Communicative skills. Habilidades comunicativas en inglés...

Communicative skills.Habilidades comunicativas eninglés para los negociosAutor: Rachel - RLanguages

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Presentación del curso

Los negocios en inglés, negociar en inglés...Este capítulo intenta ser una manerainteresante y estimulante de acercamiento al inglés que se necesita en contextos denegocios. Ofrece una visión general de Business English para alumnos ya todavíano han entrado a formar parte de la vida laboral o para aquéllos que ya trabajan ytienen experiencia en medios de negocios.

Ofrece información práctica y necesaria para afrontar diferentes situaciones en elmundo de los negocios así como brinda la oportunidad a practicar la lectura y el usode la lengua. Contiene una gran variedad de vocabulario en inglés y apuntesgramaticales en inglés.

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1. Coming into contact. Entrar en contacto en inglés

“All things are difficult before they are easy”

LEAD-IN thinking....

Imagine you meet some business people at a faire for the first time. Which of the following subjects areconsidered to be:

Safeconversation killersa bit risky

INTRODUCTION

Knowing people for the first time can be risky not only because there might be cultural differences between youand the others but also because first impressions last.

In a business context, when we meet someone for the first time, it is very important to use the appropriatelanguage and to be aware of the diplomatic protocol to follow. In other words, it is necessary to know the set ofrules for the correct performance on different formal occasions.

In this unit we are going to practice how to give our best through language performance when greeting someone,introducing people, giving and asking for personal details and trying to keep a conversation going.

Before that, let’s have a look at some tips related to more cultural and behavioural matters:

For more on:

- BODY LANGUAGE: http:// l ibrary.thinkquest.org/26618/en-3.4.1=meeting.htm

- CULTURAL AWARENESS:http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/culture-tests.html

- COLOURS: http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/mbas-guide/its-all- in-the-hues-that-you-choose-687468.html

GREETINGS

BASIC Useful language:

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http://library.thinkquest.org/26618/en-3.4.1=meeting.htm

http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/culture-tests.html

http://www.independent.co.uk/student/postgraduate/mbas-guide/its-all-in-the-hues-that-you-choose-687468.html



INTRODUCING PEOPLE

BASIC Useful language

Note that when we introduce ourselves in English we use the first person subject pronoun (I) whereas when we

Want to introduce someone else; we use demonstrative pronouns (this/these).

Activity 1.

Read this dialogue and fill-in the gaps with most suitable word:

Nick: Hi, Nick.

Emma: Hi, I’m Emma. I’m a of Frank.

Nick: Yes I know, I work with him. Let me you his sister. She’s here for the weekend. Julie, is Emma. She’s afriend of Frank.

Julie: Hi, Emma. Nice to you.

Emma: Hi! Nice to meet you, too. Frank has told me a lot about you...

PERSONAL DETAILS

When meeting people for the first time, we might be interested in some personal details from the other and

vice-versa. Personal details can go from the name to the job position. Later on, we’ll get deeply on talking aboutjob positions and responsibilities. Let’s have a look now to some very basic and general expressions:

KEEPING A CONVERSATION GOING

If we want to keep a conversation going, we can use follow-up questions. They are questions used to expressyour interest on what the other person is saying and also to find out more information.

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Look at this example:

A: I’ve lived here for five years now.

B: Oh, really? Where did you live before?

Also, question tags are a good strategy to keep a conversation going. Note that the intonation we use in questiontags can affect its purpose. If we do not know the answer and are asking for clarification, then we use a risingintonation (our voice goes up). However, if we know the answer and are simply asking for the listener to agreewith us, then we use falling intonation (our voice goes down).

We can ask short question immediately after hearing something, in order to show interest and ask for moreinformation as well. This is what we refer to as reply questions.

Look at this example:

A: It’s my birthday today.

B: Is it? Congratulations.

Remember, when giving your personal details and trying to keep a conversation going,

SMILE and keep good EYE CONTACT, conversations will then last longer! !

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Activity 2.

Imagine you are speaking to someone at a conference. Use these ideas to make questions using question tags.

Example: a. John’s a nice guy, isn’t he?

a. John / nice guy

b. He / not live in London

c. presentation /great

d. you / give a talk

Try practice saying these sentences with the different intonations seen before.

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2. The office. La oficina en inglés

“Actions speak louder than words”

LEAD-IN Thinking...

Try to answer these questions:

-What do you know about these international companies?

-In your view, is it better to work for a large or a small company?

INTRODUCTION

How many times did you have to introduce yourself and your job responsibilitiesand you were not able to say a word? Have you ever needed to present yourcompany, its organization and structure, and couldn’t do it because you lacked thevocabulary and expressions required to do so?

In this unit we are going to work on different aspects in order to be fluent whentalking about your company and your job. We will practice how to describe theprofile and organization of a company, how to talk about job titles, roles,responsibilities and work, and how to detail personal qualities.

First of all, let’s have a look at some useful language about what you can say or youmight hear in situations of this context.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

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COMPANY PROFILE

The profile of a company is, generally talking, a concise description which, amongother items of information, includes firm's history, number and quality of its human,financial, and physical resources, organizational and management structure, past,current and anticipated performance, and its reputation, and the standing of itsgoods or services.

This information can be given by the company in itself or can be checked on thecompany’s website. This information can be public to anyone interested in thecompany.

The information provided in the company profile, can be different from onecompany to another depending on its size, product-service and culture.

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Activity1.

Try to write the profile of your company according to this template. Remember itconsists on concise information so don’t write long sentences nor give too muchinformation.

COMPANY ORGANIZATION

Describing the organization of a company can be sometimes difficult if the companyis a very big one.

The organization of a company is all the formal and informal framework of policiesand rules, within which an organization arranges its lines of authority andcommunications, and allocates rights and duties.

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Organizational structure determines the manner and extent to which roles, power,and responsibilities are delegated, controlled, and coordinated, and howinformation flows between levels of management. This structure depends entirelyon the organization's objectives and the strategy chosen to achieve them.

In a centralized structure, the decision making power is concentrated in the toplayer of the management and tight control is exercised over departments anddivisions. In a decentralized structure, the decision making power is distributedand the departments and divisions have varying degrees of autonomy. In theseterms we can talk about:

- Hierarchical organizations: common, pyramid-like organization where oneperson is in charge of a functional area (engineering, finance, marketing) with one ormore subordinates handling the sub-functions. In a hierarchical organization(whether business, military, political, or religious) higher levels imply greatersuperiority and domination than the lower ones, and the chain of command extendsstraight from the top to the bottom.

- Flat organization: organizational structure where most middle-managementlevels and their functions have been eliminated, thus bringing the top managementin direct contact with the frontline salespeople, shop floor employees, andcustomers.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

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DESCRIBING ROLES & REPSONSIBILITIES

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Mind the propositions used in these expressions.

Activity 2.

Match the parts of these sentences to complete the different expressions fordescribing responsibilities.

When describing our job and our responsibilities we often use the verb to work. Thisverb, combined with different prepositions, has different meanings.

Activity 3

Fill-in the gaps of these sentences with the appropriate prepositions (you may needa dictionary):

a. I work ________ a large international company.

b. I work ________ the sales department.

c. The colleagues I work __________ are very supportive.

d. I work mainly ___________ our London office.

e. At the moment I’m working __________ a big project.

f. I have to work _________ very tight deadlines.

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g. I work ___________ Jane and Sara in Marketing.

e. I am now working __________ Marketing manager Sophia Pawle in WebDesign, a young department.

f. I work _________ Head of HR __________ Landmart.

DESCRIBING

PERSONAL QUALITIES

Which of the following personal qualities best describe you?

Remember to use active verbs when talking about

your job and your personal qualities. For more on active verbs see ANNEX I

Activity 4

The word below has five syllables and the third syllable is the stressed one.

Now, take the example “analytic” answer these two questions:

a) How many syllables does the word have?

b) Where is the main stress?

Yes, it has four syllables and the third one is again the stressed one. According tothis, its stress pattern would be:

Now, look at these words and write each of them in the correct column belowbearing in mind their stress patterns:

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Creative

Efficiency

Methodical

Flexible

Reliable

Confident

Determined

Well-organized

Sociable

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3. At work. En el trabajo en inglés

“Work won’t kill but worry will”

LEAD IN Thinking....

o How well do you know your office?

Try to answer these questions:

a. Where are the toilets?

b. Is there a subsidized canteen?

c. Do you have a company car as a perk?

d. Do you work in cubicle desks or in an open-space office?

e. Is health insurance part of the fringe benefits of your job?

INTRODUCTION

Apart from describing an organization, roles and responsibilities and personalqualities, it is very important to be able to talk about the job conditions as well as toshow someone around the office. This is what we are going to try to deal with in thisunit.

WORKING CONDITIONS

People rights at work will depend on:

Statutory rights -legal rights based on laws passed by Parliament-, andContract of employment-agreement made between the employer and theemployee-.

Your contract of employment cannot take away rights you have by law. So if, forexample, you have a contract which states you are only entitled to two weeks' paidholiday per year when, by law, all full-time employees are entitled to 28 days' paidholiday per year, this part of your contract is void and does not apply. The right youhave under law (to 28 days' holiday in this case) applies instead.

