BEC 4 Higher Students Book with answers Examination Papers

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS

Cambridge, New York, Melbourne, Madrid, Cape Town, Singapore, Sao Paulo, Delhi Cambridge University Press The Edinburgh Building, Cambridge CB2 8RU, UK www.cambridge.org Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9780521739207 © Cambridge University Press 2009

Thanks and acknowledgements

This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing azreements, written no reproduction of any part may take place without permission of Cambridge University Press.

Introduction Test

Reading Writing Listening Speaking

22 32 34 38

Test

Reading Writing Listening Speaking

40 50 52 56

Reading Writing Listening Speaking

58 68 70 74

Reading Writing Listening Speaking

76 86 88 92

First published 2009 Printed in the United

at the University Press, Cambridge

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN 978 0 521 73920 7 Student's Book with answers ISBN 978 0521 73921 4 Audio CD ISBN 978 0 521 73922 1 Self-study Pack Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of urls for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this publication, and does not guarantee that content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Information train times and other factual information given in work are correct at time going to print but Cambridge University Press does not guarantee the accuracy of such information thereafter.

3

Test 1 Test 2 Test 3 Test 4

4

5

94 102 110 118 127 128

The authors and publishers acknowledge the following sources of copyright material and are grateful for the permissions granted. While every effort has been made, it has not always been possible to identify the sources of all the material used, or to trace all copyright holders. If any omissions are brought to our notice, we will be happy to include the appropriate acknowledgements on reprinting. Financial Times for the adapted text on p. 26 from 'Small parts that playa vital role' written by Peter March, Financial Times 14 June 2001. Copyright © Financial Times Limited; Eileen Sheridan for the adapted text on p. 42 'High fliers of the future head for specialist fairs' published in The Guardian 28.10.2000. Reproduced by permission of Eileen Sheridan; The Guardian for the adapted text on p. 62 from 'The man the Pru had to buy' written by Lisa Buckingham, The Guardian 13 March 1999. Copyright © Guardian News and Media Limited 1999.

TO This book is for candidates preparing for the Cambridge Business English Certificate Higher examination. It contains four complete tests based on past papers.

The

Suite

The Business English Certificates (BEC) are certificated examinations which can be taken on various dates throughout the year at approved Cambridge BEC centres. They are aimed primarily at individual learners who wish to obtain a business-related English language qualification, and provide an ideal focus for courses in Business English. Set in a business context, BEC tests English language, not business knowledge. BEC is available at three levels - Preliminary, Vantage and Higher. The BEC Suite is linked to the five ALTE/Cambridge levels for language assessment, and to the Council of Europe's Framework for Modern Languages. It is also aligned with the UK Qualifications and Curriculum Authority's National Standards for Literacy, within the National Qualifications Framework (NQF).

This represents the level typically required for employment purposes to signify the successful completion of compulsory secondary education in the UK.

BEC Higher The BEC Higher examination consists of four papers:

5

Introduction

Introduction Re,adlina (1 hour)

This paper consists of six parts with 52 questions, which take the form of two multiple-matching tasks, two multiple-choice tasks, a cloze test and an erroridentification task. Part 1 contains five short texts or a longer text divided into five sections, and Parts 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 each contain one longer text. The texts are taken from newspapers, business magazines, business correspondence, books, leaflets, brochures, etc. They are all business-related, and are selected to test a wide range of reading skills and strategies. Wlrltlna (1 hour 10 minutes)

For this paper, candidates are required to produce two pieces of writing. For Part 1, they write a short report based on graphic input. For Part 2, they choose whether to write a short report, a piece of business correspondence or a proposal. Candidates are asked to write 120 to 140 words for Part 1 and 200 to 250 words for Part 2. Assessment is based on achievement of task, range and accuracy of vocabulary and grammatical structures, organisation, content, and appropriacy of register and format. L.B=;tE~nlng

(16 minutes)

The Speaking test consists of three parts, which take the form of an interview section, a short presentation on a business topic, and a discussion. In the standard test format, candidates are examined in pairs by two examiners: an interlocutor and an assessor. The assessor awards a mark based on the following four criteria: Grammar and Vocabulary, Discourse Management, Pronunciation and Interactive Communication. The interlocutor provides a global mark for the whole test.

The four BEC Higher papers total 120 marks, after weighting. Each paper is weighted to 30 marks. A candidate's overall grade is based on the total score gained in all four papers. It is not necessary to achieve a satisfactory level in all four papers in order to pass the examination. Certificates are given to candidates who pass the examin~tion with grade A, B or C. A is the highest. The minimum successful performance in order to achieve a grade C corresponds to about 600/0 of the total marks. You will also be informed if you do particularly well in any individual paper. D and E are failing grades. Every candidate is provided with a Statement of Results, which includes a graphical display of their performance in 6

Each year BEC is taken by over 120,000 candidates throughout the world. Most candidates are either already in work or studying in preparation for the world of work.

Material used throughout BEC is as far as possible authentic and free of bias, and reflects the international flavour of the examination. The subject matter should not advantage or disadvantage certain groups of candidates, nor should it offend in areas such as religion, politics or sex.

tanoroxnnaterv 40 minutes)

This paper consists of three parts with 30 questions, which take the form of a notecompletion task, a multiple-matching task and a multiple-choice task. Part 1 contains a monologue in a work-related situation, Part 2 contains five very short monologues, and Part 3 contains one longer conversation between two or more people. The texts are audio recordings based on a variety of sources including interviews, face-to-face conversations and documentary features. They are all business-related, and are selected to test a wide range of listening skills and "l-l.,al-\..-~.l\..-". 51J~eCllkina

each paper. These are shown against the scale Exceptional - Good - Borderline - Weak and indicate the candidate's relative performance in each paper.

Main Skill Focus

Input

Response

No. of Questions

1

Reading for gist and global meaning

Authentic business-related text either a single text or five short, related texts (approx. 450 words in total)

Matching

8

2

Reading for structure and detail

Authentic business-related text (approx. 450-500 words) with sentence-length gaps

Matching

6

3

Understanding general points and specific details

Longer text based on authentic source material (approx. 500-600 words)

4-option multiple choice

6

4

Reading - vocabulary and structure

Single business-related text with primarily lexical gaps (approx. 250 words)

4-option multiple-choice doze

10

5

Reading - structure and discourse features

Single business-related text with structure and discourse gaps (approx. 250 words)

Rational deletion Open doze

10

6

Reading understanding sentence structure; error identification

Short text (approx. 150-200 words). Identification of additional unnecessary words in text

Proof-reading

12

Part

One

This is a matching task. The text is approximately 450 words long, and is made up of five related short texts of authentic origin. Examples could be a set of related product descriptions, a set of advertisements (for instance, for 7

Introduction different types of services), notices or messages, book or video reviews, short newspaper items on related topics. Texts may be edited, but the source is authentic. They are identified as texts A-E. There are eight statements, each of which is one sentence long, numbered 1-8. Each statement can be matched with only one of the texts. The candidate's task is to read the statement and then scan the texts for the one to which each statement applies. Candidates are tested on whether they can understand the language of the statement and relate it to the meaning of the text, which is expressed in different language. Preparation • Present students with sets of related short texts (e.g. job advertisements, hotel information, etc.) from newspapers, magazines, brochures; Longer texts may also be divided into sub-headed sections; Students should be encouraged to identify facts or ideas within each text, describing how the texts are similar and what differences they contain; The register or style of the task sentences is likely to differ from that of the texts, and students should be given practice in recognising the same information in different styles, e.g. by rewriting advertisements into objective prose; The task is designed to go beyond simple word-matching, and students will need to practise paraphrasing; • Activities that help students to identify target information among otherwise superfluous text (e.g. choosing what to watch from TV listings) would be beneficial; • Above all, students should treat the task as an example of informationprocessing skills which are frequently employed in social and professional life. KeEadlna

Part

This is a gapped text with six sentence-length gaps. The text is about 450 to 500 words long, and comes from an authentic business-related source, although it may be edited. Sources include business articles from newspapers or magazines, books on topics such as management, or company literature such as annual reports. Candidates have to read the text and then identify the correct sentence to fill each gap from a set of eight sentences marked A-H. Sentence H is the example, and one other sentence is a distractor which does not fit any of the gaps. Understanding of not only the meaning of the text but some of the features of its structure is tested. Preparation This task requires an overt focus on cohesion and coherence, to which many students may not be accustomed; It would be helpful for students to reassemble texts that have been cut up, discussing why texts fit together as they do; It would also be useful for students to discuss why sentences do or do not fit together; • Students could benefit from altering the cohesion of texts to make sentences that do not fit together do so, and vice versa;

8

Introduction • Since culture affects discourse, including the order of argument development, discussions exploring this would be beneficial; The cut-and-paste functions of word-processing, where available, could be exploited for this task.

This task consists of a text accompanied by four-option multiple-choice items. The stem of a multiple-choice item may take the form of a question or an incomplete sentence. There are six items, which are placed after the text. The text is about 500 to 600 words long. Sources of original texts may be the general and business press, company literature, and books on topics such as management. Texts may be edited, but the source is authentic. Preparation • Multiple-choice questions are a familiar and long-standing type of test; here, they are used to test opinion and inference rather than straightforward facts; Correct answers are designed not to depend on simple word-matching, and students' ability to paraphrasing should be developed; • Students should be encouraged to pursue their own interpretation of relevant parts of the text and then check their idea against the options offered, rather than reading all the options first; • It could be useful for students to be perhaps one of the wrong options onl~, and for them to try to write correct answer and another wrong option.

This task is a modified cloze: in other text in which the gaps are chosen. There are ten rru nrtrue--c.n otc:e most of which test vocabulary. text is approximatelv words long and is based on authentic source one of text listed above. The candidate's task is to choose the correct from the available, to fill each gap.

•

for students to appreciate that the correct answer in each case rather than in relation to the other is correct in relation to the gap three It is worth emphasismg

within • It is worth dISCU~;SlrLg (collocations, fixed • It might be useful to alternative words fit and • vocabulary-building activity is

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9

Introduction

Introduction

OF This task is an open cloze: a gapped text in which the candidate has to supply the word to fill each gap. There are ten items. Gaps are formed by rational deletion, being chosen rather than being simply those which occur if (for example) every seventh word is deleted. The focus is on structure, and coherence/cohesion in the text. Items tested may include prepositions, auxiliary verbs, pronouns, conjunctions, etc. The text is based on authentic material, and it is approximately 250 words long. A title is usually included. Preparation • The kinds of words which are gapped may well correspond to the kinds of errors students make, and therefore discussion of photocopied examples of students' compositions could be helpful; Students should be encouraged to circle the word or words in the text that dictate what the answer will be, in order for them to see that such clues to the answer may be adjacent to the gap or several words distant; Students should brainstorm various likely words which might fit a particular gap, and then discuss why the ones that do not fit do not do so; Students could be given several possible answers for a gap and discuss why the correct answer is correct; This task tests grammatical and structural aspects of language, and any practice in these areas should be beneficial.

Six This is an error-correction or proof-reading task based on a text of about 150 to 200 words, with 12 items. Candidates identify additional or unnecessary words in a text. This task can be related to the authentic task of checking a text for errors, and suitable text types are therefore letters, publicity materials, etc. The text is presented with 12 numbered lines, which are the lines containing the items. Further lines at the end may complete the text, but these are not numbered.

Part

Functions/Communicative Task

Input

Response

Register

1

e.g. describing or comparing figures from graphic input, making inferences

Rubric and graphic input

Short report (medium may be memo or email) (120-140 words)

Neutral/ formal

2

Report: describing, summarising Correspondence: e.g. explaining, apologising, reassuring, complaining Proposal: describing, summarising, recommending, persuading

Rubric, possibly supplemented by brief input text, e.g. notice, advert

Candidates choose from report (medium could be memo or email) or business correspondence (medium may be letter, fax or email) or proposal (medium could be memo or email) (200-250 words)

Neutral! formal

For BEC Higher, candidates are required to produce two pieces of writing: a short report based on graphic input; one of the following (of the candidate's choosing): a report: the report will contain an introduction, main body of findings and conclusion; it is possible that the report may be delivered through the medium of a memo or an email; • a piece of business correspondence: this means correspondence with somebody outside the company (e.g. a customer or supplier) on a business-related matter, and the delivery medium may be a letter, fax or email; a proposal: this has a similar format to a report but, unlike the report, the focus of the proposal is on the future, with the main focus being on recommendations for discussion; it is possible that the proposal may be delivered through the medium of a memo or an email. '''h~iii+iinn

Preparation • Students should be reminded that this task represents a kind common practice, even in their first language; Any work on error analysis is likely to be helpful for this It may well be that photocopies of students' own authentic source for practice; A reverse of the exercise (giving students texts with prove beneficial.

Marks One mark is given for each correct answer. The 30 marks for the whole Reading paper.

10

Part One

This is a guided writing task, in which the candidate produces a brief (120-140-word) report. The task provides a realistic situation in which it is necessary to analyse some sort of graphic input and express the information it conveys in words. Graphs, bar charts and pie charts of the type frequently used in the business pages of newspapers, company reports and brochures may provide a starting point. The graphic input is taken from an authentic source, but may be modified in the same way that a text may be edited. The rubric acts to amplify and clarify the situation, as well as making clear what the task involves.

In most parts of the BEC Writing tests, all candidates are required to perform the same task because there is no danger of individuals or groups of candidates being disadvantaged by that task. The exception is BEC Higher Writing Part Two: in order to generate the range of language which is characteristic of this 11

Introduction level of language learner, the task contains no input or minimal input, resulting in a relatively high background knowledge requirement from the candidate. In the absence of a choice of tasks, this would be likely to disadvantage some candidates, so a choice of tasks is given. Candidates choose from three options: a report, a piece of business correspondence or a proposal. The task is supplied by the rubric, which provides an authentic reason for writing, and indicates who the piece of writing is being produced for. The input is therefore more detailed and specific than that of the traditional 'essay question' task type. Preparing for the Writing paper

The first Writing task involves the kind of graphic input of information which is common in the business world, and students should be exposed to a wide range of examples of graphs and charts from newspapers, magazines, company literature, etc. The interpretation involved is the translating of the graphic input into prose, rather than the recommending of action. Students should have practice in the clear and concise presentation of written information. Specific vocabulary and phrasing should also be developed. The second Writing task requires students to plan carefully in order to be able to produce successful answers. They should be given practice in considering: the target reader the purpose of writing the requirements of the format (letter, report, etc.) the main points to be addressed the approximate number of words to be written for each point suitable openings and closings the level of formality required. Exposure to, and discussion of, as wide a range as possible of relevant texts would be beneficial.

Assessment An impression mark is awarded for each piece of writing. The General Impression Mark Scheme is used in conjunction with a task-specific mark scheme, which focuses on criteria specific to each particular task. This summarises the content, organisation, register, format and target reader indicated in the task. The band scores awarded are translated to a mark out of 10 for Part 1 and a mark out of 20 for Part 2. A total of 30 marks is available for Writing. The General Impression Mark Scheme is interpreted at Council of Europe Level C1. A summary of the General Impression Mark Scheme is reproduced opposite. Examiners work with a more detailed version, which is subject to regular updating.

12

Introduction General ImiorIBS=;IOln Mark Scheme -

I"'III!"i+inn

Band 5

Full realisation of the task set. • All content points included. • Controlled, natural use of language; minimal errors. • Wide range of structures and vocabulary. • Effectively organised, with appropriate use of cohesive devices. • Register and format consistently appropriate. Very positive effect on the reader.

4

Good realisation of the task set. • All major content points included; possibly minor omissions. Natural use of language; errors only when complex language is attempted. • Good range of structures and vocabulary. • Generally well organised, with attention paid to cohesion. Register and format on the whole appropriate. Positive effect on the reader.

3

Reasonable achievement of the task set. • All major content points included; possibly minor omissions. Reasonable control, although a more ambitious attempt at the task may lead to a number of non-impeding errors. Adequate range of structures and vocabulary. • Organisation and cohesion are satisfactory. Register and format reasonable, although not entirely successful. Satisfactory effect on the reader.

2

Inadequate attempt at the task set. Some major content points omitted or inadequately dealt with; possibly some irrelevance. Errors sometimes obscure communication and are likely to be numerous. Limited range of structures and vocabulary; language is too elementary for this level. Content is not clearly organised. • Unsuccessful attempt at appropriate register and format. Negative effect on the reader.

1

Poor attempt at the task set. Notable content omissions and/or considerable irrelevance. Serious lack of control; frequent basic errors. • Narrow range of structures and vocabulary. Lack of organisation. • Little attempt at appropriate register and format. Very negative effect on the reader.

0

Achieves nothing. Either fewer than 25 % of the required number of words or totally illegible or totally irrelevant.

13

Introduction

Introduction

No. of Questions

Main Skill Focus

Input

Response

1

Listening for and noting specific information

Informational monologue

Gap-filling requiring limited written responses (i.e. no more than three words)

12

2

Listening to identify topic, context, function, speaker's opinion, etc.

Five short monologues linked theme or topic, from five speakers

Multiple matching

10

Listening for gist, specific information, attitudes, etc.

Conversation/interview/ discussion between two or more people

3-option multiple choice

Part

3

This is a sentence-completion, gap-filling or note-taking task. The candidate has to supply only the key words of the answer, which will not be more than three words per item. The spoken text lasts about two or three minutes and is a monologue. The text is heard twice. It is informational, and focuses on a series of identifiable facts. Topics might involve instructions, changes in arrangements or instructions, the programme for an event or meeting of some kind, or a presentation about a company. The setting for the task could be someone giving information over the telephone, or a speaker addressing a roomful of delegates at a conference or people on a training course. Listening tasks may be based on recorded material taken from authentic sources or more usually on scripted material. There are 12 items, which are distributed evenly throughout the text, so that candidates have time to record their answers. Answers to items may be numbers or amounts of money, but these will not involve the candidate in any calculations. Items of information are tested in the same order in which the information occurs in the text.

8

Materials for this task are scripted, and relate to a business topic or situation.

This task consists of a dialogue, usually with two or more speakers. There are eight items, which are three-option multiple choice. The task relates to a topic of interest or concern in the world of work. The text is heard twice. Preparing for the listening paper

All listening practice should be helpful for students, whether authentic or specially prepared. In particular, discussion should focus on: the purpose of speeches and conversations or discussions the speakers' roles the opinions expressed the language functions employed relevant aspects of phonology such as stress, linking and weak forms, etc. In addition, students should be encouraged to appreciate the differing demands of each task type. It will be helpful not only to practise the task types in order to develop a sense of familiarity and confidence, but also to discuss how the three task types relate to real-life skills and situations: the first is note-taking (and therefore productive), and students should reflect on the various situations in which they take notes from a spoken input; they should also be encouraged to try to predict the kinds of words or numbers that might go in the gaps; • the second is a matching (with discrimination) exercise, and reflects the ability to interrelate information between reading and listening and across differing styles and registers; the third involves the correct interpretation of spoken input, with correct answers often being delivered across different speakers. In all three tasks, successful listening depends on correct reading, and students should be encouraged to make full use of the pauses during the test to check the written input.

Marks This is a matching task based on five short extracts linked by theme or topic and spoken by five different speakers, in monologue form. The texts last a total of approximately three to four minutes. There are two tasks for each of the five extracts. These tasks relate to the content and purpose of the extracts, and candidates are asked to do any combination of the following: identify speakers, interpret context, recognise the function of what is said, identify the topic, understand specific information, identify a speaker's opinion or feelings. The series of extracts is heard twice, and candidates must attempt both tasks during this time. It is> for the candidates to decide whether they choose to do the first task the first time they listen to the text, and the second task the second or whether to deal with the two tasks for each extract together. For each they have a list of eight options to choose from.

14

One mark is given for each correct answer, giving a total score of 30 marks for the whole Listening paper.

15

Introduction

Part 1

Introduction

Format/Content

Time

Interaction Focus

Conversation between the interlocutor and each candidate

About 3 minutes

The interlocutor encourages the candidates to give information about themselves and to express personal opinions.

About 6 minutes

Each candidate is given prompts which use to prepare and give a short on a business-related topic.

