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L r - L' - a U - - L L - - a u u Lu - a - - - L rL.rir l English Pair Work I Steve Flinders and Simon Sweeney Illustrated by Nevllle Swalne - L L - r { S E R I E SE D I T O R :N I C K B R I E G E R u - { L L L r.G E E L E In memory of Frunk Zappa (1940-93) p - H l-={ L U - p -{ u u p { - L - U - L - U { I PENGUIN BOOKS L r i LLL_ I .J H rrl rr-r Contents E - E J rJ l-_ rJ r-r{ lrJ ll_l_l-l4 lrJ H H tg H r_ rr-lrr- H rJ l_ r-rrr- r{ l-lE - r-= H rJ lrJ l-rJ lrJ LrJ lr.-l_ l- Introduction Teachers'Notes PairworkActivities Activity I J l0 ll 1: l-1 t t l+ 15 16 1- t8 19 20 2l 22 23 1A 25 26 27 28 29 30 3l 3Z 55 StudentA StudentB Activity Ice breaker Advertising Agendas Bank charges Budget presentation Businessanecdote Businessetiquette Businessgifts Businessinitials Buying and selling Cashflow problems Companyof the year Company organization Company presentation Companytour Companyvisit Corporateculture Corporate sponsorship Costs and reducing overheads Customer care Customercomplaint Customsholdup Employeemorale Entertaining visitors Environmentally friendly office Equal opportunities Franchising Health and safety ln-house magazine Interview techniques Job application Large versus small companies Late payment of invoice 25 26 27 28 29 3l 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 4I 42 43 44 46 47 48 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 61 62 StudentA StudentB 1 34 Managementand leadership ro2 103 104 105 r07 108 109 110 111 IT2 113 tr4 ll5 TT7 118 I19 120 r22 123 124 126 r27 t28 129 130 131 r32 r33 134 r35 136 r37 Glossary 173 A-Zof Language Functions 178 CommunicationSkill Table t82 35 36 37 38 39 40 4l 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 5l 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 6l 62 63 64 65 skills for women Managementqualities Market research Market survey Meeting arrangements Mission statement Pay versusbenefits Performance appraisal Presentinginformation Pressand public relations hoduct endorsement Production delays hofit and loss account Project management Quality Quiz Qaiz2 Raising finance Recruitment Recycling Relocation Salestargets Small talk Small talk Spare parts Team building Time management Training priorities Transportation Work environment Work rotas Works council 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 7I 72 74 75 77 78 80 81 82 83 84 86 87 88 89 90 9I 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 138 r39 t40 T4I r42 r43 t44 t45 r46 147 148 t49 l5l r52 154 155 156 r57 158 160 161 r62 t63 r64 165 r66 167 168 r69 r70 t7l 172 L-J u }J } - lrJ U Ert lll L r { r-l-J f L_ Lf LLa.l IJ rJ Teachers'notes rJ H r Lr H H H aH L H LLLrH H r-H L' L H rY H LLH fr- U V L- u -d rLd LrrJ L= rJ LLrd LE' E' lt-}J L- u IJ t- LLEl Lr- lce breaker Advertising Introducti.on 'Ice breakers' are short exercisesfor use with a new classto help peopleto get to know eachother Introduction This role play revolves aroundhow to allocatemoney availablefor advertisins Lead-in Ask why it is important for businesspeople to be able to: r 'breakthe ice'with strangers ask polite questionsto find out more about business contacts o be able to say clearly and concisely who they are, what they and wherethey comefrom Lead-in Questions: o what methodsof advertisingare there? o what methods would be suitable for advertisins sportsequipment? Method o With a group class,divide studentsinto As and Bs There are two possible methods.Either Bs ask all their questions,then As questionBs Or students takeit in tums to aska question r If the group is not too large, get studentsto walk around so that all the As interview all the Bs and vice versa Follow-up I Get selectedstudentsto tell the whole group in one or two sentences: - their name - their job title and main responsibility - their company,companyactivity (if necessary)and companylocation You may wish to provide a model, for example:,My name is Sylvia Smith and I'm a language trainer responsiblefor business English training at ABC Pharmaceuticals, basedin Berlin.' Explain rhat this is a vital skill which everyonein the group must be able to perform with easeby the end of the course.If somestudentsare unsureabout their job titles, get others to make suggestions.If uncertainty persists in any case, suggestthat both you and the student try to get more information beforeyour next meeting Get studentsto write short personaland professional profiles of their partners, for example as in a job applicationform Method Direct studentA to statean initial position B should respond with some general comments and observations- on football sponsorship,for example.A needs to choosebetweena broadly-basedpackagecentred on athleticssponsorship,or a n.urowercampaignled by TV advertising Student B has to change A's mind - away from football sponsorship Make sure learnerscome to an agreementon a total packageand that all points in their roles are included in the discussion Follow-up After giving feedback, noting the positive achievementsof the negotiation,suggestan exchangeof letters summarizingthe agreement Agendas Introduction The activity involves a discussion on the telephone aboutplanningan agendafor a meeting Lead-in I Discussthe themeof quality: - what is quality? - how companiesraise and maintain quality standards? Then elicit commentson agendas: - shouldall businessmeetingshave agendas? - are written agendasalwaysnecessary? - the answer could be that all meetingsneed clear objectives,but they may not always be written down L ! L Teachers'notes ! Method After the introductory discussion above, students preparetheir roles and B starts,reminding A about his/her letter and making some general critical remarkstogetherwith suggestions T\ey should reach agreementon a new agendabut postponesomediscussionto the meetingitself Note that the final agendadependson other people'scommentstoo Follow-ip They shouldproducea new agendatogether Method Explain the two roles - A as presenter,B as a listener who needsto understandpreciselywhat A is sayingand to questionany part of the budgetthat is not totally clear Follow-up Someleamersmay chooseto presentsomeother information relating to their own work or interests and invite questionsfrom their partners.This would be a good opportunity to reversethe roles of presenterand listener Businessanecdote ! I I : L L I Bankcharges Introduction This activity is essentiallyabout customerservicein a familiar context:a bank Lead-in I Ask studentsto discusswhat they think of banksand the quality of servicethey provide They may recall somepersonalexperiences,good and not so