If your contract gives you greater rights than you have under law, for example, yourcontract gives you six weeks' paid holiday per year, then your contract applies.

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Besides working rights, people usually can take advantage of different benefits fromtheir jobs. These benefits take in payment, extra pays, insurances and so.

Activity 1.

Match the words from one column to words on the other column to come upwith the right collocations related to work.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

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Mind the difference:

- WAGE: an amount of money that you earn for working, usually according tohow many hours or days you work each week or month

- SALARY: a fixed amount of money that you earn each month or year fromyour job

- PAYSLIP: a piece of paper that you get from your employer when you are paid,showing how much money you have earned and how much tax has been taken away

TYPES OF WORK

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Try to find the opportunity to discuss about these questions:

- Which of these ways of working do you think will become more common in thefuture?

- Which of these ways of working would you welcome?

USEFUL LANGUAGE

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SHOWING AROUND

Many times, someone might visit your office or your factory and you have to showthem around. They might be new employees, prospective clients, someone fromhead office or just an official inspector. If you are responsible for taking thesepeople on a tour, you might want to make sure that everything goes smoothly.

Activity 2.

Read this text describing the layout of an office and answer the question: Where is the General Manager’s office?

The reception area:The reception area stretches the whole front of the building. Thelift is just behind i t on the right-hand side of the building.

The lift:The lift is behind the reception area and the conference room. It’s doorsopen on the main corridor. It is opposite the ladies’ room.

The main corridor: It runs down the centre of the building from the reception areaat the front to the staff restaurant at the back.

The conference room:It is between the lift and the Production Department on theright-hand side of the building. All the important meetings take place here.

The Accounts Department:It is beside the Production Department, and across thecorridor from the After-Sales Service Department.

The After-Sales service Department:It is between the visitors-meeting room and theSales and Marketing Department on the left-hand side of the building.

The visitors-meeting room:It is between the Gents’ and the After-Sales ServiceDepartment.

The HR Department (Human Resources):It is just in front of the staff restaurant.

The R&D Department (Research and Development): It is between the Sales andMarketing Department and the HR Department, on the left-hand side of the maincorridor.

The Production Department:It is situated between the conference room and theAccounts Department. It is opposite the visitors-meeting room and After-Sales.

The Sales and Marketing Department:It is located between R&D and After-SalesService.

The Gents’:It is opposite the conference room, between the Ladies’ room and thevisitors-meeting room.

The Ladies’:It is just behind the reception area on the left-hand side of the maincorridor. The Gents’ is just behind i t.

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The Staff Restaurant:It stretches all the way across the back of the building at thefar end of the main corridor. It is quite large and modern.

Pay attention to the words and phrases in bold!!!

The General Manager’s office is ________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________

Activity 3.

Write the name of each room described above in this floor plant:

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4. Events and meetings. Eventos y encuentros eninglés

“Prevention is better than cure”

LEAD IN thinking....

SMALL TALK

Small Talk is a conversation about trivia matters, and we usually make small talkwith people we don’t know very well.

There are basically three techniques to help to keep the conversation going:

Asking follow-up questionsUsing question tagsAsking reply questions

Tip for success:

To get on well in conversation, it’s important to be good listener.

Listen carefully and respond to what you hear, showing interest and askingquestions for more information.

Here is a list of common small talk subjects.

Sports - current matches or games, favorite teams, etc.HobbiesWeather - boring, but can get the ball rolling!Family - general questions, not questions about private mattersMedia - films, books, magazines, etc.Holidays - where, when, etc. but NOT how much!

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Home town - where do you come from, how is it different/similar to this townJob - once again, general questions not too specificLatest fashion and trendsCelebrities - any gossip you may have!

Here is a list of topics that probably aren't very good for small talk.

Salary – “how much do you make? - That's none of your business!”Politics - wait to you get to know the person betterIntimate relationships - only for you and your partner - or maybe your bestfriendReligion - tolerance is the key!Death - we need to face it, but not the first time we meet someone newFinancial - related to salary above, most people prefer to keep financialinformation to themselvesSales - Don't try to sell something to someone you have just met.

If you have difficulties speaking about any of these topics, try to improveyour vocabulary by using the resources available to you(Internet, magazines,teachers at school, etc.)

In other words, if you want to be successful at making small talk, you should:

Do some research

Spend time on the Internet, reading magazines, or watching TV specials about thetype of people you are going to meet.

Stay away from religion/strong political beliefs

While you may believe in something very strongly, beginning conversations andmaking small talk about your own personal convictions may abruptly end theconversation. Keep it light, don't try to convince the other person that you have the'correct' information about a higher being, political system or other belief system.

Use the Internet to gain specific vocabulary

This is related to doing research about other people. If you have a business meeting,or are meeting people who share a common interest (a basketball team, a tourgroup interested in art, etc.), take advantage of the Internet to learn specificvocabulary. Almost all businesses and interest groups have glossaries on theInternet explaining the most important jargon related to their business or activity.

Be aware of culture

It is very important to be aware of what is acceptable or normal in different culturalcontexts.

Find common interests

Once you have a subject that interests both of you, keep to it!

Listen

This is very important. Don't get so worried about being able to communicate thatyou don't listen. Listening carefully will help you understand and encourage thosespeaking to you. You might be nervous, but letting others state their opinions will

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improve the quality of the discussion - and give you time to think of an answer!

Activity 1

Read these conversations and decide whether the speakers are good at makingsmall talk or not, and why.

Glen: Hi, I’m Glen.

Mark: Hi I’m Mark. I’m a friend of Mary’s.

Glen: Me too. So, how do you know Mary?

Mark: We go to the same gym.

Glen: Oh, I see. How ling have you been going to the same gym?

Mark: Nearly a year.

Glen: Wow! Are you enjoying it?

Mark: It’s OK. It’s easier to go with someone else than on your own.

Glen: Sounds good! I should be doing the same. Anyway, great party,isn’t it?

MEETINGS

There is no secret for successful meetings. A good preparation and carefulorganization will make a meeting run smoothly.

In a business context, Time is money.

Meetings sometimes run for too long.

How to avoid that?

Setting goals and timings,

Sticking to the agenda and

Knowing how to keep track and focus,

may be some of the key aspects of effective meetings.

Let’s now focus on the different parts of preparing and holding a meeting:

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1. Calling a Meeting

USEFUL LANGUAGE

There are different ways that you may call or be called to a meeting.

Meetings can be announced by e-mai l or posted on bulletin boards.

Meetings can also be announced at the end of another meeting; in this case, it isimportant to issue a reminder.

A reminder can also come in the form of an e-mail or notice.

Announcements or reminders can also be verbal – documented ones should alwaysback these up.

The date, location, time, length, and purpose of the meeting should be included,as well as who exactly is expected to attend, and who is not.

2. Writing an Agenda

An agenda is used to keep the meeting on task and within the set amount of time.

The agenda should:

- indicate the order of items,

- estimate the amount of time that each item will take,

- indicate whose turn it is to "have the floor".

Many times, forwarding the agenda to attendees before the meeting can be veryuseful.

3. Allocating roles

The person responsible for calling and holding a meeting will decide to allocatecertain roles to other staff members. Someone may be called upon to take theminutes , someone may be asked to do roll call, and someone may be asked to

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speak on a certain subject.

Remember: If you are planning on allocating someone to take on a certainrole, make personal contact with that person to inform them of their duty. This canbe done either in person, or by e-mail.

4. Opening a Meeting

Small Talk

Whether you are holding the meeting or attending the meeting it is polite to makesmall talk while you wait for the meeting to start. You should discuss thingsunrelated to the meeting, such as weather, family, or weekend plans.

Welcome

Once everyone has arrived, the chairperson, or whoever is in charge of the meetingshould formally welcome everyone to the meeting and thank the attendees forcoming.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Roll Call/Apologies

If the meeting is a small group, it is probably unnecessary to do roll calls. Theperson who is taking the minutes should know everyone personally and can indicatewho is present and who is absent. In a larger meeting, it may be necessary to sendaround an attendance sheet or call out names. If an important figure is absent, itmay be necessary for the chairperson to apologize for their absence and offer a briefexplanation for it.

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USEFUL LANGUAGE

Objectives

Some people who hold meetings prefer to pass around copies of the agenda, andothers will post a large copy on a wall, or use an overhead projector. No matterwhich format is used, attendees should be able to follow the agenda as the meetingprogresses. Before beginning the first main item on the agenda, the speaker shouldprovide a brief verbal outline the objectives.

5. Following the Agenda

Taking the Minutes

Often someone who is not participating in the meeting will be called upon to be theminute-taker, but anyone can be assigned to write them.

Before a meeting the minute-taker should review the following:

The minutes from previous meeting.All of the names of the attendees, only when possible.The items on the agenda.Also, creating an outline before going to the meeting may be helpful. Anoutline should include the following:The title of the meeting.The location and date of the meeting.A blank spot to write the time the meeting started and ended.The name of the chairperson.A list of attendees that can be checked off (or a blank list for attendees to sign)A blank spot for any attendees who arrive late or leave early

Watching the Time

One of the most difficult things about holding an effective meeting is staying withinthe time limits.