Giving personal information; talking about present circumstances, past experiences and future plans, expressing opinions, speculating, etc. 2

A 'mini presentation' by each candidate on a business theme Organising a larger unit of discourse Giving information and expressing opinions

3

Two-way between candidates followed by further prompting from the interlocutor Expressing and justifying opinions, speculating, comparing and contrasting, agreeing and disagreeing, etc.

About 7 minutes

The candidates are presented with a business-related situation to discuss. The interlocutor extends the discussion with further spoken prompts.

The Speaking test is conducted two oral examiners (an interlocutor and an assessor), with of The interlocutor is for ro ............ ,-.I"ro+-.~,~ the test and is also to a mark for each the whole test. The assessor is for I-r where a The ~ peaking candidates, the last three will be

Candidates are again advised to keep in mind the business orientation of this test. It is wise to structure the one-minute talk, for example, as points, with an introduction and conclusion (however brief these must, of necessity, be), and to make the structure explicit when giving the talk in order to show some evidence of planning. Candidates should approach the task as if giving a presentation in a business environment. Examples of topic areas for the individual Speaking task include the following: advertising, career planning, communications, customer relations, finance, health and safety, management (personnel, production, transport, etc.), marketing, recruitment, sales, technology, training and travel.

This is a two-way collaborative task based on a prompt, which is given to both candidates. The prompt consists of several sentences stating a business-related situation followed by two or three discussion points. Candidates are given time to read the prompt and then they discuss the situation together. Candidates need to approach the task as a simulation, imagining themselves in a work environment, faced with a real situation to discuss and on which they should to reach some decisions. The opinions they however, are their own. are not as in some kinds of play, to assume particular attitudes or opinions.

<"\r"l<"\

For this number

of the test, the interlocutor asks the candidates ouesnons on a or work-related subjects.

each candidate's task is to choose one from a set of on it for one minute. Candidates one minute in which and use this time to make brief notes. While one candidate the other listens may make notes), after which ask the candrdate who gave the talk a ~

but

in this kind of themselves into a work environment, should be helped to the

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16

17

Introduction

Introduction Global Achievement

Candidates are assessed on their own performance and not in relation to each other according to the following analytical criteria: Grammatical Resource, Vocabulary Resource, Discourse Management, Pronunciation and Interactive Communication. These criteria are interpreted at Higher level. Assessment is based on performance in the whole test and is not related to particular parts of the test. Both examiners assess the candidates. The assessor applies detailed analytical scales, and the interlocutor applies a Global Achievement Scale, which is based on the analytical scales. The analytical criteria are further described below.

This refers to the accurate and appropriate use of a range of both simple and complex forms. Performance is viewed in terms of the overall effectiveness of the language used in spoken interaction.

This refers to the candidate's overall effectiveness in dealing with the tasks in the three separate parts of the test. The global mark is an independent impression mark which reflects the assessment of the candidate's performance from the interlocutor's perspective. Throughout the Speaking test, candidates are assessed on their language skills and, in order to be able to make a fair and accurate assessment of each candidate's performance, the examiners must be given an adequate sample of language to assess. Candidates must, therefore, be prepared to provide full answers to the questions asked by either the interlocutor or the other candidate, and to speak clearly and audibly. While it is the responsibility of the interlocutor, where necessary, to manage or direct the interaction, thus ensuring that both candidates are given an equal opportunity to speak, it is the responsibility of the candidates to maintain the interaction as much as possible. Candidates who take equal turns in the interchange will utilise to best effect the amount of time available.

results This refers to the candidate's ability to use a range of vocabulary to meet task requirements. At BEC Higher level, the tasks require candidates to speculate and exchange views on unfamiliar topics. Performance is viewed in terms of the overall effectiveness of the language used in spoken interaction. Discourse Mc:.ni!lglerrlerlt

This refers to the candidate's ability to link utterances together to form coherent speech, without undue hesitation. The utterances should be relevant to the tasks and should be arranged logically to develop the themes or arguments required by the tasks. Pronunciation

This refers to the candidate's ability to produce intelligible utterances to fulfil the task requirements. This includes stress and intonation as well as individual sounds. Examiners put themselves in the position of a non-ESOL specialist and assess the overall impact of the pronunciation and the degree of effort required to understand the candidate. Interactive Communication

This refers to the candidate's ability to take an active part in the development of the discourse. This requires an ability to participate in the range of interactive situations in the test and to develop discussions on a range of topics by initiating and responding appropriately. This also refers to the deployment of strategies to maintain interaction at an appropriate level throughout the test so that the tasks can be fulfilled.

18

Grading takes place once all scripts have been returned to Cambridge ESOL and marking is complete. This is approximately five weeks after the examination. There are two main stages: grading and awards. Grading

The four papers total 120 marks, after weighting. Each paper represents 25% of the total marks available. The grade boundaries (A, B, C, D and E) are set using the following information: statistics on the candidature statistics on the overall candidate performance statistics on individual items, for those parts of the examination for which this is appropriate (Reading and Listening) the advice of the Principal Examiners, based on the performance of candidates, and on the recommendation of examiners where this is relevant (Writing) comparison with statistics from previous years' examination performance and candidature. A candidate's overall grade is based on the total score gained in all four papers. It is not necessary to achieve a satisfactory level in all four papers in order to ' pass the examination. Awards

The Awarding Committee deals with all cases presented for special consideration, e.g. temporary disability, unsatisfactory examination conditions, suspected collusion, etc. The Committee can decide to ask for scripts to be re-marked, to check results, to change grades, to withhold results, etc. Results may be withheld because of infringement of regulations or because further investigation is needed. Centres are notified if a candidate's results have been scrutinised by the Awarding Committee.

19

Introduction Results

Results are reported as three passing grades (A, B and C) and two failing grades (D and E). The minimum successful performance which a candidate typically requires in order to achieve a Grade C corresponds to about 60 % of the total marks. Candidates are given a Statement of Results which, in addition to their grades, shows a graphical profile of their performance on each paper. These are shown against the scale Exceptional- Good - Borderline - Weak and indicate the candidate's relative performance in each paper. Certificates are issued to passing candidates after the issue of the Statement of Results and there is no limit on the validity of the certificates.

For more information about BEC or any other Cambridge ESOL examination write to: University of Cambridge ESOL Examinations 1 Hills Road Cambridge CB12EU United Kingdom Tel: +44 1223 553997 Fax: +44 1223 553621 email: [email protected] website: www.CambridgeESOL.org In some areas, this information can also be obtained from the British Council.

20

Reading

1

r

Questions 1-8

Look at the statements below and at the five summaries of articles about strategic chanqe from a journal OR the opposite page. Which article (A, C, or E) does each statement (1-8) refer to? For each statement (1-8), mark ORe letter (A, 8, C, or E) OR your Answer Sheet. You will Reed to use some of these letters more than once, There is an example at the beqinninq (0).

Example:

o

It advises aqainst the use of technoloqv for communication within a company.

It proposes some views OR rnanaqernent that the editors feel might be considered controversial by readers. It explains who the communicators of initiatives within a company should be. 3

Those serving in industry today have two options: they can surrender the future to revolutionary companies or they can revolutionise the way their companies create strategy. In Revolution and Strategy, Gary Heath argues that any approach that does not challenge the status quo is not a strategy at all. In too many companies, the strategy-planning process is monopolised by senior managers, and what passes for strategy is sterile and uninspiring. To create truly revolutionary strategies, a strategy-making process must be demanding and inclusive; it must rid itself of tired, outdated perspectives and uncover the revolutionary ideas that are lying deep in an organisation.

It makes reference to the fact that some people may try to hinder innovations.

Companies often attempt to implement a major change in strategy. Determined managers go forth with the plans, and they expect enthusiasm and commitment from their subordinates. But instead, employees drag their feet and figure out ways to undermine the process. The change effort gets bogged down, and results fall short. In Why Resist Change? Paul Strong explains how corporate leaders can overcome employees' concerns about change by revising the mutual obligations and commitments, both stated and implied, that exist between them. The author presents two case studies of his ideas in action.

C Business units often take charge of formulating strategy in today's environment, but they can easily get lost in a thicket of weeds - too many customers, products and services. In Strategic Business Unit Renewal, John White provides a method for business units to prune their gardens and regain perspective. His strategy-renewal process leads managers through the undergrowth of a business unit's complexity and compels them to ask whether all of the unit's customers, products and services are truly strategically important, significant and profitable. Units that do not meet these criteria must cut back to allow a greater concentration on cultivating their most worthy projects.

D Which came first, Harry J. Mindenberg wonders in Musings on Management Strategy: our misguided ideas of what makes a good manager and a good organisation, or the programmes that claim to create them? A professor of management himself at McGill University in Canada and at INSEAD in France, Mindenberg takes on management fads, management education and the worship of management gurus - and offers some provocative alternatives.

It considers the Reed to streamline commercial activities in order to have a clearer focus. 5

It criticises the control of policv-rnakinq by certain key personnel, It questions the validity of certain accepted rnanaqernent-traininq approaches. It includes practical, real-world examples of the ideas beinq put forward. It stresses that it is vital to exclude obsolete views when drawinq up company policy.

22

E The next time you are planning a major change effort, forget the huge meeting, the speeches relayed by satellite, the videos and special publications. J.K. and Sandra Parkin argue that Changing Frontline Employees requires giving up the image of the charismatic executive rousing the troops. Frontline employees may accept change, but they won't accept empty words delivered impersonally. If you need to convey a major strategic change, remember that frontline supervisors - not senior managers are the people whom employees trust the most.

23

Test 1

Reading

Example: Read this text taken from an article about future developments in advertising. Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps. For each gap (9-14), mark letter on your Answer Sheet. Do not mark any letter more than once. There is an example at the beginning (0).

On the contrary, there is almost certain to be an increase in every form of advertising in future years.

E

This fragmentation has already shown the need for a more sophisticated understanding of where and how to reach people in the most effective way.

F

Instead, they will have to change the whole way they look at communication and start thinking about ideas which are not specific to one discipline.

G

It has made possible a situation in which customers can tell advertisers what they think, and the advertisers can supply information.

H

No longer will all members be watching the same programme: some will be watching different channels on their own TVs, surfing the net or doing both at the same time.

B Increasingly, they will exist not simply to sell goods, but also to entertain people and to make sure that they enjoy their time there.

c The explosion of new media, ranging from the internet to digital television, means that people working in advertising will have to devise more cunning ways to catch the public's attention in the future. The traditional TV advertising campaign will not reach the whole family any more. (0) The advertising industry will have to work 'harder and smarter' to cut through the' clutter and noise' of the future with this vast array of new media, all competing to catch the consumer's eye. People have become more individual in their consumption of advertising. (9) New technology has made experimenting with new forms of advertising a possibility. The monologue where the advert tells housewives that this is the washing powder they should buy is just a cliche now. The internet, for example, has made such ads look old-fashioned. (10) much closer relationship with the consumer is gradually being forged. The definition of what constitutes advertising will expand well beyond the conventional mass

24

media. Shopping environments will themselves become a part of the advertising process. (11) The aim will be to 'warm' people towards these places so that they will return to purchase goods there again. In spite of these and other changes, it is highly unlikely that TV, print and radio will disappear altogether as advertising media. (12) . But other marketing disciplines, such as public relations and direct marketing, will become as important as advertising. Advertising agencies will have to reinvent themselves. They will no longer be able simply to produce advertisements and then support these through direct marketing or the internet. (13) . Thus, creativity will be the most valuable commodity in the future. (14) It will continue to be so in the future. But there will be an increasing premium on the advertiser's ability to be imaginative, and to think laterally about engaging the consumer in a broader variety of media.

D

Originality of thinking has always been in short supply. There is, consequently, little hope of them surviving for more than another 20 years.

25

Test 1

Reading

15

B

Read the following article about Grasmere, a small British company that manufactures steel components, and the questions on the opposite page. • For each question mark one letter (A, or on your Answer Sheet.

C D 16

UK

long way from those pen nibs, some

Grasmere's

manufacturers, Malcolm Drake thinks

of the original machinery stands in

more

In

a

tough

climate

for

he has hit on a way for his company, the reception area,as a memento of

business

widely to

other parts of

Grasmere, to succeed:by becoming a

the company's roots. Only in the last

not

bespoke manufacturer. This involves

year hasthe company relocated from

strategy to

working very closely with customers

the cramped and grimy workshop it

Drake points out, if a company such

to produce

moved to in 1910,to a more modern

as his is keen to yoke itself to

As a result, Grasmere has become

and

successful

indispensable to its big customers,

outskirts

of

which are based around Europe.

operation

that

open-plan

building

on

the

Birmingham,

an

involved a major

any

that

more overseas salesto

logistical exercise to

meet their own

into much larger products, and its

Grasmere

components Grasmere can produce.

make

itself more

flung divisions of these the

customers include big electronics and

efficient. The company has cut staff

electrical

from 150 to 125 by shedding low-

The company depends on having

skilled employees without reducing

technically literate people who can

turnover.

talk intelligently to customers. Hence

goods

manufacturers.

'When we start talking to customers about an order, they often have only

90 of Grasmere's employees are

a rough idea what they want,' says Drake. 'We assistthem in identifying

Malcolm Drake says that customers

I 8 of each

engineersemployed in a range of jobs including

making products,

and specifying their needs, and we

Grasmere's

advise them on the best way to

contribute revenues of more than

marketing

manufacture the product. Then we

£ 100,000 a year, with half of all

about 100 of

fulfil the order, which could involve

turnover coming from three of them.

involved in shop-floor production

making anything between 40 and one

'It isn't the usual supplier-customer

work, they frequently also have an

billion parts in a year.'

relationship,'he explains.'We are very

outward-facing role, such astalking to

open with them and provide them Grasmere's main tools are press with a lot of internal information machinesthat stamp out metal items

customers

much as they select us. If we are

Malcolm

asked to do something that is too

company's

great-grandfather in 1903, when its

difficult or expensive, we say "no".

attributes

best-selling products were pen nibs, We educate the customer asto what never

having fallen

below

the

sales,

18

productivity has improved. it is difficult to recruit skilled staff. new machinery has been introduced. some staff chose to leave the company.

What does Malcolm Drake say about the company's relationship with its customers?

C

Grasmere works on equal terms with its customers. Grasmere has a better relationship with some customers than others. Grasmere can learn a great deal from its customers. Grasmere is expected by some customers to provide too much information.

While are directly

about

design

or

The company's exports are rising because it is following a strategy of promoting its products abroad. there is a growing demand abroad for the types of products it makes. overseas sections of its client companies are buying from Grasmere. it is gaining access to the overseas clients of its own customers.

about costs. But we select them as

company was started by Drake's

exacting standards which it set then.

and

manufacturing.

in its Birmingham premises. The

and the company prides itself on

C

far-

machinery.The new site has allowed to

The company has always operated in the same premises. Some of the original machines are still used for manufacturing. The present range of products includes the original lines. The company has always had the same attitude to quality.

Grasmere's workforce has fallen because

A

strategically, inevitably this will mean

metal items that are tailored to fit

the

17

think

Grasmere makes a range of small

move

concentrates on working in a particular sector. helps customers to formulate their own requirements. makes a range of products for a small number of applications. designs products then looks for suitable customers for them.

deliberate

push up exports. As

companies

It It It It

What links Grasmere now with when it was founded?

A B C D

has spread

Europe in the past few years,though because of

What do we learn about Grasmere in the first paragraph?

is possible.If you allow yourself to be dictated to, that's not a partnership

sums

up

his

as offering five that

customers

want:

quality,speed,dependability,flexibility and low

costs. As a result, the

company is flourishing.

It is part of Grasmere's policy to ensure that every customer is allocated to a specific salesperson. many of its engineers deal directly with customers. each activity is carried out by dedicated staff. it has a department which designs new products.

it's grovelling.'

While today's range has 'moved a

26

27

Reading

Test 1

PART FOUR

Questions 21-30

Example: A

Read the article below offering advice to job-seekers. Choose the correct word to fill each gap from A, B, C or D on the opposite page. For each question (21-30), mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your Answer Sheet. There is an example at the beginning (0).

21

responsible

B

stronger

authoritative

C

liable

D

commanding

tougher

C

sharper

D firmer

22

A co nte m plated

reflected

C

regarded

D scruti nised

23

A treat

deal

C

cope

D handle

24

A

realise

B

succeed

obtain

D capture

25

A

right

B

virtue

C

justice

D fairness

26

A

intell igence

B

information

C

understanding D

27

A

benefit

B

advantage

C

profit

28

A arise

B

open

C

enter

29

A deserve

B

require

C

merit

D owe

30

A

B

fullest

C

greatest

D widest

Each time you try for a more (0) ............ position, the selection process gets (21) ............. Your abilities, personality traits, your lifestyle, values and aspirations . . will all be vigorously (22) ............ by your prospective colleagues and also your bosses. Do you know how to (23) ........... yourself when you are under the microscope? If you are to (24) ............ your ambitions, now is the time to learn how to do (25) ............ to yourself and prepare for formal selection processes. Learn about the various methods you can employ to find your way into a different institution, gain a more sophisticated (26) ............ of how

comprehension

D gain arrive

headhunters work and learn to position yourself so that you can be found easily. Taking (27) ............ of any situation to maximise your visibility is very useful. Even when you are not offered a particular job for which you have been considered, do leave an impression which will remain in the

biggest

mind of the headhunter should other possibilities (28) .............. You (29) ............ it to yourself to do the best you can. Make sureyou perform in such a way that you can be satisfied that the has been made with the (30) ............ amount of up-to-date and accurate information about your capabilities. Do you know what they are and do you have some stories prepared which will illustrate them well?

28

29

Reading

Test 1 SIX

Questions 31-40

Questions

Read the article below about computer printers. For each question (31-40), write one word in CAPITAL LETIERS on your Answer Sheet. • There is an example at the beginning (0).

• Read the text below about a small business which makes and sells clothes and other items for weddings. In most of the lines there is one extra word. It either is grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the sense of the text. Some lines, however, are correct. If a line is correct, write on your Answer Sheet. If there is an extra word in the line, write in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. • The exercise begins with two examples (0 and 00).

Most companies now realise that the so-called 'paperless office' is dearly an illusion - and probably always will (0) Digital technology has revolutionised working practices and methods of communication, but it has created additional media rather (31) replacing existing ones. Therefore, paper is here to stay, and the printer can be sure of keeping (32) place alongside the computer, fax and telephone as a basic item of office equipment, fundamental to the life of most companies. However, like many other basic items, the printer is often seen (33) peripheral, and insufficient attention is given to its selection. It is worth remembering that the equipment that you attach to your computer is just as important as the computer's technical specification. You you are using a printer that will soon find that (34) jams and smudges your work, or makes getting names and addresses onto envelopes seem an impossible task, then (35) supersonic speed of your microprocessor will be no great advantage. Printing technology has developed few years, and it seems set to (37) so. Finding the best needs depends on many factors, not least (38) is cost.Yet even before cost rl'"\l'Y\r"\":lri<::f"\I'l<:: (36)

consideration, the speed and quality of The best motto is 'try before you get the best printer for your (40) the best possible

over the to particular

Last year, Jenny Selwyn spent several months through pondering how to expand her six-year-

00 old business, JS Couture. More than half of her annual turnover was tied up in stock to show to prospective brides, her retail outlet-cum-workshop was situated down a back street in a tiny town, and advertising was not boosting sales up. One way to expand would have

43 been to do more wholesaling, but this seemed inappropriate for her customised design service. The margins from wholesalers, and who might also be slow payers, were not attractive. Far

45 better would it be to open a second retail shop with much higher margins and better

46 cashflow, thanks in part to payment by customers of a 30% deposit. Unless there were 47 worries about the signing a five-year lease on another retail shop, and leasing and then 48 managing a second site, as well done as coping with the extra workload. However, with the 49 support of her loyal four-strong workforce, Jenny took on a chance, and business growth

50 proved not to be too much stressful. Within a year, turnover has more than doubled, and net

51

profit improved dramatically. There is little if anything to

suggest that this success

52 is not set to continue, and the message comes from JS Couture is clear: small businesses should think big.

