Focus On Business English. Part 1 (110

Copyright ОАО «ЦКБ «БИБКОМ» & ООО «Aгентство Kнига-Cервис»
МИНИСТЕРСТВО ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ И НАУКИ

ФЕДЕРАЛЬНОЕ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОЕ БЮДЖЕТНОЕ
ОБРАЗОВАТЕЛЬНОЕ УЧРЕЖДЕНИЕ
ВЫСШЕГО ПРОФЕССИОНАЛЬНОГО ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ
«ВОРОНЕЖСКИЙ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ
УНИВЕРСИТЕТ»
FOCUS ON
BUSINESS ENGLISH
Part 1
Учебно-методическое пособие для вузов
Составители:
А.В. Варушкина,
Е.С. Селезнева
Издательско-полиграфический центр
Воронежского государственного университета
2012
1
Утверждено научно-методическим советом факультета романо-германской

филологии 20 марта 2012 г., протокол № 3
Рецензент канд. филол. наук, доцент Н.М. Шишкина
Учебно-методическое пособие подготовлено на кафедре английского языка

гуманитарных факультетов факультета РГФ Воронежского государственно-
го университета.
Рекомендуется для студентов 1–2 курсов очного и заочного отделений эко-

номического факультета Воронежского государственного университета.
Для направлений: 080100 – Экономика, 080200 – Менеджмент, 080400 –

Управление персоналом
2
СОДЕРЖАНИЕ
Пояснительная записка............................................................................... 4
Unit1
Employment .................................................................................................. 5
Unit 2
Quality ......................................................................................................... 10
Unit 3
Marketingchange ......................................................................................... 13
Unit 4
Careers......................................................................................................... 18
Audioscripts ................................................................................................ 22
Список использованной литературы ...................................................... 25
3
ПОЯСНИТЕЛЬНАЯ ЗАПИСКА
Учебно-методическое пособие «FOCUS ON BUSINESS ENGLISH»

подготовлено на кафедре английского языка гуманитарных факультетов
факультета РГФ Воронежского государственного университета.
Предназначено для студентов 1-2 курсов очного и заочного отделений
экономического факультета для направлений: Экономика (080100), Ме-
неджмент (080200), Управление персоналом (080400).
Пособие знакомит с образцами оригинальных текстов, освещающих
возможности занятости, проблемы качества, маркетинговые изменения, и
обеспечивает включение студентов экономического факультета в ситуации
профессионально-значимого общения.
Целью данного методического пособия является овладение иноязыч-
ной коммуникативной компетенцией на уровне, достаточном для профес-
сионального общения.
В процессе работы с данным учебно-методическим пособием решают-
ся следующие задачи:
- развитие умений ознакомительного и поискового чтения с целью по-
лучения информации по одной из актуальных проблем экономики;
- развитие умений обсуждать предложенные современные проблемы в
различных формах парного и группового взаимодействия;
- развитие умений формулировать тезисы устного высказывания и за-
писывать их.
Пособие состоит из четырех разделов (units), каждый из которых
включает аутентичный текст и блок упражнений, направленных на чтение,
понимание, извлечение информации из текста, лексические упражнения и
упражнения на обсуждение, а также задания, развивающих навыки аудиро-
вания. Все это способствует развитию коммуникативных умений студентов.
Работа с каждым разделом требует 5-7 академических часов.
4
UNIT 1
EMPLOYMENT
START UP
1. In your opinion, which factors below are important for getting a job?
2. Choose the five most important. Can you add anything to the list?
Appearance
Intelligence
References
Blood group
Contacts and connections
Family background
Qualification
Personality
Astrological sign
Sex
Hobbies
Marital status
Age
Sickness record
Experience
3. Discuss these statements.

1. It is best to work for as few companies as possible.
2. Everybody should retire at 70.
3. At work appearance is more important than performance.
4.People change a lot during their working lives.
5.You should keep your private life totally separate from your work.
VOCABULARY
The recruitment process
1.Complete the text using the following words or word combinations:

employer, psychometric test, curriculum vitae (CV), probationary period, in-
terview, application form, covering letter, job, vacancy, reasoning skills
These days many applicants submit their ………. speculatively to compa-
nies they would like to work for. In other words, they do not apply for an adver-
tised………. but hope the …….. will be interested enough to keep their CV on
file and contact them when they have a……… When replying to an advertise-
ment, candidates fill in a / an …….. and write a / an ………. The employer will
5
then invite the best candidates to attend a / an ……. Sometimes candidates will
take a / an ……… before the interview to assess their mental ability and ………
These days it is normal for successful candidates to have to work a / an ……. in a
company. This is usually three or six months, after that they are offered a perma-
nent post.
2. Match the verbs (1 to 6 ) to the nouns (a to f) to make word partner-

ships.
1. to train a) a vacancy / post
2. to shortlist b) an interview panel
3. to advertise c) the candidates
4. to assemble d) references
5. to make e) new staff
6. to check f) a job offer
3. Work in pairs. Decide on a possible order for the events above from the
employer’s point of view.
LISTENING
1.1 Сheck your answers listening to a consultant talking about the re-
cruitment process.
1.2 Listen to the interview with Dr Simon who works for the international
executive search consultants Heidrick and Struggles. Fill in the gaps.
Methods for identifying candidates :
• ………..(1) in newspapers or ……….(2)
• Asking for ………..(3) from the organization
• Own original ……….(4):
- From our ……….(5)
- From talking to …….. ……….(6)
- From beginning to…….(7) the business ………(8)
These methods will cross-……….(9).
READING
1. Discuss these questions before you read the article.