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Remember: Time is Money.

A good agenda will outline how long each item should take.

A good chairperson will do his or her best to stay within the limits.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Regaining Focus

It is easy to get off topic. It is the chairperson's responsibility to keep the discussionfocused. Here are some expressions to keep the meeting centered on the items asthey appear on the agenda.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Voting

When issues cannot be resolved or decisions cannot be easily made, they are oftenput to a vote.

Votes can be open, where people raise their hands in favor or in opposition of theissue. In an open vote, the results are evident immediately. Other votes, such as whoshould be elected to take on a certain role, are private or Votes can be closed orprivate, where attendees fill out ballots and place them in a box to be counted. Theresults may not be counted until after the meeting.

USEFUL LANGUAGE:

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Comments and Feedback

During the meeting, participants

will comment, provide feedback, orask questions.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

6. Closing a Meeting

Wrapping Up

There are different reasons why a meeting comes to an end.

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Time may run out, or all of the items in the agenda may be checked off.

Some meetings will end earlier than expected and others will run late.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Reminders

There is almost always one last thing to say, even after the closing remarks.

A chairperson might close the meeting and then make a last-minute reminder.

Instructions for tidying up the room may also be mentioned.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Thank You's and Congratulations

The end of the meeting is also the time to thank anyone who has not been thankedat the beginning of the meeting, or anyone who deserves a second thank you.

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Congratulations or Good-luck can also be offered here to someone who hasexperienced something new, such as receiving a promotion, getting married, orhaving a baby.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Follow Up

In the closing remarks, the chairperson, or participants may want to discuss the dateand time for the next meeting, when the minutes will be available, or when adecision should be made by. This is also the time to give contact information, suchas how to send a question by e-mail or who to call regarding a certain issue.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Activity 2

To check if all this information related to meetings has been understood, try andanswer this:

Are the following sentences true or false?

The person who is in charge of the meeting is the person who takes theminutes.

1 .

The best way to call a meeting is to inform each participant individually byphone.

2 .

An agenda should outline the order and amount of time to spend on each itemat the meeting.

3 .

Engaging in small talk throughout the meeting is an effective way to keep thefocus.

4 .

When someone agrees with a motion it is "seconded".5 .The person who is speaking during a meeting is the person who "has the floor".6 .A polite way to indicate that you want to make a comment during a meeting isto say: "If I could just come in here..."

7 .

When there is a tie vote, it is customary for the chairperson to ask oneparticipant to reconsider his/her decision.

8 .

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During the closing remarks, the person holding the meeting should introducenew staff members or guest speakers.

9 .

Reminders are typically announced after all of the items on the agenda havebeen covered

10.

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5. Products and services. Productos y servicios eninglés

“Never write an advertisement which you wouldn't want your family to read. Youwouldn't tell lies to your own wife. Don't tell them to mine.” ~David Ogilvy

LEAD IN thinking....

SWOT analysis is a simple framework for generating strategic alternatives from asituation analysis. It is applicable to either the corporate level or the business unitlevel and frequently appears in marketing plans.

SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

Because it concentrates on the issues that potentially have the most impact, theSWOT analysis is useful when a very limited amount of time is available to address acomplex strategic situation. (From: http://www.netmba.com/strategy/swot/)

Write notes about your own company or a product and market.

To help you, you can follow this template:

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INTRODUCTION

In this unit we are going to talk about products, services and marketing. Product isone of the famous ‘4 Ps’ of marketing (the others being Price, Place and Promotion).Product does not only refer to manufactured goods but also to the services relatedto that product. Packaging and the marketing of the product are very important, aswell. From the point of view of the product’s end-user, it is also essential to takecustomer support into account.

Furthermore, we’ll see how important and useful the SWOT analysis is and we’llintroduce the Maslow’s marketing filter.

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MARKETING

According to the Macmillan Online Dictionary(http://www.macmillandictionary.com/): Marketing is the way in which a companyencourages to buy its products by deciding on price, type of customer, andadvertising policy.

Other definitions are(http://www.marketingteacher.com/Lessons/lesson_what_is_marketing.htm):

- Marketing is the social process by which individuals and groups obtain what theyneed and want through creating and exchanging products and value with others – byKotler.

-Marketing is the management process that identifies, anticipates and satisfiescustomer requirements profitably – by The Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM).The CIM definition looks not only at identifying customer needs, but also satisfyingthem (short-term) and anticipating them in the future (long-term retention).

The right product, in the right place, at the right time, at the right price – by Adcock.

This is a snappy and realistic definition that uses McCarthy's Four Ps.

But what are the 4 Ps of marketing? This is what we know as the marketing mix: thecombination of activities required to ensuring good sales. The 4 Ps stand for ProductProduct (such as brand recognition), Price (such as profit margin), Place (such as retail shopsretail shops) and Promotion (such as free samples).

Each of these ideas can also be seen from a consumer’s perspective. In this way,Product converts into Customer Solution, Price into Cost, Place into Convenience,and Promotion into Communication. These are the 4 Cs. And this relates to theconcept of mix coherence; or, in other words, how well the components of the mixare blended together.

The mix dynamics refers to how the mix is adapted to a changing businessenvironment, to changes in the organization’s resources, and to changes in theproduct life cycle.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

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Activity 1.

Match each of the elements of the 4 Ps to their correspondent elements of the4 Cs.

The Maslow’s Marketing Filter:

One of the basics of all marketing and advertising training is a teaching of "Maslow'sneeds pyramid". This pyramid shows the different motivators and needs in aperson's life and how they are built one upon the other. Supposedly this is presentedto help the marketing student understand consumer motivation and thinking.

Maslow's needs pyramid present human needs such that each need is pursued andmet before the next level of needs can be considered; they build upon one another.The needs from most basic to most complex are:

physiological needs: food, shelter, sexsafety needs: clothing, weapons, defense of selfsocial needs: social acceptanceesteem needs: acceptance of self by selffulfillment needs: a feeling of having and fulfilling a purpose

For more: search on the net for the keywords “marlow’s marketing filter”.

An interesting link is: http://www.businessmarketing360.com/Articles/9000.php

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MARKETING TECHNIQUES

Activity 2.

Read the definitions (1-6) below and match each of them to one of thesemarketing techniques. The first one has been done for you.

Definitions:

1. using electronic media like mails or SMS to promote products.

2. promoting products to target costumers, for example, through addresed mail

3. persuading people to buy a product or service by announcing it on TV, radio, orin other media.

4. marketing that spreads from consumer to consumer, often online.

5. marketing in which consumers do not realize they are being marketed to.

6. putting products or references to products in media like films or video games.

PRODUCT

When developing a new product, a company needs to bear in mind a wide range offactors:

the origin of any new product ideas: customer? sales staff?the fit with the existing product linemanufacturing questions such as ‘how difficult will it be to make this newproduct with our existing equipment?’pricing, distribution and promotion

When the finished product is finally ready to be on the market, sales staff will needto know:

its functions, or in other words, what is doesits features and specifications

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its customer benefitspossibilities for customizationhow it compares with competitor’s products

Activity 3.

Read the information on two different products and then complete the productspecification summaries:

1. The printer is 40.5 cm ______ and 30 cm ______. It is 15 cm ______. When emptythe printer_____ 2 kg.

2. The mobile phone is 8.5 cm in ______ and 4.5 cm in _____ and 1.5 in _____. Its______ is 500 g.

Pay attention to the form of the words in bold:

the ones about the printer take the noun the ones about he mobile phone take the adjective

Pay attention also to the verb to weigh and its noun form, weight.

Use can use both forms indistinctively as long as you stick to the same form.

Now, let’s have a look at some nouns and the compound adjectives they usuallycollocate with.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

CUSTOMER SERVICE

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When we talk about ‘customer service’ we refer to pre-sales (enquiries), sales itself(including order processing) and post-sales (returns, complaints, etc.). When we talkabout ‘customer support’ we refer mainly to post-sales only. We can talk about‘ customer relationships’ to talk about both aspects.

Activity 4.

Look at these aspects of customer relations and categorise them according towhether they are:

a. something companies look for in the relationship

b. something customers look for in the relationship

c. both

Read this text from The Economist.com. Which problems related to customerrelations are mentioned?

Face value Giving people what they want

May 8th 2003From The Economist print editionCompanies are still failing to put their customers first, says Shoshana Zuboff

YOU know the feeling all too well. Some widget in your home computer expires.Result: it no longer talks to your printer. You telephone the PC maker's helpdesk,only to enter a maze of “press nine for immediate assistance” and “your call isimportant to us”. After 15 minutes of nasty music, a voice tells you to call adifferent number: that particular widget is their responsibility, not ours. Eventually, anew widget is said to have been shipped to you. Two weeks and many phone callslater, it has not arrived. You throw the PC away and start again.

Life is full of experiences such as these, curiously removed from the silverypromises of television advertisements and the salesman behind the counter. Achasm now separates individuals and firms, she says, and that gap is the next bigbusiness opportunity. People yearn for support to help them through life'scomplexities and those moments when the promise of reliability turns sour.