30

31

Test 1

Writing

1

r1 Write an answer to one of the questions 2-4 in this part. Write your answer in

200-250 words. Question 2

Question 1

The bar chart below shows the forecasts of unit sales by Toller Electrical Ltd for the four quarters of next year in each of its three main product areas. Using the information from the bar chart, write a short report describing and comparing the sales forecasts for the three product areas for next year. Write 120-140 words.

Toller Electrical Ltd Sales forecasts for next year 25

(j)

20

C

::::::i

0

1st Qtr 15

2nd Qtr

E en (J)

coen ...... ·c

10

::J

5

Question 3

The company you work for is investigating the possibility of opening a new branch abroad. Your line manager has asked you to contact a business advisory service in the country the company is considering. Write a letter to the business advisory service • briefly introducing your company • explaining your company's plans outlining the points you would like advice about suggesting a meeting with your company. Question 4

'"'0

co en

The number of staff using the company canteen at mealtimes has been falling, and the Managing Director has asked you to find out why this is the case. Write a report for the Managing Director explaining how you found out the opinions of the staff • summarising the reasons staff gave for not using the canteen suggesting possible ways of encouraging staff to use the canteen.

~

3rd Qtr

D 4th Qtr

A member of your section wants permission to take a course which will mean he/she will be absent from work for a long period of time. Write a proposal to your line manager recommending that the person be allowed to take the course. Write the proposal for your line manager, including the following information a brief description of the course contents why this particular person should be allowed to do the course • how the course will be of benefit to the company • how any problems caused by the employee's absence will be overcome.

0 fridges

TVs

cookers

Toller Electrical Products

32

33

Listening

Test 1

Questions 13-22

You will hear five different people talking about the Master of Business Administration courses (MBAs) which they have taken. For each extract, there are two tasks. For Task One, decide why each person decided to take that particular course from the list For Task Two, decide what the main benefit of the course has been for each speaker from the list After you have listened once, replay the recording.

• You will hear Jack Lester, founder of Hinde Instruments Corporation, a telescope manufacturer, giving talk about the development of his company. complete the notes using up to three words or a • As you listen, for questions number. • you have recording.

For questions match the extracts with the reasons given by the speaker, listed For each extract, decide on the appropriate reason. • Write one letter next to the number of the extract. excellent coverage of developments in business law good on project management personalised attention strong focus on marketing good reputation of the teaching staff

Hinde Instruments'

are in California.

Hinde Instruments faced the risk of

convenient location of the institution

in 1991.

good coverage of e-commerce Jack Lester worked for WAC as

inclusion of courses on financial management

.

At first, Hinde Instruments' telescopes were available through

.

The of Hinde Instruments' telescopes made them popular with amateur astronomers.

• For questions match • For each extract, choose next to • Write one letter

with the main benefit for the speaker, listed each speaker describes. number of the extract.

In February 1991, Hinde Instruments faced demands for repayment of its

I have broadened my understanding of monetary issues.

Amtex sold Hinde Instruments' entire

What I learnt is useful in my current work in humanresource management.

of telescopes and its liabilities for

$1,000.

I am much more comfortable working as part of a team. made

8

It took only

9

Hinde Instruments talks to

to clear Hinde Instruments' debts. about its products.

The major strength of Hinde Instruments' Hinde Instruments aims to use its HNT Networks buys

is its advanced telescopes. to expand into new markets.

from Hinde Instruments.

I have changed my attitude to senior management. Other participants gave me how customers feel.

better understanding of

I have a better understanding of my own limitations. My time management has improved.

34

Work I did on the course was useful when I applied for the job I now have.

35

Test 1

Listening

PARTTHREE

29

Questions 23-30 You will hear a Business Studies tutor and a student, Martin, discussing Ralcona, a UK-based soft-drinks company. For each question (23-30), mark one letter (A, or C) for the correct answer. After you have listened once, replay the recording.

23

Why did Ralcona decide to expand their product range? A C

24

that companies must take risks to beat their competitors that products can be marketed in different ways to different groups that ongoing market research is essential to effective selling

limited to the European market. introduced in planned stages. sold under a different brand name.

to price them at a higher level than their existing products to copy their competitors' successful products to target them at the younger end of the market

They headhunted personnel from their competitors. They recruited newly qualified young designers. They subcontracted the design to a specialist agency.

Ralcona's marketing department was understaffed. Ralcona's competitors introduced a new marketing campaign. Communication with Ralcona's retail outlets was poor.

Ralcona's executives were surprised to find that the new products were A B C

36

A B C

What unforeseen problem delayed the introduction of the new range? A B C

28

According to Martin, what can other businesses learn from studying Ralcona's success?

How did Ralcona find designers for the packaging of the new products? A B C

27

30

The marketing department was restructured. Employees were rewarded for being more innovative. The company developed closer links with its retail outlets.

What was Ralcona's strategy with regard to their new products? A B C

26

A B C

Ralcona's senior management thought that the new product range should be

C 25

Demand for their core product was falling. Their competitors were increasing their market share. They wanted to build on the success of their core product.

How did the success of the new product range affect Ralcona?

bought by a wider range of people than expected. used in more ways than anticipated. more popular than Ralcona's core product.

37

Test 1

Speaking

6

utes

For

candidates

Your company is proposing to send a team of staff abroad for six months to set up an office and train local employees. You have been asked to make some recommendations for the project. In this part, the interlocutor asks questions to each of the candidates in turn. You have to give information about yourself and express personal opinions.

Discuss and decide together: • how to select appropriate staff to manage the project what preparation and advice the staff would need before leaving

In this part of the test, you are asked to give a short talk on a business topic. You have to choose one of the topics from the three below and then talk for about one minute. You have one/minute to prepare your ideas.

how to maintain effective communications between the new office and the company headquarters.

MCllrkletilrlQ: the importance of advertising slogans in promoting a brand or product

lntormation rnanaqement: the importance of keeping staff informed about company policies and plans Purctla~;in4C1: how

to achieve and maintain good relations with all suppliers

In this part of the test, you are look at the task prompt, an example minutes discuss the topic with more questions to the topic.

• What advantages would there be in working abroad for a short period of time? • What kinds of problems could staff encounter working abroad? (Why?) How can people get information while they are working abroad? What effect does the increase in international contacts have on the way companies operate? (Why?)

candidates

• How important is it for businesses to have their own offices abroad? (Why?/Why not?)

Your company is to send a team of staff abroad for months to set up an office and train local errmlrrvees asked to make some recommendations for the Discuss and decide • how to select

+~ ~"~+I-, ~_.

'=ln~.,.-rAn-r1'=lt"",

staff to manage

• what preparation-and advice the staff would need before leaving.

38

39

Reading

New Store Parkin's search for a site for its next store has been ended by Marsden's misfortunes, with Parkin agreeing to buy half of the latter's Birmingham store for £40m. Parkin's main store is in London, but it opened its second, in Birmingham, three years ago, and has been seeking sites in other large cities. There was surprise that the new store, likely to open next year, is so close to the existing one, where profits have so far beaten Parkin's sales targets, in case it draws customers away from the existing outlet.

Questions 1-8 Look at the statements below and the five news items on various companies on the opposite page. Which report (A, C, or E) does each statement (1-8) refer to? C, or on your Answer Sheet. For each statement (1-8), mark one letter (A, You will need to use some of these letters more than once. There is an example at the beginning (0).

Example:

o

Some new premises are going to be opened.

Capacity Cut The packaging industry has typically suffered from a vicious cycle, with rising prices leading to excess capacity, which in turn leads to a collapse in prices, and Johnson Keithley is no exception. The company has been attempting to smooth the boom/bust cycle by better capacity management, but it admitted yesterday that it has been forced to make significant cuts to capacity because of a surprisingly sharp downturn in demand. The group now expects its second-half results to fall below expectations, and warned of further problems on the horizon.

Costs Higher raw-material costs have reduced full-year profits at Bonner's, the plastics manufacturer, with prices of polyethylene, the main component of its business, rising 8% since last year. Profits were also held back by the disposal of its packaging division, which accounted for over half of turnover the previous year. Additional costs were incurred by relocating the head office from Wrexham to Cardiff, and from reorganisation and redundancy in its plastics business. Bonner's said that trading in the current year has started slowly, particularly in its European markets.

This company reports not being able to pass on higher costs to its customers. 2

The sale of part of a company has had an adverse affect on profits.

3

This company's response to fluctuations in sales has not had the desired effect.

4

Jobs have been lost because a company has ended one of its activities.

5

There are fears about the impact of internal competition within the company.

6

This company has reported contrasting results from different parts of its operations.

7

This company has spent money on moving part of its operation.

8

Efforts are to be made to turn around sales at a store.

40

Shares in regional supermarket chain Couldson fell steeply yesterday after the retailer warned of losses at its biggest outlet, in Bristol. The warning was in stark contrast to its trading statement three months ago, which reported a rise in like-for-like sales of 5% in the preceding month. However, trading across the of the chain, including seven outlets bought last year from Luxona, showed a healthy improvement. company has promised to do all it can to stem the decline of the last four weeks at the outlet.

Dorcas Foods has posted a modest rise in interim profits. the company says it has had to absorb increased costs at its Quality Sugar subsidiary and the impact of a margin at its Australian baking operations. sugar, the continued strength of sterling has capped profits, and with move sugar-beet refining, expenditure on redundancy is having a serious impact. the same time, floods Australia have led to higher wheat prices, which in turn have reduced margins in the company's baking operations.

Reading

Test 2

Example:

Questions 9-14

Read this article from the business pages of a newspaper. Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps. For each gap (9-14), mark one letter (A-H) on your Answer Sheet. Do not use any letter more than once. There is an example at the beginning (0).

High fliers of the future head for specialist fairs Despite the recent development of online recruiting, graduate job fairs are still proving hugely popular in Britain with both employers and job hunters. (0) ... ft. .. Any graduate with big ambitions could be forgiven for thinking that the north-west of England is the centre of the universe next week. (9) As usual, they will all be looking for the brightest, best and most suitable graduates to employ. November 2 sees Expo Management (the finance, business and management fair), and on November 3, Technology for the Future (the IT, science and engineering fair), will be held. (10) Expo Management has also expanded, to incorporate a broad range of careers in business and management, as well as the finance sector. There are excellent transport links from all parts of the country to where the fairs are being held. An accommodation booking service is available, and there is plenty of entertainment on offer.

42

Employers are keener than ever to take part. (11) Having said that, employers use the fairs in order to make contact with the specific kinds of graduates they are looking to recruit. (12) However, all graduates visiting the fairs with the right skills and motivation are likely to get a very positive response from employers.

They are keen for graduates to make use of this innovation before they attend the fairs.

After all, they may not have another chance to see such a huge range of prestigious employers under one roof.

Graduates can take advantage of these to ensure that they know how to make the best applications possible in the weeks following the fairs.

The reason is that is where a 170-strong list of employers will be setting up their stands at the start of November's round of graduate fairs.

C

The latter, only a few years old, has proved so successful that this year it has doubled in size: it now plays host to more than 40 employers.

D

In particular, it is those with technical qualifications who are most sought after.

G

This enthusiasm means that the prospects for graduate job-hunters are excellent at the moment. As a result, they are getting bigger and bigger each time they hit the road again.

Preparation is the key to getting the most from these fairs and visitors should have done their homework. (13) It is sensible to exploit this opportunity by coming armed with a good CV and a list of relevant questions to ask. Also, this year the fairs' organisers have introduced a new support facility. (14) By visiting http://www.networld.co/gradfairs, they will get instant access to the full list of exhibitors and their vacancies, as well as links to their company websites. With the world of business changing and expanding so rapidly, ambitious graduates will find that time spent at the fairs makes an excellent investment in their future.

43

Reading

Test 2 15

PART

Questions 15-20

A

Read the article below about management styles and the questions on the opposite page. C or D) on your Answer Sheet. For each question (15-20), mark one letter (A, Generally, the culture of any firm can be described as principally action-orientated, people-orientated or system-orientated. That is to say, the behaviour that the managers exhibit tends to emphasise one of these three approaches to leadership and management. In successful firms ship is acuon-orienuueu, me cuuure is generally driven by one or a handful of managers who present a strong vision for the firm and lead by example. The emphasis is on getting things done, on driving for change. Such leaders constantly infuse energy throughout the firm and reinforce it through training that emphasises individual action, showing initiative, taking considered risks and stressing individual output and results. It is a dynamic culture that rests on individuals being motivated to rise to the challenges of the business and being willing to take on responsibilities, often beyond what is considered their normal role. The downside is that the approach can be somewhat 'one-sided' , overlooking the need for systems to handle routine matters, and taking for granted that people are all driven by a sense of challenge. It can result in the strong and quick riding roughshod over the more considered and thoughtful. When overdone, action-orientation becomes 'flare'

44

behaviour, insensitive to differences in situations and people. Successful people-orientated cultures derive from leadership that trains people to be ready to take responsibility and then invests them with it. Such firms delegate responsibility down as far as possible. They are not the 'do it, check it, recheck it, double-check it and then check it again to be sure' types of cultures. They empower trained people and trust them to build quality in. They ask people to make decisions and expect them to do so. If the decisions prove wrong, the experience is used as the basis for learning rather than for criticism or punishment. They emphasise commitment and mutual support, reinforced through training that focuses on how and when to delegate responsibility, on understanding and recognising that people are not all the same, learning how to get the best out of everyone. However, people-orientated cultures are not warm and cuddly. They respect people, support them and develop them - but they expect them to perform. If people fail to live up to expectations after proper training investment, appropriate steps are taken. The downside of peopleorientated cultures occurs when responsibility is not appropriately delegated. Insufficient challenge for bright, trained people leads to poor

performance. Equally, giving people more than they can handle without properly preparing them, and without providing adequate support if they initially falter, leads to the same result. Successful system-orientated cultures focus on trying to deal systematically with recurring problems and situations. Basically, they have their feet on the ground; in most organisations, 80% of what is done is routine, and the systemorientated firm knows this. So its procedures handle the routine, leaving managers to use their energy on that 20% of the work that needs their expertise. The essence of a successful systemorientated culture is its ability and willingness to constantly question its systems. Such organisations tend to have strong corporate cultures, and people have to buy into them before being given the right to question and criticise. But given that, every process is up for evaluation and improvement. The rule book really matters, but it is not cast in stone. Away from the rule book, initiative is a key characteristic, but it is initiative in a strong team environment. People consult where possible and take individual decisions only when it is not.

According to the text, a company that has an action-orientated approach to management is likely to

C

16

accept that some initiatives will be more successful than others. view staff in terms of their personal achievements. emphasise the importance of staff input into strategy. expect staff to work extra hours without remuneration.

Which of the following does the writer consider a disadvantage of actionorientated management? It It It It

attracts people who are unreliable. focuses too heavily on controversial issues. gives out the wrong kind of message to new recruits. makes a questionable assumption about human behaviour.

Unlike action-orientated companies, those who favour people-orientated management

C

keep a watchful eye on what their employees do. are unwilling to tolerate errors of judgement. are sensitive to individual differences. see indecision as a positive feature.

According to the text, which type of person may under-perform in a peopleorientated company? an intelligent person who lacks stimulation a new member of staff who is keen to learn new skills a new employee who is given a challenging role an individual who learns less quickly than others In the writer's view, the system-orientated approach is

C

visionary. realistic. uninspiring. outdated.

In a system-orientated culture, employees are encouraged to share ideas. not expected to criticise colleagues. trained to focus on self-improvement. not allowed to challenge company policy.

45

Reading

Test 2

Example: Questions 21-30

issue

point

case

fact

Read the article below about customer relationship management. • Choose the correct word or phrase to fill each gap from or on the opposite page. • For each question mark one letter (A, or D) on your Answer Sheet. There is an example at the beginning (0). value

C

asset

property

turn out

make up

C

write out

show up

detected

regarded

C

conceived

distinguished

24

coincidence

similarity

agreement

connection

25

authority

command

C

advantage

preference

26

joined

linked

C

associated

27

shift

fluctuation

C

motion

28

profiting

capitalising

C

exploiting

D benefiting

reinstated

restored

C

replaced

D recouped

modifying

mending

C

refurbishing

21

A

22

u

r

ns

In today's fast-moving market, it is a simple (0) ........ that products are constantly being replaced by something new. For companies large and small, the most important real (21) ........ with measurable, long-term value is loyal, one-to-one customer relationships. However, despite their importance, they do not (22) .......... on any company's balance sheet. If a company lost 10% of its inventory to theft, it would react swiftly, but if the company loses 10% of . its customers, this may not be (23) In this age of product (24) , in which the market fails to perceive any profound difference between products or companies, effective management of customer relationships is critical in . achieving a competitive (25) Delivering quality service and achieving high customer satisfaction have been to profits, and closely (26) all consequently the (27)

46

na

companies are trying to make is to provide more internal and external customer relationship focus. By (28) .......... available information technology, leading companies have already shortened process and response times, increasing customer satisfaction. But companies must make a profit to survive, so telling a chief executive to focus more on customers, through the use of expensive information technology, may fall on deaf ears unless it can be demonstrated that such investments will be (29) .......... in terms of revenue, market share and profits. Certain companies are responding to this new customer focus by completely (30) .......... their traditional financialonly measurements of corporate performance, and seeking new ways of measuring customers' perceptions and expectations.

23

29 30

A

A

worth

B

D combined displacement

overhauling

47

Reading

Test 2

• Read the article below about working abroad for your company. For each question write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. There is an example at the beginning (0).

These days, a great many companies require more staff to spend more time working abroad on business assignments, (0) a result of the trend towards economic globalisation. senior managers believe that it is Nearly (31) . going to be more important than ever (32) executives to be globally mobile over the next five years. Ambitious young managers are also increasingly realising that international experience is essential ifthey want to get anywhere near the boardroom of a modern, successful company. But (33) is a downside to this. A majority of top managers say they are now unwilling to make the personal sacrifices involved in meeting this demand. Severe shortages (34) the supply of globally mobile executives are therefore on the cards. The solution that has now (35) commonplace is a significant increase in the use of shortterm assignments. International 'commuting' living (36) .. ... .... ... home but travelling regularly around the world - is now the norm for many managers. ............ companies are even known to pay for key staff to travel home once a from workplaces in another continent. Airlines have recognised the trend and adapting their services to accommodate the demands of steadily increasing numbers of business people by travelling on short-term assignments, for scheduling ............ or not

Read the text below from a report about sales figures. • In most lines there is one extra word. It either is grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the sense of the text. Some lines, however, are correct. • If a line is correct, write on your Answer Sheet. • If there is an extra word in the line, write in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. • The exercise begins with two examples (0 and

six the

16 in

last

of

successful quarter

were

sales

disappointing

in too.

the

Seattle

General

area, sales

results were

cent, on average, across our nine area stores. While as last

it is my view

to layoffs

which, pic

of

n n \ / l H.....i - l l l " n

for

down noted

can then be attnt>uted

is the area's largest notices to

in

5 per cent

49

Test 2

Writing

r 10

TWO Write an answer to one of the questions 2-4 in this part. Write your answer in 200-250 wo rds. Question 2

Question 1

The chart below compares the numbers of male and female executives in different age ranges in Star World, a large IT company. Using the information from the chart, write a short report comparing the ages of the male and female executives within the company. Write 120-140 words.

You recently attended an annual conference related to your company's line of business. Your Managing Director has asked you to write a report on the conference and its usefulness to the company. • Write the report for the Managing Director, including the following information: • a brief overview of the conference content and speakers • an assessment of the opportunities to make business contacts at the conference • recommendations concerning the company's participation in the conference in future years. Question 3

EXECUTIVE STATISTICS - AGE AND GENDER

40

tJ)

Male executives Female executives

30

(!)

>

:;

This is part of a letter your organisation has received from students at a local college:

In our research project, we are studying how this city benefits from the presence of organisations such as yours. We would be grateful for some information from you in this connection.

0

e

><

(!)

'0 20

Write your letter of reply to the students: • thanking them for their letter and introducing yourself • explaining some ways in which the city benefits from the presence of your organisation • outlining ways in which your organisation aims to help the city more in the future suggesting a visit to your organisation and why such a visit would be useful.

a> E

.c

~

z

10

Question 4

o 24-29

30-40

40-50 Age Group

50

50-60

60-70

70-80

The company you work for has decided to join a scheme in which members of staff exchange places for six months with people from other companies overseas. The Chief Executive has asked you to suggest which members of staff should be the first to take part in this scheme and why. Write your proposal for the Chief Executive: suggesting which members of staff should be chosen and why they are suitable describing what their current responsibilities are • explaining what these staff could learn from the exchange scheme outlining the benefits to the company as a whole of its participation in the scheme.

