‘IN A GOOD ECONOMY, PEOPLE WORK HARD TO SUCCEED. IN A BAD ECONOMY, PEOPLE WORK HARD TO NOT FAIL.’ JAROD KINTZ
TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD? In this tracking you will: explore the world of corporations; learn how to make proper business calls; read about and discuss the role of the economy in our society; write about the future of trade unions; think up your own business concept (integrated language task); make a promotion video for your own business (integrated language task).
CONTENTS 1
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Exploring the field of economy
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1.1
The corporation
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1.1.1
Which sector do you want to work in?
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1.1.2
Who’s who in a company
1.2
Money talks
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VIPs in business
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2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4
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The employee: superman? The employer The clients Great minds in business
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Your business skills
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3.1 3.2 3.3
18 21 22
Understanding an invoice Business calls Sales talk: are you up to it?
Troubleshooting
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4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5
24 26 30 32 33
A fair price for a fair product? Taxes: nothing but a nuisance? Masters of the Universe Trade unions: needed or obsolete? Ethics in business?
Young entrepreneurs
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5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4
36 37 39 40
A product or service to stand out Market research Crowdfunding: the new financial boost A place to do business
TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD?
1 ⁄ EXPLORING THE FIELD OF ECONOMY 1.1 ⁄ THE CORPORATION 1.1.1 ⁄ WHICH SECTOR DO YOU WANT TO WORK IN? 1 A job for every talent: match the profession to the right picture. a b c d e f
call centre operator carpenter computer technician dairy farmer nurse nursery school teacher
g h i j k l
shop assistant stock broker truck driver warehouse operator welder estate agent
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TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD?
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2 Match the correct name of the sector to the job in the picture. It is possible you cannot match every sector to a job. a b c d e f g
advertising agriculture arts, entertainment and recreation construction education finance health care and social assistance
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h information technology (IT) i manufacturing j property market, sales and lettings k retail l transportation m the wholesale trade
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3 Link these companies to the sectors of exercise 2.
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SPOKEN INTERACTION
4 Discuss these questions with a partner. a Suppose you could start a job in any sector you wanted. Which one would you choose? Why? b Which sector would you never want to work in? Why not? c Every sector has upsides and downsides. Which advantages and disadvantages do you think the sector of your choosing would have? Explain briefly. d Look at your parents’ jobs. What advantages and disadvantages have you experienced by being a member of their family? e Would you like to follow in their footsteps? Explain. 4
TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD?
1.1.2 ⁄ WHO’S WHO IN A COMPANY 1 Watch the extract from The Office and answer the questions.
listening
a Which positions do the people in the video hold in the company? b Describe the situation: what is going on in the office? c How is this situation mocked in the episode? d Do you think the fragment contains underlying criticism on corporate culture? If so, which? e Can you appreciate this type of humour? Why (not)?
TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD?
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2 Look at the organogram of Endeavour Electric PLC, a company that develops, produces and sells electrical appliances. Then read the situations and write down which department of the company should be addressed.
Board of Directors
Endeavour Electric PLC
1 There is a vacancy for an account manager in the company and you want to find out more information about it. 2 A new type of vacuum cleaner has been developed and the company needs to think of a strategy to promote it to possible clients. 3 A company audit will be carried out by KPMG to check the books. 4 You have an appointment with Wayne Pearson to help the company out as a freelance social media expert. 5 There is a systematic error in in the latest type of flatscreen TVs made by the company. 6 Journalists are ringing to find out the truth about a rumour that says that the company may have to fire employees to avoid bankruptcy. 7 The Board of Directors thinks it is high time to bring new items into its current product range. 8 The company’s facebook page needs an update with the latest product and promotion information for clients.
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TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD?
9 The company’s internal network seems to be going really slow, which hampers proper work. 10 A headhunter’s bureau tries to lure Alexandra Harrison away to another major firm. 3 Fill in the words you have learned about the corporation in the vocabulary register your teacher will give you.
1.2 ⁄ MONEY TALKS 1 Pair up with a classmate. One of you watches the video Banking explained, the other one watches How the stock exchange works. Make notes while watching, paying particular attention to the English equivalent for the economic terms you know in Dutch.
listening
2 Afterwards take turns in explaining to each other in English how banking and the stock exchange work.
SPEAKING
3 Fill in the words you have learned about banking and the stock market in the vocabulary register. 4 A wise investment? a If you had £ 2,000 to invest, what would you do with the money? Surf the web and look for 5 interesting ways to get a return on your investment, without taking excessive risks with your capital. For ideas, make sure you have a good look at the websites of major British banks, such as HSBC, Barclays or the Royal Bank of Scotland.
SPOKEN INTERACTION
READING
b Make a brief summary of what you have found: make sure you include how much profit the investment will make, what the costs are and how much time it requires to give you a return on your capital. c Afterwards, present your investment plan to your classmates. They can give feedback on your chances of success. d Fictively implement your investment. In a few weeks’ time, you can check the status of your investment and see if your plan is working out. Report back to the class on the results.
TRACKING: ECONOMY RULES THE WORLD?
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