The book has plenty of tales of how firms fail to give consumers the service theyhave promised. All the talk is of nurturing customer relationships; the reality is thefrantic woman dashing from one airline's gate to another, trying to get on to a flighthome and finding one cancellation after another and sullen, unhelpful staff. When

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firms cut costs, they often do so in ways that upset consumers: they put pressure onfrontline staff who handle complaints, shaving seconds off the time each call-centreoperative is allowed to spend on a pacifying call; or they squeeze up prices in waysthat turn what looked like a good deal into a lousy one, the moment something goesawry; or they use customers' data to pretend to an intimacy and understanding oftheir needs that does not really exist.

Promises, promises

The difficulty begins with companies promising customers support that they cannotdeliver. As Miss Zuboff says, electronic networks mean that firms now know moreabout their customers than ever before. So they believe that they can treatcustomers as individuals, even if, partly for cost reasons, they continue to massproduce for them. Meanwhile, customers' expectations have risen: a legacy, notleast, of the internet bubble. They want choice, reliability and to be looked after asindividuals. This is, after all, what the advertising promises. All those pledges toremember, next time you check into a hotel, whether you like a soft pillow or a hardone: they have an impact.

Every manufacturer these days wants to offer service as a distinguishingcharacteristic; and every service business wants to build relationships with itscustomers, because it knows that retaining existing customers costs far less thanrecruiting new ones. But providing services turns out to be expensive and complex.Outsourcing services, whether a bank outsources its credit-card business or a hotelits reservations, is harder to manage than outsourcing the manufacture of chips ortyres. Gaps appear through which customers slip when something goes wrong.Besides, the prices of many goods have been falling; but the cost of services,including the helpdesk, continue to rise. And the more reliable goods become, thefewer customers need help—and the more redundant (and expensive) the helpdeskseems to be.

But does the solution really lie in new corporate structures and new businesses,designed to support customers in trouble with their airline or computer company?That depends on whether consumers are willing to pay for support. If they arenot—which many firms fear—support will remain a cost with no matching benefit, atconstant risk of being squeezed.

From The Economist

Activity 5

To check your understanding, choose the best answer A or B, for each question:

1. What is the purpose of the story in the first paragraph?

a. to criticise the speed at which companies respond

b. to complain about unsatisfactory customer care

2. What does the writer say is the result of the difference between promises andreality in the second paragraph?

a. there is an opening for businesses to exploit

b. consumers now have low expectations of customer service

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3. What effect do budget cutbacks have on the way companies service theircustomers?

a. less personal attention is given to customers with problems

b. products become more unreliable than before

4. What is the effect of new technology on customer relationship mentioned inparagraph 4?

a. companies treat each customer differently

b. companies think they can offer a better service than is in fact possible

5. What incentive is there for companies to provide a customer helpdesk?

a. customers are prepared to pay extra for after-sales service when theybuy a product

b. keeping the customers they already have happy is more cost-effectivethan finding new customer

USEFUL LANGUAGE

CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

CRM (customer relationship management) is the integration of marketing, sales andafter-sales service within an organisation.

Its purpose is to maximise the profitability of customer relationships.

CRM applications allow companies to be different from their competitors.

Central to CRM are information systems.

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Key areas include:

marketing automationsales automationcustomer service

CRM systems delivered over the Internet are the norm, permitting efficientcommunication between users.

For more:

search on the Internet for the keywords ‘golden rules of customer support’ and‘customer relationship management’

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6. Buying and selling. Comprar y vender en inglés

When buying and selling are controlled by legislation, the first things to be boughtand sold are legislators.

P. J. O’Rourke- US humorist & political commentator

LEAD IN Thinking...

Cold calling is, according to the Macmillan Dictionary on-line, an unexpectedtelephone call or visit by someone trying to sell something.

Think about these questions:

What is you reaction when you receive a cold-call?What are the problems of this selling technique for the sellers?When is it recommended to cold-call prospective customers?What advice would you give to a cold-caller?

INTRODUCTION

Modern selling is about life, people, business, communications, behaviour,personality and psychology, self-awareness, attitude and belief. Selling is aboutunderstanding how people, organisations, processes and relationships work, andenabling good outcomes. Selling is the final link of marketing in itself. It is thepersonal contact between the salesperson and the customer that actually producesbusiness. Thus, buying and selling are two issues very interrelated one to the other.

Understanding prices and delivery dates as well as being able to make and acceptoffers, apart from emotional intelligence skills, are key points in order to succeed inbuying or selling. And this is what we are going to be dealing with in this unit.

BUYING

Buying is a critical function. If, as a buyer, you can get involved with your own salespeople this will make a difference. Bear in mind that when buying anything youshould be aware of the principles and techniques of effective negotiation. It is likelythat the person selling to you will be using them, so even if you do not wish toadopt the approach and methods concerned, it's as well that you be able torecognise the tactics.

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As a buyer, understanding prices is a must. Price is different from cost. The termsare often interchanged in business, which can lead to confusion in negotiations. Thekey rule is that 'price' is only one of the elements that makes up 'cost'.

USEFUL LANGUAGE

Activity1.

Write the missing words in this text (from www.businessballs.com):

SELLING

Imagine you have a product to sell in anew market. What kind of language wouldyou use and what would your ultimate goals be? Do you want to establish along-term customer base or do you want to sell your product as quickly as possible?

In terms of selling we could name to main techniques: the hard sell and the soft sell.

The hard sell technique is more sales-orientated whereas the soft sell is more

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orientated towards customers. Let’s have a look at how to approach thesetechniques.

The hard sell approach uses every effort to convince a customer to buy a product,by doing the following:

using phrases such as: I am sure... I guarantee... you can’t go wrong with... ifyou wait.... asking questions for which you don’t expect an answer.giving your own opinions.indicating you know more than the customer.putting time pressure on the customer.

The soft sell approach persuades people by encouraging them, by doing thefollowing:

using phrases such as I think... I get the feeling... Something tells me that...Tell me what is important... asking questions for which you expect an answer.getting the opinion of the customer.finding out what the customer would like.giving the customer time.

One of the well-know selling models is the AIDA model, which believes that in orderto sell a product you must draw attention to it, garner interest, move a person frommere interest to desire, and then inspire them to take action and purchase yourproduct. Sometimes this is easier said than done.

According to the on-line business dictionary (www.businessdictionary.com), theAIDA selling system is:

1. Popular for over a hundred years as a sales training tool, AIDA stands forAttention, Interest, Desire and Action as the names for steps to be taken insequence in a selling process. The salesperson must (1) first make the prospectaware of the product, (2) foster any interest shown, (3) stimulate the desire to buyand possess the product and, finally, (4) encourage action to purchase.

In the late 1950s, when selling was first treated as a professional discipline, andsales training began, people started talking AIDA. Today it is even more relevant.Often called the 'Hierarchy of Effects', AIDA describes the basic process by whichpeople become motivated to act on external stimulus, including the way thatsuccessful selling happens and sales are made:

A – Attention I – Interest D – Desire A – Action

Simply, when we buy something we buy according to the AIDA process. So when wesell something we must sell go through the AIDA stages. In other words, somethingfirst gets our attention; if it's relevant to us we are interested to learn or hear moreabout it. If the product or service then appears to closely match our needs and/oraspirations, and resources, particularly if it is special, unique, or rare, we begin to desiredesire it. If we are prompted or stimulated to overcome our natural caution we maythen become motivated or susceptible to taking action to buy.

Have a look at these pointers:

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http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/sales.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/training.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/tool.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/interest.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/names.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/selling.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/process.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/salesperson.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/prospect.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/product.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/buy.html

http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/purchase.html



USEFUL LANGUAGE

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Apart from all this, when selling, it is highly recommended to be ready to deal withobjections. To start with, decide to what extent you agree with these statements:

The customer is always right.You can’t predict all possible objections before closing a selling negotiation.An objection is a customer’s invitation to the seller to persuade them.People will pay more to buy from people they trust.

Three common techniques to deal with objections are:

A) The ‘feel, felt, found’ formula: Telling the customer you how they feel and givingexamples of other customers who felt the same but found they were wrong.

B) Redirecting the objection to obtain more information.

C) Welcoming objections and trying to establish agreement.

Activity 1.

Read these conversations between sales representatives and their customers - noneof them is successful in selling their product or service – and then improve eachconversation by using the techniques explained before:

CONVERSTAION 1.

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Customer: Listen, your proposal looks great, but I don’t feel ready to changemy kitchen now.

Salesperson: Well, if you don’t sign the proposal today, I’ll have to bill you forthe study and the plans of the kitchen.

Customer: Bill me for the study? You never mentioned that!

Salesperson: It’s in all our literature. Look, here in the small print.

CONVERSATION 2.

Customer: €4,000! How do you justify that?

Salesperson: Simple. To make HI-FI as good as this, you need the best engineers.

Customer: But I’ve had another quotation for less than two thousand!

Salesperson: Well, you know what they say; if you pay peanuts, you pay monkeys.

Activity 2.