51

Test 2

Listening

(incl

PART TWO Questions 13-22 You will hear five different people talking about the companies they work for. For each extract, there are two tasks. For Task One, choose the recent change in the company the person mentions from the list For Task Two, choose the strength of the company the person mentions from the list After you have listened once, replay the recording. One - Recent change in

• You will hear a speaker giving a group of managers advice on how to run a project. As you listen, for questions complete the notes using up to three words or a number. After you have listened once, replay the recording.

company

• For questions match the extracts with the recent changes, listed For each extract choose the change in the company the person mentions. Write one letter next to the number of the extract. 13

.

A new section was established. Existing premises were re-designed. A new manager was appointed. A training programme was expanded.

It is important to allow sufficient time for the Make sure that you establish a manageable. Always focus on the

Some technology was updated.

that is both sensible and

New accounting procedures were introduced. situation.

Employees were given input into a company system.

Persuade your staff of the value of Competent

The staff recruitment process was revised.

.

to the project.

is important for monitoring the project.

Keeping staff informed will enable them to understand the they have made. Meetings with staff from different departments may project. Ensure that you

Be prepared to Hire people who can be easily

the

asthe market shifts. if necessary.

.

staff promotion and incentives product innovation

are modified.

as possible.

match the extracts with the strengths of the company, • For questions listed For each extract, choose the strength that each person mentions. • Write one letter next to the number of the extract.

18

when things go wrong.

You need to be ready to adapt if your client's Encourage as much

.

publicity techniques range of services pricing policies customer relations financial planning recruitment and induction

52

53

Test 2

Listening 29

A

Questions 23-30

You will hear two managers, Peter and Sarah, who are taking an MBA course, discussing their experiences and views of business. For each question (23-30), mark one letter (A, or C) for the correct answer. After you have listened once, replay the recording.

23

Peter and Sarah agree that the purpose of their current assignment is to analyse failed strategies. evaluate existing strategies. formulate new strategies.

Peter believes that working from home would

C 30

lead to greater creativity. increase productivity. suit some people more than others.

Peter and Sarah agree that businesses will be increasingly affected by A B C

technology-based knowledge management. changes in customer expectations. regional differences in markets.

What aspect of the course is Peter impressed by?

C 25

What feature of the course does Sarah find unsatisfactory? B C

26

the balance> of theory and practice the focus on individual needs the expertise of lecturers

group discussions reading requirements timetable arrangements

What does Sarah enjoy about her current job? working as part of a team having contact with clients running a series of projects

27

In the future, Peter would like to be involved in

C 28

Sarah says the good thing about recruitment consultants is that they

C

54

improving the quality of branded products. planning strategies for creating branded products. increasing the appeal of branded products.

facilitate understanding of the jobs market. maintain diverse contacts among potential employers. encourage people to aim high.

55

Speaking

Test 2

For

candidates

Customer Base The Finance Director of your company is concerned that the majority of its income comes from one main client. You have been asked to make recommendations on ways to expand your company's customer base.

In this part, the interlocutor asks questions to each of the candidates in turn. You have to give information about yourself and express personal opinions.

Discuss and decide together: what the potential dangers are of having only one main client

In this part of the test, you are asked to give short talk on a business topic. You have to choose one of the topics from the three below and then talk for about one minute. You have one minute to prepare your ideas. rnanaqement: the importance

how the company could ensure it maintains good relations with its main client.

planning work time effectively.

devetoprnent: how to ensure inter-departmental co-operation on new projects t'urct,as;ln~l: how

how the company could try to gain additional clients

Follow-on questions

to evaluate and select new • What advantages could there be for companies of having a relatively small customer base? (Why?) When attracting new customers, how important is it for companies to give information about their existing clients? (Why/Why not?) How can companies strengthen customer loyalty, apart from offering good customer service? you • How can companies which operate globally ensure consistently high levels of customer satisfaction?

For

How can companies respond to increased competition from other companies?

• • 56

to

57

Reading

Following the company's poor annual results in November, the share price plunged and has since remained around 200p. Analysts now believe that the company is seriously undervalued by the stock market. The company's biggest problems were in Germany and France last year where supply outstripped demand, leading to a £20 million loss for the year. However, the company has recently appointed a new chairman who has a first-rate track record of reviving failing companies. It is believed that he will be successful in turning round the company's fortunes.

• Look the statements below and the reports about five different companies on the opposite refer • Which cornoanv or on your Answer more than once.

•

This company has outlets in new types of location.

Analysts are impressed with the company's recent performance. In the last six months, it has managed to increase prices by 3 per cent without adversely affecting sales. In such a lowmargin, high-sales sector, this ought to translate directly into increased profits. The company's recent sale of its packaging division has eliminated all its debts. Shares have risen in the month from SOp to lOOp. Despite these promising signs, it must be remembered that company is trading in an volatile market.

For some weeks, there has been widesnread expectation that the company will announce the sale of its troubled arm. Speculation came to an end when this was firmly out as a at the annual general last week. Profits from this division were down from to £8 million. However, was more than an the retail division, which has taken step stores in such as and in this division rose from

This company has expanded at a time of high demand. Good results in one part of this company made up for disappointing results in another part. It is difficult to predict future prospects for the kind of products this company sells. Profits for this company are likely to be different from those that were earlier predicted. 5

A recovery in this company's financial position is expected. This company is likely to benefit from charging more for its products.

58

llrll'Y\t;lr'l.r""t

This company produced more goods than were needed for certain markets. This company has denied rumours about its future plans.

7

prospects four more and fitness move has come at a time when the were rumours that the cornnanv one of the American corporations. I-IAYIl""'rc.:.... that any such bids

with shareholders as, for the average returns. Profits for the Development pronts from some 30 around the country in second Given this, and the sale a lossJlJ'_uu.U:-J..VJ..'~, pre-tax forecasts been increased to £21 million and

59

Reading

Test 3 PART TWO

Example: Questions 9-14 Read this text taken from the results of a survey on employees' priorities at work in the UK. Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps. For each gap (9-14), mark one letter (A-H) on your Answer Sheet. Do not use any letter more than once. • There is an example at the beginning (0).

Employees say one thing and do another, a recent UK-based report claims. (0) ... H. .. Addressing these problems is especially important when there are skills shortages, and companies are trying hard to retain the workers they have. According to the report, there is a consistent discrepancy between what really attracts staff and keeps them, and what they say are priorities. The report found that, although there are differences in preferences, depending on age, home country and gender, all age groups say they rate the work/life balance as an extremely important consideration for staying with their particular company. (9) This is followed by job security and financial rewards. However, despite their proclamations about wanting a work/life balance, it was established that this does not have a positive effect on retention for any subgroup. Similarly, people profess to identify more closely with a company which has a clear strategy for success, but in fact that does not result in improved retention either. (10)

.

Another finding was that it is the high-flyers in a company who are most likely to be ungrateful and leave. This is despite the fact that they are

60

more likely to attract fast-track promotion, career development, training and financial rewards, which should be the glue to keep them loyal. (11) . All this makes life difficult for managers. (12) This is because they have to spend as much time creating an employment brand that attracts the best talent as they do in creating a consumer brand that builds customer loyalty. That is all the more important for major companies, who, increasingly these days, are no longer viewed as the employer of choice by top graduates. (13) This involves both corporate attitudes and individual encouragement. At corporate level, there is a need for a clear and convincing strategy for the business, and an innovative environment low in bureaucracy. One level down from that, there should be tasks that interest and challenge employees, and sharpen their skills. At individual level, profitrelated bonuses go down well. (14) . Above all, companies should remember that since the requirements are different for the young, middle-aged and elderly, as well as for men and women, the package has to be enticing to the right target age and gender.

A

Top executives find that they can no longer delegate personnel matters.

B

That is possibly because they are most likely to find other jobs.

C

What the report did conclude though, was that money, especially performance-related pay, does increase commitment, as do share options and profit-sharing.

D

In addition, companies need to motivate key people with appropriate recognition and by giving them what they actually want, rather than just relying on an attractive basic salary, which can easily be matched by any other employer.

E

Moreover, when it comes to choosing a job, women rate it even more highly than men.

F

As a result, the report concludes that focusing on the top performers can be counterproductive because it can cause underdevelopment, underutilisation and demotivation of the rest of the workforce.

G

The report reckons that in order to change this situation, a two-stage policy is required. This will come as no surprise to anyone involved with market research, but it is causing problems for employers trying to recruit staff.

61

Test 3

Reading What is PTL doing, according to the second paragraph? allowing Linton to run RoCom in the way he wishes to purchasing almost half of the RoCom shares on offer giving all RoCom staff regular bonuses to promote motivation drawing up new employment contracts for RoCom employees

• Read the following article about James Linton, CEO of RoCom, and the questions on the opposite page. mark one letter (A, or D) on your Answer Sheet. • For each question

What do we learn about Linton's work at RoCom in the third paragraph? In the world of big business, James Linton is precocious in the extreme. Just two years into the job of reviving one of the most illustrious names in retail finance, RoCom, he has found himself a key player in one of the richest and certainly most audacious deals in industry: PTL's takeover PTL is paying £25 a share for RoCom - approximately 40 per cent more than the market value of the shares - and its offer document boasted that 'PTL attaches great importance to key employees having appropriate, performance-related remuneration'. Initially wary about the takeover, Linton has now negotiated a hands-off agreement with PTL, which confirms its intention to leave him very much to his own devices to continue building the business. All this and he will not turn 38 for another fortnight! Although Linton is credited with turning RoCom around, this is more a matter of work in progress than actual achievement. Yet he does seem to have instituted the biggest top-level shake-up in its near 70year history, promoted some bighitters amongst key staff and transformed RoCom's way of doing business.

62

Linton has, however, warned that the takeover is by no means a guarantee of future success; indeed, deteriorating market conditions suggest that the way forward will be anything but smooth. Linton recently ventured the hypothesis that being shareholderowned had, in recent years, helped the business focus and argued that the sector's experience of rival takeovers was not encouraging. Indeed, the recently reported performance of rival organisations such as Maften Limited has not promoted the notion that big corporations are happy homes for experienced staff and managers such as Linton. It may have been his ideas about independence that made Linton address RoCom's 900 staff on the day the takeover was announced, rather than doing high-profile media interviews on what was immediately seen as a fantastic deal for shareholders. is acutely aware of the need to nurture his staff if the business is to succeed, something which is not lost on them. This is not a management-school dictum. It is a genuine belief that every member of staff has contributed to the firm and enabled it to net £1.9 billion from PTL. Other CEOs say he is arrogant, but this probably reflects the fact that Linton may find talking to them

He He He He

difficult. He is also ferociously intelligent, and, while in others this could appear intimidating, in Linton it awakes further admiration amongst loyal employees. They clearly do not feel they have to grovel in front of this mastermind, and claim that although he's incredibly dedicated to his work, he has an affable manner. Linton boasts that staff turnover rates at RoCom have remained low for the industry, at about 12 per cent since he took over as CEO two years ago. 'People have a real affection for RoCom, and that runs right through the office here. They all want us to be number one,' he says. He is aware of the possibility that the collegiate ethos he has worked so hard to create, the meritocracy on which he thinks much of RoCom's success depends, could be destroyed if PTL is too heavy-handed. will need all his skills to keep RoCom on course, particularly when attention has immediately focused on the possibility that Susan Marshall, its respected investment chief, might be the first casualty of the takeover. Whatever the future holds for RoCom, we are certain to go on hearing a lot more of James Linton.

has has has has

achieved more than anyone in RoCom's history. widened the range of RoCom's business activities. taken on a number of new employees. made changes to senior management.

What does Linton say about RoCom in the fourth paragraph? The company is likely to face difficult times. The has lost a number of experienced The company is expecting to report encouraging results shortly. focus to Which of

rouowmo is

style?

He involves others in the decision-making process. His staff find him approachable. He expects his staff to work as hard as he does. His style differs from of other CEOs. How does Linton feel about the takeover, according to the sixth paragraph? pleased that staff turnover finally started to fall two years ago afraid that he will lose his job to Susan Marshall worried that the company culture might change happy that employees have been so supportive of his work

20

Which of the following would be the best title for the article? The Linton way of getting the best from staff A thin line between success and failure for James Linton James Linton a man who will go far Howa good idea went wrong for James Linton

63

Test 3

Reading

Example: A

Read the extract below from a book about corporate planning. Choose the correct word to fill each gap from or on the opposite page. or D) on your Answer Sheet. For each question (21-30), mark one letter (A, There is an example at the beginning (0).

Corporate planning may be (0) ............ as the careful and systematic taking of strategic decisions. In contrast to a short-term plan like a a corporate plan is concerned with taking a long-term of future developments and with designing a strategy so that the organisation can achieve its chosen objectives. Many large companies now recognise the importance of (22) ............ a formal approach to developing a corporate plan. They prepare 'scenarios' or forecasts of future developments in the (23) ............ in which they wish to operate, in order to examine whether decisions taken in the present will result in success in the future. In recent years, companies have been developing more sophisticated (24) ............ with which to analyse the risks involved in such decisions. (25) ............ , for example, an oil company deciding if it should invest in a new refinery. Faced with this decision, involving the (26) ............ of millions of pounds on something which might have a life of 15 years or more, the company must have a sound basis for its decision. In this case, it needs to know whether it can be (27) ............ of a market for the extra volume of its refined products, and it needs to know whether they can be produced profitably. In addition, it is necessary to study the (28) ............ of crude oil and other supplies needed in the process.

described

accounted

indicated

reported

21

A sight

B

picture

C

scene

D

view

22

A carrying

B

practising

C

placing

D

adopting

23

A element

B

condition

C

environment

24

A techniques

B

ideas

C

styles

D

ways

25

A

B

Consider

C

Think

D

Suppose

26

A outlay

B

output

C

outset

D

outcome

27

A

assured

B

insured

C

confirmed

D

ascertained

28

A

utility

B

availability

C

attainability

D

usability

29

A guiding

B

leading

C

determining

D

concluding

30

A chance

potential

C

room

D

scope

Refer

atmosphere

Corporate planning, therefore, involves three main areas: (29) ............ the long-term objectives of an organisation, deciding what market (30) ............ there may be and formulating a product policy to satisfy them.

64

65

Reading

Test 3

Questions 41-52

• Read the newspaper article below about entrepreneurs. • Foreach question one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. There is an example (0).

Read the advertisement below about a service for small businesses. In most of the lines (41-52), there is one extra word. It either is grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the sense of the text. Some lines, however, are correct. on your Answer Sheet. If a line is correct, write • If there is an extra word in the line, write in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. The exercise begins with two examples (0 and 00).

VVho wants (0) be an entrepreneur? Just about or (31) it seems these days. The values entrepreneurship are hailed everywhere, the more enterprising small shop owner to (32) the boardrooms of multinationals. Entrepreneurs are seen as the true 'wealth creators' and as the initiators of change. are often creative and always self-driven, and ............ a result, they and the companies they head possess a sense of vision which larger, more amorphous organisations often aim for but hardly ever achieve. So how do you become one? The received wisdom is that entrepreneurs with talents (34) as these are a breed apart. They are born, not formed through education. Ifthat's (35) case, then is there any point in going to business school to learn how to become an entrepreneur, as many do?There are trainers who think it's perfectly feasible. They compare it to training an opera singer (36) the sense that for singers, natural talent is essential, but then trainers instruct and develop it. The (37) goes for would-be entrepreneurs. Trainers develop their skills and impart knowledge. In (38) words, so the argument goes, to be trained, you must be the right kind of person to start with.Vvhat is such a person's essential characteristic? It is the ability to distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable levels of else risk and act accordingly. That more than (39) marks entrepreneurs out from others (40) .. preference is for the safer option of a salaried and structured career.

It is never going to be easy running a business, so it is good to know that sound financial help and advice are close at your hand with Maxton Bank. With a customer base of half a million, our reputation has been built on years of experience of dealing with small businesses like yours. We have a commitment to helping you can achieve your goals by offering a special service for either old and new customers. This service provides with expert guidance and support, as our business managers have extensive experience in working with companies and too have valuable local knowledge and connections. All them have undergone specialist training, and many have successfully completed an externally accredited training course. Their aim is to understand you and your business as fully as possible, so that they can supply you the best possible assistance. This is all supported by a 50

pack of free material which covering all aspects of running a business, such as

51

understanding cashflow and identify break-even point. In addition, if you have

52

any special requirements, our business managers will put you in touch with the most right people.

66

67

Test 3

Writing

1 hour 10 minutes

PART TWO

Write an answer to one of the questions 2-4 in this part. Write your answer in

200-250 words. Question 2

PART ONE

Question The graph below shows passenger revenue (in £m) and the percentage of trains arriving on time for a train company, Cruiseline, for each quarter of a two-year period, 2005-2006. Using the information from the graph, write a short report describing the passenger revenue and the percentage of trains arriving on time during the twoyear period. Write 120-140 words.

Cruiseline train company +-+ % of trains arriving on time Passenger revenue, £m

£m

325 +

···~""'

··.·.····..··············..····..·········I········

%

The Managing Director of the company you work for has decided to review training in the company. You have been asked to submit a report about the training provided. Write your report for the Managing Director • summarising the content of the current training • describing the strengths of the training provided explaining the weaknesses of the training provided • suggesting how the company's training could be improved. Question 3 Your company employs an office cleaning service to clean its offices every evening. Your company is dissatisfied with the service, and you have been asked to write a letter to the office cleaning service. • Write your letter to the office cleaning service • explaining why you are writing describing ways in which the cleaning service is unsatisfactory • saying what effect this has on clients visiting the office outlining what action you intend to take if the service does not improve. Question 4

=

E

CI-l

~

300 +~..~ ~._

~

w

~~ ~

•••

CD

>

~

CD g'

~

8:.

275 250

65

225 200 1st Qtr

2 nd Qtr

3 rd Qtr

2005

68

4th Qtr

1st Qtr

2nd Qtr

3rd Qtr

4th Qtr

Your organisation has recently had some bad publicity, and the Chief Executive has asked you to propose ways to improve the organisation's public image. Write a proposal for your Chief Executive, including the following information what the bad publicity was • what problems it presents for your organisation ideas for improving the organisation's image • any possible disadvantages of these ideas.

60

2006

69

Test 3

Listening

• You will hear five different people talking about a project they carried out at work, and their experience while carrying it out. • For each extract, there are two tasks. For Task One, choose the purpose of the project from the list For Task Two, choose the person's experience from the list After you have listened once, replay the recording .

• You will hear an adviser giving a talk to a group of purchasing managers about how to make good use of visits to trade fairs. As you listen, for questions complete the notes using up to three words or a number. • After you have once, replay the recording.

• For questions match the extracts with the purpose of the project, listed • For each extract choose the purpose of the project that the person carried out. • Write one letter next to the number of the extract. to make changes to the Marketing Department to propose changes in managers' responsibilities to implement a programme of redundancies to automate the production process to introduce a staff development system

Before booking:

to improve the company's distribution system

Try to obtain the Study the Use the

,which is free;

to attract other domestic market segments to expand the company's geographical coverage

carefully. to help you find suitable accommodation.

From the Information Pack, retain visitor names and the Remember to pack a

.

Take plenty of

.

Take several of your

For questions match the extracts with the experience, listed For each extract, choose the experience that the person had while doing the project. next to the number of the extract. • Write one letter I felt that other employees didn't co-operate with me.

.

On arrival at the fair, first visitthe Use the '

.

The documents I wanted didn't exist.

.

My terms of reference were unclear.

: to help you choose appropriate stands to visit.

The timescale was inadequate. Stands belongingto smaller companies often display Ask about Don't wait longer than

.

The project was not adequately funded.

, which are not always advertised.

Managers underestimated the difficulties of the project.

to be contacted after a trade fair.

22

.

My colleagues objected to my being given the project. I wanted to broaden the focus of the project.

70

71

Test 3

Listening What does Duncan want to be introduced?