1.The article is about high performers. What does this phrase mean? What
sort of people are they?
2.What do you think motivates high performing people to stay with the same
company?
6
Motivating High-Calibre Staff
By Michael Douglas
An organization’s capacity to identify, attract and retain high-quality, high-

performing people who can develop winning strategies has become decisive in
ensuring competitive advantage.
High performers are easier to define than to find. They are people with ap-
parently limitless energy and enthusiasm, qualities that shine through even on
their bad days. They are full of ideas and get things done quickly and effectively.
They inspire others not just by pep talks but also through the sheer force of their
example. Such people can push their organisations to greater and greater heights.
The problem is that people of this quality are very attractive to rival compa-
nies and are likely to be headhunted. The financial impact of such people leaving
is great and includes the costs of expensive training and lost productivity and in-
spiration.
However, not high performers are stolen, some are lost. High performers
generally leave because organisations do not know how to keep them. Too many
employers are blind or indifferent to the agenda of would be high performers, es-
pecially those who are young.
Organisations should consider how such people are likely to regard impor-
tant motivating factors. Money remains an important motivator but organisa-
tions should not imagine that it is the only one that matters. In practice, high
performer stand to take for granted that they will get a good financial package.
They seek motivation from their sources. Empowerment is a particularly impor-
tant motivating force for new talent. A high performer will seek to feel that he
or she ‘owns’ a project in a creative sense. Wise employers offer this opportuni-
ty. The challenge of the job is another essential motivator for high performers.
Such people easily become demotivated if they sense that their organization has
little or no sense of where it is going. A platform for self-development should
be provided. High performers are very keen to develop their skills and their cur-
riculum vitae. Offering time for regeneration is another crucial way for organi-
sations to retain high performers. Work needs to be varied and time should be
available for creative thinking and mastering new skills. The provision of a
coach or mentor signals that the organization has a commitment to fast-tracking
an individual’s development.
Individuals do well in an environment where they can depend on good ad-
ministrative support. They will not want to feel that the success they are winning
for the organisation is lost because of the inefficiency of others or by weaknesses
in support areas.
Above all, high performers – especially if they young – want to feel that the
organisation they work for regards them as special. If they find that it is not inter-
7
ested in them as people but only as high-performing commodities, it is hardly be

surprising if their loyalty be minimal. On the other hand, if an organisaton does
invest in its people, it is much more likely to win loyalty from them and to create
a community of talent and high performance that will worry competitors.
From the Financial Times
COMPREHENTION
1. Answer the questions.

1. How can high performers be defined?
2.What qualities of high performers are mentioned in the article?
3.What are the problems of losing high performers?
4.What motivates high performing people to staywith their companies?
5. Why do high performers lose motivation?
2. Are the following sentences true or false? Correct the false ones.
1. High performers are really easy to find.
2. High performing people leave their companies mainly because they easily
get demotivated.
3. Money is the most important motivator for high performers.
4. Young high performers want their organisations to regard them as special.
3. Use the words or phrases from the article to answer the questions below:
pep talk, headhunting, financial package, fast-tracking, CV, mentor
Which word or phrase:
1. is British English for the American English resume? ……..
2. refers to stealing employees from companies? ………
3. do you often find in job advertisements referring to money and benefits?
4. refers to an older, more experienced person who helps you? ………
5. usually leads to quick promotion? ……….
6. means a short chat to motivates staff? …….
VOCABULARY
1.Make word partnerships (there is one extra word that you don’t have
to use).
covering agency
employment references
application test
curriculum letter
psychometric form
vitae
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2. Choose the best word from the brackets to fill the gap.
1. We need to…… four new people for our office in Manchester (join / re-
cruit).
2. We are using the recruitment ……to find them for us (agency / headhun-
ter).
3. They advertised the in the local newspaper last week ( positions / ap-
plicants).
4. So far, over 60 people have applied for the (works / posts).
5. We are going to look at all the letters of……. over the weekend ( applica-
tion / situation).
6. On Monday we will draw up a……of 10-11 people (shortlist / refer-
ence).
7. Then we invite them all to come for an (interview / appointment).
8. We hope to……. the successful candidates by the end of the month (apply
/ appoint).
3. Look at each sentence. Would you find it in a Situations Vacant section

of a newspaper (NS), in a covering letter (CL), in an applicant’s CV (CV)?
Tick the right box.
SV CV CL
The post offers a starting salary of $17,000plus benefits •
I enclose my resume for your consideration
1997 – 2000: University of Maryland, MBA (Marketing
and Public Relations)
I am looking for a more stimulating environment and
your company offers this
Training will be given but basic word processing skills
would be an advantage
1994-1997: The Biscuit Company, London – Manager
responsible for 22 staff
The successful candidates will be expected to take up the
post in January
FOLLOW UP
What are the advantages and the disadvantages of :

