conversation into a logical order. 1 Annelise: Good morning. Can I speak to James Cassidy in Sales? 2 Annelise: Is that James Cassidy? 3 Annelise: No, I'm afraid I don't. 4 Annelise: Thanks. Oh no, I've been cut off. 5 Switchboard operator: Do you know the extension? 6 Switchboard operator: Sorry to keep you waiting. ... I'm putting you through. 7 John Cassidy: Cassidy. 8 John Cassidy: No, this is John Cassidy. You've come through to Accounts. I'll try and transfer you back to the switchboard.

2.2 Correct the nine mistakes in Annelise Schmidt's voicemail message. Hi James, this is Annelise calling out of Sprenger Verlag in Hamburg. It's very difficult to get hold to you. I phoned to you earlier, but your telephone central placed me through to the bad telephone. Anyway, I'm calling to you to discuss the contract we were talking about in Frankfurt. I'll call further later or perhaps you'd like to ring to me here in Hamburg on 00 49 40 789 1357. Bye for now (Business Vocabulary in Use, 107) 30

3. MESSAGES ASKING TO SPEAK TO SOMEONE

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 108)

4. ARRANGEMENTS MAKING ARRANGEMENTS

You get through to the person you want to speak to and fix a meeting

CLOSING THE CONVERSATION

CHANGING ARRANGEMENTS - Here are some ways of changing arrangements. a I can't make Tuesday (Tuesday is not possible). Something has come up (has occurred to prevent our meeting). I've got to go over to Berlin to see a client. How about Wednesday? b I think we said Thursday at 11. Can you make the afternoon instead? (Is it possible for you to meet in the afternoon?) c We're going to have to change our arrangement for the 15th. Can we put it off (delay it) till the 22nd? I'd completely forgotten we have a departmental meeting that day. d I'm afraid Monday won't be possible after all. I'm going to be very busy that day. What about the following week? e We're going to have to put back (delay) our meeting. I'm completely snowed under (very busy) at the moment. Can we leave it open (decide not to fix a day) for the time being? I'll get back in touch (contact you again) when I'm not so busy. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 110)

4.1 Annelise Schmidt (AS) gets through to James Cassidy (JC) and arranges to meet him. Reorder their conversation, which contains expressions introduced before: a AS: Fine thanks. I'm going to be in London on Tuesday and Wednesday next week. How about meeting up to discuss how Megabook and Sprenger might work together? b AS: Hello. This is Annelise Schmidt. You remember we met at the Frankfurt Book Fair last month? c AS: Look forward to seeing you then. Bye. d AS: Sounds good. Shall I meet you at your office? I've got the address. e AS: Yes, that's fine. f JC: James Cassidy. g JC: Goodbye. h JC: I'll just check my diary. I won't be able to make Tuesday. I've got to go to Manchester. Would Wednesday suit you? How about lunch? i JC: OK. See you on Wednesday at 12.30, then, j JC: Yes, how are you? k JC: Yes. Why don't you come round here at about 12.30? Ask for me at reception and I'll come down. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 111)

4.2.Choose the best word to fit the gap. 1 Mrs Perez is writing to _____the arrangements she made with you. A conform B confer C confine D confirm 2 _____ I‘ll see if Mr Watson is available. A Hold on B Keep on C Go on D Stay 3 I‘ll put you _____ to the Sales Department. A over B off C through D in 4 Oh, dear. I think I‘ve _____ the wrong number. A put B done C through D dialled 5 I‘m _____ Miss Johnson‘s in a meeting. A worried B afraid C concerned D frightened 6 No, this is the Finance Department. I‘ll check the _____ number. A extension B external C exterior D extraction 7 There are no public phones in here but there is a phone _____ in Market Street. A room B operator C booth D switchboard 8 Would you like me to fix up an _____ for you? A application B appointment C arrangement D attendance 9 Don‘t make jokes on the phone as you may be _____. A misunderstood B misplaced C mistaken D misguided 10 You should always speak to customers _____. A slowly B politely C carefully D kindly (New International Business English, Unit 3)

4.3. Choose one of the phrases from the boxes to complete these conversations. Conversation 1 Hi, Sally. (1)_______________ changing the time of today‘s meeting? Some time this afternoon would be better for me. Sally: (2) _______________I‘ve got to finish that report today. Perhaps we could fix something up for tomorrow? Bill: (3) _______________? Sally: (4) _______________Bill but I think (5) _______________. Bill: O.K. Let‘s get together tomorrow. Bill:

if you need any help think you could I won‘t be able to

would you mind would you like a hand that‘s very kind of you I‘m sorry but I‘d prefer to do it myself

Conversation 2 Jim: Dr Henderson, (6) _______________I go home early today? Dr H.: (7) _______________ . Are you feeling O.K.? Jim: I‘m fine but I‘ve got a lot of preparation to do for that course I‘m on (8) _______________ take tomorrow morning off as well? Dr H.: No, (9) _______________ . The sales staff are coming in for a briefing. Jim: Oh, yes. I‘d forgotten. Dr H. What about taking some holiday next week? Jim: No, thanks. (10) _______________ . I‘ll need to take some holiday later. (In Company, 26)

I‘m afraid you can‘t

I think I can manage

Do you mind if

Sure, go ahead

I‘m sorry but

Yes, please.

Thanks a lot

Do you think I could

do you

4.4. You will be required to solve problems over the telephone, following the guidelines given on the role-play cards. You are supposed to be very persuasive and tactful while dealing with very sensitive issues. Here are the role-play cards with instructions to follow. There is room for improvisation on details not mentioned specifically on the cards. Speaker A

Speaker B

Speaker B will phone you with a problem. You are very busy at the moment (you decide what you are doing) but try to give them some advice. If you can‘t, suggest someone they could phone who might be able to help.

You are having problems with your computer – it either won‘t do something you want it to do or it‘s just done something you didn‘t want it to do (you decide what). Phone speaker A and see if they can give you any advice. If not, ask them who you could phone instead.

Speaker A

Speaker B

You are speaker B‘s boss. It‘s 6 p.m. and you still have a mountain of papers on your desk to go through before the morning. Phone speaker B and ask them if they‘d mind staying on for an hour or so to help you out. Be diplomatic but don‘t take no for an answer unless they can suggest someone else.

Your boss will phone you with a problem. It‘s 6 pm and you are just on your way out of the office when the phone rings. You‘ve arranged to go out with a few colleagues this evening. This is the fifth time this month your boss has held you up tight at the end of the day.

Speaker A

Speaker B

You have been working on an important report for nine months. Because of a lot of unforeseen difficulties and complications you are a month behind schedule and now need six weeks instead of two to finish it. On completion of the report you are due to present your findings to senior management and you think they will be impressed. Much to your annoyance, however, you think your boss, Speaker B, is going to try to speed things up by bringing in someone else to help you finish the job and take half the credit for all your hard work.

Speaker A is usually a star member of your team, but at the moment they are a month behind with an important report and you are under pressure from head office to get it completed on schedule (within the next two weeks). You think the best idea is to bring someone else in to help get the report finished in time and then present the final results to senior management with Speaker B. Phone and make your suggestions as tactfully but forcefully as you can.

5. DEALING WITH COMPLAINTS 5.1. Have you ever made a formal complaint about something? Was it person, in writing

or on the phone? Were you satisfied with the way it was handled? 5.2. Put the following stages of handling a customer complaint into the most likely order :     



listen and empathise suggest possible solutions get the details agree on a course of action end on a positive note greet and reassure the caller

5.3. Which of the following expressions would be most inappropriate at each of the stages above? Delete one from each set of three below, then underline which of the remaining two you prefer.

6. 2 Listen to a customer services adviser at iDeals, a computer supplies retail chain, dealing with a complaint and compare what she says with your choices above. (In Company, 27)

6. TACKLING PROBLEMS 6.1. Listen to an overheard telephone conversation. Take notes and, with a partner, try to work out what the problem is. It sounds like ... It seems as though ... There's been some kind of ..., by the sound of it. I'm not (exactly) sure whether ... or â&#x20AC;˘whether ... It's definitely something to do with ... Now listen to both sides of the conversation in 1 and check your ideas. 6.2.You heard the following idiomatic expressions. Can you remember the missing words? The first two letters are given. Use the definitions in brackets to help you. a I'm working fl_______ out. (I'm working as quickly and as hard as possible.) b It completely sl______ my mind. (I completely forgot to do it.) c We're sn_____ under at the moment. (We've got too much work to deal with.) 6.3.What would you do in Graham and Piotr's situation? 6.4. Listen to Graham and Piotr's second conversation and compare your solutions to theirs. 6.5. Match the halves of the following sentences: a Can you get hold b I don't suppose

of sending someone else out here? to have a phone number for the promotions people? getting some brochures to me in Polish? of the organisers? what I can do, but I can't promise anything. with Liz and see if she can spare Kim for a few days you remembered to put another CD player in? the minute I get off the phone if we got a local Polish interpreter in? to me. in sending the ones we've got in Russian? to that right away. to hurry that up a bit, please? sure we didn't order a reprint of the Polish ones?

c Do you happen d Is there any chance e I'll check f

I'll see

g Would you mind h i j k

Is there any point Are you absolutely I'll look into it Could I ask you

l Would it help m I'll get on n Leave it

(In Company, 29)

Unit 5: PRESENTING IDEAS “The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working the moment you get up in the morning and does not stop until you get up to speak in front of people” ( Robert Frost) 1. TYPES OF PRESENTATIONS Melanie Kray is an expert in giving presentations. Here, she gives some examples of different presentations: • press conference: two chief executives tell journalists why their companies have merged. • briefing: a senior officer gives information to other officers about a police operation they are about to undertake. • demonstration: the head of research and development tells non-technical colleagues about a new machine. • product launch: a car company announces a new model. • lecture: a university professor communicates information about economics to 300 students. • talk: a member of a stamp-collecting club tells other members about 19th century British stamps. • seminar: a financial adviser gives advice about investments to eight people. • workshop: a yoga expert tells people how to improve their breathing techniques and gets them to practise. Dos and Don'ts: Preparation Here are some tips for a stand-up presentation (one person talking to an audience). a Find out about the audience: how many people there will be, who they are, why they will be there, and how much they know about the subject. b Find out about the venue and the facilities: the room, the seating plan, the equipment, etc. c Plan the content and structure, but don't write the complete text of the presentation, d Write notes on sheets of paper, not on cards, e Try to memorize the first five sentences of your talk, f Prepare visual aids: pictures, diagrams, etc. g Rehearse your presentation (practise it so that it becomes very familiar) with friends or colleagues. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 126)

1. KEY PHRASES: INTRODUCTION Melanie is advising Anne-Marie Duval on giving a presentation at a conference.

1.1 Match the types of presentations to the things (1-8) that people say in them.

1 As you can see, this prototype is far in advance of anything we've done before. 2 Here are some typical patterns for demand and supply in the widget industry. 3 I'm going to give each group a series of problems faced by an imaginary company, and I want you to suggest solutions. 4 Now is the right time to get out of company shares and invest in property. 5 The combined resources of our two organizations will allow us to achieve great things. 6 The first postage stamp in the world was the Penny Black in 1840. 7 The parachutists will come in at 08:30 and land in two waves, here and here. 8 The X300 has the most advanced features of any car in its class. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 127)

Dos and don'ts: timing Melanie Kray is giving more advice about presentations a Start on time. Don't wait for latecomers. b Plan how long you're going to spend on each point and keep to these timings. c Don't labour a particular point (spend too long on something). d Don't digress (talk about things that have nothing to do with the subject), unless you have a particular purpose in mind. e Finish on time. Don't run over. It looks bad if you don't have time to finish all your points and answer questions. Dos and don'ts: voice f Project your voice to the back of the room, but don't shout. Don't ask if people at the back can hear. Check the volume (loudness) of your voice beforehand, g Use a microphone if you need one. Don't hold it too close to your mouth, h Whether using a microphone or not, speak in a natural tone of voice. Don't speak in a monotone (on the same level all the time). Vary the pitch (level) of your voice. Rapport with the audience Experts say that you can gain the audience's attention in a presentation by: •

telling an anecdote (a story, perhaps a personal one).

•

mentioning a really surprising fact or statistic.

•

stating a problem.

