3 Work with a partner to discuss the following.
1 Which are your favourite retailers?
2 Name three large manufacturers
3 What services can a wholesaler offer a retailer?
4 Give an example of good/bad customer service you have experienced.
5 What problems can a business have with its suppliers?
6 Can you name a famous entrepreneur?
7 If you started a business, who would your partner be? Why?
1. Discuss these questions with other students.
Do you ever shop online? If so, what for? If not, why not?
What do you think are some of the most common reasons for complaining to a department store of a shopping website?
Have you ever complained about something you bought (either in a shop of through a website)? What weren’t you happy about? What did you do? What was the response? Were you satisfied in the end?
Reading. Networking
Networking is the process of making business contacts through meeting people. It can be a good way of finding clients or new staff or even a new job.
1 Work with a partner. Decide which of the following you think is the best place for networking.
Conferences private parties trade fairs training events
2 Look at the headings (a-d) for the first four paragraphs of the article. Skim the text and match each heading to the most suitable paragraph. Write the paragraph number in the box.
A The best way to find business 2
B A fixed agenda
C An example of a meeting
D BNI’s mission and ethos
Company background BNI
Business Network International, of BNI, is an organization which began in California, USA but has now expanded into many other countries. The idea of the organizations is that members create business for each other through personal recommendations.
BUSINESS NETWORK INTERNATIONAL
It is 7.00 on a cold winter morning and 40 people face each other across a breakfast table in a London hotel. After some short speeches, the tables are suddenly a hive of activity as sets of business cards are passed around. After this, each person stands up for exactly one minute. They talk about their businesses and what kind of contacts they are looking for that week. John Harris is an insolvency specialist who is looking for any company with financial difficulties who could use his services. Janet Moore runs a cake-making business and is looking for customers. After the speeches, the 40 people stand up together and walk around the tables gibing out pieces of paper. These are referral slips, providing the names and details of potential customers of contacts. Janet Moore, for example, receives the names and contact numbers of several relatives with birthdays that month.
2. This is a meeting of BNI of Business Network International. There are many ways for businesses to advertise, like telemarketing of mailshots but the best form of promotion is word-of-mouth recommendation through networking. Of course, networking can take place anywhere; at trade fairs and conferences of on the golf course, but the most efficient way to network is to join an organization like this. This is because the only reason for these meetings is to make contacts. The success rate of the referrals speaks for itself. According to the figures, over 75% of them turn into business.
3. BNI was originally founded by Dr Ivan Misner in the US but in has now spread to many countries in Europe such as Scandinavia, Germany and Spain and also to Australia. Its aim is to provide an environment in which business people can get together and develop the personal relationship that lead to business. When new members join, they receive a card file to hold all the new business cards, a badge and a lapel pin. With these, they also get a guidebook with instructions on ‘how to be a good member’. Members also have access to a library of networking tips, all recorded on tapes. BNI’s motto is ‘givers gain’, that is, if I give someone business, then they will want to give me business in return.
4. BNI meetings follow a highly structured framework. A short period of ‘open’ networking is followed by welcome speeches and introductions from the team leaders and then by the exchanging of business cards. Next, members give their 60-second speeches and after that, they introduce any visitors, who can also give speeches. Then, the referral slips are passed. If a member passes on more than three new business contacts, the group all clap. For five of more referrals, this becomes a standing ovation. The meeting winds up with a prize draw.
Text 2
Healthy finances
Talking point
1. Work in pairs. All companies have information which they do not usually give to other people. Which of the following types of information (a-g) do you think a company does not usually share with:
the public
its employees?
a profits and losses in the past
b future financial targets
c recipes and manufacturing processes
d ideas for new products
e information about market share
f staff qualifications and CVs of resumes
g strategies (plans to achieve success)
2. Does sharing this information depend on the type of company, do you think?
1. Work with a partner. You are going to read an article about a company which is famous for keeping information secret. Can you think of any other famous secretive companies?
Company background H A L M A
Halma is a group of engineering companies which makes health and safety products such as fire detectors. It is based in the UK but also has companies in Europe and the USA.
2. Read the first two paragraphs to find out which two of the following activities (1-3) Halma employees do. Put a (x) in the box next to the activity which they don’t do.
1 . develop ideas for future products
2 . make the component parts for their products
3 . put together in component parts for their products
Halma: A secretive success
1. Halma is an engineering group which specializes in products for the health and safety industry. Its financial results have been impressive, but not many people have studied the reasons for its success. (i) This is partly because the group’s original chairman did not want to talk about its management approach because he was afraid other companies might copy (ii) it.
2. Halma’s strategy is generally to produce a series of technical ideas which can then be used to create new products. In the past (iii) these devices have included a system to kill bacteria in water and another system to stop lift doors from closing on people. The group relies on suppliers to make the component parts. (iv) Its own workers are generally only concerned with the final assembly and with researching future products. The suppliers are not told what the parts that they supply do, nor how (v) they are put together, to make sure that (vi) they cannot use Halma’s ideas. ‘It is not in our interest to share this information’, says Stephen O’Shea, the chief executive officer.
Text 3
Read the text quickly. What does the article say about these things?
1. the writer’s out-of-date computer
2. the main aim of Freecycle
3. dishonest ‘bidders’
4. giving something in return
5. freecycle’s need for money
- Wordlist
- Kitchen Utensils & Recipes
- Match the pairs, then make up sentences.
- Match the opposites, then name foods or drinks which can go with each.
- Put each verb in brackets either in the Present Simple or the Present Continuous.
- Unit 2 Word list
- To set up a company
- Supply the missing questions.