1. headhunting?
2. having a mentor system?
3. fast-tracking certain employeers?
4. frequent pep talks?
9
UNIT 2
QUALITY
START UP
What are some of the quality problems that can occur when you buy a
new car?
VOCABULARY
1. Number these events in order in which they most probably happened.

a) As safety was in question, we immediately recalled the product.
b) Our engineers then carried out rigorous tests.
c) They corrected a fault.
d) They discovered a fault.
e) We completely redesigned the product.
f) We launched our new product six months ago.
g) We soon received many complaints about its reliability and safety.
h) We were able to relaunch it just after two months.
2. Choose three items which can complete the sentences below.

consumer satisfaction questionnaire inspection
after-sales service monitoring
defects routine checks
compensation warranty
minimum standards faults
flaws
1.Regorous monitoring means that our standards of service are always ex-
tremely high.
2. We have decided to take a legal action against CBT Electronics for breach
of.
3. For spare parts, please contact our.
4. Unfortunately, our DVD is no longer under.
5. We can consistently offer top quality products through continuous
6. Many business people agree that a good is just as important as a product
itself.
3. Complete the definitions.

face anticipate deal with ignore reduce solve
1. If you face a problem, you accept that it exists and that you have to do
something about it.
2. If you a problem, you have no attention to it.
10
3. If you a problem, you do something to make sure the

problem no longer exists.
4. If you a problem, you make it less serious.
5. If you a problem, you find an answer to it.
6. If you a problem, you realise that it may happen and you
are prepared for it.
LISTENING
2.1 Mike Ashton is Senior Vice President of Hilton Hotels International.

The hotel employs 75,000 people in 65 countries. Listen to the first part of the
interview and complete the definition of quality Mie Ashton gives.
Delivering ……. quality is absolutely fundamentally important to any busi-
ness. I believe the best way to define quality is to look very closely at customers’
……… and then to look at the ……. of a business to ……. or …….those expec-
tations, consistently.
2.2 Listen to the second part of the interview. Which of the following does
the hotel use to measure quality improvements?
• Inspecting rooms daily
• Contacting team members
• Making unexpected visits regularly
• Contacting guests
• Studying operational standards
• Comparing check out times
2.3 Listen to the third part of the interview. Are the statements true or
false? Correct the false ones.
1.High quality means high cost.
2.Investment in high quality helps to build profitability.
3. Delivering good quality consistently is something that can be done
without any cost to an organisation.
4. Healthy revenues and healthier profits are the results of investment in
quality.
READING
Read the article from the Financial Times and answer the questions.
Fierce Competition Result in Better Quality

By Jeremy Grant
South Korean carmakers have long been the subject of jokes about poor
quality in the US. But yesterday they won the endorsement of US car buyers
11
when Hyundai jumped ahead of Detroit and some European carmakers in a quali-
ty survey. The JD Power & Associates ‘initial quality’ survey, which measures
the number of problems reported by a customer in the first 90 days of new ve-
hicle ownership, showed that Hyundai and Kia Motors had on average reduced
such problems by 57 percent over the last six years. The number of problems re-
ported on average for the two carmakers dropped from 272 гоad problems per
100 vehicles in 1998 to 117 this year according to the survey, which involved
51,000 vehicle owners.
Hyundai performed better than 25 Kia, tying with Honda of Japan for second
place in the rankings after Toyota. The Koreans now lead European carmakers by
five problems per 100 vehicles and are ahead of General Motors, Ford and Chrys-
ler, by six problems, while trailing the Japanese by six problems per 100 vehicles.
‘A decade ago, as Korean manufacturers struggled with a universally poor reputa-
tion for vehicle quality, no-one would have predicted they could not only keep
pace, but actually pass domestic 40 carmakers and other foreign imports in terms of
initial quality,’ said Joe Ivers, Executive Director of quality/customer satisfaction
at JD Power, based in California.
Toyota again dominated the survey, with the fewest problems reported. How-
ever, GM, Ford and Chrysler had more than the industry average of 119 problems
per 100 vehicles for the second year running. GM’s Cadillac luxury brand and the
Jaguar marque owned by Ford both narrowed the quality gap with Lexus, Toyo-
ta’s luxury offering that is the biggest seller in the segment.
Like last year, the study also showed that carmakers across the 6o board are
making better quality vehicles amid fierce competition and a drive by Detroit to
make up ground lost for years to Toyota and Honda. Initial quality problems
dropped industry-wide by 11 percent from last year. However, the Hummer,
GM’s massive sport utility vehicle inspired by the US army’s Humvee, came bot-
tom of the list of 37 vehicle brands in terms of the number of problems reported,
for the second year running.
COMPREHENSION
1. Read through the whole article and match the figures with the things
that they refer to.
57 percent a) the number of quality
2, 272 problems per 100 Hyundai
117 and Kia cars this year
51,000 b) the number of brands
2nd covered in the survey
119 c) the number of vehicle
37 owners surveyed
the average number of quality problems per 100 new cars
the number of quality problems per 100 Hyundai and Kia
12
cars six years ago

the position of Hyundai and Honda in the survey
the fall in the number of quality problems with Hyundai
and Kia cars in the last six years
2. Are the statements about the expressions in italics true or false?