•

asking a question. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 128)

Key phrases: main part

Anne-Marie continues her presentation: 'OK. To begin, let's look at the first type of skills that consultants need: technical skills. Of course, related to technical skills is a good general knowledge of management subjects ... But I'm digressing: let's get back to the technical skills themselves ... That's all I have time for on technical skills. Let's move on to the second area: interpersonal skills. As you can see on this transparency, there are two key areas in relation to interpersonal skills ... I think that covers everything on interpersonal skills. Time is moving on, so let's turn to the third area: people management issues.' 2.1

Correct the mistakes in these sentences:

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 129)

3. PRESENTATIONS - CLOSING AND QUESTIONS Dos and don'ts: body language Melanie gives these tips on body language. • Make eye contact: look at each person in the audience for about a second, before moving on to the next person. Don't concentrate on just one or two people. • Don't speak to the equipment or the screen: face the audience at all times. • Smiling is fine at appropriate moments, but not too much. • Use gesture (hand movements) to emphasize key points. • Stay more or less in one place: don't move around too much. • Avoid mannerisms (ways of moving and speaking which you do repeatedly without realizing). ~^~ 4whiteboard HZl .~— -- I blackboard i

Visual aids Melanie sometimes uses these visual aids when giving presentations: flipchart

handouts Key phrases: closing and dealing with questions Anne-Marie is bringing her presentation to a close: 'Let me sum up. Firstly, we looked at technical skills, secondly, at management skills and last, but by no means least, at interpersonal skills. In my view, the secret for success in the future is going to be interpersonal skills. That brings me to the end of my presentation. Are there any questions? Here are some phrases which can be useful when answering questions: a That's a fair point. I know that some consultants don't have a very good image. But I think that Gem Consultants have helped companies reduce costs and increase profits enormously, b That's confidential. I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to tell you. c That's not really my field. But I can put you in touch with someone in my organization who is working on Internet applications, d The questioner would like to know what sort of background the people we recruit usually have. Is that right? e Well, I think that goes beyond the scope of today's presentation. Today I wanted to concentrate on consultants' skills, not go into particular case studies in consultancy, f I'm afraid we've run out of time. But if you'd like to come and discuss that with me now, I'll try and give you an answer. If a member of the audience didn't hear a question, they might say: 'Sorry, I didn't catch the question - could you repeat what the questioner said?' Anne-Marie ends the presentation by saying: 'I think that's a good place to stop. Thank you for listening.' (Business Vocabulary in Use, 130)

3.1

Which words could the underlined words refer to? In some cases there is more than one possible answer.

1 But don't overdo it. It can seem insincere (not real). 2 Again, don't overdo it. Look round at everybody in the room. 3 Don't let these dominate the presentation. People have come to see you, not the equipment. 4 Do not use continuous text on these. 5 Do not use one in a large room because people at the back won't be able to see it. 6 Don't look at iÂŁ or the screen behind you: face the audience at all times. 7 Have a backup plan if it fails to work. 8 Keep them under control. Remember, for example, that pointing with your finger is rude in some cultures. 9 Make sure there will be enough of them for everyone and make sure that they reach everyone in the room as some people tend to keep them without handing them on. 10 Some of them, for example putting your hands in your pockets or running your fingers through your hair, really upset some people. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 131)

SOME HINTS FOR A SUCCESSFUL PRESENTATION Planning Plan your presentation carefully. Thorough preparation will make you more confident and help you to overcome your nervousness. Objectives Think about what you want to achieve. Are you aiming to inform, persuade, train or entertain your audience? Audience Whom exactly will you be addressing? How many people will be attending? What do they need to know? What do they already know? What will they expect in terms of content and approach? Content Brainstorm your ideas first. Then decide which are most relevant and appropriate to your audience and to your objectives and carry out any research that is necessary. Be selective! Don't try to cram too much into your presentation. Approach A good rule of thumb is to 'tell your audience what you're going to say, say it, then tell the audience what you've said'. Try to develop your key points in an interesting and varied way, drawing on relevant examples, figures etc. for support as appropriate. You might also like to include one or two anecdotes for additional variety and humour. Organisation Think about how you will organise your content. Your presentation should have a clear, coherent structure and cover the points you wish to make in a logical order. Most presentations start with a brief introduction and end with a brief conclusion. Use the introduction to welcome your audience, introduce your topic/subject, outline the structure of your talk, and provide guidelines on questions. Use the conclusion to summarise the main points of your presentation, thank the audience for their attention, and invite questions. Visual aids If you have a lot of complex information to explain, think about using some charts, diagrams, graphs etc., on an overhead projector or flipchart. Visual aids can make a presentation more interesting and easier to understand, but make sure they are appropriate and clear - don't try to put too much information on each one. Rehearsal Allow time to practise your presentation - this will give you a chance to identify any weak points or gaps. You will also be able to check the timing, and make sure you can pronounce any figures and proper names correctly and confidently.

DELIVERY Nerves! You will probably be nervous at the beginning of your presentation. Don't worry - most people are nervous in this situation. Try not to speak too fast during the first couple of minutes - this is the time you establish your rapport with the audience and first impressions are very important. You may find it helpful to memorise your introduction. Audience rapport Try to be enthusiastic - your interest in the subject matter will carry your audience along. Look around your audience as you speak - eye contact is essential for maintaining a good rapport. You will also be able to pick up signals of boredom or disinterest in which case you can cut your presentation short. Body language Stand rather than sit when you are delivering your presentation and try to be aware of any repetitive hand gestures or awkward mannerisms that might irritate your audience. Voice quality You must be clearly audible at all times - don't let your voice drop at the end of sentences. If you vary your intonation, your voice will be more interesting to listen to and you will be able to make your points more effectively. Visual aids Use your visual aids confidently, making sure you allow your audience time to absorb information from flipcharts and transparencies. Audience reaction Be ready to deal with any hostile questions. Polite, diplomatic answers are a good disarming tactic, but if you should find yourself 'under fire', suggest that the audience keeps any further questions until the end of the presentation and continue with your next point. LANGUAGE • Simplicity Use short words and sentences that you are comfortable with. There is no benefit in using difficult language.  Clarity Active verbs and concrete words are much clearer and easier to understand than passive verbs and abstract concepts. Avoid jargon unless you are sure all your audience will understand it.  Signalling Indicate when you've completed one point or section in your presentation and are moving on to the next. Give your audience clear signals as to the direction your presentation is taking. (Business Class, 38-39)

3.2. Mary Thomson wants to make a good start to her presentation, so she has made a list of the things she wants to say. Unfortunately, she has dropped all her language cards (a-j) on the floor. Help her put them in the right order by matching them with the cues (1-10): Cues: 1. THANK the audience for coming. 2. INTRODUCE myself. 3. Give JOB TITLE. 4. Give TITLE OF PRESENTATION. 5. Give REASON 6. Give STRUCTURE. 7. Give LENGTH. 8. VISUAL AIDS I plan to use. 9. No QUESTIONS until the end. 10. START first part

Language cards: a. I plan to show you some slides and a short video during my presentation. b. So, first of all, let‘s take a look at… c. I‘m very grateful that you could all come today. d. I am going to talk for… e. If there is anything you would like to ask me, please would you wait until the end of the presentation. f. My name is… g. My talk will be in four main parts. h. I am the … j. I am going to talk about this because… (Test Your Professional English Business General, 34)

4. VOICE AND VISUALS

I do not object to people looking at their watches when I am speaking. But I strongly object when they start shaking them to make certain they are still going. (Lord Birkett, British judge)

When you stand up to speak in public, what keeps an audience interested in what you’re saying?  Expertise?  Enthusiasm?  PowerPoint presentation?  Natural presence/charisma?  ??? 1 Am I boring you? The attention span of the average audience member is 2.5 seconds 12.5 seconds 2.5 minutes 12.5 minutes. (Clue: the attention span of a goldfish is about two seconds.) 2 Is anybody listening? In a study carried out at UCLA, psychology professor Albert Mehrabian discovered that, of the total impression speakers make on an audience, 38% - 55% - 7% is visual (how we look) 55% - 7% - 38% is vocal (how we sound) 7% - 38% - 55% is verbal (what we say). 3 How low can you go? Research shows that people generally prefer low voices to high-pitched ones. In a recent study at Wake University, North Carolina, which actor and actress were found to have the lowest and sexiest voices? Bruce Willis Gwyneth Paltrow Mel Gibson Michelle Pfeiffer Michael Douglas Nicole Kidman Sean Connery Julia Roberts 4 See what I mean? The human brain processes images 4,000/40,000/400,000 times faster than text and a presenter who uses visuals in their talk will improve audience recall on average by 100% 200% 400%. 5 Use of colour makes visuals 25% 85% 850% more memorable (In Company, 20)

4.1. THE 7 RULES OF RHETORIC Fill in the blanks with one word to complete the rules: 1. Repeat __________ I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. 2. Repeat __________ We are the people…who persuaded others to buy British, not by begging them to do so, but because it was best. 3. Use contrasts and __________ Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country. 4. Group key points in __________ We must therefore act together as a united people, for national reconciliation, for nation building, for the birth of a new world. 5. Ask rhetorical _________ What are our chances of success? It depends on what kind of people we are. 6. Accumulate supporting __________ We are the people who, amongst other things, invented the computer, the refrigerator, the electric motor, the stethoscope, the steam turbine, stainless steel, the tank… 7. Use metaphorical __________ To lead our country out of the valley of darkness. (In Company, 70)

4.2 Listen to three presenters speaking in different ways. Decide which presenter sounds: 1 fluent and confident 2 fluent but boring 3 hesitant. A There's a whole market in Eastern Europe just there for the taking. B Quite frankly, the results we've been getting are absolutely incredible. C Now, I'm sure I don't need to tell you just how crucial this is. D Net profits are up ninety-seven per cent - yes, ninety-seven per cent. E Would you believe that so far we've not been able to sell a single unit? F Miss this deadline and we'll lose the biggest client this company's ever had.

4.3. Why does the boring presenter sound so monotonous? What exactly is the hesitant presenter doing wrong? (In Company, 24)

4.4. Work with a partner. Choose one of the film speeches opposite and take turns to be the actor and director. •

The speeches are unpunctuated. Decide where you are going to pause

•

Underline the words you are going to stress: usually nouns sometimes, for dramatic effect, you can stress pronouns and conjunctions.

and

•

Highlight in different colours parts of the text you shout, and parts you want to say quietly or perhaps whisper.

really want

verbs, project,

but even

4.5. Listen to the speeches. How does your performance compare with the recorded version? If you were competing, who'd get the Oscar? (In Company, 25)

4.7. Prepare a one-minute presentation on a topic which is relevant to your work. Make your voice as powerful and dramatic as you did in the film speech.

PRESENTING IDEAS - USEFUL LANGUAGE WORKSHEET  Opening Good morning/afternoon Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming. My name is X from Y (name of company, country etc) ... By the end of this presentation we hope/feel confident you‘ll be as excited about this idea as we are.  Introduce the topic Today/This morning I'm going to talk about/I'd like to talk about ... / The aim of my presentation is to … / I'd like to tell you a little about ...  List what the stages of your presentation are I've divided my presentation into X parts. First, I'd like to talk about ... Second... Then, (I'll move on to/consider/deal with/focus on) / After that/Next...  Introducing a new section Let's move on to ... / Moving on to ... / This leads to ... /Let's turn to ... / Finally ...  Moving backwards and forwards As I mentioned earlier, ... / I'll be talking more about this later. / I'll return to this point.  Refer to consumer research A recent report claims that... / We did a nationwide survey of...to find out...  Using visual information This slide/diagram/transparency shows ...As you can see.../ If you look at this graph it shows that … / What is interesting here is ... / I'd like to draw your attention to ...  Discuss potential So what does all this mean? We think the implications are clear. There‘s obviously a huge/substantial/ growing/ largely untapped market for ... And this represents a golden/an ideal opportunity to expand the company/ stretch our brand and develop an exciting new product/service to complement our existing business  Describe product/service The main features/benefits/selling points are... Now, I know what you‘re thinking: how can...? So. Let me reassure you. We‘ve already done our homework on this one As far as the competition is concerned, our ...compares very favourably indeed.  Summing up So, to summarise, we really do believe the… could be a bestselling product/service and an excellent addition to our current range of , In conclusion, ... That concludes my talk. If you have any questions I'll do my best to answer them. REMEMBER THE GOLDEN RULE:

 Say what you are going to say  Say it  Say what you've said (In Company, 45)

SKILLS PRACTICE Role play: Presentations

Choose one of the following situations and prepare a presentation to give to the rest of the group.