good Move discussionon to the natureof customerservice and why the conceptis important Method / A begins the role play by ringing with a complaint B has to decide how to respond.The role play is potentially highly conflictive, much depending on how student B, the bank employee,decidesto resolve the two problems involved There are several possible ways to resolve the difficulties, depending on the bank'skeennessto provide a customer-friendlyservice Follow-up Have studentswork togetherto createa short dialogue basedon handling a complaint to a bank Reversethe roles so B is making the complaint Altematively get them to change the context from banking to another serviceindustry Budgetpresentation Introduction The activity provides practice in presentinginformation and in listening to a presentationand asking for explanations Lead-in Check students'understandingof key vocabulary,such asbudget,salesbudget,costof salesandcostof selling L Introduction This activity can be used to finish off a lesson or a course, or as a break between two more extended, intensiveactivities Lead-in Is it important for businesspeople to be able to tell anecdotes?Why is it important for businesspeople to be able to tell them clearly and CONCISELY? Method Tell studentsthat there are six stages.Tell them how long you would like them to spend on each one (l-ltlz minutesper stage.) Signalto studentswhen the time for eachstageis up Be firm aboutthe changeover Listen in to each pair Be ready to prompt students who havedifficulty coming up with ideas When the exerciseis over, get students,still in pairs, to go over the story again in order to improve and polishit Invite selectedpairs to report their stories to the whole group Follow-up Get studentsin pairs to tell each other their own businessanecdotes.Get partnersto report back to the group the anecdotesthey have just heard Again, at every stage encourageclarity and conciseness they have the anecdote to write down Get students inventedor their own anecdote Languageanalysisand feedback L L F t L ts b t L l I l l F F F E F Businessetiquette Introduction This activity encouragesstudentsto reflect upon everyday businessbehaviour, to formulate rules for their F F E F L r \< LL\{ LLLLrLLrLLL_L{ L{ L{ L' L' L' t_trr{ L_4 t t_' z t-z t_' t_ , ' Teachers'notes ou'n behaviour,and to leam about the rules goveming otherpeople'sbehaviour bad-in \\hat aspectsof businessetiquetteare important in the srudents'own culture?What happensif you break the rules.r llethod I Even' studenthas five different areasto cover Tell -{s and Bs that they are going to take it in turns to Je:cnbe certain aspects of business behaviour to eachother I \s and Bs shouldreadtheir copies.Give them a little Iune to think about the rules goveming their own behaviourfor eacharealisted on their own sheets -: Get {s to lead with Shakinghands.As tell Bs what the conventionsfor shakinghandsare in their countn'icompany/departmentas appropriate.Bs should then comment on the differencesbetweenwhat As havedescribedand their own experience -1 Get Bs to the samewith Businesscards and contirue alternationuntil the end Follow-up I Generalreportingback Get eachA to report on a B areaand vice versa,leadinginto generaldiscussion I lnvite opinions about other areasof everydaybusiness life, for example, punctuality, the status of deadlines,smokingat work {sk whether any of these areas are codified or u'hetherany of them shouldbe L 4! -_ 4 4 4 -_ J_ i> -I JII Businessgifts Introduction The activity is basedon an internal discussionto formulate policy on employeesreceiving gifts from suppliersor customers I*ad-in To introducethe theme,ask: o what is the purposeof businessgifts? aregifts commonin your country? can they causeproblemsor conflict? r what sort of things could be presentedas gifts? Method Studentsshould engagein a wide-rangingdiscussion, bringing in all the points on their role cards.Get them to reacha generallyagreednew policy on gifts Follow-up A jointly producedmemo stating company policy on receivinggifts Businessinitials Introduction Like the quizzes,this can be treated as a quite lighthearted exercise to round off a lesson or a course There is neverthelessa seriousand useful pedagogical objective.It is importantfor businesspeopleto be able to read the internationalbusinesspress.Unfamiliar sets of initials are often a barrier to understandingwhen reading in a foreign language.This activity includes some of the more common sets of initials from the worlds of business,politics,economics,computing,etc Method Get Bs to test As on setsof initials l-16 Bs should give the correct answer after each attempt by As; where necessarythey should explain eachansweras far as they can, and scoretheir partnersout of 16 Now reverseroles and get As to testBs Pairsreport back to the group with teacherclarifying any remaining problem sets Ask studentsif their companyhas a VP for HR or R&D, what their company's USP is, or whethertheir companyruns a TQA programme Follow-up I Ask studentsto provide their own sets of initials in English to testthe rest of the class Provide newspapers/news magazinesfor the group and askthem to identify eitheras many setsof initials as possiblefrom the quiz; or other setsof initials for further quiz work Answers MD Managing Director The manager with overall responsibility for the day-to-day running of the company(British English) VP Vice-President.Usually with a departmentalor geographical responsibility, for example: Vicehesident in charge of Human Resourcesor VicePresidentSales,Centraland SouthAmericanReeion (AmericanEnglish) R&D Researchand Development.The division of a company doing the technical or scientific work neededto find new products PA PersonalAssistant A senior executive's helper PAs are usually thought to be more than secretaries but lessthanmanagers : i- Teachers'notes MBA Master in BusinessAdministration The most importantbusinessschoolor university qualification in business.Some students the MBA straight after their first degree;others get a few years'job experiencefirst I PR Public Relations.The job of Public Relationsis to ensurethat the public image of a companyis as positive aspossible PhD Doctor of Philosophy.The doctoratecan, however, be in any of a wide range of subjects,not just philosophy L F b EU European Union The political and economic group whosecurrentmembersareAustria, Belgium, Denmark, Eire, Finland, France,Germany,Greece, Netherlands, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain, Swedenand the United Kingdom ECU EuropeanCurrency Unit A currency which is an averageof a certain number of other European