‘Korean cars won the endorsement of US car buyers’ means that US car
buyers still don’t like Hyundai and Kia cars.
‘Hyundai jumped ahead of Detroit and some European carmakers in a
quality survey’ means that previously Hyundai had worse quality than US and
European cars, and now they have better quality.
The ‘initial quality survey’ relates to the quality of cars over their whole
lifetime.
The number of problems reported by customers is the number of problems
that they told the people doing the survey about.
The number of problems dropped means that there were fewer problems.
The survey involved 51,000 vehicle owners means that this number of
people took part in the survey.
3. Find expressions in the article to replace the expressions in italics.
Toyota were top in the survey.
Some of the results were the same this year as last year.
Some carmakers had become closer in quality to Lexus.
Carmakers everywhere are improving quality.
There has been an effort by US carmakers to improve quality.
US carmakers are trying to reduce quality differences in relation to Toyota
and Honda.
The Hummer is based on the Humvee.
The Hummer had the worst quality of any vehicle in the survey.
FOLLOW UP
1. Does the survey confirm your opinions of different car makes? Why /
why not?
2. Make a list of brands for another product category (e.g. washing ma-
chines). Then rank them for perceived quality
UNIT 3
MARKETING CHANGE
START UP
Do companies change their marketing strategies? Why? Give examples.
13
VOCABULARY
1. Match the sentence beginnings (1-5) with the correct endings (a-e).
1. Farms are now more market-oriented
2. Since the 1980s, Britain has had a much markets at once.
3. Many market-led growth businesses, it takes.
4. Lack of investment and market orientation
5. American TV is a market-driven industry, a such as Microsoft and Sony,
are in several
a) more market-led
b) and the audience decides the direction
c) led to falling sales and profits.
d) and less dependent on government money.
e) approach to economics.
2. Choose the best word or phrase to fill each gap.

Our company makes wooden garden furniture - mainly tables and chairs.
Sales are much higher this year because we have spent a lot on (selling / distri-
buting / marketing). First we did a survey about customer (wants / needs / uses).
Then we redesign all our (a products / benefits / services)to include the special (
goods / profits / features) that people want. Our (presenting / promotion / persua-
sion) included a competition in all the major gardening magazines where the
prize was a set of our furniture. Most importantly we’ve made sure all our (a
price / costs / charges) are very competitive because our customers want value
for money.
3. Complete each sentence by writing the correct word in each gap.

1. We advertised on TV , but that’s not enough. We need a whole new mar-
keting con….
2. We need to tell customers about the special ben….. that our service pro-
vides.
3. Our company is market-ori ….. Everything we do is about giving buyers
what they want.
4. The pac….. doesn’t only protect the goods – it advertises them too.
5. I’ve been a m..k…r for many years and I know how to promote any prod-
uct.
6. People in different parts of the country buy different things, so p…e is one
of the four Ps of marketing.
LISTENING
1. Richard Brown is the managing partner of Cognosis, a management

consultancy in London which advises companies on organization and change.
Listen to the first part of the interview and answer these questions.
14
1. What four approaches does Cognosis use to analyse a

business?
2. How many different business ‘character types’ does Cog-
nosis recognize?
3. What three things do companies deal with differently, ac-
cording to Richard?
2. Listen to the second part of the interview. Tick the sentences below
which are true, according to Richard, and correct those which are false.
1. The hardest way to change the character of a business is to
merge it with another company.
2. When Guiness and Grand Metropolitan merged, they
wanted to create a business culture which was different from
the two companies.
3. The senior managers spent a lot of money training staff in
the new business methods.
4. The new culture was only partly successful.
3. In the first part of the interview, Richard Brown describes three ways in
which successful companies are similar. Complete the description below.
First, they are ……. ……….(1): they have a very clear sense of …….
……… …….. ………(2). Second, they’re …….-……..(3): they invest much
time and energy in understanding and …….. …….. ……… ………(4). And
third, they are ……-…….(5). By that I mean that people inside the organization
are very clear about the values that should ……. ……. …….(6) and beha-
viours.
READING
1. Discuss these questions.