1 As sales director of an electronics company, you must make a presentation to launch your new range of telephone answer machines to the trade Your presentation should cover the main features of each product and emphasise their selling points The following extract from a sales brochure will give you some product ideas, but you may invent any information you wish about the company and its product. Response 400 Complete sophistication mad* Giving a good first impression is vital in business So in creating the Response 400 telephone for you we‘ve given you the means to record voice welcome message digitally so it maintains consistent quality no matter how many times it is played Easy to use yet with a wide range of advanced facilities the Response 400 is hands free meaning you can hold a conversation and work without having to juggle with the handset On the other hand if you want to keep things totally confidential you can listen to tie messages left for you using the handset so that no-one else can overhear The useful LCD panel shows you the number as you dial it You can also use it to tune calk if you need to bill call costs to customers

Telephone features include: • 20-number memory • last number redial • ringer volume control • secrecy button • touch tone dialing • wall mountable • hands free operation • clock/call timer • programmable security code

Price:_ £ 1 0 2 . 0 9

2. Choose or invent a company in one of the following product categories, food, sports goods, fashion, electrical products, health and beauty As sales manager of that company make a presentation to your sales force on the latest additions to you product range Your presentation should cover the main features of each new product and emphasise their selling points

3. As a member of the human resources department of a large multinational, you visit universities/colleges making presentations to students on your company and the job opportunities it offers graduates Choose or invent a company to represent You may invent any information you wish If you have time, you might like to contact the company s PR department and ask for a copy of their annual report This will give you a lot of information about the company s main areas of business, financial performance, product range, future prospects etc , and provide you with some useful visual aids

Listen to each other's presentations, imagining you are a buyer/agent/distributor (1), sales rep (2) or student (3), as appropriate. Make notes as you listen, and use the following chart to provide constructive feedback on each presentation (Business Class, 43-44)

Unit 6: PROMOTING IDEAS "If advertisers spent the same amount of money on improving their products as they do on advertising then they wouldn't have to advertise them." (Will Rogers)

1. CUSTOMERS AND CLIENTS Company Autocomp

Products/services products: car components

Customer / client base customer base: car companies

Best Travel

services: package holidays

customer base: general public

Digby and Charles

professional services: architecture

client base or clientele: companies, government organizations and the public

Digitco

products: cheap computers

customer base: general public

People who buy 'everyday' services such as train travel or telephone services are called customers. You can also talk about the users or end-users of a product or service, who may not be the people who actually buy it. For example, when a company buys computers for its staff to use, the staff are the end-users. People who buy products or services for their own use are consumers, especially when considered as members of large groups of people buying things in advanced economies. BUYERS AND SELLERS A person or organization that buys something is a buyer or purchaser. These words also describe someone in a company who is responsible for buying goods that the company uses or sells. These people are also buying managers or purchasing managers. A person or organization that sells something is a seller. In some contexts, for example selling property, they are referred to as the vendor. People selling things in the street are street vendors. THE MARKET The market, the free market and market economy describe an economic system where prices, jobs, wages, etc. are not controlled by the government, but depend on what people want to buy and how much they are willing to pay. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 46)

Word combinations with 'market' forces pressures eses place

market

the way a market economy makes sellers produce what people want, at prices they are willing to pay producers and buyers in a particular market economy, and the way they behave

prices

prices that people are willing to pay, rather than ones fixed by a government

reforms

changes a government makes to an economy, so that it becomes more like a market economy

1.1. Complete the TV reporter's commentary with expressions from the table: 1.1.Complete the TV reporter's commentary with expressions from the table: In China, all economic activity used to be controlled by the state. Prices were fixed by the government, not by buyers and sellers in the market (1) ............................ But in the last 20 years there has been a series of market (2) ........................... that have allowed people to go into business and start their own companies. Market (3) ........................... are determined by what buyers are willing to pay, rather than by the state. There are still state-owned companies that lose a lot of money. Until recently, they have been protected from market (4) ........................... , but market (5) ........................... will eventually mean that they close down. Of course, the market (6) ........................... has its losers: those without work, and victims of crime, which used to be very rare. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 47) 2. MARKETS AND COMPETITORS COMPANIES AND ORGANISATIONS You can talk about the people or organisations who buy particular goods or services as the market for them, as in the 'car market', 'the market for financial services', etc. Buyers and sellers of particular goods or services in a place, or those that might buy them, form a market. If a company: enters penetrates

it starts selling there for the first time.

abandons gets out of leaves

it stops selling there.

dominates

a market

it is the most important company selling there.

corners monopolizes

it is the only company selling there.

drives another company out of

it makes the other company leave the market, perhaps because it can no longer compete.

COMPETITORS AND COMPETITION Companies or products in the same market are competitors or rivals. Competitors compete with each other to sell more, be more successful, etc. The most important companies in a particular market are often referred to as key players. Competition describes the activity of trying to sell more and be more successful. When competition is strong, you can say that it is intense, stiff, fierce or tough. If not, it may be described as low-key. The competition refers to all the products, businesses, etc. competing in a particular situation, seen as a group.

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 48)

More word combinations with 'marketâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;

market

growth

In the late 1990s, Internet use was doubling every 100 days. Market growth was incredible.

segment

Women are a particularly interesting target for the Volvo V70. They are an important market segment for Volvo. The Softco software company divides the software market into large companies, small companies, home office users, and leisure users. This is its market segmentation. Among UK supermarkets, Tesco sells more than any of the other chains. It has the highest market share.

segmenta tion share leader

2.1

Tesco is the market leader among UK supermarkets as it sells more than any of the other chains.

Use the correct form of the words in brackets to complete the sentences. 1 European films do not export well: European movies barely (abandon/corner/ penetrate) the US market. 2 In the 1970s, Kodak .....................(corner/enter/leave) the instant photography market, until then ..........................................(abandon/dominate/penetrate) by Polaroid. 3 The Hunt brothers tried to fix silver prices and to ....................... (corner/enter/leave) the silver market, .................................................................................... (enter/drive out/monopolize) all competitors. 4 In the 1940s, MGM ..................... (abandon/get out of/monopolize) the market on film musicals. But by the late 1950s, Warner Bros had also started buying film rights to musicals.

2.2 Replace the underlined expressions with expressions from B opposite. You may need to add a verb in the correct form. I'm Kalil and I'm marketing manager for CrazyCola in a country called Newmarket. In this market, we (1) sell more than any other cola. In fact, we (2) have 55 per cent of the market. (3) Sales are increasing at seven to eight per cent per year. There are two main (4) groups of users: those who drink it in cafes, bars and restaurants, and those who buy it to drink at home. Of course, many users belong to both groups, but this is our (5) way of dividing our consumers. 2.3

Read this description of a language training market. Answer the questions. In Paris, 500 organizations offer language training to companies. However, 90 per cent of sales are made by the top five language training organizations. The market is not growing in size overall. Organization A has 35 per cent of the market, and faces stiff competition from B, which has about 25 per cent of the market, and from C, D and E, who each have 10 per cent, but who are trying to grow by charging less for their courses. 1 How many competitors are there in this market? 2 Is competition in the market strong? 3 Who is the market leader? 4 Who are the two key players? 5 Who mainly makes up the competition, from the market leader's point of view? 6 If one competitor increases its market share, can the others keep their market share at the same level

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 49) 53

3. MARKETING AND MARKET ORIENTATION MARKETING

Marketing is the process of planning, designing, pricing, promoting and distributing ideas, goods and services, in order to satisfy customer needs, so as to make a profit. Companies point out how the special characteristics or features of their products and services possess particular benefits that satisfy the needs of the people who buy them. Non-profit organizations have other, social, goals, such as persuading people not to smoke, or to give money to people in poor countries, but these organizations also use the techniques of marketing. In some places, even organizations such as government departments are starting to talk about, or at least think about their activities in terms of the marketing concept. THE FOUR PS

The four Ps are: product: deciding what to sell price: deciding what prices to charge place: deciding how it will be distributed and where people will buy it promotion: deciding how the product will be supported with advertising, special activities, etc. A fifth P which is sometimes added is packaging: all the materials used to protect and present a product before it is sold. The four Ps are a useful summary of the marketing mix, the activities that you have to combine successfully in order to sell. To market a product is to make a plan based on this combination and put it into action. A marketer or marketeer is someone who works in this area. (Marketer can also be used to describe an organization that sells particular goods or services.) MARKET ORIENTATION Marketers often talk about market orientation: the fact that everything they do is designed to meet the needs of the market. They may describe themselves as market-driven, market-led or market-oriented.

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 50)

3.1. Choose the best word to fit the gap: 1 The company will be ________ a new range of health foods over the next few months. A promoting B encouraging C competing D supporting 2 Although prices have remained _______ for the past two years we are expecting a sharp rise in the near future. A still B immobile C same D static 3 This particular _________ of ice cream is supposed to contain very little fat. A name B brand C label D product 4 Their products are only available through selected ______ . A outlooks B outlets C outlines D outfits 5 The sales _________ for the next few months is not particularly optimistic. A figures B drive C forecast D trend 6 The advertising company have come up with a catchy new _____ for the car. A slogan B saying C image D feature 7 It's going to be difficult to break _______ the Far East market but I believe it will become a key market for us. A through B up C into D down 8 We're hoping that the new software package is going to make a big ____ . A effect B impact C influence D mark 9 Supermarkets often find point of sale _______ very useful when introducing new products to their customers. A displays B exhibits C presentations D exhibitions 10 When deciding what kind of advertising to use it's important to find out as much as possible about your ____________ . A companions B competitions C competitors D components (New International Business English, Unit 10)

3.2. Fill in the following crossword Down

Across 2

When a company has a new product, it has to decide on a LAU _ _ _ date. 4. If you want to know what the people think about a product, you do some market RES _ _ _ _ _. 6. The PA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ of a product is very important: the company has to think carefully about how the product should look. 8. The objective of advertising is to build up BR _ _ _ loyalty. 11. Some companies show the same television COMM _ _ _ _ _ _ _ in several different countries.

You ask people to fill in QU_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ so you can get information about what they want or need. 3. Where to sell the product is a question of PL _ _ _ : another of the ‗Seven Ps‘of marketing. 5. One recent advertising CA _ _ _ _ _ _ lasted for over a year. 6. PR_ _ _ _ _ _ _ of a product is the general process of getting people to know about your product, to like your product through advertising and so on, so that they finally buy it: another of the ‗Seven Ps‘. 7. One way to inform people about your product is to AD _ _ _ _ _ _ _ it on TV. 9. You employ an advertising AG _ _ _ _ to create a product image. 10. One more of the ‗Seven Ps‘ of marketing is PR _ _ _: you have to decide how much the consumer can pay for it. (Test Your Professional English Business General, 49)

3.4. Read this newspaper report concerning the trading on the Stock Market for Friday, January 24th. ―The Stock Market made a subdued start following Thursday's disappointing New York performance. During the morning, it developed a rallying tendency but the tone deteriorated again after the official close as early transatlantic reports confirmed the widely-held view that the American market was due for a period of consolidation rather than a further upward move. As a result, the FT index closed at 1084-1, a fall of 11-6 points. Wall Street uncertainties caused Law and Elliott to close at 397p, down 2 points, and Elsburg dropped 5 points to 258p. Rumours of the takeover bid by Prestac of Hawker Littleton caused narrow price movements. Hawker Littleton slipped 5 points to 255p, but Prestac remained unchanged at 307p. However, because of renewed interest in the takeover of Dera Mills, its shares soared 25 to 200p by lunchtime; similarly, their bidders, Plastic Constructions, advanced 13 to 735p. But by the end of the day, both had fallen to 195p and 734p respectively, although this constituted a net rise of 10 and 12 points on the previous day's figures. The London Metal Company gained two points, closing at 54p and CBC advanced 7 to 129p. Western Exploration moved down 2 points by the official close, but recovered to close at 131p, a gain of 1 point. Owing to its better-than-expected retail sales figures for this year, McHenry's moved up 20 points to 630p. Because of the serious labour problems which threatened to…‖ (Business Targets, 28)

Now complete the last three columns of the given chart, using the first line as an example:

January

CBC Dera Mills Elsburg Hawker Littleton Law and Eliott London Metal McHenry‘s Plastic Constructions Prestac Western Exploration

120 172 256 267 409 54 600 701 301 132

120 180 261 256 403 56 602 703 310 129

121 181 261 260 402 54 600 704 309 130

123 181 270 261 400 55 600 720 307 133

122

129

Change on week +9

SWOT ANALYSIS

(Bu

(Business Class, 39)

5. PROMOTION ADVERTISING

Advertising mediums:  open-air hoardings (BrE) / billboards (AmE)  display advertisements  commercials  neon signs/ banners  special displays A series of advertisements for a particular company or product is an advertising campaign. A person or business that advertises is an advertiser. An organisation that designs and manages advertising campaigns is an advertising agency. Sponsorhip is where companies sponsor events like concerts and sports events. Product endorsements are when famous people recommend a product THE SALES FORCE

A company's salespeople (its salesmen and saleswomen) visit customers and persuade them to buy its products. Each member of this salesforce may be responsible for a particular region: his or her sales area or sales territory. The head of the sales force is the sales manager. PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES

Promotion (uncountable) is all the activities supporting the sale of a product, including advertising. A promotion (countable) describes: •

a special offer such as a discount

•

a free gift: given with the product,or reduced price.

•

a free sample: a small amount of the product to try or taste

•

competitions with prizes.