currenciesand possibly the future single cunency for all the membersof the EuropeanUnion (EU) GATT General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade The main internationalfree trading agreementbetween nations,aiming to reduceas far as possiblethe barriers to trade across national frontiers The most recent GAff was eventually signed in 1994 after lengthy negotiationsknown asthe UruguayRound OECD Organizationfor Economic Cooperationand Development.An economic researchand forecasting agencyfunded by the rich industrializednations and basedin Paris, whose aim is to encourageeconomic growth, high employmentand financial stability amongits members IBM International Business Machines Still the world's biggestcomputercompany ABB Asea Brown Boveri A major Swiss-Swedish engineeringcompany F SAS ScandinavianAirline Systems.The airline company for the Nordic countries JAL JapanAirlines The main Japaneseairline company t- WP Word Processing.Typing and editing text on a computer DTP Desk Top Publishing The computer-based activity which producestext with integratedgraphics and varied layout, for examplefor a newsletter, CY or home-producedmagazine F CPU CentralProcessingUnit The brain of a computer F AOB Any Other Business The last item on the agendaof a meeting F GDP Gross Domestic Product The measureof the wealth created by a country in a year, excluding moneyeamedfrom abroad E RAM RandomAccessMemory The dynamic system memory of a computer that holds programmes and datawhile they arebeing worked on AGM Annual General Meeting The meeting, for example,of a company'sshareholders,which takes placeoncea year GNP Gross National Product The measure of the wealth created by a country in a year, including moneyearnedfrom abroad VAT The general tax applied at each point of exchangeof goodsor services The Ps Price, homotion, Packaging,Place.Theseare the main componentsof the MarketingMix, the most importantfactorsin the marketingof a product LO Intemational Labour Organization A United Nations Agency concemedwith the rights, protection and healthand safetyof workersworldwide CEO Chief Executive Officer The manager with overall responsibilityfor the day-to-dayrunning of the company (More commonly used in American English) VIP Very Important Person.Rich, famous,or powerful peoplewho receivespecialtreatment.Major airports,for example,often have a VIP lounge HR Human Resources.The managementof such things as pay and conditions for all people who work in a company USP Unique Selling Proposition.What every company shouldhave - a unique reasonwhy customers shouldbuy from them ratherthan from any other TQA Total Quality Assurance.An approachto seeking to achievethe highestquality of product or service provided by getting everyonein the organization to focus on quality all the time IMF Intemational Monetary Fund A fund set up in 1947 and to which most of the countries in the world belong, which exists to lend money to countries in financialdifficulties, particularlyto help with balanceof paymentsproblems.The IMF often withholds loans to govemmentsif it doesnot approveof their economicpolicy plans L F b L ! ts L F F E : l F F D E F l F ll ] rEd L' Lrd Lr{ LLLrJ LLLLLrL{ rLJ H ld rd rJ rJ H l-rJ L.rrl L rd L- rLrJ H LL' L rrJ H lLrJ rH L rr Teachers'notes 10 Buyingand selting Introduction Negotiation is an important skill not only for people involved in the kind of lengthy discussionneeded,for example,to set up this kind of agencyagreement;but also in informal everyday situations like persuading someoneto stay on late at work or changinga holiday date This activity can be useful practicefor both for_ mal or large-scalenegotiation and informal or smallscalenegotiation Lead-in In what situationsare negotiatingskills necessary? Are theseskills relevantonly in the workplace? Method I Give studentsplenty of time to read their activity sheets.Calculatorscould be useful Set a clear time limit - 20 or 25 minutes should be enough- for the activity, and give studentstwo or threeminutes'waming beforeyou stopthem Get studentsto start with some small talk before going into the main body of the negotiation Get eachpair to summarizethe main points of their agreementso that each participant is clear about what hasbeenagreed Follow-up I Get selectedpairs to talk through the stagesin their negotiationin order to analysethe reasonsfor their particularresult Get studentsto write down the terms of their agreement H H 11 Cashflowproblems tH Introduction The activity is a fairly complex face-to-facediscussion betweena cautiousfinancemanagerand an ambitious marketingmanagerreluctantto turn away a major order lLl-l-l_l-l-_l_ L_ H H rJ rJ H H H rJ H In discussion,both sidesneedto reachagreementon exactly what is possible and what stepsneed to be takennext Follow-up I Togetherboth studentscould work out a letter to the customeroffering a unit price discount but requesting tight paymentterms They could also work out a revised cash budget on the basisof the order and a possiblebank loan 12 Companyof the year Introdaction This activity can help studentsro focus, albeit in a potentially lightheartedway, on the perennialproblem of how to make small businessesgrow If necessary, the situation could be adapted to the context of a departmentor profit centre if participantsall work in largeorganizations Lead-in In what situationsarecompaniesgiven prizes?What type of prizesare given?What companieshave won prizes? Method I If you suspectthat studentsmay not be very forthcoming about imagining their own company into existence, brainstorm an example with the whole classbeforethe activity begins Note that the list of preferencesfor A and B are different Follow-up During feedback,find out what the students'ownideas wereandlist them on the board.Seewhetherany pattem emergesfrom the choicesmadeby the differentpairs 13 Companyorganization Lead-in As a lead-in, discussthe meaning,causesand implications of cashflowproblems Introductinn The activity is based on a face-to-face discussion where both sides need to resolve a problem: how to designa new organizationfor their companieswho are planningto merge Method I Both sidesneed a few minutesto preparetheir roles and absorbthe informationthey have B should start by outlining the order and askinghow much cash is available A is pessimisticabout the cashflowsituation Lead-in Startby asking: o why companieshavehierarchies o why companieshavestructuredorganization r if thereare alternativesto traditional companystructures ts t+ Fl Teachers'notes l-/ _ Method o Each side needsto explain its primary objectivesand to outline its concems.There will be sometrade