1. Does the way a soft drinks company advertise its products encourage you
to buy them?
2. Do you think people prefer to buy “healthy” drinks these days? Why
(not)?
2. Read the article from the Financial Times and answer the questions.
Marketing: Investors Adapt to Consumer Trends
By Jenny Wiggins
When the world’s biggest soft drink company starts changing its marketing
tactics, investors should ask why. Coca-Cola, which has traditionally promoted
15
itself via the Coke brand, using slogans such as ‘Coke is it’, now wants to inform
consumers that Coke is not the only drink it sells. Its most recent campaign,
called ‘Make every drop count’, says: ‘You’ve always known us as Coca-Cola,
the soft drink. Now it’s time you knew us as Coca-Cola the company.’
The television, print and Internet advertisements in the UK come at a time
when consumers are ditching foods and drinks that are perceived as unhealthy
(such 20 as sugary fizzy drinks and salty crisps) for products that appear to offer
some kind of health benefit.
Coke is using the new campaign to impress upon consumers the fact that it
sells all kinds of drinks, including bottled water, juices and teas. The campaign is
important for the company, because it risks losing money if it does not sell the 30
kinds of drinks consumers now want to buy.
Analysts say that growing demand for healthier kinds of foods and drinks is
not a fashion, but a long-term trend that increasingly affects corporate profits.
Companies which benefit are those that already produce the kinds of prod-
ucts consumers want, or companies that are taking steps to adapt existing prod-
ucts. These include Danone, the French company, as well as Swiss food company
Nestle, which has made nutritional foods a core strategic focus.
Companies that do not meet consumer needs are suffering. In March, Asda
took the juice drink Sunny D (previously known as Sunny Delight) off its shelves
after ending its customers did not want to buy.
COMPREHENSION
1. Number the paragraphs in the correct order. Two summaries are not used.
a). Companies need to change, as healthy foods
here to stay.
b). Coke needs to inform customers about its
whole product range.
c). Unfortunately, if companies do not change,
they will find it very difficult to survive.
d). If customers fail to recognise Coke’s whole
range of products, the company will face
financial problems.
e). Advertisements for healthy products are
16
very popular.
f). The campaign is well timed, as people want
more healthy products.?
g). Many companies are benefiting from a bigger
market share.
2. Match the terms (1-8) to their definitions (a-e).
1. tactics a). seen or believed to be
2. slogan b). Make someone

3. ditching understand something
4. Perceive das c). Change or modify
5. Impress upon something
6. adapt d). the centre or heart of
7. core something
8. suffering e). a saying to catch your
attention in an ad
f). doing badly, failing
g). approach
h). dropping or rejecting
FOLLOW UP
1. Think of marketing changes for your company: what are they? Why do
you need changes?
2.Rank marketing changes in order of importance.
17
UNIT 4
CAREERS
START UP
1. Do you have training schemes in your country?

2.What benefits do you think there are for the employee of training
schemes?
3. What are the advantages of working your way up through a company?
VOCABULARY
1. Write one word in each gap to fill in the text. You may choose to use
some words more than once.
with from in as for at
My name is Jean Wilson and I have just started working in a bank. I gradu-
ated……... Edinburg University last year with a degree …..Business and Man-
agement. Now I am going to train …. an accountant. I think I will do well be-
cause I am good …….figures and I am skilled ………computers. I think that
training ……. specific job will be more interesting than the general education
I got at university.
2. Choose the best word from the brackets to fill in the gap.
1. Everyone should stay in full-time education until they are at least 18
(school / education).
2. Of course the qualifications are important but they are not everything
(printed / paper).
3. I look for people with lots of relevant ……..experience (job / work).
4. Last year we spent over $ 50, 000 on management ……..(experience / de-
velopment).
5. We value people who are highly …… and want to get on (motivated /
graduated).
6. Tom gets on well with everyone. He is great team ……..(person / player).
LISTENING
4.1 Dr Simon Kingston works for the International executive search con-
sultants Heidrick and Struggles. Listen to the interview with him and answer
the questions.
1. What is common in the careers of successful people?
2.What distinguishes really successful people from those who are average in
their professions?
3.What qualities does Lord Brown at BP demonstrate?
18
Listen to the interview again and complete the summary below.

One common theme in the careers of a lot of successful people is an ……….
……….(1) of the individual’s own …….. …….. ……….(2). This allows them
to ……… (3) the sort of organisations in which they will work. It also allows
them to …….. ………(4) but appropriately to opportunities that are unplanned
that present themselves.
READING
1. Discuss these questions.

1. Can you name some of the major retail banks in your country?
2. What special skills do you think you need to work in a bank?
3. Do you think that working in a bank is a high- or low-status kind of job?
2. Read the two articles from the Financial Times and answer the ques-
tions.
3. Article 1: Retail Banking: Appeal of the Softer Side

of the Business
By Clare Gascoigne
Retail banking used to be an aspirational career. But as the banks have
changed, so has the attraction. ‘Graduates have to be led into thinking about retail
banking,’ says Terry Jones of the Association of Graduate Career Advisory Ser-
vices. ‘They think first about the investment banks »o or accountancy - they think
retail is not as interesting as working on mergers and acquisitions or trading.’
He may be right. High-street bank is managers are no longer as respected as
they used to be. Staffare much more concerned with selling products and finan-
cial services, and much of the customer contact has moved to big call centres or
the Internet. ‘The work feels relatively low status,’ says Mr Jones.
However, the banks don’t feel the same way. 'We are looking for people
who are customer driven, who can form good working relationships and lead
sales teams,’ says John Morewood, senior manager for graduate recruiting at
HSBC. ‘We look for graduates who have had experience of working with cus-
tomers HSBC is typical of the high-street banks in running two main graduate
schemes. The executive management scheme is a two-year development pro-
gramme that aims to put graduates into leadership role. It takes between 25 and
30 every year. ‘These people have the potential to go very high,’ says Mr More-
wood. ‘We are looking for strategic thinkers.’
The second scheme, which is more concerned with retail commercial bank-
ing, takes between 120 and 150 people a year an gives graduates responsibility
much earlier.
19
COMPREHENSION
1. Choose the correct meaning for the word in italics.