Supermarkets and airlines give loyalty cards to customers: the more you spend, the more points you get, and you can exchange these points for free goods or flights. Cross-promotion is where you buy one product, and you are recommended to buy another product that may go with it. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 58)

5.1

Complete the crossword using expressions mentioned before:

Across Down

4 Better than a classified one. (7,13) 5 Free............... (7) 8 All the salespeople: sales .............. (5)

1 BrE for 'billboard'. (8) 3 One salesperson's region for selling. (9)

10 An advertising ............ organizes ads. (6) 11 Offers, competitions, etc. (10)

5 Electric advertising: neon ..............(4) 6 Head of the sales force: sales.............. (7) 7 Male salespeople. (8) 9 A new advertising medium. (8)

14 Given away free as part of a promotion. (5) 15 You win these in competitions. (6) 12 Television is an example of a .............. (6) 16 People or organizations who 13 Another word for 3 down (plural). advertise. (11) (5) 17 Female members of the sales force: salesâ&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;Ś.. (5) 5.2 Match the sentence (1-3) to the correct words (a-c). 1.Many supermarkets run competitions and offers to encourage people to a special offer buy from them. 2.For example, yesterday I bought two kilos of oranges for half b promotions c free gift the usual price. 3.I also bought some coffee, which came with a free mug. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 59)

6. SALES AND COSTS SALES Sales describes what a business sells and the money it receives for it. Denise van Beek of Nordsee Marine is having a sales meeting with her sales team: 'Our sales figures and turnover (money received from sales) in the last year are good, with revenue (money from sales) of 14.5 million euros, on volume of 49 boats. This is above our target of 13 million euros. We estimate our sales growth next year at ten per cent, as the world economy looks good and there is demand for our products, so my sales forecast is nearly 16 million euros for next year. I'm relying on you!' Here are some more uses of the word 'sale': a make a sale: sell something b be on sale: be available to buy c unit sales: the number of things sold d Sales: a company department e A sale: a period when a shop is charging less than usual for goods f The sales: a period when a lot of shops are having a sale

COSTS The money that a business spends is its costs, which can be of various types: • direct costs are directly related to providing the product (e.g. salaries). • fixed costs do not change when production goes up or down (e.g. rent, heating, etc.). • variable costs change when production goes up or down (e.g. materials). • cost of goods sold (COGS): the variable costs in making particular goods (e.g. materials and salaries). • indirect costs, overhead costs or overheads are not directly related to production (e.g. adminstration). Some costs, especially indirect ones, are also called expenses. Costing is the activity of calculating costs. Amounts calculated for particular things are costings. MARGINS AND MARK-UPS Here are the calculations for one of Nordsee's boats: • selling price = 50,000 euros • direct production costs = 35,000 euros • selling price minus direct production costs = gross margin = 15,000 euros • total costs = 40,000 euros • selling price minus total costs = net margin, profit margin or mark-up = 10,000 euros

The net margin or profit margin is usually given as a percentage of the selling price, in this case 20 per cent. The mark-up is usually given as a percentage of the total costs, in this case 25 per cent. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 62)

6.1

Match the word combinations (1-7) to their definitions (a-f). 1 figures

a money received from sales (2 expressions)

2 forecast 3 growth sales

4 revenue 5 target 6 turnover 7 volume

b sales aimed for in a particular period c the number of things sold d increase in sales e statistics showing the amount sold f sales predicted in a particular period

6.2.Choose the correct expression between brackets to describe Nordsee Marine's costs. 1 the salary of an office receptionist (direct / indirect cost) 2 heating and lighting of the building where the boats are made (fixed / variable cost) 3 the materials used in the boats, and the boatbuilders' salaries (overhead cost / COGS) 4 running the office (overhead / direct cost) 5 wood used in building the boats (fixed / variable cost) 6 the salary of a boatbuilder (direct / indirect cost) 6.3. Read what this company owner says and answer the questions. Tm Vaclav and I own a small furniture company in Slovakia. We make a very popular line of wooden chairs. Each costs 360 korunas to make, including materials and production. We estimate overheads, including administration and marketing costs, at 40 korunas for each chair, and we sell them to furniture stores at 500 korunas each.' 1 What is the gross margin for each chair? 2 What is the net margin for each chair? 3 What is the mark-up for each chair as a percentage of total costs? 4 What is the profit margin for each chair as a percentage of the selling price? (Business Vocabulary in Use, 63)

VOCABULARY PRACTICE A.

Match each word in the left box with a word in the right box to form ten common marketing expressions. Then use these expressions to complete the sentences that follow. brand premium plan product consumer market brand brands marketing price offer campaigns advertising special loyalty awareness core brand share promotions 1 ..................................................are important brand-building activities. 2 Marketing tactics such as…………………………aim to boost sales quickly. 3 Because of their association with quality and status,……………………….often cost a bit more. 4 During a sale in a department store, many goods are on………………… 5 The danger with brand-stretching is the damage that can result to the …………………………………………….if it is not successful. 6 A good………………………will guard the long-term interests of the brand it is promoting. 7 Launching a new…………………………...onto the market is a costly and risky business. 8 Customers who always buy the same brand of goods are showing ………………………… 9………………………...is a measure of how well-known a product is in the marketplace. 10 In some sectors, the competition between companies for …………………………..is fierce.

Complete each sentence with the correct form of the underlined word. In some cases, you will need to use the negative form. 1 advertise In our new campaign, our main………………….medium will be television. Benetton produced a series of eye-catching………………for their products. 2 associate Engineering firms often work in…………………with other companies on a major contract. When there is a financial scandal, business people often try to ………..themselves from those involved. 3 consume Food, clothing and household products are all examples of………………….goods. Wine………………….is high in France and on the increase in other European countries. 4 market To make money, you don t just need a good product - you also need excellent…………… Some products are very innovative, but they simply aren‘t…………………… 5 produce Although the meeting went on for hours, it was rather………… Since we introduced the new pay structure, ……….has improved enormously. 6 profit This line of raincoat is highly………………- we must discontinue it as soon as possible. If we are serious about improving the…………of these outlets, we should take a good look at staffing cost. 7 promote We expect all our……………….activities to cost around £2 million ………………………is a very important marketing function.

8 rival The…………………….between soft drinks companies, Coca-Cola and Pepsi Cola, is very fierce. Otis is known all over the world as a manufacturer of lifts. Its reputation in t he industry is ………………… 9 sell " Which is your best ………………………product?‖ Our…………………….force doubled when we took over our chief competitor. 10 value Our stock is so …………….that it cannot be left unguarded. We were most impressed by the consultants we hired - their advice was………………… C. Relationships between facts - Fill in the blanks with linkers from the list below:

Reason

because as so since therefore consequently

Contrast

although despite in spite of but however nevertheless

yet

1 Brand-stretching can be very risky.............................., it can also be very lucrative. 2 The value of price promotions is questionable,……………….most consumers switch back to their usual brand when the promotion ends. 3 Companies have to keep their shareholders happy…………………, brand managers are under pressure to find ways of boosting sales. 4………………………a brand may sell well in one country, it may not sell at all in another. 5 Price is a signal of quality,……………………….consumers will often pay more for premium brands. 6 In 1991, advertising accounted for around a third of all marketing outlay,………………………………………….., in 1980, the picture was very different. 7. ……………………………….their disappearance from the market, General Electric's food blenders continued to rank second with consumers 20 years later. (Business Class, 9-10)

7. THE ART OF SPEAKING â&#x20AC;&#x153;We had snakes in Raiders of the Lost Ark and bugs in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. But supposedly man's greatest fear is public speaking. That'll be in our next picture. (Steven Spielberg, film director)

7.1 How important is it to be able to present your ideas professionally? Do you enjoy giving presentations or generally try to avoid them? 7.2. Listen to five experienced presenters talking about what

still makes them nervous every time they give a presentation. Underline the speakers whose worries you share. Speaker 1

Speaker 2

Speaker 3

Speaker 4

Speaker 5

7.3 Complete the following expressions from the extracts in 2 using a single verb.

a Your mind b Your mouth

blank. dry.

Your mike

funny.

The audience

quiet.

Everything

wrong.

7.4. Which of the expressions in 3 means: you can't think of anything? your microphone doesn't work properly? 7.5. Listen to six business people comparing audience expectations of presentations in different countries. Which are they talking about? Give your reasons. Country

Extract no

Expectations

Reality

USA Germany Japan UK France Kuwait (In Company, 40)

7.6. Two managers for MaxOut, an American chain of fitness centre, are presenting a new business idea to their board of directors. Listen to four extracts from their presentation and answer the questions. Extract 1 a

Put the stages of the first part of the presentation in chronological order. quote statistics

build up expectations

thank the audience

pose a problem

set a challenge

introduce themselves

share corporate vision

Are the presenters successful at arousing the curiosity of their audience? Why (not)?'

The following figures were quoted. What do they refer to?

1,000 ______________________________________________________ 35 _________ ______________________________________________________________________ 250,000 ____________________________________________________ 7/10 _____________________________________________________ 4/10_______________________________________________________ 61% (122m) _____________________________________________________ d

On a scale of 1-5, how confident did the presenters sound? ______________ Would their presentation style be popular in your company?

Extract 2 a What do these figures refer to? Do you find them .surprising? a mere 13% _______________________________ ; _____________________ a staggering 92% _________________________________________________ b What do you think 'mere' and 'staggering' mean? c Complete the chart, which shows the results of the survey referred to in c. Nationwide survey Reasons given for not becoming a member of MaxOut Health Clubs

What product do you think the speakers are about to present?

Extract 3 a What is the product? _____________________________________________ b How much of the project budget was spent on making the prototype? c How long has it taken to develop? d Complete the product features chart. e What's the main selling point? f In what ways do you think the product would benefit MaxOut's main business? Main product features: weighs just over ______ fits easily into ________ assembles in _________ 35 different __________ Setting ______________ (In Company, 43) 66

Unit 7: MY BUSINESS It opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. (Milton Berle)

1. THE CHALLENGE

You have just inherited a substantial sum of money and have decided, together with a group of friends, to set up a profitable business. You have different abilities, so you will be able to complete each other and have different roles in the company. However, you still need a bank loan to start the business and will have to convince a financial analyst that your business is worth investing in.

First, you will choose a business idea that you think will be profitable. Then, in groups, you will create a business plan to be presented by means of a power point presentation through which you try to persuade the bank to grant you the loan you need.

During the proposed activities, you will:  Identify the features of a successful business  Brainstorm business ideas  Negotiate in groups with a view to choosing a profitable business idea  Create a basic business plan  Use web pages to gather information  Make an oral presentation for the business plan using persuasive language to convince potential investors/clients

2. WHATâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S IN A NAME?

CHOOSING A COMPANY NAME 2.1. Work in groups to negotiate and make a decision together. Here is a list of company names and five tasks to do with these names.

TECHNUM IF TECH MARK TECH IMPULSION

NOVENA TECHLANCE TECHTRAILS TECHWAYS

OPTIMUS INNOVUM PYRAMID

Tasks 1. In your opinion, which are the three best names for a technically innovative company? Why? 2. Which name do you consider the least appropriate for this kind of high tech company? Why? 3. What sort of product or service does the name INNOVUM Inc. suggest to you? 4. Choose one of the names from the above list and describe the company and its products or services. 5. Invent a letterhead and/or logo for one of the companies from the list. (Business English Recipes, 29)

2.2. Now get in new groups and compare and discuss your ideas, taking into account the following chart.

3. THE BUSINESS PLAN

Read the text below on preparing a business plan. Then look at the Contents Page from the Zimmerman Business Plan and complete the missing words: The business plan is an important document with two essential functions. It aims to convince possible investors and other stakeholders of the potential of a new business. It also works as a guide for the company in its first year or two of operations. The business plan normally starts with a title page and outline of the new business. It includes the name, logo and mission statement of the activity. There are normally three main parts to the business plan. First, the Marketing Plan. This includes a description of the products and services, an analysis of the market, a survey of the competition and a basic outline of promotion and selling strategies. The next part is the Financial Plan, which includes details of start-up costs, a profit and loss forecast for the first year or two (or maybe three) and then a calculation of the breakeven point. This is to show when the business expects to begin making a profit. Then there is usually a People and Action Plan. This explains who is involved, and states their roles and responsibilities, their experience and abilities. The Action Plan explains what will happen in the important first year of the business, i.e. during the start-up phase. Finally, the business plan has some information on the location, perhaps with photographs and architectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s drawings. At the end there are the Appendices, containing any additional and detailed information or support material.

(Business Class, 40)

Zimmerman Business Plan April 6 2007 Contents 1. Introduction: Business Outline 2. M _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ plan 2.1. P _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and s _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 2.2. M _ _ _ _ _ 2.3. P _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ and s_ _ _ _ _ _ 2.4. C _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 3. F _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ plan 3.1. S _ _ _ _ - _ _ costs 3.2. P _ _ _ _ _ and l _ _ _ f _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 3.3. B _ _ _ _ - e _ _ _ point 4. P _ _ _ _ _ and A _ _ _ _ _ plan 5. L _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 6. A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

KEYS TO A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS PLAN A prospective business owner needs to develop a written plan. Written plans provide a management tool for determining specific strengths and weaknesses of an idea, documenting reasonable objectives and identifying resources to attain them. A written plan will also provide the basis for developing a more detailed business operating plan. Even though the risk of going into business cannot be eliminated, a good plan will help reduce the risk. The following outline will take you through the "thinking process" and help in gathering and organizing the necessary information. Perspectives When starting a new business it is essential to develop and maintain a basic understanding of the changing world in which the business is operating. Preparation Be creative in your approach and use as many resources as possible to collect information. Key questions to consider: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

What products or services should be offered? What is unique about the products or services? What will the products or services do for customers? What will they do in the future that they do not do now? Why will each product or service be necessary to the success of business?