off betweenthe two o Studentscan sit side by side and actually draw up a fresh organization chart based on their preferred optionsand what they can agreeon Follow-up Ajoint presentationof the new structureusing a board or OHP 14 Companypresentation Introduction Introducing oneselfand one's work is a common communicationneedin intemationalbusiness.This activity gives an oppornrnity to practise a relatively formal presentation Lead-in To introduce the theme, discussthe function of trade fairs and what goeson at suchevents Method This is a two-part activity in which studentsboth presenta fictitious companyand hearaboutone Ask A to present Conta Inc B intemrpts with requestsfor clarification and/or further information B can alsotake notes Next, B presentsEdile S.p.A and the roles are therefore reversed Follow-up Ask learnersto presenttheir own or anotherreal company that they know well Suggestthey include saying who they are and what their responsibilitiesare.A further follow-up is to try a similar presentation,but much more informally 15 Company tour Introduction It is important for businesspeople to be able to talk clearly and concisely about their company'sproducts, history and organization,as well as being able to guide visitors round the workplace Lead-in Which companiesreceive visitors?Are there any speAre there any specialrisks cial security arrangements? aboutshowingvisitors around? Method The notesbelow the plan on A's sheetare only brief guidelinesfor A, who will need time to preparethe presentation.The preparationcould be done before the lesson EncourageBs to preparelots of questionsso that the activity is as interactive as possible Discourage monologuesfrom As Follow-up I Repeatthe activity with the roles reversed Get As and Bs to write follow-up lettersto the visit: - As sayingthey arehoping for businessfrom Bs - Bs saying whetheror not they have decidedto businesswith As visit 16 Gompany l-/ l-l >/ L-/ l-l L-i < !=r E] L./ Introduction This is an information gap exercise which also providespracticein numbersand spellingand checking information It can thus be used with lower level I students = - - Lead-in Ask the studentsif: o they haveany problemswith spellingforeign names o they have any problemswith understandingnumbers o if the! have any special strategiesfor spelling and counting Method Get studentsto write down any information, e'g car registrationor telephonenumbers,that they give to their partners At the end of the activity, get studentsto check that all the information has been correctly transferred Follow-up Repeat the activity with the roles reversed.Partners now know what information they have to give so shouldgive a more polishedperformance' ! ' - t H l = q I J l.J _.'] H i -J : H -J : culture 17 Corporate : H Introduction The main aim of this activity is to provoke discussion so don't be too concemedif the studentsfail to come up with a coherent policy by the time you call the group together :l = : H _l -i = r-_ l{ LLLrJ L r{ f L LLLLLf }J rJ }J Teachers'notes bad-in Ask srudentsif they know any companieswith their o*n specialculture.What are the characteristicsof corporate culrure?Does it help employeesto work better together? }J rJ rl }J rLJ H rH rJ L Ll-_ Methd Encouragestudentsto add ideas in the same spirit to the list Follow-up I In the group discussionfollowing the activity, get srudentsto identify the assumptionsunderlying the variouspossiblepolicieson the list, e.g that companies are too hierarchical, that there are not enough women in top management,etc and find out if they agreewith theseassumptionsor not Which onesdo they think are nonsensical? Why? Get the group to brainstorm their own equally unorthodoxpolicy suggestions frd I u Lu H tH JH J U El LLr H U rd r-H LLLf rd }J }J u Gd 18 Corporate sponsorship Introduction The activity is designedto encourageextensivediscussion Studentsmay wish to invent details of the company they both representand such details may influence the final choice.Otherwise,there is no obviously right answer I*ad-in Why companiesoffer sponsorship?What types of eventsdo they sponsor?What benefitsdoes each side get? Method Sincethis activity involves quite a lot of reading,allow time for this before beginningthe activity or distribute the activity sheetsbeforethe lessonbegins Follow-up I Systematizefeedbackfrom the group by asking for the strongand the weak points of eachfile and writing them up on the board Get studentsto write a letter of acceptanceto the sponsorshiprecipient and of rejection to the other two causes DJ LL' L' f Dd 19 Costsand reducingoverheads CrJ Introduction The activity involves a fairly detailed face-to-face Ed Dd negotiationin which eachparticipantwill haveto compromise in order to reach the desired objective See alsoActivity 27 on franchising Lead-in To introducethe theme,check students'understanding of cosfs,cost of salesandcost of selling Method Each player in the negotiationapproachesthe problem from a rather different perspective:A is more conservative in termsof defendingemployees'interests,while B is more inclined to defend shareholdersand seek improvedproductivity Consequently,compromiseand bargaining will be required Encourage students to begin by statingtheir agreedobjectives(to find savings of l0%o)and to find issueson which they agreebefore going into detail on more problematicareas.As a general principle, suggestthat they should only compromise where they get something in retum - in other words, in concedinga point they shouldgain a concession in anotherarea.This may involve looking at two or three points together - a common negotiating approach Follow-up Set up a similar negotiation involving more participants,so that the negotiationinvolves teams 20 Customercare Introduction This activity emphasizesthe importance of looking after your customers- thosewho buy a productas well asthosewho buy a service Lead-in In your introduction to this activity, ask about the distinction betweeninternal customers(other employees within the same organization whom you serve) and extemal customers(those outside the company who pay you to provide them with a product or service) Ask studentshow far they serveinternal as opposedto externalcustomersin their work; and ask them whether they shouldbe more focusedon extemalcustomers Method After the Bs have administeredthe questionnaireto the As, the partnerscanreverseroles Follow-up I The group can prioritize the different featuresofcustomer care listed in the questionnaire.One technique E t F Teachers'notes ! for getting a large group to arrive at a final list is: a) to get eachpair to agreeon a list of