a) 'Banking used to be an aspirational career’ (line 2) means people
i) wanted to work in that sector because it was highly respected.
ii) knew they would get excellent training in that sector.
b) A call centre (line 21) is where customers can
i) meet employees.
ii) speak to staff on the phone.
c) ‘The work feel relatively low status' (line 22) means
i) it is not considered to be very important.
ii) the job is easy to do.
d) ‘We are looking for strategic thinkers’ (line 45) means people who
i) can make decisions quickly.
ii) are able to make top-level decisions.
iii) 2.True or false?
a) Retail banking is not as attractive as it used to be.
b) Graduates prefer to work in other financial areas.
c) Retail banking staff have to sell products and financial services.
d) Banks are not interested in recruits with customer experience.
e) The executive management scheme lasts three years.
f) This scheme is training people for high-level positions.
g) More people are recruited on HSBC's second scheme.
Article 2: Cost-effective route to create future managers

Andrew Taylor
Mike Turner, chief executive of BAE Systems, Europe’s biggest defence

company, and a member of the Apprenticeships Task Force, is a prime example
of how starting at the bottom of the corporate ladder can lead to a top job. ‘I be-
gan my working life as an apprentice,’ said Mr Turner, who ' argues that appren-
ticeships remain one of the most cost- effective ways of filling skill shortages, as
well as developing managers of the future.
According to the task force’s report, published today, BAE expects to save
up to £lm a year by training apprentices rather than hiring and retraining outside
го workers, ‘as apprenticeships cost 25 per cent less than training non-
apprentices’.
It is ‘much more attractive to recruit young people as apprentices, as re-
cruitment costs are lower, staff turnover is lower and apprentices quickly identi-
fied with company values’, according to the task force. ВТ, the telecommunica-
tions group, for example, had ‘calculated a benefit of over £1,300 per apprentice
per annum when compared to non-apprentice recruitment’.
20
Companies, even in industries such as construction and engineering, where

training costs were high, found that young people in the later years of their ap-
prenticeships were making ‘a high contribution relative to their wage costs’, said
the task force.
Honda had reported that it took two years to retrain someone trained by
another car manufacturer. Apprentices by contrast ‘quickly understood their
(Hondaj )company values and practices’.
Apprenticeships were also a ‘cost- effective way of replacing an ageing
workforce and ensuring the effective transfer of knowledge’, Xerox, the office
equipment group, told the task force
COMPREHENSION
1. Answer these questions.

1. Who is Mike Turner?
2. How much does BAE expect to save by training apprentices?
3. What three major advantages of recruiting apprentices are mentioned in
the task-force report?
4.How much did ВТsave?
5.When do apprentices make a productive contribution to a company?
6.Why does Honda like apprentices?
7.What are the two main benefits of apprenticeships, according to Xerox?
2. Match the words to form expressions from the article.

1. prime a). life
2. corporate b). shortage
3. working c). value
4. skill d). ladder
5. staff e). turnover
6. company f). example
FOLLOW UP
Discuss these questions.

1. Do you think experience on the job is more important than qualifications?
2. . Is it important for bank managers have a degree from a good university?
21
AUDIO SCRIPTS
Unit 1 Employment
1.1
Well, what usually happens is that an employer will advertise a vacancy or
new post – sometimes both inside and outside the company. Then, after they re-
ceive all the applications, they shortlist the candidates, choosing those who ap-
pear to meet their criteria. Next, they will assemble an interview panel and call
the candidates to an interview. Some employers choose to check references at this
stage to avoid delays later, while others wait until after the interview when they
have chosen one of the candidates. Provided the panel are happy, the employer
will make a job offer and the successful candidate starts work. Often they attend
induction sessions or are given a mentor who helps to train new staff.
1.2 (I = Interviewer, SK = Dr Simon Kingston)

I How do you identify and attract the best candidates for a particular job?
SK Well, the most important thing for us at the beginning is to have clear
and full briefing from our clients. So we spend a great deal of time talking to a
range of people in the client organization. And then, according to the sort of job
that we are seeking to fill, we will use three different sorts of method for identify-
ing candidates. One, the most obvious one, is advertisement in appropriate news-
papers or journals. The second is by asking for nominations from within our
client organization of appropriate candidates. And the third, and most labour in-
tensive for us, is our own, original research. And that will be derived from our
database, from talking to authoritative sources in the relevant market place, and
then from beginning to map the business sector in which we think we are most
likely to find good candidates. All three of those different methods of identifying
candidates will cross-reference, and ideally we’d like to find candidates who’re
sourced from each of the three areas. And sometimes, when we’re very fortunate,
we will find an individual who comes referred from each of the three approaches.
Unit 2 Quality
2.1 (I = Interviewer, MA = Mike Ashton)

I How do you define quality in business?
MA Delivering good quality is absolutely fundamentally important to any
business. I believe the best way to define quality is to look very closely at cus-
tomers’ expectations and then to look at the ability of a business to meet or ex-
ceed those expectations, consistently.
Customers generally place great trust in the ability of their favourite brands
or companies to address their requirements dependably, whether it be a soup
powder, a hotel room, or a massive conference facility. Our job in our business is
22
to make sure that our customers’ requirements are very clearly understood, and to
ensure that at every stage in the guest’s journey through our hotels, we are able to
address our guest’s needs smoothly, easily and efficiently.