Ouestions 23-30 You will hear a discussion between two managers, Kathy and Duncan, who work in the Human Resources department of a company. For each question (23-30), mark one letter (A, or C) for the correct answer. After you have listened once, replay the recording. 23

Duncan thinks that a new employee is needed to assist in marketing activities. deal with customer enquiries. implement database changes.

an in-company newsletter a staff suggestion scheme an annual customer survey Kathy thinks that in the future company strategy will be driven by image building. export initiatives. on-line transactions.

Kathy suggests that the new employee will have to

C 25

Kathy criticises the way in which A B C

26

C

IT finance production

Kathy says she is concerned about the A B C

72

salaries. workloads. holidays.

In which area does Duncan believe proposals for change will be accepted?

A B C 28

vacancies are advertised. interviews are conducted. job specifications are changed.

Duncan thinks many of the company's staff are dissatisfied with their A

27

work for several departments. undergo further training. delegate various duties.

make-up of teams. meeting of deadlines. lack of information.

73

Test 3

Speaking For three candidates

International Business Conference The pharmaceutical company you work for is keen to participate in an international conference abroad. You have been asked to make recommendations about the company's participation. In this part, the interlocutor asks questions to each of the candidates in turn. You have to give information about yourself and express personal opinions.

Discuss and decide together: how to select members of staff to represent the company at the conference

In this part of the test, you are asked to give a short talk on a business topic. You have to choose one of the topics from the three below and then talk for about one minute. You have one minute to prepare your ideas.

what practical arrangements would need to be made by the company before the conference how the company should respond after the conference to interest shown in its products.

promotion: how to make effective use of the media when promoting a new product or service Information system in a company

C

the importance of an effective internal communication

Technology: the factors involved in assessing the cost-effectiveness of new technology

Follow-on questions

Would you like to take part in an international business conference? (Why?/Why not?) In what ways do you think international conferences benefit a company?

PART

In this part of the test, you are given a discussion topic. You have 30 seconds to look at the task prompt, an example of which is below, and then about three minutes to discuss the topic with your partner. After that, the examiner will ask you more questions related to the topic.

What are the benefits for staff of attending international conferences? What advantages are there for the city where an international conference is held? Do you think conferences will continue to be an effective means of making business contacts? (Why?/Why not?)

For two candidates

International Business Conference The pharmaceutical company you work for is keen to participate in an international conference abroad. You have been asked to make recommendations about the company's participation. Discuss and decide together: how to select members of staff to represent the company at the conference what practical arrangements would need to be made by the company before the conference.

74

75

Reading A

COLEMAN'S

1

r

As was widely reported, we closely examined the possibility of merging with a food-distribution business during the year. However, whilst the strategic rationale for combination was sound, it became clear that it would not be in our shareholders' best interests to proceed with the deal, with its risk of increasing debt. Instead, we intend to concentrate on our core activity. Nevertheless, the market within which we operate is fiercely competitive, and the advent of new entrants is creating market conditions in which continued earnings growth will become increasingly challenging.

SHERIFF Questions 1-8 Look at the statements below and the five extracts from company reports on the opposite page. Which extract or does each statement (1-8) refer to? For each statement (1-8), mark one letter C, or on your Answer Sheet. You will need to use some of these letters more than once . • There is an example at the beginning (0).

Certain other firms are competing with this company for the first time.

This is a momentous period for the pharmaceutical industry. Against the background of scientific and economic change, we are seeing inevitable further consolidation of what remains one of the most fragmented of the great global industries. Sheriff will not shrink from participating in this process if circumstances necessitate such action in the interests of future success. However, today, the overwhelming preoccupation of your Board, executive management and staff is with the job at hand, which is to grow the business and deliver the promises we have made in terms of turning around our losses of recent years.

Profit before taxation was £20m, in comparison with the £32m achieved in the previous year. This disappointing result includes a provision of £26m on one project, due to costs exceeding the guaranteed maximum price quoted to the client. One result is that the Construction Division has been set targets to increase the level of partnering and fee work. Turnover, already stagnant, may decline, but profits are expected to recover. In addition, improvements will be made to the control processes relating to tendering, and to the quality of project management.

Some of this company's outlets were affected by competition from its own new outlets. This company expects the number of companies in its sector to be reduced. Not all of this company's competitors are increasing their turnover. This company has had to allow for covering a loss made on a particular contract.

Martin's has developed a distinctive retail format based on convenient locations for the shopper. Last year's merger of Martin's and Hoyle has provided us with the opportunity to build on our leadership in this neighbourhood retail market. Building awareness of the Martin's brand continues, and its visibility and familiarity will grow as we convert Hoyle stores into Martin's operations. In line with our vision, we aim to set the pace in developing new shopping services and channels such as home and office shopping.

This company has paid off the money it owed. TAVI,OR

It is likely that this company will make more money on reduced sales revenue. Some of this company's outlets will be required to change their name. This company has decided against going ahead with a plan.

76

Despite a downturn in consumer confidence during the period, we continued to experience positive likefor-like sales growth for the financial year, unlike many others in our peer group. Encroachment by our new openings on 38 of our established restaurants had a 3% negative effect on like-for-like sales, but this percentage is certain to be reduced. Since the year-end, our like-for-like sales trend continues to be positive. We have changed a net debt position of £11.2m this time last year to net cash of £1.7m this year.

77

Reading

Test 4 TWO Questions 9-14

Read this text about business schools. Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps. For each gap (9-14), mark one letter (A-H) on your Answer Sheet. Do not use any letter more than once. There is an example at the beginning (0).

C

Business schools are facing increasing competition from other providers of management training such as consultancies. The key to their future success as manager-trainers lies in the quality both of their research and of their partnership with the business world. In the most general sense, being a good manager is a matter of being marginally better than and different from your competitors. (0) ..... /!..... These are the elements which make the difference between a successful and a less successful manager. This marginal edge may be based on talent, flair or natural leadership. (9) And this is where business schools come into their own. The education of managers should include onthe-job training, workshops, conferences and training courses. (10) Traditionally, business schools have three major differentiating characteristics. First, they offer a complete package ranging from basic to very sophisticated training. Next, they enable managers to benefit from the research they carry out. (11) . In contrast to other providers of management education, business schools often offer a complete portfolio of educational programmes. MBA programmes exist alongside general management programmes, as well as specialised programmes

78

for experienced managers. For the business school, this has the advantage that teachers can use the information they get from one programme to crossfertilise with their teaching on another. (12) This in turn offers substantial advantages to the companies concerned. It means that managers and executives at different levels of the organisation can be confronted with the same concepts, expressed in the same language. In this way, a close partnership with a business school enables a company to create some coherence between the education and the development of its different management levels. People in the company will communicate more effectively because they use the same terminology. (13) In short, thanks to contact with the business school, more people within the same company will be embracing similar ideas. Obviously, the value of these concepts to the company increases if they are state-of-the-art concepts. (14) Only then can the company genuinely improve its management practice and competitive performance. Working with a business school is for many companies a privileged method of accessing the latest management thinking, before it is published in trade journals or popular books.

Different departments will be able to discuss internal issues with a considerable amount of mutual understanding.

For them in fact to be so, a business school's teaching must be supported by first-class research.

Yet good management is also essential to the competitive performance of companies.

Thus insights gained from top executives might impact positively on what they cover in a graduate programme.

And no less important, they are able to preserve an independent outlook towards the world of business.

Business schools have a special role to fulfil in the delivery of this portfolio.

However, acquired knowledge of management can also provide this decisive advantage.

He or she needs to be a little faster, able to spot opportunities earlier and react more quickly.

79

Reading

Test 4

15

What led to a change in attitudes to brands? the influence of consumers on each other the personal circumstances of consumers more sophisticated marketing greater choice of products

Questions Read the following extract from an article about brand stretching (using an existing brand name on new types of products) and the questions on the opposite page. For each question mark one letter (A, or D) on your Answer Sheet.

A manufacturer of sports shoes starts selling consumer electronics. A soft drink lends its name to a range of urban clothing. What's going on? In simpler times, you knew where you were with brands. One brand name meant goodquality sports shoes, another a soft drink. No confusion. Today, however, big companies try to redefine brands as not so much a product, more a way of life, and stretch them into new areas. In the early years of the consumer society, a brand name on a box simply identified what was inside. People were looking for products that would improve their quality of life, and chose brands most likely to achieve that purpose. But as people in industrialised nations became more affluent and fulfilled their basic needs, brands acquired other attributes. The functionality of the product was still important, but people also started using brands to say something about themselves, for example, choosing a brand of cosmetics which would suggest that they were sophisticated jet-setters. Now, we have entered a third age of branding, in which so many companies are making roughly the same product at roughly the same price that functionality rarely succeeds as a point of differentiation. Instead, companies are trying to

80

make their brands stand out by emphasising their emotional aspects, hoping consumers will identify with the set of values the brand represents. One disadvantage of a productbased brand is that if the product goes out of fashion, the brand goes with it. This is a serious concern for manufacturers of breakfast cereals, who are struggling to counter weak demand for the products that bear their names. SO seem to be having effect. The advantage for emotional brands is that companies can transfer their brand strength into other areas, increasing revenues and reducing their exposure to the lifespan of a single product. A.A.A.LUn..''''LA.A.A.F-, ... d • .l. ... /.l. L()

The elasticity of brands seems to be related to their position on a spectrum ranging from those rooted in solid, tangible assets to those with highly intangible, emotional qualities. At the one end, you have train companies that tend to associate themselves with infrastructure and their ability to get you from to B, and at the other end would be a leisure brand that positions itself on dreams and making people have fun. It is the latter which has the maximum potential for stretch.

But even emotional brands have a limit to their elasticity. The merchandise has to be consistent with the brand promise. Just to sell merchandise with your logo on it is a short-term, mistaken idea. From this viewpoint, the decision to move from sports shoes into consumer electronics makes sense. Most items in the range, such as the two-way radio for hikers, are sports-focused, even though the products may be adopted as fashion accessories, and the sports shoe customers will probably snap them up. When the move was made from soft drinks into clothing, however, it left the branding consultants cold. It was a difficult mental leap into clothing from the drink so closely associated with that particular brand name. On the other hand, the emotional attributes that youngsters seem to find appealing in the drink, like its heritage and global appeal, are fashionable at the moment, and in fact response to the clothes with the same name has been overwhelming. Maybe this just shows that an inspired move - and by all accounts a snap decision sometimes pays off against the odds, leaving the manufacturer laughing all the way to the bank.

According to the writer, an attribute of the third age of branding is that competing products may serve their purpose equally well. the range of products available is too large for all to survive. consumers are becoming confused about the products available. price has become a key factor in consumers' choice of products. The writer mentions manufacturers of breakfast cereals to illustrate how

C

competition can have an impact on a product. a brand can lose its popularity despite a strong market for the product. advertising can affect sales of a product. changes in the popularity of products can cause difficulties.

The writer refers to railways to show that brands like this do not recognise the value of stretching. suffer from having an unattractive image. are unlikely to lend themselves to stretching. are notoriously difficult to advertise. The writer argues that the stretch from sports shoes into consumer electronics is likely to be successful because existing customers have demanded the new products. they will be sold in the same outlets. the new lines will expand the manufacturer's market. there is a connection in the way that the goods can be used. The writer argues that the stretch from soft drinks into clothing was a gamble which succeeded. built on the popularity of certain types of clothing. showed the value of careful planning. created production problems for the manufacturer.

81

Test 4

Reading

Example: A beat

damage

21

A

moments

B states

22

A

likelihood

23

A

24

Read the article below about teamwork and stress. or on the Choose the correct word or words to fill each gap from opposite page . • For each question mark one letter (A, or on your Answer Sheet . • There is an example at the beginning (0).

Stressful working conditions lead to a breakdown in group co-operation effectiveness and productivity, a study has found. which can (O) Psychologists have discovered that when employees work in crisis (21) , they are less willing to work together. The study showed that when workers are under stress, they have a strong (22) to concentrate on their own personal (23) to the detriment of their colleagues. In the study, 100 naval personnel worked in groups of three, and each group was given a computer (24) of a naval decision-making task. Under a high (25) of stress, they had to monitor a radar screen with their own ship at the centre and numerous unidentified contacts around the ship. As (26) , participants operating in this highly stressful situation performed worse than those operating under normal circumstances. But the results also showed that under stress, the workers' (27) of attention shifted from group involvement to a more narrow individual perspective, which led to a severe breakdown in team performance. The author of the study concludes that it is possible that, for many team tasks, the importance of teamwork behaviour such as co-ordination and communication may be (28) ............ as secondary to basic individual demands. In his opinion, the (29) to achieve efficiency under stress is by delegation. Simplifying tasks by delegating parts of them, making them less demanding, is one of the best ways of (30) the effectiveness of the group.

82

Close

defeat

C

conditions

positions

probability

C

liking

tendency

intentions

goals

C

purposes

objects

A

impression

conception

C

imitation

simulation

25

A

measure

degree

C

standard

rate

26

A

supposed

B wondered

C

expected

questioned

focus

B area

C

direction

point calculated

27 28

A

perceived

estimated

C

determined

29

A

manner

way

C

procedure

30

A

persisting

holding

C

maintaining

D route confirming

83

Test 4

Reading

PART FIVE PART SIX

Questions 31-40 Questions 41-52 Read the article below about the problem of ageism. For each question (31-40), write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. There is an example at the beginning (0).

Read the text below about an advertisement for information systems trainees. • In most of the lines (41-52), there is one extra word. It either is grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the sense of the text. Some lines, however, are correct. • If a line is correct, write CORRECT on your Answer Sheet. If there is an extra word in the line, write the extra word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet. The exercise begins with two examples (0 and 00).

Recruitment policies in Britain's businesses favour the young. Mature men and women (0)

being marginalised and their

Examples:

considerable skills lost to the economy. Cost-cutting policies such as delayering and downsizing, now widely criticised (31)

.

causing loss of valuable knowledge and experience, are hardest on more mature staff. All around us can (32)

seen the effects of ageism. Highly

qualified, middle-aged people with excellent CYs apply for jobs, but do not get them because younger applicants are preferred (33)

the basis of age alone. Similarly, when it comes

(34)

promotion, younger employees are often more

successful than their older colleagues, because (35)

o

You are a graduate with a good degree which proves you have the capacity for to learn. Your degree course probably included plenty of Information Technology, which you really enjoyed yourself, or you have a real interest in this exciting area.

.

former are seen as more dynamic and ambitious.

It is a career you would like to follow, but how do you go about getting into it? Our research, however, suggests otherwise: it is the mature manager who is considerably (36)

Median Life is currently recruiting graduates for entry up to the Information

capable of handling

the complex dynamics of office life and creating an effective team.

Systems division. After eight weeks' intensive training, you will be all equipped

The challenge of working in today's flatter organisations is best handled (31)

with the skills to start making such a real contribution to the running of Europe's

experienced, older managers, provided

they have positive personalities.

46

Our research demonstrates that it (38)

older senior

largest life-assurance company. You will join a small team and work on the projects of varying size and complexity, or using some of the most up-to-date technology in

managers, not younger executives, who take the more balanced view (39)

required to take decisions, and are more likely

than younger colleagues to evolve positive relationships with people

from

other

departments

and

from

outside

the

organisation. Similarly, the effectiveness of strategic decision-

existence. If you show the necessary enthusiasm and determination, that we will give you every opportunity to work your way up to the very top. While trainees will be based at our head offices, which are in the centre of the lively and beautiful

making and the implementation of company policy benefit (40)

the presence of older senior managers in the top

city of Edinburgh. If you are interested in applying us for one of these exciting

team.

positions, should email us at the address below to request an information pack.

84

85

Test 4

Writing

hour 10 minutes Write an answer to words.

Question 1

The bar charts below show the figures for a train operator's reliability (percentage of timetabled trains actually running), punctuality and complaints received during a 12-week period. Using the information from the charts, write a short report summarising the changes that took place in reliability, punctuality and the number of complaints. Write 120-140 words. SUPATRAINS: Quarterly report Reliability and punctuality scores

100 95 90

of the questions

in this part. Write your answer in

Sales of one of your company's products have been very low for the past six months. You have been asked to prepare a report on why this has happened. Write your for your Managing Director • detailing the product's recent sales pattern • describing factors that may have contributed to this suggesting what can be done to improve the situation.

The company you work for has recently been experiencing problems. Your line manager has asked you to contact a firm of consultants with a view to contracting them to assist your company. • Write a to the firm of consultants giving some information about your company describing the strengths of your company outlining the problems your company has been experiencing • suggesting arrangements for a visit to your company by the consultants. Question 4

85 80 75

13 Dec9 Jan

10 Jan6 Feb

7 Feb6 Mar

Complaints per 100,000 passenger journeys

Following complaints from visitors, your Chief Executive has asked you to write a proposal suggesting how visitors can be given a better impression of your organisation. Write your proposal for the Chief Executive, including the following information: why complaints have been made different ways of creating a better impression how your proposal might affect staff any disadvantages of your proposal.

300

250 200 150 100 50

o

86

13 Dec9 Jan

10 Jan6 Feb

7 Feb6 Mar

87

Listening

Test 4

TWO Questions 13-22

You will hear five senior managers talking about why their companies selected new locations, and about a difficulty that affected the move. For each extract, there are two tasks. For Task One, choose the reason for selecting the particular location from the list A-H. For Task Two, choose the difficulty that each company had from the list A-H. After you have listened once, replay the recording. Task One - Reason for selecting the location

You will hear the Chief Executive of a steel company talking to shareholders about the company's performance over the last year. As you listen, for questions complete the notes, using up to three words or a number. After you have listened once, replay the recording.

For questions 13-17, match the extracts with the reason why the company selected a particular location, listed A-H. For each extract, choose the reason that the speaker gives. Write one letter (A-H) next to the number of the extract. 13 ................................. 14 ................................. 15 ................................. 16 .................................

This year's and last year's

are the same.

In the UK, several new 3

The

A

low overheads

S

help from the government

C

presence of suppliers

D

custom-built storage capacity

E

homes that staff could afford

F

easy recruitment of skilled labour

G convenient for staff to travel to

have been achieved.

17 .................................

opportunities for networking

was reduced, resulting in lower labour costs.

Task Two - Difficulty that affected the move Export business made difficult by the level of the

.

Performance of subsidiary suffered because of low

.

American joint venture currently running below its

.

The return on assets now targeted at .

Particular difficulties expected for the

19

.

20

.

21

.

sectors in the UK.

22

is expected to remain high.

Good prospects for expansion of business in

88

.

to be made more dependable.

Technology being used more creatively.

In the US,

18 .

Team set up to examine The

For questions 18-22, match the extracts with difficulties, listed A-H. For each extract, choose the difficulty that affected each company's move. • Write one letter (A-H) next to the number of the extract.

.

.

A

The building work was not completed on time.

S

The company was taken over.

C

The building plans met with opposition in the area.

D

The original construction contractor went out of business.

E

The company re-assessed its needs.

F

Transportation costs soared.

G

The charge for using the premises rose.

H

Too few staff agreed to move.

89

Test 4

Listening 29

• You will hear a conversation between two Human Resources managers, Maria how reduce staff turnover in their company. and • each mark one letter or for the correct answer. • you have listened once, replay the recording. Why does

turnover is so high in their company?

with their workload. Staff The company lower salaries than its competitors. feel unimportant to the company. Which of

following did the consultants

What does Maria say about offering bonus payments? It would be less popular than offering stock options. It may have limited impact on staff loyalty. Devising a fair system for it might prove difficult.

30

At the end of the meeting, David and Maria agree to present their proposals to the Board. to produce a draft action plan for the Managing Director. to incorporate some of the suggestions made by the consultants.

as a problem?

New feel training is inadequate. The wrong people are chosen for promotion. Senior managers feel their job responsibilities are unclear. Maria is concerned that the newspaper article on the company will discourage potential recruits from applying to the company. cause skilled staff to consider leaving the company. make many staff anxious about the company's future. How does David think the staff turnover problem should be resolved? People should be made aware of their role in achieving company goals. A bonus scheme should be set up for staff who reach targets. Management structure should be altered to improve communication. Maria says that one of their competitors has resolved a similar problem by conducting regular performance reviews with all staff. using off-site locations for staff meetings. amending its mentoring scheme for new recruits. When discussing training courses, David recommends that there should be input from staff into the planning of the courses. staff should be more carefully selected for them. more care should be taken in the choice of issues to address.