priorities; then b)to get two pairs together to agree on a common list; then c) to get two groups of four to agreeon a common list, etc Get detailedfeedbackon how well your studentsfeel their organizations serve their intemal and their externalcustomers,and how thesetwo kinds of service cogld be improved 21 Customercomplaint Introduction This activity practisestwo important communication and businessskills As have to turn an unhappy customer into a happy one Bs have to avoid being fobbed off with lessthan what they regardastheir properdue Lead-in Ask students: r in what situationsthey have made complaints over the last few months o whethertheir complaintshavebeenwell handled o why it is important for companiesto be able to deal efficiently with complaints Method Allow adequatetime for the heavierreadinginput or distributethe activity sheetsbeforethe sessionbegins Ensure that both partners are clear about the final outcomeof the discussionby getting them to write noteson the agreementreachedand comparenotes Follow-up Get eachpair to report back on their agreementand tabulateall the agreementson the board Get feedback on how the encounter between Bs' firmness and As' desire to win over the customer swayed the discussion one way or the other Brainstorm language gambits which As and Bs might haveused Get studentsto write A's letter apologizing for the inconvenience,summarizing the agreementreached, etc 22 Customsholdup Introduction This is a telephoneconversationbetweentwo people with verv different concems Lead-in To setup the theme,ask: r what causesdelaysat frontiers o what documentsareneeded o how candelaysbe keptto a minimum r if the problemsat frontiersare the sameeverywhere o if the solutionsto the problemsare the sameeverywhere L ! E L Be tactful aboutthe issueof corrupt officials - in some placesmention of comrption may be acceptableonly if it refersto othercountries! F Method Studentshave a reasonableamountof freedomin how to resolvethe problemhere.The discussionis led by A statingthe problem and askinghow it may be resolved B respondsand togetherthe two positions are brought closer - or not, dependingon the degreeof obduracy held by the official, B, or rectitudeheld by A ! I l ! F F Follow-up Some studentsmight like to role play a face-to-face meeting at the frontier, with other studentsplaying relatedroles,including the driver F b t F morale 23 Employee Introduction This activity begins with an exchangeof information, followed by discussion.It is important for the students to completethe first part satisfactorilybefore they start the second Lead-in Ask the studentsin what way morale affects the way people work What are the possible results of poor employeemorale? ts F tb F F F Method Before the studentsbegin,make it clear to As and Bs that they have different lists of suggestionsfor increasingcompanymorale on their activity sheets Underlinethe fact that they are not expectedto compete by shortlisting more of their own key actions thantheir parmers'.The objectiveis simplyto get what they both agreeis the bestpossiblepolicy defined You could encouragethem to simulateformal meetings with Bs and then As making shortpresentations of the ideaslisted They will needextra time to prepare this This should then be followed by an open discussionof the merits of eachidea in tum Studentsmay wish to add their own ideas F l t t l b ts ll t - PRIORITIES 61 TRAINING StudentB h - (Knowing sequencing) ; agreeing/disagreeing; ts - Prioritizing is deciding on an order of importance for a number of possible actions, by comparing their usefulness.The most useful are often urgently required, while the least useful may be disregarded Your company produces high quality audio equipment for use by professional sound engineers in the music, film and television industries You are planning a major sales and marketing drive in several new export markets in Europe and Asia You are the new marketing director with responsibility for this major initiative and your colleague is another senior executive of the company Together with your colleague, set priorities for training a staffof five marketing managers and 20 salesrepresentatives and agents Decide on an order of one to nine, eliminating the lowest three or four areas of training - depending on vour assessmentof their value : : =F = F F (on(erned foreign troining forreps ond ogenls infiecounlries longuoge foreign fivemorkefing monogers longuoge lroining foryour lroining forfivemorkefing monogers inculfurol oworeness Director fteMo*efing lroining morkeb slrotegy foryourcolleogue, indeveloping new ondmorkeling lroining forreps ond ogents inmorkefing $rolegy produd froining ond ogenls servi(e forleps innew technology ond ofier-soles lroining product monogets formorkefing innew lechnology ondofier-soles service (ompoigns lroining monogers formo*efing formorkefing innew supporl softuore producfion guidelines longuoges invorious forsoles reps ondogenls ofdeloiled n E tl E E T tl E tl { F ! L F F{ F lEtr { F >Er WILLSTART YOURPARTNER < F r1 tL z A';1 F - F- E-r{ F a{ Er68 @ Penguin Books 1996 ?1 F l{ ! TRANSPORTATION t- { ta StudentB (Judging;agreeing/disagreeing) I ! I I Distributionis concernedwithmoving goodsfrom theproducerto the customer t- { r- _ I \ { Your company wants to export goods from Spain to Greece.You are based in Spain and have obtained information on the most appropriate way of moving 120 tons of goodsto Greeceevery month Contact your colleagueto discussyour proposal I You: :., a think reliabilityis more importantthan price t arrivein the first weekof everymonth) o w?rt yourcompanyto be as independent as possibleandto handleall documentation i : '! !_ >ti i_, i ;.,, ! ' think your companyshould use its own export departmentto arrangetransport througha Barcelonashippingcompany,puig HernandezS.A know that Puig Hernandezruns a regularmerchantshippingservicefrom Barcelonato Athenswith departureJeveryMondayand Thursday understandthat the voyagetakes four days o w?rt onward delivery in Greeceto be co-ordinatedwith the Greekhaulage companyHalkosS.A.,alreadyregularpartnersto your companywith a fleetof 40 lorries haveobtainedthe followingcost estimates: Per month$18,000for 120lons of goods + road haulage$7,000 a, YOUSTART al a, l- l- l- l_ r_, ! l- I I lI @PenguinBooks1996 169 = 63 WORKENVIRONMENT StudentB (Negotiating; measuringandcalculating; forecasting) z E = { E = The workingenvironmenthaslong been recognizedas a key factorin improvingproductivity,employee satisfactionand in reducingdays lostthroughsickness =EE Youwork in a telesalesofficewith eight salesstaff, for a companywith a turnover of f,1.25m.You are an employees'representativeresponsiblefor health and safety.You believethat severalfactors make the officeold-fashionedand uncomfortable- and evenbad for the health of your colleagues = l- YOU : feelthat an improvementin the workingconditionswould resultin higherproductivity,happier staff and fewer days off for reasonsof minor illness think the companyturnovereasilyjustifiesmaiorimprovementsin the workingenvironment know the companyhas spent almost nothing on the office for five years You have drawn up the note belowabout working conditions: !F =!