- 4. Answer these general knowledge questions about work.
- 5. Think about your own job. Can you explain your responsibilities and daily duties in English?
- Match 1-5 with the specific job descriptions a-e
- 2. When you look up a word, you can also use your dictionary to increase your vocabulary by learning related words and phrases. Find out if your dictionary helps you to answer these questions.
- 3. In the word “island”, the letter “s” is silent. Use your dictionary to find the silent letters in these words.
- Decide if the speaker is using British English or American English, and cross out the incorrect answer.
- Formal English
- Informal English
- Rewrite the sentences in more informal English.
- Rewrite the letter in more formal English.
- Use your dictionary to find out if these underlined words are either formal or informal.
- With the meaning “not”
- Verb prefixes: un- and dis-
- Other verb prefixes
- Agree with these statements.
- Complete the verbs in these sentences.
- Complete the sentences with the words from the box.
- Complete the sentences with a negative adjective.
- Include information about the following:
- Organize these words into pairs of opposites and put them in the columns below.
- What prefix forms the opposite of each of these words?
- How would you describe the person in each of these descriptions?
- What nouns can be formed from these adjectives?
- Match the adjectives in the box to the sentences.
- Make nouns from the adjectives in the previous exercise.
- Complete the sentences with the adjectives from the box.
- Answer these questions.
- Answer the questions using –ed or –ing adjectives.
- Match these –ing adjectives with the nouns.
- Answer the following questions:
- It is a good idea to ask questions about the words you learn. Discuss the answers.
- Identify the nationalities and languages of the residents of the following capitals.
- 1. Put one suitable word in each space.
- 2. Put one suitable word in each space, beginning with the letter given.
- Vocabulary exercises
- 3. At the airport
- 1. Complete the text with the words from the box.
- Can you write down a vegetable and fruit:
- Which is the odd one out in each group and why?
- Complete these sentences about yourself and your country.
- Read the first two paragraphs of the article. Answer the questions.
- Read the rest of the article and make lists of the following things.
- Discuss these questions :
- Which o the four endings are not correct?
- Think of two more ways you can finish each sentence starter in exercise a.
- Put the sports into groups according to what you think they have in common.
- Here are some people talking about their hobbies. Can you guess what the hobby is in each case?
- Complete these sentences with a suitable verb.
- Answer these questions.
- Complete each sentence with a word from the box.
- Put each verb in the brackets into a suitable passive form.
- Radisson sas Portman Hotel, London
- Langley Castle Hotel, Northumberland
- The Metropole Hotel, Cornwall
- Old Oxenhope Hall Cottage, West Yorkshire
- 4) Read the article again, chose one hotel and make notes under the headings below. Then, use your notes to talk about it.
- 5) Make notes under the same headings for a place you have stayed on holiday. Then use your notes to write a short article about it. Use the given article as a model.
- Wimbledon
- The Super Bowl
- To benefit from
- You have an important form to fill in and you know it’ll take at least two hours to do it properly. It’s Tuesday today and you have to hand it in by nine o’clock on Friday morning at the latest.
- 2. You bump into a friend you haven’t seen for ages in the street – she suggests a night out together next week.
- 5. You’ve been given an important message for a friend.
- 6. You’re due to be at a meeting in another town at three o’clock. You know it’ll take you at least thirty minutes to get there.
- 7. You’re about to go on holiday. It’s eight o’clock the evening before. Your friend is picking you up to take you to the airport at eight-thirty tomorrow morning.
- Conclusions to the quiz
- Getting a job
- Moving up
- Leaving the company
- Hard times
- Happier times
- Write a synonym for each of these words/ phrases.
- Complete these sentences with a suitable word or phrase.
- Complete this word-building table.
- Have you got a job in a company? If so, answer these questions as quickly as you can.
- Fill in the correct form of the verb in brackets (to –infinitive or –ing form), as in the examples.
- Write the correct form of the verb in brackets.
- Match the phrases in Column a to those in Column b to make complete sentences.
- Use the phrases to make up sentences about yourself.
- Talk about the article from memory using these prompts:
- III. Find the equivalents (in the box) to the words, given below:
- 1) Modals to express obligations
- 2) Modals to express permission
- In the following dialogue, which person do you agree with?
- Vocabulary list
- I. Find the equivalents (in the box) to the words given below:
- Vocabulary money
- Vocabulary
- 1A Complete the statements with the words in the box
- 1B Work with a partner to discuss the statements.
- 2 Match the people in the box with their job role.
- 3 Work with a partner to discuss the following.
- Freecycle
- 1. Meaning
- 1. Work is pairs. If you are working, discuss whether you think networking meetings would be good for your company. If you are studying, discuss whether you think networking could help you find a job.
- 2. Read the role card and prepare what you are going to say.
- Vocabulary list
- Vocabulary
- 1 Number of emails
- 2 Technology
- 3 Stress
- 2. Work with a partner. Write two possible recommendations for the end of the report. If you need help, look at the list below.
- Vocabulary list
- 5. Underline the correct form of the verb.
- 6. Underline the correct phrase.
- 7. Write the verbs in this conversation in the present perfect continuous.
- 8. Complete each sentence with since or for.
- 9. Look at these mini-dialogues. Write full questions using the present perfect simple of continuous form.
- 2 Read the leaflet again and decide if these statements are true or false.
- 3 Match a word from each column to make noun combinations about work and interviews.
- 4 Complete sentences 1-8 with noun combinations from Exercise 3.
- 5. Do these jobs exist in your country? Can you translate them into your language?
- IV. Reading