Read these sentences about hard and soft sell and decide if they are sales (S) orcustomer (C) -oriented.

I think we share the same opinion about his type of product.1 .This product is without doubt one of the best on the market.2 .If you don’t buy this product today, you’ll regret it.3 .Your satisfaction with this product is very important to me.4.I know that a product like this is just what you need.5 .Have you seen for yourself how this product can make things easier for you?6.Do you think you will get a better deal elsewhere?7.I am sure this product will make your life easier.8 .

NEGOTIATING & BARGAINING

There are usually two misconceptions about negotiating. The first is ‘Negotiating isall about making offers and finding compromises’. The second, ‘Negotiating is allabout supplier-customer situations’. No matter what is your idea of negotiating, youmay want to agree that we use the same language when negotiating with colleagues,bosses about day-to-day work procedures or with customers.

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If we focus on a buying and selling context, issues that might be subject ofnegotiation are: prices, minimum order, discount, delivery, quality standards,payment terms, extras, penalty clauses, other contract details, procedures,documentation, after-sales service, timing, guarantees, etc.

Getting prepared before a negotiation is very important. It might consist of:

Setting objectives for what you want to achieve and having very clear in yourmind what your priorities are.Identifying the other person’s need by asking lots of questions.Listing to all possible variables and objections.Deciding on possible concessions

Psychological elements also play an important role when making deals:

Maximise your concessions by, for example, stressing the costs to you,referring to a major problem your concession will solve, implying that theconcession is exceptional.

1 .

Minimize the concessions by, for instance, acknowledging a concession brieflywithout putting value on it, devaluing the concession, amortizing theconcessions.

2 .

Other key techniques during the negotiation may include:

Summarizing frequentlyTaking notesUsing silence, it gives you time to think.Promoting good feelings when the agreement is easy.

Try to avid using ‘NO’ when negotiating. People say a lot of different things whenthey really know the answer is "No." Have a look at these examples:

"I'll see what I can do.""I'll let you know."""Maybe.""I'll ask.""I'll find out.""You could call head office and ask; they have more authority than me."

If the demand or request is not possible, too commercially demanding, or notreasonable for any reason we must kill it there and then, or it will come back tohaunt you. Do not negotiate if there are unrealistic demands being made at anystage. This is for three reasons:

- It prevents you having to concede substantial ground unnecessarily.

- It avoids raising false hopes, which would make it difficult for us later to satisfylater.

- It stamps your personal authority and professionalism on the situation.

A clear and honest "No, I'm afraid not," with suitable explanation and empathy forthe other person's situation is all it takes.

Activity 1.

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Read this negotiation and then complete the useful phrases for bargaining:

NEGOTIATION

Helen: All right, Sara. I think we agree on what we need. Now let’s get down to thenitty-gritty –how soon can you deliver, and how much is it going to cost?

Sara: Ok, look. I’m going to write down a figure per month here, just so it’s clear.There, how do you feel about that?

Helen: Wow, as much as that! Is there any way we could bring it down a little?

Sara: Well, that figure is based on what you said you need, Helen. I mightpossibly be able to bring it down a little, but only if we had a five-year contract.

Helen: Well, I’d be reluctant to a five-year contract unless you could guarantee amaximum down time of 24 hours per month. Could you do that?

Sara: Let me reassure you on that point, Helen. Our services are very, very stableand average time is less that 12 hours per year – and so we are happy to guaranteeless than 12 hours per month, as long as you choose our premium service level –but of course, it’s more expensive.

Helen: Well, I don’t really want to increase the budget. Hum. What about lead-time?Can you have everything ready by next week?

Sara: Not unless we hire another person. I suppose we could do it, providing youpaid a year’s fees in advance.

Helen: Hm.

Sara: Normally, development time is around three months.

Helen: Look, let’s split the difference. I can pay six months in advance on conditionthat you have all run and ready in two months. And if you can bring the monthly feedown 5% and include the premium service, I’ll agree to the five-year contract.

Sara: You are a though negotiator, Helen. But OK, I think we can agree to that.

Helen: It’s a deal!

USEFUL PHRASES TO COMPLETE:

I ___________ be able to bring it down a little, but ___________ a five-yearcontract.

1 .

___________ to agree to a five-year contract, ___________ guarantee a maximumdown time of...

2 .

... so ___________ guarantee less than 12 hours per month, __________ ourpremium service level.

3 .

I suppose __________ do it, providing ________ all s running and ready in twomonths.

4 .

.... let’s _________ difference.5 .

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7. HR, looking for a job? Recursos humanos, buscartrabajo en inglés

I was obliged to be industrious. Whoever is equally industrious will succeed equallywell.

by J.S. Bach

LEAD-IN Thinking...

Look at the interview tips. Write DO or DON’T next to each one. Then the threeDos that you think are the most important.

INTRODUCTION

Job interviews are easier for interviewers and the interviewees if you plan andprepare questions and answers, and use proper interviewing techniques. In this unitwe are going to have a look at some recruitment and selection processes, how togive a good impression and how to deal with interviews.

RECRUITMENT

Recruitment refers to the process of attracting, screening, and selecting qualifiedpeople for a job.

The possible stages of a recruitment and selection process sequence could besomething like:

Drawing up a job description1.Deciding whether to advertise internally or externally.2 .Deciding whether to use an External Search agency or not.3 .Deciding on the content of the job advertisement.4 .Choosing which publications and other media to advertise in.5 .Interested people applied for the job and receive an application form.6.Looking through all the completed applications forms and CVs that you receive.7 .Deciding on who to invite for an interview, then interview them.8.Drawing up a shortlist of candidates for a second interview.9.Selecting one candidate and offering them the job.10.

Note that this sequence can vary and some stages are totally exclusive, it willdepend on the company, the job position in itself and the recruiter.

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USEFUL LANGUAGE

Activity 1.

Write note about the recruitment and selection process in your company:

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Activity 2.

Same or different? Decide if these words and phrases in each set are the same ordifferent.

1. a job, a position, a post

2. an applicant, a candidate

3. headhunting, executive search

4. equal opportunities, discrimination

5. to recruit, to take on, to hire

6. to dismiss, to fire, to make redundant, to lay-off

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

LAST

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Making a good impression during an interview is essential in getting that job thatyou're dreaming of. Your body language plays a greater role than we may think.

Posture, posture, posture.... Having your back straight and shoulders back will showthe interviewer that you are self-confident.

Maintain eye contact. You may want to maintain eye contact as the interview goeson. This will show the interviewer that you are engaged in the conversation and ableto maintain concentration.

Hand placement. You will want to keep your hands rested. You can distract theinterviewer if you move them around too much during conversation.

A smile will create a warm atmosphere.

Apart from body language, there are also other points to take into consideration:

Research the company and the job that you are applying for. You should appear tobe knowledgeable of and excited about the company. If you do not know the basicinformation that is contained on the company website, you will not present a goodfirst impression.

Dress appropriately for the job interview. It is necessary that you are clean andgroomed. Clothing should be ironed and wrinkle free. Do not wear hats, shorts, lowcut tops, or baggy clothing. Gentlemen should tuck their button-down shirts intotheir pants and wear a belt. Women should wear conservative make-up and jewelry.While you may feel that this will put a "crimp" in your style, you can begin to expressyourself AFTER you get the job and AFTER you have observed the office environment.This, of course, will depend on the job you are applying for.

Leave the gum and candy at home. If you want to take breath mint before theinterview, make sure that it is out of your mouth before you enter the office. Theseare inappropriate at job interviews and will not make a good first impression.

Take at least three extra copies of your CV and cover letter to the interview.

Be on time. Try to arrive at least fifteen minutes early. By arriving early, you willhave time to find a parking space and building/suite. You are also giving yourselfthe opportunity to take one final look in the mirror before the interview andcompose yourself. At times, you may be able to gain useful information on thecompany from looking around the lobby.

Be nice to all people that you meet near the office building. You do not know if aperson that you see outside the building, in the lobby, or in the elevator is theperson you may interview with. Be nice to all office personnel. The secretary and

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person you may interview with. Be nice to all office personnel. The secretary andother office personnel often serve as the owner/manager's eyes and ears. Howwould you feel if you see the secretary you rudely greeted speaking with theinterviewer?

Avoid street slang or curse words in the job interview. You do not want to appearas if you are speaking with a friend on the street corner.

Think before you speak. Speak clearly and confidently. It is better to pause andthink of a good answer than to babble about anything that comes to your mind.

Be honest. Even "little white lies" and "fudging" count as lies. You do not want to becaught in a lie before, during, or after the interview process is over.

Thank the interviewer for their time.

In terms of speaking, also remember:

DEALING WITH INTERVIEWS

To start with, let’s have a look at some ideas on what to say in an interview.Employers often start off with a question like Can you tell me a little about yourself?to get things going. In this case, avoid talking about your personal life. Basically youshould talk about any relevant work experience. You can play to your strengths, andmention any qualifications that relate to the job. Also, you can mention any skills ortraining you have. In other words, explain what you can bring to the organization.

