Vocabulary

A       Opposites

1 Write the opposite of each of the words in brackets to complete these sentences (1–5).

1   My manager doesn’t like waiting for things to happen. He’s very [patient] IMPATIENT .

2   You don’t have to wear a suit to the meeting. It’s quite [formal] INFORMAL

3   I had some great ideas for the new marketing campaign, but the rest of the team were very [enthusiastic] PASSIVE

4   I try to relax before I start a presentation. It’s difficult to speak clearly when you are [calm] NOISY

5   My colleague isn’t very good at handling conflict in negotiations – that’s one of his [strengths] WEEKNESSES

 

B       Starting a business

2 Choose a word from list A and one from list B to make a phrase. Then match the phrases with the definitions below (6–10).

A                           B

government           bureaucracy           8

labour                    force                      7

tax                         incentive                10

monetary               policy                    9

inflation                 rate                        6

6        Annual percentage increase in prices

7        All the people in work or available for work

8        Official rules, regulations and paperwork

9        The control of money in the economy

10      Low rates of tax to encourage new business

 

C       Describing a product

3 Match a word from the box with each description (11–15).

inexpensive / long-lasting / reliable / stylish / user-friendly

11      It’s very easy to use to record and play DVDs.                          user-friendly

12      You can be sure it will work effectively and without any problems.
reliable

13      It only costs $60 – which is less than other similar products on the market.                                                                                       inexpensive

14      You’ll be able to enjoy it for many years.                        long-lasting

15      It’s fashionable and looks very attractive.                        stylish

 

Language

A       Conditionals

4 Choose the correct answer (a, b or c) to complete each gap in the conversation (16–20).

A  Do you know if the new projector has arrived yet?

B   I’m afraid it hasn’t. If it doesn’t come by tomorrow, _____¹⁶ call the supplier.

A  Thanks. Please tell them I need it urgently by Friday. If it _____¹⁷ arrive by then, I won’t be able to give my presentation. It wouldn’t be a problem if we _____¹⁸ a spare one, but we haven’t.

B   Don’t worry. This is a very reliable supplier. I’m sure they _____¹⁹ tell us if there was a problem.

A  If it was our old supplier, you _____²⁰ be so confident.

16      a) I’ll           b) I’d           c) I

17      a) won’t       b) doesn’t  c) wouldn’t

18      a) have        b) had         c) would have

19      a) will          b) would      c) –

20      a) wasn’t     b) won’t      c) wouldn’t

 

B       Time clauses

5 Look at the schedule for opening a new restaurant business. Below is a memo which describes the schedule. In each line of the memo (21–25), there is one mistake. Cross out the word which is wrong and write the correct word on the right. The first one is given as an example.

Schedule:

complete purchase → building work → order equipment → recruit chef → start advertising → opening night

 

As soon than we complete the purchase of the building, we will start            as building work. We DO not order any equipment or furniture until                          DO 21 we have a date for completing the building. When the work IS IS 22 finished, we can begin TO HIRE staff. We want to recruit a chef before we started          TO HIRE 23 advertising. That way, the chef can PREPARE some menus                                    PREPARE 24 that we can use in the advertisements. When we had a chef, we COULD                COULD 25 also start planning for the opening night.

 

C       Passives

6 Rewrite these sentences (26–30) in the passive form.

26 We will hold the conference in Sydney, from 16^th to 17^th January.

The conference will be held in Sydney, from 16^th to 17^th January

27 We have invited delegates from all over the world.

Delegates have been invited from all over the world.

28 We hired the Renaissance Center in Detroit for the event last year.

The Renaissance Center in Detroit was hired for the event last year.

29 Professor Graham Bell will give the opening speech.

The opening speech will be given by Professor Graham Bell.

30 We usually send the conference programme to delegates after they have paid their fees.

The conference programme is usually sent to delegates after they have paid their fees.

 

Skills development

A       Negotiating: dealing with conflict

7 Choose the best phrase (a–e) to complete each gap in the conversation (31–35).

1. a) How about
2. b) Right, that’s it, then
3. c) I can see your point of view
4. d) Let’s look at it another way
5. e) A compromise could be

A: I really want to take my holidays in June. That’s when my husband is on holiday.

B:  E³¹. But company policy says that senior staff have priority, and that’s when your manager will be away.

A: B³² if you ask Mr Cox to change. He isn’t married.

B:  I’m sorry. I asked him before, but he says he has already booked his travel. A³³ to give you one week’s holiday in June and the rest at another time.

A: My husband won’t be very happy with that.

B:  OK. D³⁴. Maybe we can transfer someone from another department to do your job during June.

A: Oh yes! That would be very good!

B:  C³⁵. I’ll see if I can find someone who can transfer.