Marketing Strategy Marketing involves activities necessary for getting and keeping customers. A carefully conceived and executed marketing plan, focusing on the customer, is a major contribution to business success. Develop your overall marketing strategy by considering how the product/service will help the customer. Think of ways in which the product/services can best be made known to the prospective clients/customers. Location The type of product or service offered will often influence how accessible you need to be to your market. Once the market is defined site location becomes easier. Choose your location carefully. Answering the following questions will help in choosing a location with the best advantages. Key questions to consider: 1. Is it properly zoned for the type of business? For an anticipated expansion? 2. How near is the location to other stores, offices, plants, competitors? 3. What is the cost (be cautious about making a decision on cost alone)? 4. Will it be suitable for business? 5. Is there adequate parking? 6. Will it require improvements? If so, to what extent?

Personnel If there is a need to hire employees, it is important to consider the following questions: Key questions to consider: 1. What are the job responsibilities? (job description) 2. What skills are needed to perform the job? (job specifications) 3. What is labor availability? 4. What training plan will be implemented? 5. What are projected salaries? Inventory Inventory planning and control is important in projecting cash flow and its impact on day-to-day survival. Key questions to consider: 1. What inventory, raw materials, and supplies will be needed? 2. How will potential or actual shortages be avoided? 3. Are prices likely to be steady or fluctuating? 4. What overall plans need to be made? Projections This section provides a "reward" for your previous hard work and dedication. You will now be able to organize, summarize, and simplify collected information in a meaningful way. Your factual information provides justification for the figures you will use in financial projections. The answer to the question, "Does my idea have a chance for success?" should become evident in this section. (darc.cms.udel.edu/AquaPrimer/bizplan.pdf)

4. PROJECT – ROLES DISTRIBUTION

Here you have a list of roles to fulfill in order to complete the business plan. Choose a role in the group and complete it to create a business plan in the form of a pp presentation. Use the selfassessment worksheet on the following page as a guide to your presentation.

General Manager: The general manager is the person who provides a complete profile of the business, with overall information on the idea. The general manager should provide the following:   

The business area in which the company might be included A justification of the choice of business A complete target client profile

Creation Manager: The creativity manager is responsible for providing the specificity of the company, with reference to how it is different/better than anything else existing on the market. The creativity manager should research and include the following:    

Company strengths with an emphasis on the unique selling point Company weaknesses anticipated with reference to remedial action Efficient ways of advertising for the company A catchy slogan

Financial manager: The financial manager will deal with the money issues involved in setting up a business. He/she will have to refer to the following:   

Estimated costs – equipment, staff, location, advertising Estimated profits- ways of reinvesting it Predicted financial problems with reference to remedial action

Additionally, for groups made up of 4 members there will be one more role:

Market Researcher: The market researcher will test the market response to the products/services offered by the company. He/she will:   

Devise a questionnaire to test the impact of the company products on the market. Apply the questionnaire on the class mates or on other people from outside the work group Report the findings of the questionnaire in the form of graphs

5. BUSINESS PRESENTATION Present the business plans to the class. The rest of the class act as financial advisors and ask questions to the presenting students on details about their business idea. The presenting students have to give answers to convince the analysts that the business idea is worth investing in. Use the following self-assessment worksheet as a guide on what to focus on.

Power Point Presentation Self-Assessment Worksheet o Business name_____________________________________

CATEGORY

Organization

The pp has very attractive and wellorganized information.

The pp has attractive and quite organized information.

The pp has good information, but not presented in a very attractive manner.

The pp has organization and material confusing to the reader.

Layout

Graphics go well with the text and there is a good mix of picture and text.

Graphics go well with the text but there are too many and they can distract attention from the text

Graphics go well with the text and, but there are too few and there is too much text unsupported by pictures.

Graphics do not go with the text or appear to be randomly chosen.

Content

All the points required are included and all facts are accurate.

Most of the points required are included and are accurate.

Some of the points required are included and are accurate.

Few of the points required are included and are accurate.

Spelling/

There are no spelling or grammatical errors

No more than one spelling or grammatical error

No more than three spelling or grammatical errors

Several spelling or grammatical errors

Grammar

Total Points Comments

Total Points

Oral Presentation Self-Assessment Worksheet ď&#x201A;ˇ Business name ____________________________

Persuasiveness

Content

Preparedness

Posture and Eye Contact

Clarity

CATE GORY

The student is audible and pronounces all words correctly, using proper grammar.

The student is audible, but makes minor errors in grammar and pronunciation.

The student is not always audible and has errors in grammar and pronunciation.

The student does not speak clearly and uses poor grammar.

The student establishes eye contact, stands up straight and demonstrates confidence.

The student establishes eye contact frequently, has good posture and demonstrates some confidence

The student has limited eye contact, posture and confidence

The student has limited eye contact, poor posture and no confidence

The group are well prepared and show full understanding of the presentation.

The group are rather prepared and show good understanding of the presentation.

The group are somewhat prepared and show understanding of parts of the presentation.

The group are not prepared and do not seem to understand the presentation.

All the points required are included and all facts are accurate. Appropriate answers are given for all audience questions.

Most of the points required are included and are accurate. Appropriate answers are given for most audience questions.

Some of the points required are included and are accurate. Appropriate answers are given for some audience questions.

Few of the points required are included and are accurate. Inappropriate answers are given for audience questions.

The presenters successfully communicate the information, showing why the audience should care about the topic. Facial expressions and body language generate a lot of interest.

The presenters successfully communicate the information, but are not fully convincing as to why the audience should care about the topic. . Facial expressions and body language generate some interest.

The presenters attempt to make the audience care about the topic, but are not really successful. . Facial expressions and body language seem rather faked.

The presenters make no attempt to make the audience care more about the topic. Very little use of facial expressions and body language. No interest generated.

Total

To tal

Unit 8: MEETINGS Any simple problem can be made insoluble if enough meetings are held to discuss it.

Word combinations with 'meeting' arrange set up fix

organize a meeting

bring forward

make a meeting earlier than originally decided

put back postpone

o a meeting

make a meeting later than originally planned

cancel

not have a meeting after all

ran chair

be in charge of a meeting

attend

go to a meeting

miss

not go to a meeting

TYPES OF MEETINGS • chat (informal discussion) with colleagues at the coffee machine. • brainstorming among colleagues: where as many ideas as possible are produced quickly, to be evaluated later. • project meeting / team meeting of employees involved in a particular activity. • department/departmental meeting. • meeting with suppliers, for example to negotiate prices for an order. • meeting with a customer, for example to discuss a contract. • board meeting: an official, formal meeting of a company's directors. • Annual general meeting / AGM (BrE); annual meeting (AmE): where shareholders discuss the company's annual report. • EGM: extraordinary general meeting: a shareholders' meeting to discuss an important issue such as a proposed merger. HOW WAS THE MEETING? Some colleagues are discussing a meeting they have just come out of:

Anil: I thought it was very productive. Juliet: Well, I thought it was a complete waste of time. I didn't hear anything I didn't already know. Barbara: I agree with Anil. I felt we had some very useful discussions, and that we reached an agreement that was good for both sides. We certainly covered a lot of ground. It was incredible the number of things we got through. Juliet: But there were too many digressions. John was rambling and kept wandering off the point. He just uses meetings as a chance to show off. Just like a lot of men: he just wanted to show how powerful he is and what a good talker he is. Anil: But to be fair, the chair really kept things moving: she encouraged people to be brief and to stick to the point and we achieved a lot in a short time. Anyway, I learned a lot and I think they listened to what we had to say. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 116)

1.1 At which type of meeting would you be most likely to hear each of these things? 1 I'm pleased to announce another good year for shareholders of this company. 2 I know this sounds crazy, but how about giving away 100,000 free samples? 3 Things in the sales department are getting out of control. We should all start making a real effort. 4 So, you think you can provide 10,000 a month at a unit cost of £4.90? 5 Have you heard? Suzanne is being fired: apparently her sales figures aren't good enough. 6 That's a deal then. Looking forward to working with you. I'm sure you won't be disappointed. 7 Amazingly, we're ahead of schedule on this project. 8 I recommend to shareholders that you accept Megabook's offer for our company. 9 As you know, Megabook wants to buy this company. As chief financial officer, what do you think of their offer, Saleem? 1 . 2 A management consultant is talking about meetings. Put what she says into a logical order. 1 point and rambling. And then there are those who want to show 2 moving. If they do this, it's amazing how much ground you can cover. 3 Of course, everyone wants meetings to be productive and achieve results. But from personal experience, we know that a lot of them are a waste of 4 off: to show how important and clever they are. The chair should keep things 5 the point. And we've all seen those annoying people who keep on wandering off the 6 time, and nothing is achieved. In order for discussion to be useful, people should not go off on digressions: they should stick to 1.3. Fill in the missing words in the sentences below. Choose from the following. There are two possible answers for no.8: agenda

any other business

decision

point

minutes

monthly

chair

matters arising room

closed meeting start

1. It was a terrible_______________. 2. It was planned to _______________ at 9 o‘clock. 3. But no one had the _______________. 4. And no one knew which _______________ to go to. 5. The _______________ arrived at 9.15. At last we thought we could start. 6. But no one had the _______________ of the last meeting, so the secretary had to go and look for them – and to make copies of the agenda. 7. It took a long time to go through the _______________ from the last meeting. 8. At last we got to the main _______________ on the agenda. 9. We talked for two hours but we did not reach a _______________ 10. There was no time for _______________ 11. The chair declared the meeting _______________ just before midday. 12. Thank goodness it‘s only a _______________ meeting! (Business Vocabulary in Use, 117)

1.4. Meetings have different kinds of objectives. Match what people are saying (a-i) with the correct meetings (1-9): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6 7 8. 9.

meeting to maintain contact _____ brainstorming meeting _____ decision-making meeting _____ discussion meeting _____ annual general meeting _____ information meeting _____ negotiation _____ planning meeting _____ problem solving meeting_____

(Test Your Professional English Business General, 37)

2. THE ROLE OF THE CHAIRPERSON BEFORE THE MEETING Hilary Rhodes is a management consultant who specializes in meeting skills: 'A good chairperson has to be a good organizer. What they do before the meeting is as important as the meeting itself. They should make sure the agenda (the list of things to be discussed) is complete by asking those involved what should be on it and then circulating (distributing) it to everyone concerned. They should check the venue, making sure the room will be free, without interruptions, until the end of the meeting.' DURING THE MEETING The chairperson should be a good timekeeper. They should start the meeting on time, without waiting for latecomers. They should appoint a minute-taker to take the minutes, making sure that opinions and action points (where participants agree to do something) are noted. They should make sure each point on the agenda is allocated the time it deserves and should keep to the timetable. When the time allocated to one point is up, the chair should make sure that discussion moves on to the next point, even if the issue has not been completely covered or resolved (decided). The chair should make sure that each participant has the chance to make their point, and should deal tactfully with disagreements, making sure that each side feels their point of view has been noted. They should also try to avoid digressions, where people get off the point. Finally, they should ensure the meeting finishes on time, or early. FOLLOW-UP After some meetings, it's necessary for the minutes to be circulated, especially if there are action points that particular people are responsible for. At the next meeting, the chair should ask for the minutes to be read out and see if all agree that it is an accurate record of what happened, and see if there are any matters arising (any points from the last meeting that need to be discussed). And they should check what progress has been made on the action points from the previous meeting. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 118)

2.1

Match the verbs (1-7) with the nouns (a-g) that they go with take appoint circulate allocate move on avoid finish

a minute-taker the minutes time the agenda to the next point on time digressions

2.2

Replace the underlined phrases in this article with the correct expressions.

I don't know how to chair a meeting! I've been asked to chair a meeting about the Christmas office party, but I'm incredibly nervous as I've never chaired one before. Is there a secret for success? You may never have chaired a meeting but as you've probably been to lots you'll have seen it done well and badly. Think about the things that please and annoy you and build on them. (1) Make sure everyone has the agenda well in advance, and check that you know enough about the participants and issues to be discussed. Arrange for the (2) room to be cool rather than warm; people will be less likely to go to sleep. See yourself as a referee whose job it is to ensure fair play through careful watching and listening. You must ensure that the timid have a chance to (3) say what they want; deal (4) in a diplomatic way with the argumentative and to be kind to the (5) person you have asked to take notes. Getting that individual on your side is essential if you want the record to reflect your desired outcomes. It's normal to suggest what should be left out of the minutes and how any difficult bits should be phrased. Make sure you stick to the (6) time you have allowed for each point and keep things moving by not letting people (7) wander off the subject. Get decisions made and recorded, even if it's only to postpone matters until the next meeting. If someone is being difficult, defuse things by offering to continue the discussion personally at a more appropriate time. If the meeting is likely to be more than a couple of hours long, try to include a break at the midpoint; it acts as a marker and stops people getting restless. Aim to leave everyone feeling they have had a chance to say what they wanted to say and gain lasting and well-deserved popularity by finishing (8) when you said the meeting would finish. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 119)

2.3. Complete the following and compare with your classmatesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; answers: â&#x20AC;&#x153;A meeting without a chairperson is like a __________ without a ____________â&#x20AC;? 2.4. Complete the collocations by writing the nouns and noun phrases in the right boxes: the agenda points of view areas of conflict follow-up tasks the final decision the meeting an action plan the key issues the participants the main goals other speakers troublemakers open bring in close shut out welcome anticipate introduce avoid set identify stick to discipline ask fort work out summarise draw up establish prioritise define assign deliberate explain over focus on take (In Company, 31) 79

3.POINTS OF VIEW OPENING THE MEETING

Carla Eagleton, chief executive of Creative Advertising, is opening a meeting.