USEFULLANGUAGE

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Furthermore, if an interviewer asks about weaknesses or failure, be positive andfocus on what you learned from the experience. Say how you would do thingdifferently next time and don’t be intimidated. Don’t try to cover up mistakes, tellthe truth. You have to be ready to answer difficult question.

Here you have some strategies to deal with difficult questions:

Show a desire to keep learning and developingTalk about a weakness that is actually a strengthShow that you have strategies to deal with the weaknesses

Activity 1.

Read these answers form 3 different candidates answering a difficult question. Tryto find out what the difficult question they have been asked is and say whichstrategies from above have the candidates use to answer the questions.

CANDIDATE 1

Er, well last year I tried to establish a new system for internal mail, but it was acomplete disaster. I didn’t take enough time to introduce it and nobody knew how itworked. I learned that although something looks clear to me, it doesn’t mean thateveryone else understands. I’ll take more time and more trials before I try anythinglike that again!

CANDIDATE 2

Well, I enjoy the job I’m doing and I get on well with everyone, but I really want tomove and try something new. I’ve had this job for two years now and I think I’veoutgrown it. I’m ready for a new challenge, something that stretches me.

CANDIDATE 3

I tend to worry too much whether the customer is satisfied or not, and that meanssometimes I spend too much time on the customer and not enough time on otheraspects of the job.

Activity 2.

Talking about personal qualities and skills, match an expression in A with a similarexpression in B.

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Activity 3.

Are these personality adjectives positive (P) or negative (N)?

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8. Finance and acounting. Finanzas y contabilidad eninglés

Trust the luck and keep your powder dry.

LEAD –IN Thinking....

How can each of these help companies to make sales forecasts?

predictions about interest rates

reports from sales teams

intuition

the political situation of a country

past experience

the success of the competitor

the marketing budget

the grapevine

financial newspapers

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this unit is to introduce the subject of finance and accounts bylooking at some basic principles behind this area. One of the biggest problems facedin dealing with accounts and finance is the terminology that is used and the fear withwhich people approach the idea of manipulating numbers, especially with regard toratio analysis and using balance sheets and profit and loss accounts.

In this unit, therefore, will look at the profit and loss account and the balance sheetand attempt to distinguish between the two and to offer the opportunity for somepreliminary analysis.

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From: www.bized.co.uk

USEFUL LANGUAGE

These financial terms definitions are for the most commonly used UK financial termsand ratios. They are based on UK Company Balance Sheet, Profit and Loss Account,and Cashflow Statement conventions.

- assets: anything owned by the company having a monetary value;

- balance sheet: It is a 'snapshot' in time of who owns what in the company,and what assets and debts represent the value of the company.

- budget: in a financial planning context the word 'budget' (as a noun) strictlyspeaking means an amount of money that is planned to spend on a particularlyactivity or resource, usually over a trading year, although budgets apply to shorterand longer periods. A 'forecast' in certain contexts means the same as a budget -either a planned individual activity/resource cost, or a whole business/corporate/organizational plan. In other words, budget = plan or a cost elementwithin a plan; forecast = updated budget or plan.

- cashflow

- The movement of cash in and out of a business from day-to-day directtrading and other non-trading or indirect effects, such as capital expenditure, taxand dividend payments. The cashflow statement shows the movement andavailability of cash through and to the business over a given period, certainly for atrading year, and often also monthly and cumulatively.

- current assets: cash and anything that is expected to be converted into cashwithin twelve months of the balance sheet date.

- current ratio: the relationship between current assets and current liabilities,indicating the liquidity of a business, ie its ability to meet its short-term obligations.Also referred to as the Liquidity Ratio.

- current liabilities: money owed by the business that is generally due for

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payment within 12 months of balance sheet date. Examples: creditors, bankoverdraft, taxation.

- depreciation: the apportionment of cost of a (usually large) capital item overan agreed period, (based on life expectancy or obsolescence).

- dividend: it is a payment made per share, to a company's shareholders by acompany, based on the profits of the year, but not necessarily all of the profits,arrived at by the directors and voted at the company's annual general meeting

- fixed assets: assets held for use by the business rather than for sale orconversion into cash, eg, fixtures and fittings, equipment, buildings.

- fixed cost: a cost which does not vary with changing sales or productionvolumes, eg, building lease costs, permanent staff wages, rates, depreciation ofcapital items.

- FOB - 'free on board': The FOB (Free On Board) abbreviation is animport/export term relating to the point at which responsibility for goods passesfrom seller (exporter) to buyer (importer).

- gearing: the ratio of debt to equity, usually the relationship betweenlong-term borrowings and shareholders' funds.

- goodwill: any surplus money paid to acquire a company that exceeds its nettangible assets value.

- gross profit: sales less cost of goods or services sold. Also referred to asgross profit margin, or gross profit, and often abbreviated to simply 'margin'. Seealso 'net profit'.

- liabilities: general term for what the business owes. Liabilities are long-termloans of the type used to finance the business and short-term debts or moneyowing as a result of trading activities to date. Long-term liabilities, along with ShareCapital and Reserves make up one side of the balance sheet equation showing wherethe money came from. The other side of the balance sheet will show CurrentLiabilities along with various Assets, showing where the money is now.

- net assets (also called total net assets): total assets (fixed and current) lesscurrent liabilities and long-term liabilities that have not been capitalised (eg,short-term loans).

- net present value (npv): NPV is a significant measurement in businessinvestment decisions. NPV is essentially a measurement of all future cashflow(revenues minus costs, also referred to as net benefits) that will be derived from aparticular investment, minus the cost of the investment.

- net profit: it can mean different things so it always needs clarifying. Netstrictly means 'after all deductions' (as opposed to just certain deductions used toarrive at a gross profit or margin). Net profit normally refers to profit afterdeduction of all operating expenses, notably after deduction of fixed costs or fixedoverheads.

- profit and loss account (P&L): it is essentially a trading account for a period,usually a year, but also can be monthly and cumulative. It shows profit performance,which often has little to do with cash, stocks and assets (which must be viewed froma separate perspective using balance sheet and cashflow statement). The P&L

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typically shows sales revenues, cost of sales/cost of goods sold, generally a grossprofit margin (sometimes called 'contribution'), fixed overheads and or operatingexpenses, and then a profit before tax figure (PBT).

- overhead: an expense that cannot be attributed to any one single part of thecompany's activities.

- reserves: the accumulated and retained difference between profits and lossesyear on year since the company's formation.

- return on capital employed (ROCE): a fundamental financial performancemeasure. A percentage figure representing profit before interest against the moneythat is invested in the business. (profit before interest and tax/capital employed x100).

- share capital: the balance sheet nominal value paid into the company byshareholders at the time(s) shares were issued.

- shareholders' funds: a measure of the shareholders' total interest in thecompany represented by the total share capital plus reserves.

- variable cost: a cost which varies with sales or operational volumes, egmaterials, fuel, commission payments.

- working capital: current assets less current liabilities, representing therequired investment, continually circulating, to finance stock, debtors, and work inprogress.

For more: try the excellent Campbell R. Harvey's Hypertextual Finance Glossary, http://www.duke.edu/~charvey/Classes/wpg/bfglosa.htm

Companies are expected to produce financial statements each year, by law. Thesestatements appear in Company Reports. There are two main financial statements:

1. The profit and loss account,2. The balance sheet.

PROFIT & LOSS ACCOUNT

This account (P&L) can be updated regularly and shows how much profit or loss abusiness is making.

A profit can be made in several ways, for example:

- from trading, in the case of a shop, i.e. buying and selling items such as clothesand furniture;

- from manufacturing.

The top section of a P&L account is known as the trading account for a business thatbuys and sells items e.g. a record store. What is known as the gross profit iscalculated by deducting cost of sales from turnover.

For example:

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http://www.duke.edu/~charvey/Classes/wpg/bfglosa.htm



We now need to examine the next part of the P&L account.

As well as the cost of sales, a business will incur overhead costs. These costs can’tdirectly be related to each unit of output made or sold - hence the name overheads. OverheadsOverheads are typically referred to as expenses in the P&L account. Typicalexpenses for a business include items such as heating and lighting costs, as well asinsurance and advertising. General administrative costs of running a businessappear as administrative expenses.

We can now set out a P&L account in the following way:

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Activity 1.

Put the words in the box into three groups with the same meaning:

turnover profit reserves earnings revenue sales retained profit

Activity 2.

Write the words amortization or depreciation next to the correct definition line (oneword is used twice):

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a. the gradual loss in value of an intangible asset (like patents or goodwill)__________

b. the gradual loss in value of a fixed asset (like a building or a vehicle)_____________

c. the gradual payment of a fixed asset or repayment of a loan ___________________

BALANCE SHEETS

The balance sheet, is like a snapshot taken at a particular moment in time giving asummary of the overall financial position of a business. Businesses need to useassets in order to generate wealth. Assets are the things that a business owns orsums that are owed to the business at any one moment in time. The businessobtains the finance for these assets from two main sources:

1. Internally (inside the business) from capital raised from the businessowners (the shareholders in the case of a company). 2. Externally - for example, in the form of loans, and other forms offinance which will need to be repaid.