 

B       Describing a product

8 Choose the best phrase (a–e) to complete the gaps (36–40) in the description of a new model of car.

1. a) Another advantage is
2. b) A very useful feature
3. c) I’d like to tell you about
4. d) It comes in
5. e) The seats are made of

36    C our new model, the S502.

37   B is that you can cut fuel costs by over 60 per cent.

38    A the small size, which helps you to park in busy city centres.

39    E  high-quality leather.

40    D  a range of exciting new colours.

 

Reading

 

The man behind GE’s quiet revolution Thirty years ago, Jeffrey Immelt politely advised his high-school basketball coach to be less aggressive with the new players. It worked: the coach’s calmer behaviour helped the team to win more games. It was the first successful strategy from the future chief executive of General Electric, the world’s second largest company by market value. Mr Immelt has brought some of that basketball psychology to the current job. GE’s former leader, Jack Welch, was more typical of the imperial CEOs who have presided over American capitalism for much of its history. Admired by analysts and feared by subordinates, Mr Welch ran GE with an aggression that helped to drive the company’s earnings. But Mr Immelt set about creating a quiet revolution in the company when he replaced Welch in 2001, bringing in a new approach to leadership. Under Mr Welch, GE was a productivity machine – an organisation where cutting costs and building value was the priority.When Mr Immelt took over, GE needed to find a new way to cope with growing Asian competition and increasingly global markets. Mr Immelt changed GE by giving priority to organic growth and marketing superiority. Making the company more global has been a key part of Mr Immelt’s strategy. During his leadership, GE has become a multinational that earns half of its $150bn revenues from outside the country. But Mr Immelt maintains that the US, where GE still employs 160,000 of its 316,000 employees, remains the ideal place to manufacture complex equipment such as jet-engine turbines. America, he believes, still produces top professionals. But the bottom line is clear: without the benefit of buying and selling products around the world and employing skilled people from other countries, the 128-year-old company would be smaller than it is today. Mr Immelt set ambitious goals – a 10-per-cent annual growth in profits and an 8-per-cent increase in sales growth. Few companies have grown so fast year after year, and none as big as GE.

 

9 Mark these statements true (T) or false (F).

41    Jeffrey Immelt was rude to his basketball coach at school.           F

42    Mr Immelt has a similar management style to Jack Welch.           F

43    Mr Immelt has been the CEO of General Electric since 2001.      T

44    Mr Immelt has made General Electric more global.                      T

45    Most of GE’s employees work outside the USA.                         T

 

10 Choose the best ending (a, b or c) for each of these sentences (46–50).

46      Mr Immelt’s approach to leadership is …

1. a) to make people afraid.
2. b) to be calm.
3. c) to be unambitious.

47      Jack Welch’s main policy was …

1. a) to make the company more global.
2. b) to compete with companies in Asia.
3. c) to reduce expenses and make more profit.

48      GE’s total income (at the time of the article) was …

1. a) $150 billion.
2. b) $300 billion.
3. c) $75 billion.

49      Mr Immelt prefers to employ …

1. a) American professionals.
2. b) skilled people from outside the USA.
3. c) the best people, wherever they are from.

50      General Electric …

1. a) is the biggest company in the world.
2. b) has grown faster than most other companies.
3. c) no longer manufactures anything in the USA.

 

Writing

11 Your company is expanding fast and wants to set up a subsidiary in a new region. Look at the figures below and write an executive summary of about 180 to 220 words.
Your report should summarise the figures and recommend the location which you think is best. Use the format below.

Region	Arcadia	Batiku
Local economy      Inflation rate      Local currency	2.4%, stable strong	14%, rising devalued 5% in last year
Labour force      Unemployment rate      Skilled workers	5% high number	16% not many
Government tax incentives	No special rates: all businesses pay 35% tax	Low rate of 8% for new businesses in first three years

 

Executive summary   Introduction The company is growing fast and, in order to expand, we need to set up a new subsidiary in a region that offers a stable economy, skilled workers and – if possible – tax incentives. We have looked at two regions: Arcadia and Batiku. This report compares the two regions with regard to local economy, labour force and government tax incentives.   Findings. As for Arcadia, inflation rate is 2.4%, local currency is stable and strong Unemployment rate is 5% and there is high numbers of skilled workers. As for Batiku, we see that inflation rate is 14%, local currency devalued 5% in last year. Unemployment rate is 16%. There are not many skilled workers. As for government tax incentives, there are no special rates in Arcadia: all businesses pay 35% tax. In Batiku there has been a low rate of 8% for new businesses in first three years.   Conclusion. We would like to set up a subsidiary in a new region, because there are many good opportunities.   Recommendation. We recommend working in Arcadia. We should set up a subsidiary in a new region – Arcadia.