Then she says 'As you know, I've called this meeting to discuss the situation in the design department. The designers have a lot of freedom to work as they wish, but it seems that things are getting out of control ...' She could also have said: • I've arranged this meeting to ... • As you are aware ... • The purpose of this meeting is to ... • The main objective is to ...

INVITING PEOPLE TO SPEAK

Carla then uses some of these expressions. Inviting someone to start: Greta, would you like to kick off? • Would you like to open the discussion, Greta? •

Perhaps you'd like to get the ball rolling, Greta.

Asking for one person's opinion: •

What about you, Keith?

•

What are your feelings on this, Keith?

What do you think about this, Keith? What are your views on this, Keith?

Asking for everyone's opinion: •

What's the general feeling on this?

MAKING YOUR POINT The other participants use some of these expressions. a Head of human resources: I believe the design department needs a certain amount of freedom, but there are limits. b Head of design: As I see it, I can't run the design department as if it was the accounts department. c Chief financial officer: In my opinion, they're going much too far. I can't bear to think of the costs involved. d Senior designer: Of course, we are sensitive types and need to be given the freedom to work how we like.

Other ways of making your point include: • The way I see it... • Personally, I think ... • It's clear to me that... • It looks to me as if .. • Obviously (Business Vocabulary in Use, 120)

3.1. Which of these expressions below are correct? Correct the mistakes. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

It's about time we get started. Let's begin, let we? Shall we make a start? Let's do a start. Let's get up to business. I've call this meeting to ... The purpose of this meeting is to ... The main subject is to ... As you are beware ...

3.2.Put sentences A-F under the correct headings: A Flexitime: discuss staff suggestions and management stipulations. B Provide more car-parking places. C Make sure everyone has a chance to give their views. D Flexible hours should only be worked on Mondays and Fridays. E If there is disagreement on any point, call for a vote. F The meeting ended at 5.15 pm. G Any other business. H It was agreed that most people were happy with the present system. I There should be 'core time' for all staff. J Arrangements for the company picnic.    

TIPS FOR CHAIRING A MEETING PROPOSALS AGENDA SUMMARY

3.3 Match the sentence beginnings (1-5) with the correct endings (a-e): 1 The way 2 Personally,

3 It looks to me 4 It's clear to 5 In my

a I think that the prizes we win help us to attract and keep the best designers. b as if the design people think of themselves as living on another planet. c I see it, you should be looking at what we produce, not at the time of day we produce it. d opinion, we have to think of the needs of each department. e me that they set a very bad example to the other departments (Business Vocabulary in Use, 121)

4. AGREEMENT AND DISAGREEMENT DISCUSSION WITHOUT ARGUMENT?

Hilary Rhodes is talking about the importance of keeping calm in meetings: 'In a meeting, you discuss things. In the discussion, some people may agree with you. Others may disagree. They may have differences of opinion with you, but the important thing is to keep calm and remain courteous. It's OK to disagree, but it's not OK to be impolite or rude or to lose your temper. An argument is when people disagree about something, perhaps becoming angry. Your argument is also the set of ideas that you use to prove your point: to show that what you are saying is true.'

Note: Agree and disagree are verbs (e.g. I agree with you, She disagrees with him, etc.). You cannot say I om ogrcc with you, She is disagree with him, etc. AGREEING  Strong agreement: a You're perfectly right. The costs involved must be incredible. b I couldn't agree more. We got our latest recruits after we won the industry award for best advertisement. c Precisely. Creativity comes to some of our people in the middle of the night. d Exactly. We have to look at the company as one unit, e Absolutely. It's the output, not the input, that counts.  Mild agreement: f You may be right there. We're already ten per cent over budget. g That's true, I suppose. There must be some limits on when they work. h I suppose so. They seem to arrive and then go straight out again to eat. DISAGREEING  Mild disagreement: a That's not really how I see it. Everyone should be allowed to work in the way that's best for them. b I don't really agree. The prizes are important, but people would come to work for us anyway. c I can't really go along with you there. I think we need to see people at their desks actually working. d I think you're mistaken. If the designers get to work late, they don't go out for lunch, e I'm afraid I can't agree with you there. All you financial people do is worry about costs.  Strong disagreement: f I'm sorry, but that's out of the question. You can't expect people to go home at ten and come back at nine in the morning, g I think you're wrong. The design department's costs are justified because of our high quality work. The costs of the other departments are not justified, h Of course not. The latest figures I've seen show that the project is within budget, i That's absurd. There must be some sort of control on when people work, j That's ridiculous. Each department has very specific needs. Note: Be careful with “That's absurd” and “That's ridiculous”. These expressions are very strong and can be offensive. (Business Vocabulary in Use, 122)

4.1

Complete the crossword using the correct form of words.

Across

Down

3 The opposite of 'agree'. (8)

1 If you are pleasant and unaggressive, you are ..................(9) 2 and 8 across If you become angry, you ............. your .................. (4,6)

7 What you have if you do not agree with someone. (10,2,7) 8 See 2 down. 9 Whatever you do, keep................. (4)

4 The opposite of 'polite'. (8) 5 The noun corresponding to 'angry'. (5) 6 See 12 across. 7 If you talk about something, you .............. it. (7) 10Another word for 4 down. (4)

11 When people disagree, they have an ................ (8) 12 and 6 down If you want to show you are right, you try to ............... your ................. (5,5)

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 123)

5: DISCUSSION TECHNIQUES HEDGING Hedging is when you avoid disagreeing directly. To hedge, you could say: • I take your point about punctuality, but clocking in and out would not be very popular. • I understand what you're saying about the needs of each department, but each department must be treated in an appropriate way. • I see/know what you mean, but we must look at the human factors as well as the numbers. • I hear where you're coming from on this, but we must remember this is an advertising agency, not a car factory. CHECKING UNDERSTANDING, INTERRUPTING, REFERRING BACK To interrupt someone politely: • Can I come in here? • Sorry to interrupt you, but...  If I can just stop you for a moment... To refer back to what was said earlier: • As we were saying earlier ... • To go back to what I was just saying ... •

To go back to what X was saying earlier ...

To check that you understand what someone has said: • Are you saying that...? • If I understand (you) correctly, ... • Are you suggesting that...? • If I follow you ... • Are you implying that...? AGREEMENT, CONSENSUS OR COMPROMISE? Hilary Rhodes is talking about how to deal with agreements and disagreements: 'It may be possible to reach agreement or to reach an agreement about something, or at least come to a consensus: something that most people can agree with. It may be possible to compromise or to find a compromise: an agreement where people accept less than they wanted at first. Or perhaps the differences are so great that there will just be disagreement. Something in particular that you disagree about is a disagreement.' CONCLUDING Carla Eagleton sums up and brings the meeting to a close: 'Right. I'm afraid we're running out of time so we're going to have to stop there. To go over what's been said, there is a disagreement about timekeeping and budgets in the design department. I've listened to both sides of the argument. I think I can sum it up by saying that it's a problem of creativity versus control. I think you'll just have to agree to disagree. I'll let you know my decision about the solution to this problem by the end of the month. So unless anyone has anything else to add, I think that's it. Thank you all for coming.' (Business Vocabulary in Use, 124)

5.1 Put the extracts from this newspaper report of a public meeting into the correct order.

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 125)

6. MAKING THINGS CLEAR 6.1 In meetings, people are sometimes reluctant to say exactly what they mean - especially if they have bad news! Match the vague statements to their blunter equivalents.

a b c d e f g h

Vague I‘m sorry to report that the project has not been a complete success. Technically speaking, we have run into negative profit. I think there‘s a general lack of consumer confidence. You know we‘ve always been a market driven organisation. Now is not the time to expand, but to consolidate. There will have to be some restructuring of the department. We may also have to consider outsourcing production to cut costs. Of course, we won‘t be able to finalise anything today.

1 2 3 4

Blunt Our assembly plant may be closed down too. Sales are falling. People are going to lose their jobs. It‘s failed.

We‘ll have to hold another meeting! We‘ve made a loss.

Let‘s do nothing.

We‘ve never had an original idea.

(In Company, 11)

6.2. Listen to short extracts from five meetings. Each contains one piece of information that doesn't make sense. After each extract, turn to a partner and decide what the discrepancy is. Then listen again and check. NUMBER CRUNCHING 6.3. How do you say the following numbers? Compare with a partner, then listen and check. a $12 ½ bn b €580,753

c 2/3 d $8,491

e f

g 298m3 i h ¥52-58m j

4:1 1.05km2

Which of the figures is: a six-figure sum? a round figure? in excess of 12 billion? expressed as a ratio? somewhere in the region of 300?

400Gb 0.0012%

accurate to two decimal places? just under 8'½ K? a fraction? a negligible proportion? a rough estimate/a ballpark figure?

6.4.What is the best thing a manager can do in a crisis? Match the following. Which do you think represent good advice? a b c d e f

deny stay delegate buy blame be

someone time calm decisive everything responsibility

g h i j k l

admit take make act collect be

honest data charge quickly nothing promises

6.5. Complete the following remarks using the pairs of words in the box: agreement + priority option + backing cons + decision

minds + options anything + consideration input + action time + heads data + instinct

a. Look, ______________ is short. So let‘s put our ______________ together and see what we can come up with. b. OK, we‘ve weighed up the various pros and ______________. Now it‘s time to reach a ______________ and stick to it. c. I don‘t want us rushing into ______________. The whole issue requires long and careful ______________. d. I take it we‘re all in ______________ that our first ______________ is to safeguard the well-being of our personnel. e. Well, then, I don‘t see we have any ______________ but to give this proposal our full ______________. f. I‘d like your ______________ on this before committing us to any definite course of ______________. g. I‘m in two ______________ about it. At this stage I think we should keep our ______________ open. h. Well, in the absence of more reliable ______________, I think I‘m going to have to go with my gut ______________ on this one. (In Company, 18) 86

CRISIS MANAGEMENT A. The Coca-Cola crisis – Case Study Work in groups to act as crisis management consultant to the Coca-Cola Company. It is May 1999 and the world‘s most famous brand is in trouble… 1. Listen to the first part of the Coca-Cola case and answer the questions: a. How many Cokes are sold each day? b. How would you describe Coca-Cola‘s advertising strategy? c. What has just happened? d. Which markets are directly involved in the crisis? e. Calculate how much those markets are worth in annual sales. 2. Listen to the second part of the case and answer the questions: a. What do the following figures refer to? +25% ______________________ -13% ______________________ b. What is the significance of these figures? c. What have the inspectors at the Belgian bottling plant found? d. What is the toxicologist‘s verdict? e. Who is benefitting from Coca-Cola‘s current problems? 3. Imagine you are members of the Coca-Cola marketing department. Hold a meeting to decide how to solve the problem. Take into account the following issues:       

Should there be an immediate product recall in spite of the lack of solid evidence? In the absence of any proof of contamination, should Coca-Cola appeal to the four European governments to lift their ban? Or even threaten legal action against them? Should any decision be postponed until the final results of the tests become available? Or will this just give the competition time to increase its market share? How should the company persuade the public that there's no real threat? Should there be an official apology? Or would that look like an admission of guilt? Should Coca-Cola put the blame firmly on its Belgian bottling plant and their shippers, whilst exporting Coke directly to Europe from the USA? What kind of public relations exercise would restore confidence in the world's number one brand?

4. Now listen to the final part of the case and find out what really happened. How do your recommendations compare with the action Coca-Cola actually took?

B. The Hostile Take-over Imagine your company was recently acquired by a former competitor in a hostile takeover. The new board of directors has decided it is time for a serious shake-up. They are suggesting   

introducing employee electronic monitoring systems, reducing the number of company cars downsizing.