{ F' fh!- tilorl( sfatt'ans- de-/cash)onzdL ar,Lt u,lLc0lufot/tahb- , \uks - NronyhuStut - drautert hard to opat , OaarrS- bod dUtjt+ ' /J'J l,t"fu,Vca),'t5e5 hu-daclt*t F E Fr< E{ E- , ?arntworL' d)^ll, dqross^J t- , 1i'a{P'ctt d'te-from the Streri' t- , ThesfrcL u toosma'LL >- , CIA i w,ttter - too hot u Surnrx^ef { r- lr F- :< F ,1 tYou have a meetingwith a managerresponsiblefor the office.Ask for improvementsin as many areasas you can -1 t,1 l- WILLSTART YOURPARTNER >4 tt: -1 F f4 lrt70 @PenguinBooks1996 7J F L { t { I { 64 WORKROTAS (Regretting ; declining/rejecting; agreeing/disagreeing) l { |{ i- { a StudentB Holiday entitlement is established in employees'contracts but the exact time when holidays are taken is usually negotiated between the company and the individuals concerned The company naturally has to make sure that there is sufficient cover when employees are away on holiday I !| t You are a line supervisor in a foods production company.You are also a parent with children at school.You are pleased that your own holiday this year coincides with the children's school holiday and your partner's holiday Here is your calendar showing your holiday plans: I \ JULY l F s/s I 9|0 week M T w 27 28 t l t7 t3 t4)-/ - l F-J, LT ) }r.a :J = >-a yourownideas, ) YOU START = ) : -J l-l Fr ) - :J J :J Fr :J >-a ,l -J ,J H F- l-a t72 @PenguinBooks1996 = L { I I I L { t { I I Glossary ! ( I { { | \ \ I li ei it l,' li ^j a_ fr l_ ir li r! 1i l' Abolish Get rid of, stop, ban Absenteeism Being away from work, usually through sickness;a measureof the number of people away from work Accounts Figures giving information about what a company eams and spends, how much profit it makes, and so on Acknowledgement A short letter to tell someonewho has written to you that you have received his/her letter Acquisition The purchaseof one company by another Agenda A list of points to discuss in a meeting The agendaalso gives other important information like the list of people who will be at the meeting, the date and place, and the starting and finishing times Appraise Measure the performance of someone,give feedback on the performance of someone Assault Physicalattack Assets Things owned by a company which have value: property and saleable equipment, cash, finished goods, stock or saleablefinancial investments Audit A detailed analysis of an important feature of an organization.Auditors - the people who carry out audits - usually write reports and make recommendations for changesto be made Examples: a financial audit, a management audit, a languageaudit Autonomy Independence,freedom to work on your own and to take important decisions affecting your work Balance sheet A statementshowing the financial position of a company at a particular time Bankrupt A company goes bankrupt when it has to stop doing business becauseof the size of its debts Bonus A special extra payment Brainstorm Write down as many possible solutions to a problem that you can think of before analysing the merits of each one in more detail Brainstorming is usually a group activity Brand A name or a symbol used for a product or service or range of products or servicesprovided by a particular company,e.g Coca-Cola,IBM, Hertz Breakthrough A big development or new opportunity which could open the way to future success Bribe An illegal payment made to get special treatment Briefing Giving information to one or more people Broking A broker is someone with specialist knowledge in a certain area who acts as a go-between (or 'middle man') between the customer and the supplier of products or services,for example an investment broker, an insurancebroker Broking is the activity Campaign A plan which operatesover a period of time in order to increase public or consumer awarenessof a product or service, €.g ffi advertising campaign Cash Coins and banknotes;money which is available to spendimmediately Cash balance The amount of available cash in a company at a certain point in time Cash budgets show an opening cash balance at the start of a period and a closing cash balanceat the end Cash budget A financial planning tool consisting of a description of income and expenditureover a certain period 173 = z L Glossary Cashflow The relationship between money received (sales)and money going out (costs) Chargehand A low level position of non-managerialresponsibility, a chargehand is in charge of a small group of workers Chargehandsreport to supervisors Commute Travel from home to work and from work to home Conform Do or be the sameas everyone else Contractor An independent company contracted to carry out specific work for anothercompany at an agreedfee Convention Ausual way of doing things, a habit Corporate hospitality The wining and dining of clients or potential clients at sporting or cultural events Corporate planning Major planning and development concerns within a company, such as new product areas,new markets, image building, marketing and financial goals Doing businessillegally for your own advantageis comrpt Corrupt Cost of sales All costs involved in preparing a product or service for sale up to the actual sale itself These include fixed overheads(rent, heating, wages and salaries)and variable costs (raw materials, overtime payments) Cost of selting The cost of all promotional activities including advertising, sales commissions, fees to agents and distributors, disffibution, storage and transport Counselling Confidential support and advice given to an individual with professional or personalproblems Counselling service A service for giving advice to employeeson personal or work-related problems Courtesy The treatmentof other people with politenessand respect Creditor Someoneto whom money is owed Current assets Assets used by a company in its daily work, such as materials, finished goods and cash Deadline The date or time by which you must complete a certain piece of work Debenture An agreementto pay back a loan at a fixed interest rate Debtor Someonewho owes money Delegate Give work to a subordinatewhich you would otherwise yourself Delivery