I How should quality improvements be measured?
MA Well, as a general guide, I’d say quality improvements should be meas-
ured consistently over a period of time, and very accurately, so that everybody
believes in the reports and the figures that are circulated round an organisation.
But in three specific ways, we at Hilton measure the quality of our performance.
Every year we contact thousands of guests to understand just how satisfied they
are with all the important areas in our business, whether it be the way they arrive
and depart from a hotel, or the quality of their bedroom and the food that they eat.
We contact all of our team members, the people who work for us around the
world to understand how satisfied they are with the experience of working for
Hilton, their career development, and the training they receive. And finally we
look at how efficiently and consistently we deliver our own operational stan-
dards. So, if we for example say that no one should take longer than a couple of
minutes in a queue to be checked in our hotel, are we delivering that consistently
around the world? And we do that through mystery visits to all of our hotels. That
gives us guest satisfaction, operational efficiency and the satisfaction of our team
members, in all of our hotels around
the world.

I Does high quality mean high cost?
MA I guess it can do, but I think what’s more important is, is investment in
high quality, something that will pay dividends to a company, will it help to build
profitability? Certainly delivering good quality consistently is not something that
can be done without any cost to an organisation. Investment in good people, in
good training, in efficient practices and processes will always mean that there is
investment required. However, it should also be at the heart of delivering what
any organisations’ customers are looking for, and if they are satisfied, and if they
keep coming back as a result, then what should follow, is healthy revenues, and
even healthier profits, and that for me makes investment in quality something
that’s very affordable, in fact it’s absolutely essential.
Unit 3 Marketing Change
3.1 (I = Interviewer, RB = Richard Brown)

I How does Cognos analyse the character of a business?
23
RB Understanding the character or personality of a business is important be-

cause it shapes and defines everything the organization does and can do. So we
use a combination of four approaches. First, we study the tone and styleof the
company’s communications. Second, we interview the company’s top executives
in depth. Third, we conduct research, more broadly, across the company’s staff
and its customers. And finally, we’ll analyse the company’s internal documents.
That provides insight into how the business talks to itself. And when we’ve got
that sort of input we can classify a business as one of sixteen distinct character
types. And these handle aspects of change, innovation and relating to customers
in very different ways.

I Can you give an example of how a business changed its organization and
why?
RB Yeah. Many businesses try to change their organization – their culture –
and they do that to be better able to compete and grow. But it’s a very hard thing
to do. It’s often easier to change a business’s character by merging with or a
competitor. A good example of this was the merger of Guinness and Grand Met-
ropolitan in 1998. This created a twenty-three-billion-pound company, Diageo,
the world leader in spirits. The top team achieved a very substantial change in
culture by being very clear at the outset that it was creating a new and different
culture from the two companies that merged. And they did that by laying out a
very clear vision. They were very specific about how the new business would be
run. They laid out clear values and ways of working for staff and they backed this
up with a huge investment in staff training. This created a completely new culture
which has been hugely successful.

I Are some types of business organisation always more successful thn others?
RB Well, our research suggest that there are sixteen different types of orga-
nizational character, or culture. And no single type is consistently associated with
business success or market leadership. Having said that, we o find that particular-
ly successful companies tend to be similar in three ways. First, they’re future
oriented: they have a very clear sense of where they are headed. Second, they’re
customer-driven: they invest huge time and energy in understanding and respond-
ing to their markets. And third, they’re value-driven. By that I mean that people
inside the organization are very clear about the values that should guide their de-
cisions and behaviours – the principles by which the business is run.
Unit 4 Careers
4.1 (I = Interviewer, SK = Dr Simon Kingston)

24
I What advice would you give to someone planning an ambitious business

career?
SK I think there isn’t one single pattern for success in a business career. But
there are one or two things that are apparent and common themes in the careers of
a lot of successful people. One of those is an honest understanding of the individ-
ual’s own strengths and weaknesses, and that allows them, I think, both to plan
the sort of organisations in which they will work and which they are likely to
succeed; but also, very importantly, allows them to react rapidly but appropriately
to opportunities that are unplanned that present themselves. And I do think that’s
something that distinguishes really successful people from those who are average
in their professions. I do think one of the other characteristics that is apparent
amongst very successful business leaders is a curiosity that even thirty years in
the same sort of business doesn’t dilute or indeed destroy. At the very top of ma-
jor organisations, people like Sir John Browne, now Lord Browne, at BP, say has
meant he has been engaged in a very similar sort of activity for the whole of his
career – he demonstrates real interest in innovation and also an open-mindedness
about the structure of the industry that he leads and how it ought to consider its
role and indeed the very essence of what it does in the future. That ability to re-
main interested in the core essence of one’s business is, I think, something that
distinguishes the successful. Many of the rest of us lesser mortals get bored very
easily, or lose the ability to spot the interest and to sustain motivation and mo-
mentum on the strength of it.
25
СПИСОК ИСПОЛЬЗОВАННОЙ ЛИТЕРАТУРЫ
1. Bethell G., Aspinall B. Test Your Business Vocabulary in Use / G. Be-