When you set up a business, the business become a legal body in its own right. Internal financeInternal finance (shareholders' funds) is owed to shareholders. External finance isowed to people outside the business - liabilities.

The balance sheet will therefore balance because, in simple terms it shows that thevalue of a businesses assets is financed by the two groups - 1.Internal (owner'scapital), 2.External (liabilities).

A balance sheet typically appears in a vertical format. The balance sheet starts off bylisting all the assets. Next, come the liabilities. Finally, the owners' capital is shown -to balance the balance sheet.

This is what a typical Balance Sheet looks like.

The balance sheet of BCN Traders on the 31st December 2009:

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What does the balance sheet show?

The fixed assets show assets that will be kept in the business to generatewealth for the company over a period of time e.g. machines, computers andbuildings.

1 .

In contrast, the current assets are turned into cash in the short period. Forexample, a trading company will buy stock, which it then sells on credit. Whenthe debtors pay up, they will pay in cash. This cash can then be used to buymore stock.

2 .

Creditors due within one year, shows the short-term liabilities of thebusiness, i.e. money that the company must pay within the next twelve months.

3 .

Net current assets shows the current assets minus the current liabilities. It isimportant to have enough current assets (money coming in the short period) topay short-term creditors (short term liabilities). In the example shown thecurrent assets are €2,000 and the current liabilities are €1,000. Therefore netcurrent assets = €1,000.

4 .

Creditors due after more than one year are the longer-term liabilities of thebusiness, for example long-term bank loans and mortgage repayments.

5 .

The total net assets of the business is calculated by taking away all theliabilities (short and long term) from all of the assets (short and long term).Total net assets = (Fixed assets Current assets) - (Current liabilities long-termliabilities).

6 .

Finally the Balance Sheet is balanced. The Total Net Assets figure is €1000(i.e. assets are greater than liabilities by €1000). The assets that are notfinanced by external liabilities are financed by the owners - therefore theowners' capital is €1000.

7 .

Activity 1.

Cross out the incorrect words in italics:

On a balance sheet, things that you OWN are called assets/liabilities and the thingsthat you OWE are called assets/liabilities.

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Activity 2.

Match the words and phrases (1-8) with the definitions (a-h):

Activity 3.

Answer this question:

If working capital = current assets – current liabilities, why is working capitalimportant to a business?

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9. Dealing with numbers. Usar los números en inglés

“Once is happenstance; twice is coincidence; three times is enemy action”

by Ian Fleming

LEAD-IN Thinking...

How would you say the following numbers?

€121/2bn €580,753 4:1 1.05km2 0.0012% 2 /3 €8,491 298m3 €52-58m 400Gb

INTRODUCTION

In this unit we are going to have an overview of numbers in English.

The main units of numbers in English are:

1 10 100 1000 1000000 1000000000

one ten hundred thousand million billion

Have a look at this list of numbers: on the left are the normal or "cardinal" numbers;on the right are the "ordinal" numbers, which we use to define the position ofsomething in a series. Pay attention to the pronunciation of numbers (in red). Anumber not well pronounced can lead to fatal misunderstandings.

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(1) In compound ordinal numbers, note that only the last figure is written as an

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(1) In compound ordinal numbers, note that only the last figure is written as anordinal number:

* 421st = four hundred and twenty-first

* 5,111th = five thousand, one hundred and eleventh

SPECIFICATIONS

- For numbers in the hundreds, the British usually say "and" but the Americansusually do not say anything:

- In English, we usually separate the digits of numbers over 999 with a comma (,).We count 3 digits from the right and insert a comma, like this:

< - - - < - - -

1,000 one thousand

1,000,000 one million

12,750,200 twelve million, seven hundred and fifty thousand, twohundred

- We use a point (.) to indicate a decimal number, or to separate dollars from cents,pounds from pennies and so on.

Here are some examples:

0.1 = one tenth or 1/10

1.0 = one

1,000 = one thousand

1,500.75 = one thousand five hundred and three quarters

$1.50 = one dollar and fifty cents

$700.00 = seven hundred dollars

£3,500.01 = three thousand five hundred pounds and onepenny

Be careful with commas and points. Some languages use them in the oppositeway!

- We often say "a" instead of "one":

For example when we have the numbers

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100 we say "A hundred"

1/2 we say "A half".

11/2 we say "One and a half.

- When pronouncing decimals we use the word point to represent the dot. Thenumbers following the dot are

pronounced separately:

For example when you have the number

1.36 we say "One point three six."

- Numbers are usually written in singular.

*two hundred Euros

*several thousand light years

- The plural is only used with dozen, hundred, thousand, million, billion; as long asthey are not modified by another number or expression (e.g. a few / several):

*hundreds of Euros

*thousands of light years

- When expressed as figures, the last two letters of the written word are added tothe ordinal number:

first = 1st

second = 2nd

third = 3rd

fourth = 4th

twenty-sixth = 26th

hundred and first = 101st

- Titles: In names for kings and queens, ordinal numbers are written in Romannumbers. In spoken English, the

definite article is used before the ordinal number:

Charles II - Charles the Second

Edward VI - Edward the Sixth

Henry VIII - Henry the Eighth

- In telephone numbers, each figure is said separately:

24 - two four

Pause after groups of 3 or 4 figures (last group):

376 4705 - three seven six, four seven oh five

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If two successive figures are the same, in British English you would usually use theword double (in American English you would just say the figure twice)

376 4775 - BE: three seven six, four double seven five

376 4775 - AE: three seven six, four seven seven five

FRACTIONS

Ordinal numbers are often used in fractions:

Symbol Word

1/8 One eighth

1/5 One fifth

1/4 One quarter

3/4 Three quarters

1/3 One third

2/3 Two thirds

1/2 One half

CALCULATIONS

Symbols Word (common term in brackets)

+ Plus (And)

- Minus (Take away)

x Multiplied by (Times)

÷ Divided by

= Equals (Is)

. Point

% Percent

How do we read calculations out?

1 + 6 - 2 x 2 ÷ 2.5=4 [more formal]

One plus six minus two multiplied by two divided by two point five equals four

o r

1 + 6 - 2 x 2 ÷ 2.5=4 [more informal]

One and six take away two times two divided by two point five is four

10% 100=10

Ten percent of one hundred equals ten.

INTERESTING NUMBERS

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What could possibly be interesting about nothing? It's the number of ways you cansay 0 in English.

0 = oh after a decimal point 9.02 = "Nine point oh two."

in bus or room numbers Room 101 = "Room one ohone."

Bus 602 = "Bus six oh two."

in phone numbers 9130472 = "Nine one threeoh four seven two

in years 1906 = "Nineteen oh six."

.......................

0 = nought before a decimal point 0.06 = "Nought point oh six."

.........................

0 = zero (Zero AmE) in temperature -10°C = "10 degreesbelow zero”

in countdowns ...3,2,1,0 = “three, two, one,zero”

...........................

0 = nil (BrE) in football Chelsea 2 Manchester United 0 ="Chelsea two ManU nil."

...........................

0 = love in tennis 20 - 0 = "Twenty love."

In British English a billion traditionally is a trillion and it means: a million million= 1,000,000,000,000 = 1012

In American English a billion means

a thousand million = 1,000,000,000 = 109

The American billion has become standard in technical and financial use. However,to avoid confusion it is better to use the terms "thousand million" for 109 and"million million" for 1012.

“Millardo" is the Spanish for the number 109 (mil millones). It is not used inAmerican English but is sometimes, but rarely, used in British English (Milliard).

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LETTERS AS NUMBERS

The letter k is often used to denote a thousand. So, 1k = 1,000.

If you see a job advertised and it offers a salary of £12k it means £12,000.00.

The letter m is often used to denote a million. So, 1m = 1,000,000.

If you see a job advertised and it offers a salary of £12m, apply for it!

The letters bn denote a billion.So, 1bn is usually 1,000,000,000.

If you see a job advertised and it offers a salary of £12bn, it's probably a misprint.

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10. Appendix

Appendix I

Appendix II

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11. Ansker Key. Unit 1, 2 and 3

Communication Skills

UNIT 1 COMING TO CONTACT

Activity 1

Nick: Hi, I’m Nick.

Emma: Hi, I’m Emma. I’m a friend of Frank.

Nick: Yes I know, I work with him. Let me introduce you his sister. She’shere for the weekend.

Julie, this is Emma. She’s a friend of Frank.

Julie: Hi, Emma. Nice to meet you.

Emma: Hi! Nice to meet you, too. Frank has told me a lot about you...

Activity 2

a. John’s a nice guy, isn’t he?

b. He doesn’t live in London, does he?

c. The presentation is great, isn’t it?

d. You aren’t giving a talk, are you?

UNIT 2 THE OFFICE

Activity 1

(free answer, depends ont he company of the student)

Activity 2

1. Sophia reports h. directly to me

2. She also looks c. after theemployees training satisfaction.

3. She has one personal assistant working g. under her.

4. Meryl deals b. with Marketingand Sales.

5. Mark is responsible f. for hiring andfiring.

6. He is also in charge a. of internalcommunications.

7. My role is d. to manage theTraining Department, in HR.

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Training Department, in HR.