Getting the goods physically to the customer Depreciation A notional sum appearing as an expense on a profit and loss account to spread the cost of capital assetsover several years rather than appearingas a single expenditure at the time of purchase Discount A percentageor amount taken off the standardprice Double glazing Windows with two layers of glass Downturn A period of falling salesor profits Etiquette Forms of polite behaviour Fixed assets Property or machinery which a company uses Flexibitity Readinessto adapt to changing conditions Flotation The selling of sharesin order to raise capital Found a company Start a company Franchise A licence to trade using a brand name in retum for the payment of fees The owner of the brand name is the franchisor who gives licences to franchisees.The more money franchiseesmake, the more they pay in fees Franchisee Someonewho pays a royalty in order to trade using the name of a franchisor Fringe benefits Other advantages earned by an employee in addition to salary,for example a company car 174 = =====!!E - >- tb- EEF = !t{ EF E F -z F EF i J F l!E' L \ L I L I L I t- + ! q \ \ \ \ I \ \ i li ii l1 li f, . i ): li li li l-r l1 Glossary Funding Money Funds transfer An operationcarriedout by a bankto directmoneyfrom one company'saccountto anothercompany'saccount Graduate (noun) Someonewho hascompleteda universitycourseand who hasreceiveda universitydegree Handling charge A fee chargedfor carryingout a service,especiallyas an intermediary or'middleman' Haulage Roadtransportof goodsby lorry Haulier Roadtransportcompanyor trucking company Implement Put a policy or planinto practice Incentive Somethingto encourageemployeesto behavein a particularway, for exampleto work harder Invoice A formal requestfor payment Itinerary A programmefor a trip or a visit, showingthe orderof eventsand the time of differentactivities Job-sharing Wheretwo employeesdivide a singlejob betweenthem,so both work part-time Joint venture An agreement betweentwo or morecompaniesto cooperatein an areasuchasresearch, productdevelopment, marketing,etc Jot Write downnotes Junk mail Advertisingmaterial,often unwanted,sent by post to selected potentialcustomers Just-in-time Manufacturingcompanieswith a just-in-timemanagement system order componentsand materialsso that they arrive at the factoryjust beforethey areneeded.In this way they keepstockslow and so keepcosts down Launch The presentation of a new producton the first official day of its existence Lay off To sackworkers,temporarilyor pennanently (Take)legaladvice Talk to your lawyer Loan Moneyborrowedfor a specificpurpose,usuallyfrom a bank (On) location Workingon a film outsidea film studio Logistics A generallabel for planningand operations,and sometimescomputingactivities Maternity leave Time off work for a womanto havea baby Merger When two companiesjoin togetherunder commonownershipand management Morale The generallevel of satisfactionof the workforce Mortgage When an individual or companyborrowsmoney and pays back capitaland interest.If the borrowercannotrepaythe money,the lendercan takea propertyassetbelongingto the borrowerinstead Net profit margin The profit after tax, expressed as a figureor as a percentageof tumover Overdraft Moneyborrowedfrom a bankon which interestis paid PA PersonalAssistant Pension The moneyyou receivefrom your companyor from the Statewhen you retire Performance-related A systemrelating(usuallysomeof) your pay to how well you work The performance-related part of your pay is linked to how far you achievean objectiveagreedby you andyour superior Premises An office or factorybuilding Prioritize Put thingsinto an orderof importance Productivity The amountyou produceand the efficiencywith which you produceit 175 I = Glossary Promotional literature Leaflets, brochures,etc advertising a product or service and describing its advantages Pull one's weight work as hard as one's colleagues; take a fair share of a responsibility Purchase Buy Quality circle A group of employeeswho meet regularly to discuss ways of improving the way they work and the quality of the goods or servicesthey help to provide Questionnaire A set of questions designed to find out information about people's attitudes,beliefs or opinions Quota A deflned and limited number Rating A scoreon a scale,a measure Recession A period (technically of three successivequarters) during which a national economy gets smaller Recruit (noun) Someonestarting a job with the company Redeemed Paid back, especially a loan over a fixed time period such as a mortgage Redundancy Loss of job, usually becausethe company cannot afford to continue to employ the person in the job Reference A written or spoken review of your professional abilities or personal capacitiesmade to a potential employer by someoneyou know Refund Pay back Refurbish Repair and redecorate Representative, rep someone who usually travels around trying to sell goods or servicesfor a particular company, as in salesrepresentativeor sales rep Retirement A person leaving the company becausehe/she has reached the retirement age - usually 60 or 65 - or becauseof ill health Rights issue A method of raising finance where a company sells sharesat a special low price to existing shareholders Run (a company) Manage a company Sack Dismiss someonefrom a job sales budget A description of planned expenditure for producing and selling a product screen a call when secretaries screen telephone calls, they only allow through the ones that they know are really important self esteem Your feelings about yourself If you have high self esteem, you feel positive about yourself If you have low self esteem, you feel negative about yourself or you feel that others feel negative about you Sexual harassment where one employee makes unwelcome sexual remarks to a colleagueor behavessexually towards them in an unwelcome way share A certificate given in exchangefor investing money in a company and representing a partial ownership in the assetsof the company Shares are bought in the hope of earning dividends, paid out when a company performs well, or of making a profit from reselling the sharesat a higher value if the company has been performing well Shareholder Someonewho owns sharesin a company Shoestring budget A very limited budget Sponsorship Financial support for an artistic, sporting or cultural enterprise provided by a private company in exchangefor advertising rights Stock A store of materials, componentsor products Subsidiary A company partly or wholly owned by another Subsidized Paid for in part by someoneelse = = = = = = = = = F F ts ts F F F ts ti- F F Et!E' El!i-z