90

91

Speaking

Test 4

16 minutes

For three candidates

A

PARTONE In this part, the interlocutor asks questions to each of the candidates in turn. You have to give information about yourself and express personal opinions.

TWO In this part of the test, you are asked to give a short talk on a business topic. You have to choose one of the topics from the three below and then talk for about one minute. You have one minute to prepare your ideas.

...

=

Trade Fairs

Your company has been invited to take part in a trade fair, which will take place during the busiest time of the year. You have been asked to decide whether staff should be sent to this trade fair. Discuss and decide together: what the advantages and disadvantages are of attending trade fairs which members of staff would most usefully represent a company at a trade fair how the company should evaluate the success of a trade fair.

Personal skills: how to motivate employees to achieve their full potential Project management: the importance of teamwork for the effective management of projects

C Health and safety: how to develop a responsible attitude among staff to Health and Safety requirements in a company

PARTTHREE In this part of the test, you are given a discussion topic. You have 30 seconds to look at the task prompt, an example of which is below, and then about three minutes to discuss the topic with your partner. After that, the examiner will ask you more questions related to the topic. For two candidates

Follow-on questions

Do you think it would be interesting to attend a trade fair? (Why?/ Why not?) How can companies make their stand at a trade fair attractive to visitors? What kinds of products or services are trade fairs most suitable for? (Why?) What other ways are there for companies to promote their products internationally? • How important are trade fairs for creating work opportunities locally? (Why?/Why not?)

Your company has been invited to take part in a trade fair, which will take place during the busiest time of the year. You have been asked to decide whether staff should be sent to this trade fair. Discuss and decide together: what the advantages and disadvantages are of attending trade fairs which members of staff would most usefully represent a company at a trade fair.

92

93

Test 1

1 Question 1 Sample

1 1 D 6 D

2 E 7 B

9 E

10 G

3 B 8 A

11 B

4 C

The aim of this report is to summarise changes in sales forecasts for the three main products of Toller Electrical Ltd for the four quarters in next year.

5 A

12 A

13 F

14 C

15 B 20 B

21 B 26 C

16 D

22 D 27

17 A

23 D 28

18 A

24 A

29

19 C

25 C 30 C

It is showed that TV's will contribute most to company for the sales forecasets are the highest in three products every quarter. It will stand at 10 thousands in lstt Qtr. Then it will have a steady increase to 15 thousands in 2 nd Qtr. Before it will rise to the of 20 thousands in 4 th Qtr, it will off in 3 rd Qtr.

33 AS 34 35 THE 36 PAST/LAST 37 DO 38 OF 39 INTO/UNDER 40 AT/FOR

41 CORRECT 44 AND 47 THE 50 MUCH

V

Electrical Ltd's strongest product area in the following year.

XXXXXXX 25 November 2006

5 A very good answer, but a little lexical awkwardness prevents this being an upper band 5.

It is concluded that trends of sales forecasts next year of these products are different. It is good time to take measures to direct the trends in much bright way. Band 2 This is close to a band 3, but there are a number of non-impeding errors. Also, there is a lack of control in the third which would have a negative effect on target reader. Therefore it is awarded an upper band 2. '

Report on sales forecasts for Toller Electrical Ltd The aim of this report is to compare the sales forecasts for three product areas for next year. Unit sales of fridges are likely to remain at 5,000 during all four quarters of next year. TV sales, on the other hand, will significantly increase during the second quarter from 10,000 to 15,000. Unit sales will remain at 15,000 during the third quarter and soar once again to 20,000 during the fourth quarter.

highlighted steps in order to motivate our staff to eat in our company. a new We will need to look into company. a wide "healthy food" on offer, such as fusion food or bio-drinks. We can attract our by a new concept of food from the "custom a reasonable components he/she prices. Our canteen needs to become trendy so that staff will once again choose to stay indoors instead of going for a lunch in the city. We should also refurbish the interior of our canteen. Perhaps few accessories and a friendly colours modern design would make the desired difference. We set up a meeting to discuss viable options. Choice of a new catering should be based on their ability to desired "cost-quality" equasion, so that our em01C)Vel~S are convinced that our canteen is the best for their lunch break.

'-,L.

42 UP

43 CORRECT 45 IT 46 UNLESS 48 DONE 49 ON 51 CORRECT 52 COMES

It was concluded that TVs will be Toller

In the sales forecast of trend is totally It is 5 thousands in Qtr. Unfortunetly, it remains constant in next 3 while, the cookers' sales forecast is 5 thousands in 1st the same as fridges'. VV'~ the will increase steadily and reach the peak of 10 thousands in 2 nd Qtr. Then it will has no chang in 3 rd Qtr a drop to 5 thousands the original position in Qtr. ........ '-,

31 THAN

Unit sales of cookers, however, are likely to fluctuate, starting off at 5,000, sales will increase to 10,000 during the second and third quarter of next only to decrease to 5,000 unit sales during fourth quarter.

sometime it became evident that most of the company staff chooses to outside in order to have their lunch. motivation to do so might be different were 3 main factors to such decission making process. Firstly, there are plenty of other options available. Our company is located in the heart of the city with many restaurants wide range of attractive lunch menues. All of places are within a 5 minutes walking distance from our premises. Second reason, often mentioned, was that the meals offered in our canteen are much too expensive and of a relatively poor quality. Additionaly, many employees pointed out that the menue does not offer any variety. Thirdly, it came to our attention that the service staff was very slow and not always friendly to our staff. Recommendation After closely assesing the situation it is recommended to take the following below

3 Natural use of language, although not error free. A good of structures and vocabulary. Well organised, Linguistically, this is an band however, the content point has and one task penalty reduces it to band 3.

Report: The report of why our staff don't go to our canteen. Introduction: As requested by the Managing conduct to the reason of less number staff using the company canteen at mealtimes as following findings. Findings: Firstly, as our company change the workhour, the lunch time for our staff is limited. So as the Dinner Hall is in another building. They do not want to spent time on this. Secondly, the canteen department has been individuel this

94

95

Test 1

Key

year. The cost of one meal is much higher than before, meanwhile, there are a lot of cheap restuants open around. Last but not the least, our canteen offered a few kind of food to be choosen. In conlusions & Recommendations: From the 5 findings, there are a lot of space to be promoted: 1. Suggest the canteen sector offer a delivery work. Open their number, so as to our staff can order and eat in their tea & coffee room. 2. Our company can spend some money on the canteen in order to giving our staff some discount, Or buy some IC cards send to our staff as a benefit. 3. Tell the Human Resource department to find a new chief.

Band 2 A limited range of structures and vocabulary and some errors which obscure communication. This would have a negative effect on the target reader and result in a lower band 2. In addition, the first content point has been omitted. However, as this is already a lower band 2, there is no penalty for omission. Question 3

Sample E

Dear Sirs, I am writing on behalf of my company Kolon International Corporation, a Korean trading house, who specialize in import and export of stainless steel and tinplate. We are very succesfull in Far East. Due to the fact that we would like to expand our business teritory in Eastern Europe we wish to investigate the possibility of opening a new branch in Poland. We are aware of the fact that Poland in particular, is a developing country, and the demand for products such as stainless steel and tinplate is huge. We hope that by opening a new branch we have better chances in finding customers, and for sure will give credability and reasurance in next stage to our potenciel customers that we are on

96

the spot and that we can deal with all inquires efficently and quickly. Therefore, would you please advise in which part of Poland, which city we should open our office? Where are the most appropriate customers located? Please indicate whether in your opinion it's a good idea for us to open this branch in first place? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this project? Moreover, we would like to arrange a meeting with your company in order for us to discuss it further. Would you please advise the date you are available for a meeting. Trusting Band 4 Please refer to band 4 descriptors on the General Impression Mark Scheme, as this is a good example of a band 4 script. Sample F

Dear Sir My name is XXXXXXX, I am a manager of a Polish furniture company YYYY. I am writing you with request for some advice how to invest on your market effectively. Our company exists on the Polish market for over 20 years and we have been developing throughout this period constantly. We produce furniture of the highest standard, not only for some interiors but also for offices, with appropriate design and functionality. Last time we have decided to open a new branch in Romania, that is a new line of ecological furniture production. We find it encouraging that your country's resources are pure and of high quality, which is the reason of our investment. However we still need to obtain following information about your market concerning the legal situation regarding opening new business, the market structure, that is supply and demand for furniture product, possibly as well the business culture. As we seek for further contacts with your company, we would like to propose you an

appointment to discuss some topics concerning our future work. I would suggest the 15 th of December this year in your company's office, if it is convenient.

with such skills will give us a chance to develop our contacts with foreign customers and suppliers.

I hope our cooperation will be fruitfull. If you require any further information, please don't hesitate to call me - 0048 501 779 558. I also enclose some documents and brochures about our company.

Mr Dowbor will be absent from work for 3 months. The way to solve this problem can be employing someone as a replacement for this period. We are looking for people in other sections in the company, so if the person is good at his job, we can transfer him to another section later.

Yours faithfully XXXXXXX

Band 3 All content points covered. This is a well-organised and fairly ambitious response, but with a number of non-impeding errors. Question 4

PROBLEMS TO BE OVERCOME

Please, be prepared to give feedback on this proposal at the meeting next Tuesday.

Band 4 All content points covered. Natural use of language with occasional awkwardness. A good range of vocabulary. Overall, it has a positive effect on the target reader.

Sample G Sample H

To: The Head of Human Resources Subject: The permission to the Business English Course

The proposal of the course

BACKGROUND

From: Mr Black

One of the employees of my section, Mr Dowbor, has found an offer of a 3-month Business English Course in London and he is asking for permission to go there. The course starts on I." January 2007. Obviously, Mr Dowbor will be absent from work in this time.

Date: 13 th May

THE COURSE CONTENTS The participants of the course will opportunity to learn a wide related vocabulary as well as will be taught how to deal with business correspondence professionally. What is more, several lectures and workshops concerning new business methods are included in the contents of the course. SKILLED EMPLOYEES AS A FACTOR OF DEVELOPMENT Mr Dowbor is a young employee, but he has already proved to be very determined and to have outstanding interpersonal skills. He has been working for us for two years. At present we do not have employees with a knowledge of business English in our company. An employee

To: MrWhite

Subject: course Course Contents With more and more transaction with foreigner, the aim of the course is improving staffs' English skill. We invisted a English educational organisation, which own a good reputation in this flied. It provide five oral practise lesson and six writing skill lesson. It contain the business communication in oral and written. Every staff must be divided into six group, and they practise business English at the real stage. Employees All staff must join the course, but avoiding the waste of time and money. We divide into sereval steps. It begin with the sale department, then the staffs of management enter the second period training, The production department is the last one. Benefit Of Course The course provide a chance to practise the oral English and the skill of written. The staff can

97

Test 1

Key

knowledge about not only the ;anguage skill, but also the culture and business practise among different countries. It benefit our company to expand aboard market and study management skill and technolege from other countries. The course also help us to build an international brand Recommend Avoiding the problem caused by the absence, our can implement let someone work flexsible work time. through the staffs can do the anytime save the time and money spend in the company, The written lesson produce that staffs can watch them in home, if they must work. If we these we must ensure all staffs good quality and build system to check every staff work 1'"'\O,e-f-" .. n-.o-n-t

3 23 C 28 B

24 B 29 C

25 A 30 C

26 B

27 B

This is the Business English Certificate Higher 4, Listening Test 1. Part One. Questions 1 to 12. You will hear Jack Lester, founder of Hinde Instruments Corporation, a telescope manufacturer, giving a talk about the development of his company. As you listen, for questions 1 to 12, complete the notes, using up to three words or a number. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the notes.

Thank you for reading

[pause]

Now listen, and complete the notes. Errors are basic and numerous, and communication is therefore, this is awarded a lower band 2. addition, content points are omitted (no individual is but no penalty is given, as this is already a lower 2 answer.

1.1.Ll.1..LJ'\..!Vl'll.'\.J...LJ..'-1J /

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

HQ

ENGINEER ORDER FEATURES LOANS STOCK TWELVE MONTHS / 12 MONTHS / ONE / A YEAR DEALERS BRAND CORE COMPETENCIES / COMPETENCES (OPTICAL) COMPONENTS

13 E

14 F

15 H

18 E

19 B

20 F

98

[pause]

16 G 21 C

17 A 22 H

market, amateur astronomers keen to buy our telescopes because of the features they offered. By nineteen plO'nr'J-t/lrpp sales reached two million dollars. nineteen eighty-six, I sold the company for six point five million dollars to the Amtex Group,

staying on as President. From the start, I disagreed with the new owners, and things did not go well. Then the sky fell in. In February nineteen ninetyone, the bank called in the company's loans. There was no cash at the time. In fact, the company's balance sheet gave a net worth of minus two point five million dollars for nineteen ninety-one, the company having lost that much the previous year on sales of eleven point five million dollars. I made a personal loan to the company of sixtyfive thousand dollars to stave off the bank for one week so I could start to negotiate with three senior managers at Hinde interested in buying the company. It worked, and Amtex agreed to sell us one hundred per cent of the company's stock, along with all its liabilities, for one thousand dollars. As the key investor, I purchased fifty-one per cent of the company for five hundred and ten dollars. The four of us managed to put together two million dollars, and we decided this was to be used totally on product development. Amtex hadn't moved on any new products, so we had the luxury of engineering and of proof-of-concept waiting for us. We published a new catalogue of high-tech products and took out advertising in leading astronomy magazines. Just twelve months after our purchase, we managed to get the company into the black. For the first two years, we all took very modest salaries. But it was an exciting time, and progress was being made. We develop products the market wants to buy. We rely on our instincts and have frank discussions with dealers. We do this rather than run marketing studies, because we think they can be a waste of time. It sounds simple, and it works for us. And while the advanced telescopes are clearly the company's brand strength, a major reason for our success with consumers is our ability to apply sophisticated technology to mass-market models. We offer a range of telescopes costing from eightynine dollars to fifteen thousand dollars, but fifty per cent of sales are generated by telescopes sold for under five hundred dollars. In the future, I see Hinde creating more telescopes for amateur astronomers. But the company is also looking for ways to broaden into new markets. We believe that our core competencies are in demand and will achieve that breakthrough for us. For the last year, for example, the company has supplied optical components to HNT Networks in Seattle, a wirelesscommunications company. Thank you. If you have any ... [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part One. You now have 20 seconds to check your answers. [pause]

Part Two. Questions 13 to 22. You will hear five different people talking about the Master of Business Administration courses (MBAs) which they have taken. For each extract, there are two tasks. Look at Task One. For each question, 13-17, decide why each person decided to take that particular course, from the list A-H. Now look at Task Two. For each question, 18-22, decide what the main benefit of the course has been for each speaker, from the list A-H. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 30 seconds to read the two lists. [pause]

Now listen, and do the two tasks. [pause]

Speaker One Woman: I'm glad I did the course I did, and I would, taken as a whole, recommend it to others. The prospectus went on about the fact that the university had world-class computer and library facilities and so forth, but that's not what really attracted me so much as the bigname lecturers. And I have to say, they were very good, though when I look back on it now, I realise that the people I learned most from were my fellow students. They came from all over the world, and I've really valued the insights they gave me into being on the receiving end of multinational marketing. It was those insights that I feel have been of real value since I came back into the workplace.

Speaker Two Man: Doing the MBA has made me much more marketable, I think. My particular area of interest e-commerce management - was becoming very popular, but I wasn't likely to get a good job without the added value of the higher qualification. The reason for choosing this course is obvious; with my family commitments, I wouldn't have been able to do a masters if the college had been miles away, but I was

99

Key

pleasantly surprised when I started just how strong the course was on the legal side of business, which helped me in the work I now do in staff recruitment and support. And I think a good grounding in law is of great benefit to most people, at whatever level of management they find themselves.

Test 1

Business Regulation helped me to get my current job. It's significant, though, that I haven't actually had to apply much of my legal knowledge in the job. Instead, I've ended up working in product standardisation and monitoring which, of course, my MBA studies helped with, too.

Speaker Three

[pause]

Woman: In the first term of my MBA, I was a bit disappointed by the number of general lectures rather than smaller-scale seminars, even though I'd been warned in advance that this would be the case. I had a choice between a course specialising in law and one which offered lots of modules on finance. I opted for the latter. It was really a matter of self-discipline - I was always bad at it, so I thought I'd better do something about that. We far less on personnel I've got a more out of matters, but those sessions. I suppose what I'm saying is that the course has helped me to be more realistic about where my strengths and weaknesses lie. I seldom have anything to do with the financial side of things now.

Now listen to the recording again.

Speaker Four Man: I remember I was feeling rather underchallenged at that time - a lowly admin officerand I was fascinated by all the opportunities opening up with internet business, you know, so I chose an MBA which was lots of innovative sessions in that area. I have to say, the course did me a great deal of good all round. I'd been of a loner, but since corning the course, I've in a more co-operative environment. I don't think I would ever have managed that without having done the course. I'm thinking of changing jobs again - moving from purchasing into customerservice and I'm looking forward to another The MBA has given me the confidence to do without worrying.

Speaker Five Woman: I decided against doing the MBA at the college down the road, because they had an excellent reputation, to me to be too traditional for needs. I plumped for a course at even though it was such a long way away, because it had a good track record dealing with to the statute book. And I don't it: I the fact that I did my thesis on - European

100

[pause]

That is the end of Part Two. Part Three. Questions 23 to 30. You will hear a Business Studies tutor and a student, Martin~ discussing Ralcona, a UK-based soft-drinks company. For each question, 23-30~ mark one letter C) for the correct answer.

(A~

B or

After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the questions. [pause]

Now listen, and mark

A~

B or C.

[pause] Woman: OK, Martin, I asked you to prepare the case study of Ralcona, the soft-drinks manufacturer. Let's work through the main issues together. I assume looked at the background? you me a summary? Man: Erm, yeah, er well, company who had one Jista which was selling world-wide. But two ago, when the new Chairman arrived, he to exploit that popularity to expand the product range. Ralcona had introduced Jista into markets in Japan, Australia and several South-East Asian countries. But there's been a slide in sales, despite the fact that Jista still holding up reasonably well against some stiff competition from other multinationals. Woman: OK, stop because I want to fill you in on the discussions took place in the planning of this new product range they were interesting. Inevitably, the various interested in the company all had very different but all advocated caution. So, for example, the department wanted to test

the markets closer to home first, while the marketing team were worried any new drinks would dilute the image of the core brand and so were looking at new names. But across the board, the people at the top favoured launching each product separately at different times to get maximum impact for each product. So that's what happened. All right, go on ... Man: Well, they then had to decide which market to aim for. Did they just replicate other drinks on the market and try to eat into those markets? Should they focus solely on the youth market, which was rapidly expanding? Or should they be daring and go for an older, more sophisticated age group with more exnensrve products? Riskily, they plumped for latter. the Then, having decided where they were Rand D department began developing products. Woman: Right, and a key factor here was deciding on the all-important design of the packaging. Now, designers tend to have a track record of success or not so the safest option would have been to employ a team of consultants who specialised in this. But, driven by the focus on innovation from the new chairman, they trawled the market for recent thinking their up for lack of enthusiasm would They were also approached by from other companies, but thought be too set in their ways. So the industry was waiting to see what Ralcona had to offer, but at the halted the launch for three Man: Um ... an over-worked marketing department had out all the stops to evervttunz ready. the retailers, who been up for getting the products in the shops, took a poor view of the decision. But Ralcona's had heard, correctly, that their main rivals intended to attack the launch with an promotion, so he intervened at the minute. Eventually, the delayed launch went ahead, and the new products were brilliantly successful. Woman: Yes ... and hoping to this still further, Ralcona did some into why the products had struck such a chord, exoecnnz to find positive results for their advernsmz campaign or design. But they were aback. V.L"-.JV"'-'-V.U.'-V.

of Jista, the core product. So Ralcona had targeted the market accurately, but had failed to see how wide the applications for the products were. Woman: And this taught Ralcona some valuable lessons that have now put them at the forefront of the industry. Man: Yes, it seems they have now established a good creative team who constantly come up with new ideas, and the marketing division has rethought its mission and now focuses on getting copious feedback from supermarkets, clubs and cafes to find out what consumers are looking for. Woman: So other businesses, not just the drinks industry, have looked to Ralcona as a model and as a warning. What were your conclusions? Man: Their experiences prove what we already know that successful companies must be to go out on a limb, and finely targeted can be more profitable than making products with more general appeal. But what it uniquely demonstrates is that, in any business, you should never assume that you know what's going on the consumers have a lot to tell us but they won't if not asked, and products can live or by getting the information. Woman: OK, now can you write all that up for me ... ? [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part Three. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Sheet. [pause] Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students when there is one minute remaining. [pause]

That is the end of the test.