8. He liaises e. with me inHuman Resources.

Activity 3

a. I work ___FOR_____ for a large international company.

b. I work ____IN____ the sales department.

c. The colleagues I work ______WITH____ are very supportive.

d. I work mainly _____IN______ our London office.

e. At the moment I’m working _____ON_____ a big project.

f. I have to work ____TO_____ very tight deadlines.

g. I work ____ALONGSIDE_______ Jane and Sara in Marketing.

e. I am now working _____UNDER_____ Marketing manager Sophia Pawle inWeb Design, a young department.

f. I work ____AS_____ Head of HR ____AT______ Landmart.

Activity 4

a) How many syllables does the word have? 4

b) Where is the main stress? “ly”

creative flexible methodical

efficient confident realible

determined sociable weell-organized

UNIT 3 AT WORK

Activity 1.

annual - salary

company – car

childcare - facilities

dental - plan

employee - discounts

expense - account

flexible - hours

fringe - benefits

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job - sharing

life - insurance

maternity - leave

minimum - wage

pension - scheme

performance-related - benefits

redundancy - package

sick - pay

stock - options

susidized - canteen

Activity 2.

The General Manager’s office is: (one possible answer) between the staffrestaurant and the Accounts Department right in front of R&D Department.

Activity 3

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12. Answer Key. Unit 4, 5 and 6

UNIT 4 EVENT AND MEETINGS

Activity 1

This is a succesful conversation because Glen asks lots of questions, responds toinformation and sounds interested.

Activity 2

1. F 6. T

2. F 7. T

3. T 8. F

4. F 9. F

5. T 10. T

UNIT 5 PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

Activity 1

Activity 2

Marketing Techniques audio

undercover marketing 5

e-marketing 1

direct marketing 2

product placement 6

viral marketing 4

advertising 3

Activity 3

1. The printer is 40.5 cm long and 30 cm wide. It is 15 cm high. When empty theprinter weighs 2 kg.

2. The mobile phone is 8.5 cm in length and 4.5 cm in width and 1.5 in height. Its

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weight is 500 g.

Activity 4

a. loyalty, information about future needs

b. after-sales service, information about product updates

c. cost savings, personalised treatment

Activity 5

1. b ; 2. a ; 3. a ; 4. b ; 5. b

UNIT 6. BUYING AND SELLING

1. Buying

Activity 1

The price is the label on the packet, or the basic price of the product or service, butit is no indication of true value or cost. For example, a chair has a price tag on it of£10. The value however, is related to useable benefits that the chair gives, and thecost implications of using it for its intended purpose. It may be a very cheaply-madechair, in which case if its role is just to last one season in a rented holiday flat andthen be thrown away, then that is fine. The CEO of a potential $20m client who sitsin a $20 reception chair might decide after all that he doesn't want to place hisbusiness with a company who put such a low value on its visitors. What's the actualtotal cost of the $20 chair then? [To really add value any feature should have somereal and tangible effect on the longer term use/replacement value/cost oftransaction/reputation for the buyer's business. When confronted with claims ofadded value, ask, 'exactly what is the added value?' By the same token, if you use theterm 'added value' when selling to a buyer, make sure you can demonstrate it.]

For example professional buyers often receive suggestions from users or staff whosay they can buy cheaper copier paper from their local discount store. They ignorethe cost of the transaction - that to purchase the cheaper paper from a local storeinvolves someone spending time to go there, with cost of travel, the time tocomplete and fulfill an expense claim - all of which mean the cost of the transactionfar outweighs any initially apparent 'price' savings.

Consider also the cost of change, implementation and training. These are also costsof the transaction, and can be enormous - in some cases greater than the basicprice of the product or service. IT hardware and software are notable exampleswhere the costs of executing the transaction through to implementation can producefrightening implications for costs, and also for process integrity and continuity.

In summary, whether buying or selling, price is only a part of the actual total cost.Costs of quality including maintenance, disposal, CSR (corporate socialresponsibility) and environmental factors, and costs of the transaction includingbuying resources, effort, time, payment terms, and renegotiations (all largelydictated by the seller’s relationship capabilities) must all be considered when

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assessing or comparing the actual total costs of propositions, products or services.

2. Selling

Activity 1

(suggested answers)

CONVERSTAION 1. [technique B]

Customer: Listen, your proposal looks great, but I don’t feel ready to changemy kitchen now.

Salesperson: I know exactly what you mean. It’s a big decision to make, isn’t it?

Customer: Yeah. I’m just worried that I won’t have enough time to doeverything.

Salesperson: Oh I see. Finding enough time is always a problem, isn’t it?

Customer: Yeah. Things are busy at home, and I don’t have the time for theday-to-day chores, let alone refurbishing the kitchen.

Salesperson: OK, well I understand. We all want to have things we can benefitfrom, don’t we?

Customer: Sure

Salesperson: So, if we include the dishwasher and robot kitchen cleaner options,I can guarantee that you won0t regret the change. Are you comfortable witthat?

CONVERSATION 2. [technique A]

Customer: €4,000! How do you justify that?

Salesperson: I understand how you feel. Like you a lot of our customers felt thatthis was more than they wanted to spend. However they soonfound they were improving their family life. After you start using our home cinema system, your children will enjoy spending time with you.

Customer: Is that true?

Salesperson: Even more in some cases. Have I answered your question?

Activity 2

1. I think we share the same opinion about his type of product.CUSTOMER-ORIENTED

2. This product is without doubt one of the best on the market. SALES-ORIENTED

3. If you don’t buy this product today, you’ll regret it. SALES-ORIENTED

4. Your satisfaction with this product is very important to me. CUSTOMER-ORIENTED

5. I know that a product like this is just what you need. SALES-ORIENTED

6. Have you seen for yourself how this product can make things easier for you?CUSTOMER-ORIENTED

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7. Do you think you will get a better deal elsewhere? SALES-ORIENTED

8. I am sure this product will make your life easier. SALES-ORIENTED

3. Negotiating

Activity 1

I might possibly be able to bring it down a little, but only if we had a five-yearcontract.

1 .

I’d be reluctant to agree to a five-year contract, unless you could guarantee amaximum down time of...

2 .

... so we are happy to guarantee less than 12 hours per month, as long as youchoose our premium service level.

3 .

I suppose we could do it, providing you paid all s running and ready in twomonths.

4 .

.... let’s split difference.5 .

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13. Answer Key. Unit 7 and 8

UNIT 7. HR, LOOKING FOR A JOB?

Recruitment

Activity 1.

(student’s own answer)

Activity 2

1. a job, a position, a post: these are synonyms in the context of recruitment.

2. an applicant, a candidate: there’s a slight difference.

-an applicant: someone who asks to be considered for a job by completingan application form/sending a CV;

-a candidate: an applicant who has been called for an interview.

3. headhunting, executive search: these are synonyms in the context ofrecruitment.

4. equal opportunities, discrimination: these are opposites.

-equal opportunities: making sure that the same chances are given toeveryone whatever their age, sex, race,religion, etc;

-discrimination: treating one person or group worse thank others.

5. to recruit, to take on, to hire: there is a slight difference.

-to recruit and to take on: to find new people to work for an organization.

-to hire: is very similar, but can refer to a person or organization andsuggests that they are employed for a short time only.

6. to dismiss, to fire, to make redundant, to lay-off: there is a slight difference.

-to dismiss and to fire: to order an employee to leave their job, but to fireis more informal.

-to make redundant and to lay-off: these have nearly the same meaning,but here it is not the person’s fault that they lose their job(perhaps it is due to economic circumstances).

-to lay-off: is more common in AmE (USA).

Dealing with interviews

Activity 1

Questions: candidate 1 = Tell me about a time you failed badly at something.

candidate 2 = If you like your current job, why do you want toleave?

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candidate 3 = What do you think is your greatest weakness?

Strategies: candidate 1 = the 3rd strategie

candidate 2 = the 1st strategie

candidate 3 = the 2nd strategie

Activity 2

2 d

3 a

4 e

5 b

Activity 3

independent Popinionated Nstrong-minded Ptactful Pvain Nwell-organized Pboastful Ndomineering Ncreative Pdetermined P

UNIT 8. FINCANCE AND ACCOUNTING

1. Profit and loss accounts

Activity 1

turnover = revenue = sales

profit = earnings

reserves = retained profit

Activity 2

a. the gradual loss in value of an intangible asset (like patents or goodwill)AMORTIZATION

b. the gradual loss in value of a fixed asset (like a building or a vehicle)DEPRECIATION

c. the gradual payment of a fixed asset or repayment of a loan. AMORTIZATION

2. Balance sheets

Activity 1

The things that you own are called ASSETS and the things that you owe are

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The things that you own are called ASSETS and the things that you owe areLIABILITIES.

Activity 2

1b, 2a, 3c, 4f, 5d, 6e, 7h, 8g

Activity 3

Companies need cash to operate the day-to-day business –like to paysalaries, suppliers or banks. Working capital is a good indication of whether thecompany has enough cash to operate.

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Communicative skills. Habilidades comunicativas en inglés...

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