E E- 176 ,1 E' \ \ \ \ i \ i \ \ \ i Glossary Supervisor A lower management position, responsible for all the workers and activities in a production area Supervisors normally report to department managers Thsk force A (usually) small group of people with a special job to (usually) in a limited period of time A task force, unlike a committee, is expected to get things done Tender, put out to To invite tendersfor a specific project Tenderer A company that submits a tender Tlade union The formal organization of a group of workers which aims to improve the wages and working conditions of its members Tlrrnover Income from sales Upgrade Improve, bring up to date Up market The expensive,luxury end of the market Warehouse Where parts or finished goods are stocked \ \ l i: a' li li it li ft -1'' i: 7, t'|7 = = = = A-Zof Language Functions = This glossary gives some exponents for key functions indicated after the activity title It is intended only as a quick reference to the kind of language practice a particular activity might generate Teachers may wish to elicit or provide further exponents of a specific function before beginning an activity = : = = fureeing/.disagreeing I agree with you/that Up to a point, I agree with you/that (I'm afraid) I disagree with you/that br = Blaming I think you have made a mistake You're responsible for You shouldn't have done/said that Fr h h Conecting I think you've made a mistake there It's not That's not quite right.I said (an offer) Declining/rejecting No thanks I'm sorry but I can't I'm afraid that's unacceptable I couldn't possibly accept that > FtF' Emphasizing The following words add emphasis: real(ly) e.g that's really wonderful absolute(ly) e.g it was an absolute miracle indeed e.g their service was very good,indeed Forecasting The goodsare sure to arive tomorrow The goodsare likely fo arrive tomorrow The goods may arive tomorrow The goodsare unlikely to arnve tomorrow The goodscan't possibly arive tomor:row Greetings and farewells Greetings for first meeting Hello, how you do? Nice to meet you > E=- > =tlrlL Fr Reply How you do? Nice to meet you, too _/ lrr l _2 lrf I Greetings for secondand subsequentmeetings Nice to see you again How are you? r78 Reply ts Very well, thanks And you? Fine thanks And you? Not too good,I'm afraid AwfuVdreadfuVterrible (betweenfriends) I I lll I ,.J ) - J =i \ \ \ \ i Farewells Nice meetingyou (again) i Hesitating Actually, Basicaliy, i }::ffi";: i i i i \ i i ir it i: i: i i- i', Reply Nice meetingyou (again),too lt's like this, you see irj;:ff"'"1ffiHffiii1ff1".-",, And may I introduce my colleagues?This is Judging I'm convinced/sure/positive lthinVbelieve/feel I tend to think I'm inclined to feel Knowing I know we sent the goods I think we sent the loods I doubt if we sent the goods Liking and prefeming I like visiting clients (= I enjoy it) I like to visit clients in their offices.(= It is appopriate) I prefer working in my office to travelling abroad I'd rather work in my office than travel abroad Measuring and caleulating Ifyou add the figures together, you get If you take the total time and subtract , you get Let's see what we get if we divide/multiply by ii i', iz ii = r' ii i.i il f., i': ii Negotiating Let's discuss the terms of the contract I'd like to settle the disagreement between us I think we can accept this contract if you Obliging (see also vetoing) L To be obliged to something: We must find a way of solving the cashflow problems Do we have to what he says?Isn't there an alternative? Tb oblige sonleoneto something: These cashflow problems require us to look at our payment policy (require/force/compeVobligesomeoneto something) The problems have made us re-evaluate our current practices Perrmitting You may take as much time as you need We are allowed/permitted to claim travel expenses May/might I make a comment at this point? Dovoumindifl ? 179 I - I L J I Questioning Could you tell me ? I'd like to know I wonder if you could tell me Do you happen to know ? Regretting It's a (great) shame/pity that I'm sorry to hear that I'm afraid that Unfortunately, Sequencing FirsUfirst of alVinitially/to start with Second./secondly Then/after that/nexUsubsequently Finally Telling I told him that I said (to him) that I informed them about I explained what/hodthat I reported to them that Urging We should make a decision soon You ought to review the situation I suggest that you check your records I (would) advise you to check your records Vetoing (see also obliging) I To be obliged not to something: You mustn'Umay not give this information to anyone outside the company You are not allowed/permitted to To oblige sonl,eonenot to something: The regulations prohibit us from grving this information to anyone outside the company Welcoming Welcometo It's a pleasure to welcome you to We are very pleased to have you with us f tr< :J :J r< -J :J :J -J i< L< r{ L-{ Lr{ ) r.{ -J -J -l h{ ) { _J -J -J >-a r-l b.{ ) Ea _J -J tr{ F- ) >-l ) L-a :l F-a ) = }J ) >-l ) }J (E)Xpressing Your amaZement (and other emotions) Amazement This is a surprise! f'm very surprised that Fear /worry I'm worried about I'm concerned that ) lrJ :) tlJ ) -J l = 180 = = = ,1 F tr F tr ts = F = F o0 q) z = E= ts- o00 = x x 6o 93 x X X X X X X X X X X X lr(,) leE F E- F >- F o lF- cI Et- l-t- €) o E- 0) lr Y F a l! C +, - E € (E c E E o C) tr €ee € -e' ts : ,8,^ o 'ohP€ uE H H" F EP F H;gg FH $ *:ul=E.$E ! H$EEgq';tEilEaii a-E g€ gEf,E$E gF gg5 ggggggFg ISE fE - (\ cO $ t/) \O f= oO O\ O * * - C.l ci - $ tn \O - C- oO O\ d r O * N C.l C\.l N rn \O F* cA * N C-l C-l C\t c\l € O\ c\.l c\.l I I ) e ) : : = ts =i ) €81 'Jr A * * - -a _ = SSgSggSHSK$S38€eteeFeSiEBSSHUK",N;- qi gililFsFt FFFttFst gr 5gg8€€€g f f $fEgEg s sEs+ + rE: 9r H HsgE f l $ g; P gE i s*s gE g$f;5 H ' € au*EE.E =?E€F*,=e - *31E$$ FiiE = -a s EgsE[3E*uE E Es ! * E = g er -$ * q E'5 e n - ' 6e- ' E 3"E 'u t ? s H E { g x x x x x x x x x X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X ... 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 61 62 StudentA StudentB 1 34 Managementand leadership ro2 10 3 10 4 10 5 r07 10 8 10 9 11 0 11 1 IT2 11 3 tr4 ll5 TT7 11 8 I19 12 0 r22 12 3 12 4 12 6 r27 t28 12 9 13 0 13 1 r32... 93 ,13 7 94,005 85, 21 93 '14 0 F Second quarter l0 | , 10 4 98,776 85,439 99,505 Third quarter 10 3,7 71 99,422 87,624 10 2,099 F Fourth quarter 95 ,10 6 10 0,4 71 89,423 10 2'500 F Totaf 393,068 392 ,17 4... 97 98 13 8 r39 t40 T4I r42 r43 t44 t45 r46 14 7 14 8 t49 l5l r52 15 4 15 5 15 6 r57 15 8 16 0 16 1 r62 t63 r64 16 5 r66 16 7 16 8 r69 r70 t7l 17 2 L-J u }J } - lrJ U Ert lll L r { r-l-J f L_ Lf LLa.l IJ rJ