Man: they discovered that the drinks were being drunk as mixers with other products so much so that sales had almost reached the level

101

Key

Test 2

2 Question 1 E 7 C

2 C 8 D

9 F 14 A

3 B

10 C

11 G

4 E

5 A

12

D

6

D

13 E

3 15 B 20 A

D

17 C

18 A

19 B

22 D 27 A

23 A C

24 B 29 D

25 C 30 D

16

4 21 C 26 B

5 31 35 38 40

32 FOR ALL 33 THERE 34 IN BECOME 36 AT 37 FEW INSTANCEIEXAMPLE 39 WHETHER WHO

Part 6 41 44 47 50

WHILE 42 THEN 43 IT CORRECT 45 PART 46 CORRECT AS 48 SUM 49 HOWEVER THAT 51 HOW 52 SCARCELY

Sample

Band 5 This script shows good control and natural use of language, including a wide range of structures and vocabulary, and effective cohesion. It has a very positive effect on the target reader.

This report aims at comparing the ages of the male and female executives in Star World, a large IT company.

The aim of this report is to explain the usefulness of the annual conference I attended one week ago.

As can be seen from the chart, most of executives are in the age range of 40-49 and 50-59, totally number are 57 and 58 respectively. The number of male and female of executives are almost equal in the age 40-49, however, there are 39 male in 50-59, more than that 19 of the female's. Then, most females are 30-39, with the number 39, almost 4 times to that 9 of the males. While in 60-69, male executives are still more than females, the rate is 21:10. In the end, the least number comes from 24-29 as well as 70-79, both have only 4 executives. While there are 1 male and 3 females in 24-29, and only 4 males in 70-79.

First, I want to give some explanation about the main points of the conference. Generally it can be said that it was a conference about marketing, how to present yourself to customers, technological progress and why different skills are .... C>,~C>C'C'.-.~·TT nowadays in life. One talked about one specific issue. For the manager of Geo Compo China's biggest company, informed us about new technological Also the other speakers came abroad.

Band 2 All the content points are covered, but although the organisation is adequate, this is a band 2 script because of the limited range and poor control of language. Sample B The report analises the numbers of male and female managers in different age groups in Star World. The company employs almost an equal number of executives of both sexes. However, there are remarkable differences depending on the age range considered. Female executives dominate in the age group between 24 and 39, where the ratio is 42 to just 10, the first representing the number of women and the latter - men. Nevertheless, in the age range above 40 male executives are in majority. Although in group 40 to 49 the split is slight (29 male executives to 28 female), amongst older managers men starkly dominate. The difference reaches 20 in range 50 to 59, with 39 male directors and 19 female directors. It decreases half in group 60 to 69, where 10 women hold top position in comparison to 21 men. Yet in the last age group, 70 to 79, female executives are absent. It solely consists of 4 male managers.

102

precision (e.g. 'Our suppliers are not sufficient, while a lot of production are still in demand').

cooperate with other advantage of the

recommend two suggestions to our company future as follows: 1. Join the union of the industry to strengthen ourselves. By the help them, we can our problems and our costomer policy. Show our products in fair and conclude contracts countries.

the conference which lasted three days representants of the company which attended possibility to make business contacts. For this, we had lunch together every day where we could communicate with the people we wanted and with whom we could imagine to work. I must admit that this experience was even result in serious. At a of at the conrerence, to say that I but in opinion too many in a too period of time. it have been better to give the same amount of information within a week. To other members of staff I can recommend narncmatina in the in the future. mtorrnanon that was is relevant for everyone, no matter position he or she has.

3 Although all the content points are covered and there are few errors, the used is not sufficiently a band 4 'gave the of the company attended possibility to make business contacts'). In addition, the tends to be informal, particularly in the two paragraphs.

An at the task which fails to point. the address final language is borderline, sometimes lacking

103

Key

Question 3

Sample E

Test 2 Sample F

Date: 20 may 06

Dear Students

To. John Smith.

Thank you for your letter. 'Education for All' welcomes requests for aid in research, especially from students, as it is your future we strive to protect. My name is Jasmine and I am in charge of initiatives underway in Bangalore.

Introductions about ABC company.

Let me start by explaining about the relationship between us and the city. The burgeoning development has unfortunately also caused the impoverished and the underprivileged to be sorely neglected. We attempt to bridge this by providing free education to children the ages of 5-17 from scheduled tribes. We also regularly interact the state government on issues of legislature and educational policy. It is our aim to push for a mandate on inclusive education and aid in the construction of schools friendly to the disabled. You may have read about us in the Times yesterday over our five year inception, we have successfully educated over two hundred and fifty students and secured employment on further vocational training for close to a 100. We hope to double these statistics in the next five years and construct our very own institution for those with special needs. Of course, we will continue to lobby for increased expenditure on educational infrastructure and making it disable-friendly. much like to discuss your project I would further you to visit us at our head office in Cox Town. It would enable you to meet some of our project leaders and engage in interactive discussions outlining our present and future ventures. Please contact me to discuss this further. I look forward to receiving you. Yours sincerely Jasmine Das

Band 5 This is an almost flawless script and an exceptional example of a good band 5 answer.

104

Dear Sir, Further to your letter about benefits that this city will receive on account of our company's presence I would like to give you thanks. ABC company is one of the leading multinational retailers, offering various product to our customers. One month ago, we established an outlet in your city, is proven to increase our turnover. What's more, our service and products are viewed as a positive that is to say, we receive far fewer complaints our clients than our competitors. As for the benefits that our company bring, I think that is a combination from both society and individual. An eye for details, a large number of workforce is employed that is because we need staff to do lots of things, such as transportation to warehouse, promotion. By doing this, pressure of lay-off on our society can be solved properly. What's more, when we begin to our sales, customers will look for the goods for what they really want to pay. A lot of choice can be given so that diversify our people's lives. Now, focusing our attention on our further development. Obviously, more revenue will be provided for your government, as the turnover of sale increase steadily. Despite this, the products we offered is enviromental conscious, from both promotion and production, to ensure the enviromental burden is reduced and to contribute the goal of establishing a sustainable In my opinion, the most fundamental one is we have planed to establish a training strategy in your city. Everyone who want to enter into our company, should be trained by global thinking and professional ways. For our company, retaining high quality workforce means holding a key to business success. As for your city, high qualified workforce can improve the city's mental culture as well as enhance work efficiency.

If you want to know more specifications it is imperative that you should visit our company. You will know about how we work, and we

will explain clearly about the sole objective of our company. Further more, you will be able to gain hand on experience, which also benefit the next research that you take in future.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me on 66777. We look forward to hearing from you. Yours sincerely

XXXXXXX

In conclusion I mean that the company can benefit from this exchanging program enormously in order to stay competitive. We have to focus globally. Band 3 All content points addressed, albeit at times very thinly, e.g. job title to describe responsibilities. Otherwise adequate and meets band 3 descriptors. Sample

Band 3 All content points are covered and developed. However, while there is an adequate range of structures and vocabulary, it tends to be rather inaccurate and in parts impeding. Overall, it is just good enough for a band 3. Question 4

Sample G

The aim of this proposal is to members of staff that seem suitable to place into an exchanging programm. The Chief Executive has asked me to do this. I would recommend to make the younger staff members taking part into the exchange program. Because it seems to me firstly that these staff members are more willing to do this, they are more flexible career ranges first, they still have no family. Secondly it seems to me that they like to travel abroad, learning from different cultures, their attitudes I would suggest in detail Mr Brown and Mr Webster. Their current position is salesrepresentatives. It's a good chance for them to gain experience abroad. The company can benefit from this enormously. They can obtain special know-how abroad, I think out company needs flexibility. And engaging staff from a broad it seems to me this is a favourable exchange. We can make connections to companies abroad more easily. This is a competitive advantage. I have already spoken with Mr Brown and Mr Webster concerning this matter. They are prepared to do this. The are willing to learn, to gain experience. They will have more expertise.

Proposal on staff exchange for overseas study Introduction The aim of this proposal is to make a decision of which members of our staff should be chosen to take part in a staff exchange scheme for six months' overseas study. It is based on results of a recent detailed questionnaire sent to all employees in addition to the in-depth interviews with some senior managers and with representatives. Findings It is clear that the research and development staff, also with the employees from sales department have the priority to participate the exchange scheme. • As for technology field, there is no doubt that it is a pretty critical aspect of a business idea. Sometime advanced technology means competitive advantage, which may make great sense for our leading position in current sector. The updating of technicals is difficult to keep. That is they have changed a lot, and are chaning. Concerning sales department, we aims to contribute to the deep and wide marketing. Marketing is a science, and also an art. Above all, therefore, the external communication is the emphasis part we should pay more attention to. Besides, it is important to research into the overseas markets for indepth market analysis. Then it can easily provide a stage for our next market development programme. It will be advisable to make good preparations for later foreign customer wants and needs anticipates, together with accurate market position. That's their current important responsibilities.

105

Test 2

Key

Conclusions It is felt that the staff representatives from R & D and sales department should be the priority to attend the overseas exchange scheme. Recommendations In order to deal with the issue of making good preparations for the scheme, it will be recommended that several seminars and training courses should be ahead of time. It is also to the appintees' foreign skills. Band 1 This is a confused and contusma task which has a very reader.

1 SELECTION PROCESS 2 TIMESCALE I TIMETABLE 3 CUSTOMER(')S I CUSTOMERS(')/CUSTOMER 4 TEAMWORK/TEAM(-)WORK 5 RECORD(-)KEEPING 6 PROGRESS 7 SPEED UP I ACCELERATE 8 SHARE INFORMATION 9 REQUIREMENTS 10 COMPETITIVENESS I COMPETITION 11 DIVERSIFY 12 TRANSFERRED

13 F 18 F

14 A

15 H

19 B

20 A

16 C 21 C

17 B 22 E

3 23 B 28 A

24 B 29 B

25 A

26 C

27 C

30 C

This is the Business English Certificate Higher 4:) Listening Test 2. Part One. Questions 1 to 12. You will hear a speaker giving a group of managers advice on how to run a project. As you listen, for questions 1 to 12:) complete the notes, using up to three words or a number. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the notes. [pause]

Now listen, and complete the notes. [pause] Woman: Um, OK, er, can I have your attention, please? Thanks. Now, er, people ask me 'how do I know if a project is good and, if so, how do I then keep it on track?' Well, there are no magic formulas, but I do have a few tips for choosing

106

and managing projects that I'd like to share with you today. First of all, choose carefully! Your project needs to be large enough to be worthwhile and one in which your basic skills will enable you to succeed. This means sifting through proposals very carefully, and so it's essential that you allocate enough hours to the selection process. When you've done that, you need to work out how long the project will take. It's pretty tough to maintain a project's freshness and flexibility, so you don't want it running on too long therefore, you need to set a sensible, manageable timescale. When you start, you need to think about how your project will be better than the last one, and this means you should constantly keep the customer's circumstances in mind and think about what they want. Employees will be enthusiastic about the project if you emphasise how important it is. So you should aim to convince them of how crucial teamwork is, and if you can do that, you're more likely to get the best results. Also, good managers have a constantly updated picture of the project performance, and to achieve this, you need to be efficient at record-keeping. As the project gets going, you should always keep employees informed and involved in what's going on, so that they understand any constraints. At the same time, this will help them to appreciate the progress being made. And try meeting across boundaries. In well-managed projects, you'll find that meetings that are held are not exclusive to project workers, but include people from different disciplines who work in the same organisation. These 'outsiders' may come up with fresh approaches, which can speed up the whole project. Now, encountering problems is almost inevitable; you need to recognise that and deal with them. To do this successfully, you need to share information about anything which is not going well. This will allow you to make decisions quickly and minimise any big changes. These come as a result of the customer altering requirements. It's vital to be able to adjust to these developments, so make an attempt to be as flexible as you can in your dealings with them. The prospect of success rises when those involved are consciously trying to do better than any other businesses or even past practices within their own company, so it's important to

breed competitiveness the more the better if you want to get the best result. And finally, don't forget that companies that appear to be doing well all the time owe their success, in part, to a willingness to diversify when the market moves or alters, or as they recognise where they can make a better contribution. And, when you're contemplating a risky project, make sure you employ people who have several skills. This means they could be transferred if the original project doesn't succeed. Well, er, I hope that's helped. Um, now, if anybody has any questions ... [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part One. You now have 20 seconds to check your answers. [pause]

Part Two. Questions 13 to 22. You will hear five different people talking about the companies they work for. For each extract, there are two tasks. Look at Task One. For each question, 13-17:) choose the recent change in the company the person mentions, from the list A-H. Now look at Task Two. For each question, 18-22:) choose the strength of the company the person mentions from the list A-H. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 30 seconds to read the two lists. [pause]

Now listen, and do the two tasks. [pause]

Speaker One Man: There seem to have been so many changes already this year ... it's hard to keep up, to keep taking things on board. The CEO's nothing if not dynamic, that's for sure! Well, they say this new system will work better, compared to the previous one, with its habit of crashing the network on a weekly basis. It's certainly been tough, battling to meet our performance targets, only to find your PC can't access anything all afternoon. It's just so frustrating! So let's hope it proves to be one innovation that's of real benefit, that helps us help clients with what they

107

Test 2

Key need ... because that's what we're best at, the front line, and I hope we never lose sight of that. Satisfying them is what's rewarding, after all.

Speaker Two Woman: It always comes down to people in the end, and that's why keeping staff happy is so crucial to success. We have to have a culture of creativity, of imagination, to keep improving. Our growth and profits come from our ability to keep bringing out new models, new features, that keep us ahead, and of course, those ideas all come from people. That's why I think this latest in-company development makes sense. Instead of having different people spread about in different departments all over the company, while trying to think in related ways, it's much better to group them/in one section, especially since we've got the space. I think it's a good example of intelligent management proper strategic thinking at its best. I'll be very interested to see what fresh angles come out of the new set-up.

charge this time. John's skills will transfer very well from his old section, and his IT knowledge is second to none, which will come in very handy here as we battle away with our rather antiquated computers!

Speaker Five Man: I have to say I feel almost uneasy about our success ... it's as if it's too good to be true, and that eventually all this expansion will have to come to a halt. I don't know if I trust the longterm predictions for growth. But then again, I guess we really have got the right package a reliable product that customers know they can trust in a market where things are changing so rapidly that they can often feel rather bewildered by all the new developments. What they want to be sure of is getting value for money, and we're succeeding by offering high-quality products that don't cost the earth. Anyway, I suppose this refurbishment is the right thing to do, to rearrange the sections like this ... it's certainly easier than looking for a new site, at any rate.

Speaker Three

[pause]

Man: Well, yes, it's very much in line with the way we usually go about things, so I'm sure it'll prove to be a change for the better. I mean, if we're saying we want to monitor things, to relate achievement to targets and so on, then of course we should be looking to have more aspects tied in and programmed. It's only fair that the sales staff should become involved in the setting of targets in the first place, so that's a useful improvement, which'll make them feel more accountable for results. I also think it could have an impact on how they deal with their customers, because they'll have more of a stake. We've always been good at bringing staff on, providing attractive career paths, quarterly bonuses and so on, that keep them motivated.

Now listen to the recording again.

Speaker Four Woman: Well, in a small company like ours, everything has to count for something, otherwise we'll sink ... competition's so tight now, we have to be sure that we're doing the right thing. Without scale, we're never going to be able to compete on price - that's just a fact of life - but where we've always been good, I think, is on getting our name noticed out there. Ingenious promotions, placements, high-profile local sponsorship, that kind of thing ... it all adds up. And I think they've put the right person in

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[pause]

That is the end of Part Two. [pause]

Part Three. Questions 23 to 30. You will hear two managers, Peter and Sarah, who are taking an MBA course, discussing their experiences and views of business. For each question, 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the questions. [pause]

Now listen, and mark A, B or C. [pause] Man: Well, Sarah, what do you make of this assignment? Quite tough, isn't it? Woman: Hm, Peter, it's not the easiest, that's for sure! But this course was never going to be a holiday, was it? Man: Definitely not! Anyway, the job this time seems to be pretty detailed, analytical ...

Woman: Mm. But we have to be looking at the wider picture, don't we? . . . I mean, the strategies these organisations put in place . Man: Yes, how they structure employees . Woman: And it's that aspect of organisations we're supposed to be reviewing. Man: Yup. I must say, I think the course in general is pretty well put together ... Woman: Yeah, the lecturing input's pretty high standard, isn't it? Man: No better than I expected ... though it's probably a bit tipped in favour of the theoretical side, I'd say. But whatever, I do feel everyone's particular situation's taken account of, so we all feel it's tailor-made for us, somehow, if you see what I mean. Woman: Mm, I do, though I can't say I'm entirely happy ... Man: Oh? Woman: Well, we do all the reading and I've learnt a lot from that in itself - and then into our respective groups, but then I find all got different concerns . . . Man: Contexts ... Woman: Yeah, yeah, that it doesn't really gel, even in the two-hour slots they give us, which ought to be enough, surely. Man: But don't you find that's true in any work situation? Woman: Not necessarily, no. Well, er, perhaps I'm not at my best in teams, full stop. My motivation comes from seeing steps, you know? A line of particular projects coming up, and the challenge of knocking each one into shape and then going onto the next. I think that's the best way to be satisfying client demand, whether you're dealing directly with them or not. I used to be more face-to-face, but I have less of that now. Man: That's interesting, 'cause where I'd like to be further on down the line is in dealing with building up brand image for my company ... you know, seeing what strategies can be put in place to increase the perceived quality of what you've got on offer ... so that's similar to what you're saying in some ways . Woman: In some ways, yes course, the question is, how do you get there? Man: To the dream job ... Woman: I expect we both need to talk to a recruitment consultant in the near future. Man: They are the ones with the contacts ... Woman: Mm-hm, yeah, but often in a specialised field ... I mean more that they're in a position

to make you see what employers actually require ... you know, take you out of your dream world ... Man: Yeah . Woman: and get you into the business of focusing the value of what you offer more precisely onto what a company's looking for. Though their commission can be sky-high. Man: Yes! Do you know, another thing I'd be looking for is the chance to work from home more. Woman: Escape commuting? Wouldn't we all?! Man: Seriously, don't you feel it would do wonders for your output, that you'd just get more done in a day? Half the time, I feel exhausted before I even get to the office ... Woman: Oh, I know what you mean ... But what about the energy you get from colleagues? Man: Well, nothing can replace the creative buzz you get off interacting with them, really exchanging ideas it's only whether the price of that is worth it . Woman: Mm ... well, who knows what the future will hold for us? People are saying computer applications will mean more and more accuracy in harnessing relevant data. Man: I'm not convinced ... I certainly think specialisation's going to be the key, knowing your own region, and that comes from hands-on experience. Woman: What's special about it, yeah, sure, so how to focus your sales efforts accordingly ... Man: Mm, because customers will always respond to focused marketing. Woman: Oh, absolutely. Anyway, what's your view on ... [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part Three. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Sheet. [pause] Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students when there is one minute remaining.

That is the end of the test.

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Test 3

3

Sample

Question

2 C 7 A

1 D

6 C

4 E

3 B

5 A

8 B

2

9 E 14 D

10 C

12 A

11 F

13 G

21 D 26 A

16 D

22 D 27 A

17 A

C

B

18

B

24 A 29 C

19 C

25 B 30 B

5

31 35 38 40

SO 32 FROM 33 AS 34 SUCH 36 IN 37 SAME THE OTHER 39 ANYTHING/EVERYTHING WHOSE 6

41 44 47 50

The following report will describe the changes in the passenger revenue and the percentage of trains arriving on time.