Three heads of departments meet with a board representative to discuss the suggestions and come up with acceptable solutions. The participants to the meeting receive the following cards:

CHAIRPERSON (board representative)

HEAD OF PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT

- open the meeting, inform the participants about the agenda - make the transition between the three points on the agenda:  introducing PC monitoring software and closed circuit TV to monitor employee activity  rethinking the car policy on vehicles due to concerns about costs  downsizing – letting 1/3 of the staff go - make sure all participants get the chance to contribute to the meeting - try to reach a decision at the end of the meting

- agenda point 1 – agree on introducing systems only after evidence of facilities being abused is given (e.g. screening international calls) - agenda point 2 – you suggest company employees, especially sales reps be provided with company scooters – more environmentally friendly and cost effective - agenda point 3 – disagree – there is not enough time to evaluate the performance of all employees

HEAD OF FINANCIAL DEPARTMENT

HEAD OF SALES DEPARTMENT

- agenda point 1- disagree - confidentiality is essential, the information is highly classified, you disapprove of infringements upon civil rights - agenda point 2 – agree - you think sales reps drive unnecessarily large and expensive cars - agenda point 3 – you suggest people with the company for less than 1 year should go first

- agenda point 1- agree – employees accessing subscription websites and abusing telephone calls waste company money - agenda point 2- disagree – a cut in transport costs would bring about a drop in income due to sales reps not being able to perform accordingly - agenda point 3 – you warn about such a measure affecting the overall performance, as you feel some departments are understaffed as it is

Unit 9: BUSINESS DOCUMENTS "One of the mysteries of human conduct is why adult men and women are ready to sign documents they do not read, at the behest of salesmen they do not know, binding them to pay for articles they do not want, with money which they do not have.â&#x20AC;? (Gerald Hurst)

1. TYPES OF DOCUMENTS

1.1 Match the document extracts (a-l) with the correct terms (1-12) 1. agenda 2. order form 3. minutes 4. mailshot 5 invoice 6. annual report

_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________

7. sales report 8. newsletter 9. memo 10. letter 11. contract 12. userâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s guide

_______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________ _______________

(Test Your Professional English Business General, 40)

1.2 Write the type of written communication in the box next to the correct definitions:

agenda fax mailshot price list 1 2 3

5 6 7

8 9 10 11

12 13 14 15 16

annual report contract in house magazine invoice memo minutes newsletter sales brochure sales report

directory order form user manual

it tells people usually people inside the company - about the life of the organization in house magazine a report of a meeting _____________ a letter sent at the same time to a number of customers or possible customers, for example about a new product or service _________________ a paper which you fill in when you when to buy something from a company _____________________ an internal message, usually from one person to a group of people _____________________ a list of things to discuss at a meeting _____________________ it tells people - usually people outside the company about the life of the organization _____________________ it gives information about the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2DC;s products _____________________ it tells you how much products cost _____________________ a book with lists of telephone numbers or other information _____________________ the paper which tells you how much you must pay when you buy something from a company _____________________ a document which tells you about the company's performance over the year, including the accounts for the year _____________________ a legal agreement between two parties _____________________ a message sent by facsimile machine _____________________ it tells you how a piece of equipment works _____________________ it contains figures on how much money people have spent on the company's products in, for example, a month _____________________ (Test Your Professional English Business General, 41)

2. EMAILS

Email is electronic mail. You can send an email to someone, or email them. In business a reply is always expected. reply to all: send an answer to the person who sent an email, and everyone who received a copy of it

forward: send an email you have received to someone else

reply: send an answer to the person who sent an email

attach: send a document, for example a picture, with an email

delete: get rid of an email â&#x20AC;&#x201D; you don't want

send and receive: send all the emails you've written and receive all the ones that are waiting for you

cc: send a copy to ... -------bcc: send a blind copy to ... (the other people don't know you're sending this copy)

EMAIL EXPRESSIONS

( Business Vocabulary in Use, 114)

EMAIL ABBREVIATIONS

2.1. Write down the meaning of as many abbreviations possible from the following list: Am cc i.e. Pls re

asap e.g. IMO pm ref

btw etc. NB PS RSVP

Bw FYI pcs qty tbc

2.2. Which of the features above would you use in each of these situations? 1 You are sending an email to Antonio and you want to send a copy to Bella without Antonio knowing. 2 You receive a reply from Antonio, and you want Carlos to see it. 3 You get an email from Delia, who has also sent copies to Edgar and Fenella, and you want to send the same answer to all three of them. 4 With the email to Giorgio, you want to send another document. 5 You've written three emails. You want to send them, and read any that are waiting for you. 6 You receive two emails, but you don't want to keep them. 2.3 Complete this email using the correct form of expressions above that mean the same as the underlined expressions.

(Business Vocabulary in Use, 115)

2.4. There can be a big difference between the styles used for writing e-mails and for writing letters. Often e-mails are less formal. Here you have a table of different expressions used for writing letters and e-mails. Write each phrase below in the correct place in the table: Wbw Re: Dear Sam Let me know if you need more information Hi Sam Sorry about Please Attached I should be grateful if you would

Greeting Topic Request Apology Documentation Bad news Good news Conclusion Closing

Please accept our apologies for We regret to inform you Please find enclosed With reference to I‘m afraid We are very pleased to inform you If you need more information, please do not hesitate to contact us. I‘m happy to tell you Best wishes

Letters Dear Sam

E-mails

(Test Your Professional English Business General, 44) 2.5. The following expressions are all useful in e-mails. Complete them using the prepositions in the boxes. at to

against off x2

out of upx2

back + to through + to up out + with on + to

down onx3 up + on out + on

through

back

with x7

in + on

up + to

a. Have a quick look _______ these figures and get _______ _______ me asap. b. Let me know if you need any help _______ the Koreans. And copy me _______ _______ any correspondence _______ them. c. Could you get _______ _______ our suppliers and sort something _______ _______ them? I‘ll leave the details _______ you, but keep me _______ the loop. d. BTW, you did a great job _______ the presentation. It went _______ really well _______ the Belgians. We‘ll just have to wait and see what they come _______ to us _______ . e. Can you update me _______ where we are _______ the Expo arrangements? I‘m a bit _______ of touch. Can I leave it _______ _______ you to contact the speakers? f. I‘d like to sound you _______ _______ this new packaging idea. Let‘s meet _______ to discuss it sometime next week. BTW, I still can‘t seem to get _______ _______ Monica g. I know you‘re _______ to your neck in work at the moment and probably don‘t want to take _______ any more, but could you take this Milan thing _______ my hands? THNQ h. I haven‘t had time to read _______ the whole report and I‘ll probably need to check some of these figures _______ the computer, but leave it _______ me. i. Thanks for your offer _______ a beer. If I can finish this report _______ by 7, I may just take you _______ it!. I could certainly do _______ one! 94

THE BIGGEST E-MAIL BLUNDERS EVER MADE 2.6. Work with a partner and discuss the following questions.  There are an estimated 50,000 computer viruses out there in cyberspace. Have any of them found you yet?  What kind of things do people use their office computers for which are not strictly business? Have you ever been tempted to do any of these things yourself?  Have you ever sent an e-mail and later regretted it? How dangerous is it to send business e-mails (even internally) without considering the possible implications?

2.7. Listen to the story of some of the biggest e-mail blunders ever made and number the following in the order they are mentioned. Netscape Merrill Lynch Dow Chemical Cerner the Love Bug Western Provident AOL Norwich Union Microsoft Norton Rose

2.8. Work with a partner. Without listening again, can you remember: how much the Love Bug cost businesses worldwide? ____ how much the two insurance companies settled out of court for? whose love life reflected badly on Norton Rose? ____________ how many people lost their jobs at Dow Chemical? _________ whose stock fell by 28%? ______________________________ how much Merrill Lynch had to pay out because of Blodget's e-mail?______________ who regretted sending e-mails in the Microsoft antitrust trial?___________________ (In Company, 66-67)

2.9. Put the following e-mails in the order in which they were sent and then explain how you made the decision: Dear Graham, Thanks for your quick reply. If it is convenient with you, I will be able to meet with you very soon indeed as I am visiting one of your colleagues on Wednesday, 25 th March. I am planning to finish the meeting at 12.30 pm, and would be very glad to meet you any time after that. Best wishes Susan -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------Susan, Ok, great! See you then. G P.S. I know a great place for lunch if you have time after the meeting. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------95

Hi Graham. Great! Will see you at 10 am on the 2nd Cheers Susan --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------Re: Our first meeting Hello again Susan! Sorry for the delay in replying but I had to forward both our schedules to my boss to get his input. Anyway, I‘ve attached a copy of your schedule with the best slots for me shaded in red. Any of these is fine, but I‘d like to meet as soon as possible. Cheers Graham ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -----------------------------------------Dear Mr Smith, I would like to introduce myself. My name is Susan Sarland and I am the new South Western sales manager for Chou Cream. The previous sales manager for your area, Chris Jones, has been promoted to Head of Marketing and has asked me to pass his best wishes onto you. I look forward to doing business with you and hope we get the chance to meet soon. Yours, Susan Sarland ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------Dear Susan, Thanks for making the time to meet up with me at such short notice, but I‘m afraid I‘m attending a conference abroad on that day. I‘m flying back on the Sunday and will be available anytime from Monday afternoon of the following week. Hope to see you soon. Best regards Graham -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Dear Graham, Sorry the meeting turned out to be so complicated. I guess we are both just so busy that everyone wants our time! I‘m holding meetings with my new colleagues here almost every Monday and Friday for the foreseeable future, but I‘m usually free midweek. Please find attached a copy of my schedule for the first two weeks of April. Please pick any slot you like and I‘ll do my best to make it then. Thanks for your patience. All the best Susan ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------Dear Ms Sarland, Thank you very much for your email of the 7 th March. I am looking forward to working with you in the coming months and years and to seeing you soon. Regards, Graham

2.10. Write an e-mail to a work colleague on the subject below. Use the suggested phrases to help you, but change and add anything you need. Use also at least two expressions from the previous exercise as well as two abbreviations and no more than 150 words.

Subject: Update please A.

Sorry ……… but I‘m still waiting for………. Can you let me know how much longer it‘s going to be? Can you have it finished ……… by Subject: Urgent request

……… I‘ve got an important presentation coming up ……… and I‘m going to need ……… Can I leave it to you………?

Give your partner your impressions of the e-mail they wrote to you. Consider the following:        

Do they sound friendly but businesslike? Is the register appropriate? Have they kept their message short and to-the-point? Have they made any important spelling mistakes? Have they made any important vocabulary mistakes? Have they made any important grammar mistakes? Have they made any important punctuation mistakes? Was the message transmitted effectively? (In Company, 67)

Email etiquette tips: 1. Be concise and to the point - avoid long sentences 2. Use cc: field sparingly 3. Use proper spelling, grammar & punctuation, structure & layout 4. Sign the e-mail 5. Use templates for frequently used responses 6. Answer swiftly 7. Do not attach unnecessary files 8. Do not write in CAPITALS 9. Don't leave out the message thread - click 'Reply', instead of 'New Mail' 10. Add disclaimers to your emails - protect your company from liability 11. Read the email before you send it 12. Do not overuse Reply to All 13. Mailings > use the bcc: field or do a mail merge 14. Take care with abbreviations and emoticons 15. Be careful with formatting 16. Do not forward chain letters 17. Do not copy a message or attachment without permission 18. Do not use email to discuss confidential information 19. Use a meaningful subject – always write something in the subject box! 20. Use active instead of passive 21. Avoid using URGENT and IMPORTANT 22. Keep your language gender neutral (http://www.emailreplies.com/)

EXTRA GRAMMAR PRACTICE UNITS 1-2. TENSES

Choose the correct verb form to complete the sentences Dear all As you (1) know/are knowing, the annual client hospitality event (2) is fast approaching/will fast approach and, as yet, we (3) did not make/have not made a final decision on where to hold it this year. One or two of you (4) already came forward/have already come forward with suggestions, which (5) are currently considered/are currently being considered, but, as we (6) will have to/are having to make the necessary arrangements quite soon, I'd like everybody's input on this asap. I (7) thought/have thought now (8) was/has been as good a time as any to start the ball rolling. What I particularly (9) want/am wanting to avoid is a repetition of the fiasco we (10) had/have had last year at the show jumping event. Apart from the fact that very few of our clients (11) have/are having even the remotest interest in the sport, the atrocious weather (12) meant/was meaning that we (13) walked/were walking backwards and forwards through the mud between the showing and the hospitality tent all day. The whole thing (14) was/has been a complete disaster. People (15) still complained/were still complaining about it six months later! This year we (16) have planned/had planned to do something more cultural like go to the opera or even a musical, but (17) I've wondered/I've been wondering if this is a good idea. A musical event (18) doesn't seem/isn't seeming to be the best place to network. We can hardly ask the singers to keep the noise down while we all (19) have/will have a good chat! I (20) do think/am thinking, however, that an indoor event (21) makes/is making more sense, so can I ask you to (22) think/be thinking along those lines over the next few days? (23) I've scheduled/I'd scheduled a meeting for next Friday to discuss the matter further. So, (24) I'm speaking/I'll speak to you all then. Charles

(In Company, 100)

2. Fill in each blank with the best response: 1. MasterCard __________________________ built its marketing around the theme, "There are some things money can't buy. built has built any of the answers before 2. If they __________________________ us earlier, we could have set up a meeting. contact had contacted have contacted 3. I hadn't __________________________ the figures were so low. realized been realized been realizing 4. Visa __________________________ Mastercard's main competitor. is being is A or B 5. We're currently __________________________ that part of the contract. negotiated

being negotiated 98

negotiating

6. That part of the contract is currently __________________________. negotiating negotiated being negotiated 7. We successfully _________________ the inclusion of that amendment. negotiated being negotiated negotiating 8. The outcome __________________________ known until next week. will be won't be A or B 9. The outcome __________________________ known next week. will be won't be A or B 10. These fees are not __________________________ in the estimate. included

including

A or B

(http://www.businessenglishsite.com/elt-business-english-verbs8.html)