thell, T. Aspinall. – Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. – 101 p.
2. Cotton D., Falvey D., Kent S. Market Leader. Intermediate Business English
Practice file / D. Cotton, D.Falvey, S. Kent – Harlow: Longman, 2005. – 125 p.
3. Cotton D. Falvey D. Kent S. New Edition Market Leader. Intermediate
Business English Course book / D. Cotton, D.Falvey, S. Kent. – Harlow: Long-
man, 2010. – 169 p.
4. Cotton D. Falvey D. Kent S. Market Leader. Intermediate Business Eng-
lish Course book / D. Cotton, D.Falvey, S. Kent. – Harlow: Longman, 2005. –
176 p.
5. Emmerson P. Business Grammar Builder / P. Emmerson. – New York:
Macmillan Publishing Limited, 2002. – 273 p.
6. Evans V. Successful Writing Proficiency / V. Evans. – Newbury: Express
Publishing, 1998. – 160 p.
7. Flinders S. Test Your Professional English. Business: General / S. Flind-
ers. – London: Pearson Education limited, 2002. – 114 p.
8. Flinders S. Test Your Professional English. Business: Intermediate /
S. Flinders. – London: Pearson Education limited, 2002. – 106 p.
9. Hollett V. Business Opportunities / V. Hollett.– Oxford: Oxford Univer-
sity Press, 2002. – 192 p.
10. McKellen J.S. Test Your Business English. General Usage / J. S. McKell-
en. – New York: Penguin, 1990. – 95 p.
11. Mascull B. Business Vocabulary in Use. Intermediate. / B. Mascull. –
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. – 172 p.
12. Mascull B. Market Leader. Intermediate Business English Teacher’s
Resource Book / B. Mascull. – London: Pearson Education limited, 2005. –
213 p.
13. Mascull B., Wright L. Market Leader. Pre-Intermediate Business Eng-
lish Teacher’s Resource Book / B. Mascull, L. Wright. – London: Pearson Educa-
tion limited, 2007 . – 157 p.
14. Mascull B. Market Leader. New Edition. Intermediate Business English
Teacher’s Resource Book / B. Mascull. – London: Pearson Education limited,
2006. – 213 p.
15. Rogers J. New Edition Market Leader. Intermediate Business English
Practice File / J. Rogers. – London: Longman, 2010. – 110 p.
16. Sweeney S. Test Your Professional English: Marketing / S. Sweeney. –
London: Pearson Education limited, 2002. – 114 p.
26
СПИСОК ИСПОЛЬЗОВАННЫХ ИНТЕРНЕТ-РЕСУРСОВ
http://www. BrainyQuote.com
http://www. WorldofQuotes.com
http://www.ft.com
http://www.economist.com
http://www.howabout.com
http://www.bestsampleresume.com
http://www.guardian.co. uk
27
Учебное издание
FOCUS ON
BUSINESS ENGLISH
Part 1
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3. Discuss these statements.

The recruitment process

1.Complete the text using the following words or word combinations:

2. Match the verbs (1 to 6 ) to the nouns (a to f) to make word partner-

1. Discuss these questions before you read the article.

Motivating High-Calibre Staff

An organization’s capacity to identify, attract and retain high-quality, high-

ested in them as people but only as high-performing commodities, it is hardly be

1. Answer the questions.

3. Look at each sentence. Would you find it in a Situations Vacant section

What are the advantages and the disadvantages of :

1. Number these events in order in which they most probably happened.

2. Choose three items which can complete the sentences below.

3. Complete the definitions.

3. If you a problem, you do something to make sure the

2.1 Mike Ashton is Senior Vice President of Hilton Hotels International.

Fierce Competition Result in Better Quality

cars six years ago

2. Are the statements about the expressions in italics true or false?

2. Choose the best word or phrase to fill each gap.

3. Complete each sentence by writing the correct word in each gap.

1. Richard Brown is the managing partner of Cognosis, a management

1. What four approaches does Cognosis use to analyse a

1. Discuss these questions.

Marketing: Investors Adapt to Consumer Trends

From the Financial Times

b). Coke needs to inform customers about its

whole product range.

c). Unfortunately, if companies do not change,

they will find it very difficult to survive.

d). If customers fail to recognise Coke’s whole

range of products, the company will face

e). Advertisements for healthy products are

f). The campaign is well timed, as people want

more healthy products.?

g). Many companies are benefiting from a bigger

2. Match the terms (1-8) to their definitions (a-e).

1. tactics a). seen or believed to be

2. slogan b). Make someone

4. Perceive das c). Change or modify

5. Impress upon something

6. adapt d). the centre or heart of

8. suffering e). a saying to catch your

f). doing badly, failing

h). dropping or rejecting

1. Do you have training schemes in your country?

Listen to the interview again and complete the summary below.

1. Discuss these questions.

3. Article 1: Retail Banking: Appeal of the Softer Side

1. Choose the correct meaning for the word in italics.

Article 2: Cost-effective route to create future managers

Mike Turner, chief executive of BAE Systems, Europe’s biggest defence

Companies, even in industries such as construction and engineering, where

1. Answer these questions.