UNIT 3 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; REPORTED SPEECH 1 Look at some silly things politicians have said and report each, making grammatical changes where necessary a We have managed to distribute poverty equally. Vietnamese Foreign Minister, Nguyen Co Thach Mr Thach announced that _______________ b I have opinions of my own, strong opinions, but I don't always agree with them. US President George Bush Sr President Bush affirmed that _____________ c I will not tolerate intolerance. US Senator Bob Dole Senator Dole insisted that _____________________________________ d It isn't pollution that is harming the environment â&#x20AC;&#x201D; it's the impurities in our air and water that are doing it. US Vice President Dan Quayle Vice-president Quayle pointed out that _____ e I haven't committed a crime - what I did is fail to comply with the law. New York City mayor, David Dinkins Mayor Dinkins denied that ______________ f I can't believe that we are going to let a majority of the people decide what is best for this state. US Representative John Travis Mr Travis said that ______________________ (In Company, 122)

2 Read the meeting extracts and write a summary of each using the words in brackets to help you. Jon First of all, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to hear your views on this (Jon/open/meeting/invite/comments/group) Jon opened the meeting by inviting comments from the group. Anna I don't think this training programme is necessary. Niels Neither do I. (Anna/question/need/training programme/Niels/be/same opinion) Anna And what about the training budget for this? Jon I haven't made up my mind about that yet. (Anna/raise/issue/training budget. Jon/reply/not come/decision) Niels So the board's OK about this? Jon Absolutely. (Jon/confirm/project/give/go-ahead) Jon How about bringing in consultants? Anna I don't think that's a good idea. (Jon/wonder/if/be/good idea/bring in consultants./Anna/be/against) Niels Anna and I think the situation should be reviewed, (both Anna/Niels/recommend/review/situation) Niels Well, I'm very much against these spending cuts. Jon But they won't affect your department, Niels. Anna Jon's right. These cuts won't affect us. (there/be/some initial opposition/spending cuts) Anna So, you see, Niels, the new system will actuallybe an improvement. Niels Hm, well, on reflection, I suppose you're right. Jon So do I take it we're now in agreement on this? (issue/finally/resolve) Jon I think this is an excellent proposal. Anna So do I. Niels Me too. (there/be/unanimous agreement/proposal) (In Company, 122)

100

UNIT 4 – CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

1. Put a cross next to the ending (1 - 4) which isn't grammatically possible and then correct it. The first one has been done for you. a

As long as we're well prepared, ... 1 we've got nothing to worry about √ 2 we shouldn't have any problems. √ 3 we couldn't go wrong. X 4 we'll be fine.√ Correction: we can’t go wrong

I'll send them an e-mail ... 1 if you'll tell me what I should say. 2 if you think it's worth it. 3 unless you'd rather do it. 4 provided I hadn't lost their address. Correction

f. I'd be grateful ... 1 if you could sort this out for me. 2 if you'd keep this to yourself. 3 if you don't tell anyone about this. 4 if you remembered that in future. Correction

c. If you're going out, ... 1 get me a newspaper, will you? 2 you're going to miss the meeting. 3 you'd better take an umbrella. 4 I come with you. Correction

g If he actually said that to her, ... 1 she'd kill him. 2 I'd have been very surprised. 3 it was very stupid of him. 4 he must have been mad. Correction

Do that ... 1 and you'll regret it. 2 if it'll help. 3 if you'll get the opportunity. 4 - we'll lose business. Correction

e. I'd stay and help you ... 1 if I knew anything about computers. 2 if I'm not going out this evening. 3 if I hadn't promised Jo I'd meet her. 4 if you asked me nicely. Correction

I wouldn't have asked you ... 1 if I didn't think you could do it. 2 unless I trusted you. 3 if I'd known this would happen. 4 if you didn't say you wanted to do it. Correction

i. If it hadn't been for him, ... 1 I'd still be working at Burger King. 2 I'd have got that job. 3 we might never have found out. 4 I hadn't had a chance. Correction

(In Company,102)

101

2. Match the sentence halves in the following extracts from a meeting about a product that is still in development: A

B A B A B A B

A B A B

A B A

Look, Jean, the product is still in development. If we rush the launch through, I realize that. But if I gave you another six weeks, Well, we might be able to

could we have it ready for the Seoul Trade Fair?

Ian, you know if I give you more people, Well, if you can‘t give me any more staff, You realize we may lose our technological lead Yes, but ‗d prefer to be second or third onto the market Hm. You wouldn‘t say that

if it means we make a superior product. if we don‘t get this product out before our competitors? we won‘t have time to run the final tests. if we had more people working on the project. there‘s no way we‘re going to be ready, Jean. I‘m sorry. if you had to deal with the marketing department! I‘ll have to take them off other projects. And I can‘t do that.

Well, if we‘re going to meet our deadline without extra staff, Ok, fair enough. And if I get you that bigger budget, I promise. But if we spent more,

it would be a disaster.

if we‘re not at Seoul.

We‘ll let Finance worry about that. If we can solve this problem with a bit of overtime, Excellent. Because we‘re missing the publicity event of the year You‘re telling me! If we didn‘t have a stand at the Fair, Ok, that‘s decided then. I‘ll get us to the launch stage on time

can you promise me we‘ll be ready on schedule? I‘ll buy you that drink I owe you!

Great. Now, if you‘re not rushing off home,

5 6 7 8

5 6 7

I‘ll do what I can to get you the budget for that! wouldn‘t that affect our profit margins? I‘m going to need a bigger budget, Jean so I can pay my people overtime. if you get head office to Ok a budget increase. (In Company Intermediate, 98)

102

UNIT 5 – EMPHASIS AND INVERSION

Rephrase the statements below making any necessary changes in word order: a. This company is not only hierarchical, it‘s also very well run. Not only ________________________________________________________________ b. We mustn‘t under any circumstances panic. Under no circumstances ___________________________________________________ c. We‘ve done better in Mexico than anywhere. Nowhere ________________________________________________________________ d. We‘ll only be ready to launch after exhaustive tests. Only after _______________________________________________________________ e. You should not give up if you experience rejection or disappointment. On no account ____________________________________________________________ f. The new sales manager is very determined and she has a lot of initiative. Not only _________________________________________________________________ g. We had hardly launched the product when orders started flooding in. Hardly ___________________________________________________________________ h. A woman has rarely faced the kind of problems she encountered when setting up her business. Rarely ____________________________________________________________________ i. It wasn‘t until Harrods agreed to sell our products that the business really took off. Not until __________________________________________________________________ (In Company, 119)

UNIT 6 – PASSIVE VOICE 1. Make the following extracts from reports more formal by: • using the passive • replacing the words in bold with an adverb from the box • deleting the subject thoroughly unofficially provisionally roughly generally unanimously

tentatively currently formally

a Our site engineers estimate that construction will take about 18 months to complete. It is roughly estimated that construction will take about 18 months to complete. b

They've given us the go-ahead, but it's not official yet We've _______________ c We're considering several options at the moment. Several ________________________________ d Almost everyone felt that the project was taking too long. It ____________________________________ 103

Everyone agreed that the proposal required further discussion. It _____________________________________ f We have tested every part of the new software. The ___________________________________ g The company will announce the plant closure at the official press conference next week. The ___________________________________ h They've OK'd the training budget at this stage, but they may change their minds. The ___________________________________ i They suggested that we could import the raw materials, but stressed that this was only a suggestion. It ________________ (In Company, 110)

2. Put the verbs in brackets in the correct passive voice form: Lloyd’s: Insuring the famous and the bizarre Virtually anything (1) __________ (can /insure) at Lloyd‘s. In fact, over the last hundred years London‘s most celebrated insurance company (2) __________ (ask) to issue some of the most bizarre policies ever. Here are just a few. Car insurance is big business these days, but the very first car (3) __________ (insure) at Lloyd‘s (4) __________ (cover) by a marine policy. Cars were such a novelty in those days that motor policies (5) __________ (write) on the basis that cars were just ships that sailed on the land! Actors have always been paranoid. Hollywood film idol Betty Grable was so worried her famous legs (6) __________ (might/injure) during filming they (7) __________ (insure) by Lloyd‘s for a million dollars. Multi-millionaire rock stars worry too. Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Michael Jackson, Elton John, Rod Steward and the Rolling Stones have all insured their voices. Bruce Springsteen‘s (8) __________ (believe) to be worth $ 3.5 million. Food critic and gourmet Eron Ronay runs a different risk. Obviously his career (9) __________ (would destroy) if he were ever to lose his sense of taste. So, a Lloyd‘s policy for $ 250,ooo (10 __________ (take out) to protect him against waking up one day not knowing a haggis from a hamburger. Insuring works of art is nothing new, but the laughter (11) __________ (could/hear) all over the city when a grain of rice with a portrait of the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh engraved on it (12) __________ (estimate) to be worth $ 20,000. The question is: worth $ 20,000 to whom? A few years ago a killer whale called Namu (13) __________(capture) off the Canadian coast and (14) __________ (drag) to Seattle for display in an aquarium. The captors insured themselves for $ 8,000 against Namu (15) __________ (rescue) by other whales! Unfortunately, he wasn‘t. One rather confident comedy theatre group insured itself against the risk of a member of the audience dying laughing. So far, the insurance (16) __________ (not / claim). (In Company Intermediate, 112)

104

UNIT 8 – MODAL VERBS Fill in the blanks with the right modal verb from the list below: ( can can could could might must will won‘t shall should shouldn‘t should have

could have would needn‘t)

A: OK, thanks for coming, everybody. Erm, has anybody seen Lance, by the way? He (1) ________ been here. B: Oh, yeah, he phoned to say his flight in from Chicago had a two-hour delay. He said to go ahead and start without him. A: Oh, I wanted his input on this one, he (2) ________ phoned earlier. OK, never mind, let's get started, then, (3) ________ we? Erm, so, as I said in my e-mail, the purpose of this meeting is to review last week's talks with the people from timeofyourlife.com and, secondly, to decide if we're interested in taking things further. Luis is going to fill us in on the background. Luis, (4) ________ you? C: Yeah, thanks, Ross. Well, now, timeofyourlife is a really exciting business proposition. Basically, the idea is that ordinary people (5) ________ buy a kind of timeshare in various luxury goods that they (6) ________ never afford to buy outright. What happens is you buy points online at the timeofyourlife website and you (7) ________ use these points to buy, like, a Ferrari for a day, a Rolex Oyster for a weekend or a Jean-Paul Gaultier original for an evening! Neat, huh? This is something we (8) ________ miss. D: Er, sorry to interrupt, but how about speeding things up a little? It‘s just that I (9) ________ meet a potential client at eleven and we have all read the summary on this company already. We (10) ________ as well skip the introduction. A: Jack, (11) ________ Luis just finish what he was saying? We (12) ________ be impatient. We're looking at twenty million dollars in seed capital here. I(13) ________ have us rushing into anything. But we (14) ________ speed things up a bit, Luis. We are short of time and by the end of this meeting I'(15) ________ like some kind of decision on this. (In Company, 146)

105

UNIT 9 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; LINKERS Read the meeting extracts below. For each of the words or phrases in bold, underline the word or phrase in brackets that is similar in meaning. Don't change any grammar or punctuation. A: Well, in spite of all these problems, I'd say we're still on target for a January launch .(despite/even though) B: What, even though we've hardly completed phase one trials? (in spite of the fact that/despite) A: Yes. Although obviously I'd have liked us to be further ahead by now, I'm confident we'll be ready in time. (However/Whilst) B Well, I admire your optimism, Sergio, but nevertheless, I think we should make some kind of contingency plan. (all the same/however) A: I'm afraid that, because of the strong euro, exports are down again this quarter. (consequently/owing to) B: And as a result our share price is falling. (consequently/owing to) A: Quite. Now, whereas we've been able to sustain these losses so far, we clearly can't do so indefinitely. (despite/although) B: Right, well, as nobody seems to be in favour of this proposal, I suggest we just scrap it! (due to/seeing as) A: It's not that we're against it, Jakob, although it is an unusual idea. (though/whereas) B: Yes, I'd like to support you on this one, Jakob, but I can't help feeling you're rushing things. (whilst/and yet) A: Well, how much more time do you need? In order to put this before the board, I have to have your approval. (To/So that) B: Now, I don't want to spend a lot of time on these new European guidelines. I do think we should go through them briefly, however. (though/although) A: The guidelines do affect all of us, Renata. Even so, we have more important things to discuss. (Whereas/Nevertheless) (In Company, 108)

106

BUSINESS ENGLISH COURSEBOOK BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Cotton, David and Sue Robbins. Business Class. London: Addison Wesley Longman Ltd, 1996 Flinders, Steve. Test Your Professional English Business General. Edinburgh: Pearson Education Limited, 2003 Greenall, Simon. Business Targets. An Upper-Intermediate Course in Business English. Oxford: Heinemann International, 1986 Irigoin, Judy and Bonnie Tsai. Business English Recipes. London: Longman Group Limited, 1995 Mascull, Bill. Business Vocabulary in Use. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002 Powell, Mark. In Company. Upper Intermediate. Oxford: Macmillan Publishers Limited, 2004 Powell, Mark. In Company. Intermediate, Oxford: Macmillan Publishers Limited, 2005 *** New International Business English. Tests with Answers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000

107