CORRECT 42 CAN 43 EITHER WITH 45 TOO 46 THEM CORRECT 48 CORRECT 49 YOU WHICH 51 IDENTIFY 52 MOST

nd

For both 1S and 2 quarter the passenger revenue has increased in comparison with last year results. The last two quarters' passenger revenues have decreased drastically, resulting in less than 25% of the original revenue. t

3 15 A 20 C

Report: Cruseline train company

Sample

As we can observe the punctuality of the trains has fallen down. In 2005 it did not go under 85% while in 2006 it fell to less than 70%. Quarter by quarter the punctuality is worst in 2006 then in 2005. We can appreciate the reduction of arriving on time observing the 3 rd quarter results. In 2005 the company had its worst result (850/0) and at the same period of 2006 it fell down to 690/0. In conclusion, the percentage of trains arriving late has increased and the passenger revenue rose first to end up falling.

Band 1 This script has notable content omissions. From the first paragraph, it is impossible to visualise the bar chart for passenger revenue. In addition, the confusion caused by the second has a very negative effect on the target

The graph shows the passenger revenue and the percentage of trains arriving on time during the years 2005 and 2006 of a train company called Cruiseline. Regarding the passenger revenue during 2005 it started around fm 280 in the first increased slowely to fm 300 in the quarter and then fell to around fm 290 at the end of the In 2006 the revenue increased steadidy to 330 during the 2 nd quarter before falling rapidly to around fm 230 in the 3 rd quarter ending at fm 225 at the end of 2006. The percentage of trains on time stayed stable at around 88% during I." and 2 nd quarter in 2005, then decreased to 850/0 in the 3rd quartat before at around 87% at the end of 2005. Till the in 2006 the percentage decreased to 85% before falling rapidly to 680/0 (3rd quarter) and recovering to 75% at the end of 2006.

Question

Sample

Report: Training Centers in the Bank Julius Baer Introduction currently, Julius Baer provids several training centers. The main center is located in the head office facility in Zurich. Around 5 small training centers abroad are in place in order to adapt their training programms according to local needs. Every center is headed by a local Manager reporting directly to the Managing Director in Zurich. Strengths of the training provided During the last 5 years a very professional training department has been established. As a result of investments, many programms has launched or are still in planning. The maturity of them are adapted to Bank internet procedures. That means are in line with JB processes and are in general not based on a generic approach. Weaknesses of the training provided

Band 4 All content points included. Natural use of language which is virtually error free. However, the range of language used is not sufficient for a band 5.

Many are held in several locations. As a some course were performed with only one or two trainees. Sometimes this could be a disadvantage because the knowledge transfer between candidates is not so effective as when more members take part. An other point is that more the one infrastructure has to be ensured and provided. In some training centers it is very difficult to organise rooms and technical matirals. Recommendation for the company's training However, in order to reduse the administation and all efforts in the locations, some training programms should be performed in one single center. This will also improve the transfer of knowledge between staff members of different parts of the group. Band 2 A reasonable realisation of the task set; however, the first content point has been inappropriately dealt with. For this reason, it is given one task penalty, so is awarded a band 2.

110

111

Key

Sample Introduction: The report is concluding the general information of the training provided in our company, which includes a summary of the current training, the strengths and weaknesses of the training provided, and some suggestions on the training. Findings: Since we are a Customer-service company dealing with the of flowers to different markets, the current includes the of time value following steps. 1st is the of our staff by forming a good table for our staff and making rules of rewards and punishment for staff, is the training of the team work spirit the activity held by the company such as or ball games. To analyse the training provided, first let's come to the strengths of the training. Through the training, The company succeed to offer all of our dilivery on time and won the reputation which increased our business orders and our company's profits. Due to the training of teamwork spirit, staff get to know each other better which make them cooperate well with each other and finish the job more efficiently. However, there are still some shortcomings in the training. 1st the training takes too much energy and capital than necessary. Each period of training takes employees too much time which reduced the income of our company during the training period, 2 nd , the training staff who all come from the company are not so qualified sometimes. Recommendation: In order to improve the current weakness of the training, it's better for the company to consider to oursource the training part to the specific training Centre. In this case, it will not only save the of our own staff but also guarantee quality of the training. Conclusion: The training has successfully increased the profits of our company, although it has its own shortcoming. Chances are for the improvements as long as the company take the suggestions mentioned above.

112

Test 3

Band 3 This script uses an adequate of structures and vocabulary, although there are a non-impeding errors. All content points are covered, and the organisation and cohesion are satisfactory. It meets band 3 descriptors on the general mark scheme. Question 3

Sample E Dear Mr/Madam: I am writing to you about your dissatisfied service your company offered. early, only Yesterday, I got to my company to find two people are more in chatting than cleaning. Catching sight of me, though, they did not stop talking, even to talk loudly. However, when I enter my own office, I was so surprised to see a worker touching my private goods. At that time, I was so angry about it and made them stop their work at hand, then to call the manager of your company. Finally I was told he was so busy that he couldn't answer me. An hour later some clients left immediately when they feel the dirty and mess environment of our company. To a certain it ruins the image of our company. Moreover, it a loss of the company. It's so difficult to make up for the potential business opportunity. As to the unfortunate things happening to my company, I think you should better take reasonable and win-win measures to compensate the loss we have made. First of all, three unqualified workers are supposed to make apology for what have done; secondly, in my opinion, your company should make a compensation for our loss. I think they are the best ways to solve the problems we are faced with. As we know, everyone has his or her own right. There is no excuse for you "invading" my right. If your company doesn't make any reaction to this, our company will send a letter to Consumer Right Protection Committee. We all hope for your answer. Yours faithfully

Sample

Question 4

Robust & Co 728 Maple Street 25870 New York Ms Joan Spack Director of Cleaner's World 22 Maine Square 23750 New York 19 May 2007 Dear Madam, I am writing to express my concern about the quality level of cleaning services provided by your company to Robust & Co. There have been numerous events which resulted in our disappointment in Cleaner's World level of quality so Allow me to name a few, First of all the litter is not being picked up from all the bins in our building. This results in an unbearable amounts of waste paper in our rooms. In addition, corridor floors are swept only once a month and we find it unacceptable. Moreover, one of your staff was reported LCD computer monitors with liquids compteterv inappropriate for that purpose. Of course has left many of our LCD monitors badly damaged. The most important issue I would like to discuss with you are numerous reports of documents. Apparantly, and not comcidentallv, there is always a notable increase in number of such reports after the weekly clean-up of our offices. All the above issues have a very impact on our clients and visitors, who are remarks about dust in our waiting room. As a conclusion, I would like to warn you that if we do not see a drastic in the quality of your we be forced to look for another company. Yours sincerely xxxxx

Band 2 All the content points are covered; however, there is a lack of control and a number of lexical errors. These, combined with use of some inappropriate register, would have a negative effect on the target reader.

Band 5 A little awkwardness keeps this from being a realisation of the task. This prevents this an upper band 5.

Sample Strategies to improve the organisation's public on some bad publicity of our organisation recently, this proposal is to strategies to address this requirement of the Chief -'-'--"'.'-''-''u-\.-..

v '-'.

The bad advertisement. the advertisement words of our organisation contains some disadvantage aspects of our rivals. Although these are true conditions for them, it is not a suit way to include them in our for this may affect our reputation in - website, as a world-lead company in this field, it is critical for us to our website up to date. However, some numbers, addresses, as well as our new products could not been put into our website in time. The following problems advertisement, the goal of our advertisement is to increase our brand in the public and then leads to a groath of our sales. If there are some words concerns our rival, our customers may consider us as small companies who are always utilising some bad competitive ways in their marketing. website. a convey illustrates that an up to date website will attract its customers searching on its new products periodly as well as some potential users in the future. Therefore, our website is not attractive to our customers and potential users it is still out of date. to improve the organisation's image. it is necessary for our organisation to make an modification of the words in our advertisement. An effective advertisement words should include the characteristics of our major product, the feature as well as the convinient for users. - website. loading the new number and addresses on website in time is the first step. next is adding an asked question) section and section to the website. All of these have the potential to increase our sales in the future. s: "-'--< v v.L ..... "v.H.'-'"''- ......

113

Key

Ang possible disadvantages cost. the change of advertisement words requires an investment on the publicity field. furthermore, the modifications of the website increases the cost as well. - human resource. The FAQ section and online purchase need some experts in IT, which means the organisation have to recruit an new employee for this. Although this requires a new investment of cost human resource, all of them will increase the sales for the organisation. Therefore, it is worth to carry out these improvements. Band 2 This script is clearly a 2. All the content has been covered (some may interpret 'publicity' as 'advertising'); however, errors within are quite frequent, and some are impeding and obscure communication. For this reason, it is awarded a lower, rather than higher, band 2.

Test 3 Sample 1

Introduction The aim of this proposal is to examine how we could enhance our company's reputation. The proposal will also include a description of the current situation and the disadvantages of the improvements recommended. Description of the bad publicity Unfortunately, a whistle-blower recently provided the local newspaper with information about the production of our newest product. accused our organisation of using ingredients which could damage the health of our clients. Presented problems Now we have to face the problem that we could lose the trust of our customers. Consequently, we could have a sharp decrease in sales and profits.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

PUBLICITY FOLDER EXHIBITOR LIST / EXHIBITORS LIST INTERNET FLOOR PLAN LARGE/BIG NOTE(-)PAD (YOUR) BUSINESS CARDS (OWN) (COMPANY('S)) BROCHURES PRESS OFFICE FAST(-)TRACK SERVICE INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS 11 INTRODUCTORY DISCOUNTS 12 ONE/A WEEK / 7/SEVEN DAYS

Part 2 13 H 18 C

14 E

15 F

16 B

19 A

20 H

21 B

17 G 22 F

24 A 29 A

25 C 30 A

26 B

27 C

Part 3 23 C

Improvements

28 B

It is recommended that we approach the problem by hiring some external specialists, who will prove that our products are completely free of any unhealthy chemicals. Furthermore, it is suggested that we launch a new advertising campaign which should include our current studies.

This is the Business English Certificate Higher 4, Listening Test 3.

Disadvantages

Part One. Questions 1 to 12.

All these improvements will certainly cost a huge amount of money, and it is advisable that we don't waste any time and set up the new adverts as soon as possible.

You will hear an adviser giving a talk to a group of purchasing managers about how to make good use of visits to trade fairs.

Conclusion To sum up, it is recommended that we use adverts and studies to improve our company's public image and to keep our market share in the retail market.

listening Test 3

As you listen, for questions 1 to 12, complete the notes using up to three words or a number. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the questions. [pause]

Band 5 This script fully realises the task with good control, natural use of language and tone. It is error free and has a positive effect on the target reader.

114

Now listen, and complete the notes. [pause] Woman: Good afternoon. My short talk today is about trade fairs: not how to exhibit at them, but how to take best advantage of being a customer - a visitor to the fair. How can you make your visit really cost- and time-efficient? Firstly, an issue which is often overlooked is

pre-exhibition preparation. It may be that the fair won't be helpful, so find out as much as you can before you consider booking. As soon as you know it's taking place, send off for the publicity folder, for which there is no charge. It contains information which can save you time and money. One particular thing I always advise clients to do is to look over the exhibitor list with great care and talk to line managers and colleagues about it. This will give you the best insight into whether this particular fair is right for your company. If it up for it. Then, if you think the is for you, do take time to look into hotel arrangements. My advice is that you should try to choose a hotel yourself from the internet rather than selecting one from the trade fair's recommended list. Trade fairs and exhibitions tend to use large chains because they're easier to deal with, rather than ones with the most suitable facilities. In due course, you will receive an enormous amount of trade-fair information a lot of it you can throwaway immediately. But not everything - the hand-outs to hang onto are the finalised list of visitors, and it's also worth keeping the floor plan. Organisers seldom remember to supply extra copies, and you'll be stuck if you don't have one. Then take a little care with your packing don't forget to take a large note-pad (fairs tend to supply tiny ones these days, and your jottings can get lost on small scraps of paper) and, whatever you do, don't forget to take a good supply of business cards. There's surely nothing more embarrassing than not being able to produce one on request. One other thing that I pack is a small pile of my own company brochures not too many, they'd be too heavybut to give out to selected personnel. Obviously you're there with a view to buying, but an exchange of information helps everyone. So now you've arrived and you're standing in the exhibition hall with its bewildering array of people and exhibits. Where do you start? Well, my advice is to ignore the people at reception and go straight to the press office. They'll be a good source of information about the really important events of the day and what the interesting new products and services are. After this, it's worth taking advantage of what's sometimes called 'the Fast-Track Service'. It can be costly, but it is personalised and independent an adviser discusses your company profile and directs you to suitable stands.

115

Key

After that, it's just a case of wandering around, seeing what attracts your eye. And a key piece of advice - have a good look at the stands of small These are often just starting out, and stands frequently exhibit innovative products. As you go around, look, listen, discuss, ask questions. Don't be afraid to enquire about introductory discounts. You may be at what companies are prepared to offer they're trying to set up a deal. Now, obviously, you'll be aiming to make plenty of contacts, and should keep an eye on how long it takes companies to back to you - sending the requested ~.ll \.,~al~UJ..,"" quotations and so forth. With today's should hear from them within two or days or even twenty-four hours. company that takes longer than a week is not worth pursuing, in my opinion. So, next, I'd like ... ..

[pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part One. You now have 20 seconds to check your answers. [pause]

Part Two. Questions 13 to 22. You will hear five different people talking about a project they carried out at work, and their experience while carrying it out.

Test 3

me to look into how best to achieve this. Well, this was a great opportunity for me. I thought it was really important to send our own staff overseas, so they could devote all their time to getting our products into the markets. But it turned out the boss actually meant I should mvestizate local companies to use as our agents: he they would already have information about potential customers. I wish he'd spelt this out at the beginning, because at least we could have discussed it. As it was, he ignored most of what I proposed, so I'd simply wasted my time.

Speaker Two Man: My boss gave me responsibility for this big project once, where I had to plan a strategy for improving the amount of flexibility in our production section. You see, there were people who could operate a specific machine, or do a particular part of the process, but if someone was off sick or on holiday, nobody else could take over. It also meant that when people got bored with their job, they tended to leave. So I was supposed to work out how to get familiar with several machines. Well, I know the very well, so I wanted to discuss my with the shopfloor workers, but morale had got so bad, most of them couldn't be bothered, and in the end, I can't claim I had much success.

Speaker Three

Now listen, and do the two tasks.

Woman: We make short of customers. our own stores: the bags are sold by retailers, and we work closely with them. They generally have pretty limited storage space, so they can't carry much stock, which means we have to make lots of small deliveries. So I had to do a comparative study of the alternatives. The was, though, that I was told just to look at our finished products from the to the outlets, which was straightforward but I soon realised that it would make more sense to look at the whole of the chain. Anyway, I managed to solve the problem.

[pause]

Speaker Four

Speaker One

Man: The I worked for with another one, was given the of evaluating all the senior positions and redefining their roles to fit into the structure of the new ,",Vj-~~IJ'a~~y. It was hard, because lose their jobs, so

For each extract, there are two tasks. Look at Task One. For each question, 13-17, choose the purpose of the project from the list A-H. Now look at Task Two. For each question, choose the person's experience of the project from list A-H. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 30 seconds to read the two lists. [pause]

Woman: I worked for a tool manufacturer, which had the domestic market, but then the Director realised our lines would do abroad, too, and he

116

atmosphere was awful. But it also proved very difficult to find out exactly how the other company had been operating. It was small, and the directors were basically a group of friends who'd set up the business together. Everything was done verbally, and they hadn't bothered to draw up organograms or job descriptions. I had to spend ages talking to all of so it took me a long time to reach the point I felt confident enough to present my report.

Speaker Five Woman: We're a small manufacturer of fashion clothing, targeted at people in their twenties with high disposable incomes. We compete with imported clothing, and only use outlets close by, which keeps distribution costs down. And then management decided we were too dependent on these customers, and we should aim at a broader age and as soon as possible. They considered designing new ranges for other age groups, but we just didn't have the production capacity, so they decided to change the product image, to broaden its appeal. The task of making this happen fell to me. Well, I wish I'd refused, because they simply didn't realise that it's a very complicated process, and that lots of companies have tried and failed. Instead they blamed me for not being bold enough. [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part Two. [pause]

Part Three. Questions 23 to 30. You will hear a discussion between two managers, Kathy and Duncan, who work in the Human Resources department of a company. For each question, 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the questions. [pause]

Now listen, and mark A, B or C. [pause]

Woman: Well, Duncan, I think we can often get a lot out of these informal talks. Man: I couldn't agree more, Kathy ... the agendas in standard meetings are usually too rigid to allow for real discussion. Woman: OK, now, you'd like to appoint a new assistant ... Man: Yes, I think it's important. Woman: ... because you're wanting to look at agents and consultants ... Man: Yeah - they're all stored on computer, but not in a useful way. I want the whole thing revised, so that we can access information in a wide of clear categories. that's a separate job. Woman: Man: Quite and a big one. We need a set-up like the Marketing Department has for clients llserfriendly. Woman: I can certainly see your case. My only thought is that this person's role is likely to become more complex. Man: Oh, sure - these are just my initial thoughts ... Woman: So, you'll have to make sure you get someone who's the right qualifications ... Man: Mm the diplomas. Woman: And be going to many meetings? Man: Yeah, but not having to travel there ... I mean, they'll be in-house ... Woman: I see it as a cross-departmental role. Man: I that depends on the Directors. I'd rather it within HR. Woman: it's always an issue, isn't how the first idea the job gets transformed, neglecting the original need. I've sat on plenty panels where we're all doing our utmost to let the give it their best shot ... Man: Oh sure. Woman: ... and found myself thinking, on, too many have got their hands on and or desirable qualities the we put out the advertisement ... I just don't think all the details should be passed around as they currently are. Man: I looking someone might help me ... Woman: Only natural. Man: The new salary scales, welcome the increases are, don't address the real

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Test 4

And the flexible holiday system hasn't done anything to reduce the day-to-day pressure. mean, but I do have Woman: I know what faith in things if the current initiatives go Man: Hm, I'll believe them when I see them, especially these glamorous new systems IT are proposing. Woman: Well, I ... Man: I just wish could be as straightforward as production team manage to make it - what they're proposing is so practical that it's bound to go through, while the rest of us are sitting around, considering every possible aspect and application, and drawing up endless finance projections. Woman: Time will tell ... I must say, I'm not entirely happy about the way things are going. Man: No? Woman: Well, I just don't think information is being handled very well it's a skill that's neglected here. We have, in theory at least, a good team system, but we still end up running late at crucial stages on many projects simply due to our own over-elaborate processes which, in terms of quality and efficiency, is clearly far from ideal. Man: Yeah, well ... I think a lot of it is to do with capturing and disseminating information, and whether we do that effectively or not. We're not alone in encouraging employees to come up with ideas for improvements in procedures, etcetera, particularly those aimed at enhancing customer service levels . . . Woman: No ... Man: ... but I'd like to see the outcomes of that publicised internally ... we could have a kind of magazine to supplement the annual report, and it could come out several times a year. Woman: I guess that could help. Man: It all ties up with where the company thinks it might be going. Woman: Yeah, that's the big issue. I'd say that boils down to identity . . . Man: ... which we need to work on developing over the internet. Woman: Hm, I think that probably comes later ... What we need to ask is and this is surely where we're heading is how to build recognition ... If you look at who succeeds in selling globally ... Man: our role models ... Woman: being readily identifiable helps companies to sell in on- and off-line

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environments and cross old-fashioned national boundaries. Man: It's certainly quite a challenge ... Woman: ... and one we need to meet. Man: Anyway, so ...

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part Three. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Sheet. [pause] Note: Teacher, stop the recording and time ten minutes. Remind students when there is one minute remaining.

That is the end of the test.

st Part 1 2 B 8 A

3 E

4 C

5 E

6 C

Part 2 9 D 14 E

Sample

REPORT: Changes in Supatrain's reliability, punctuality and number of complaints.

[pause]

1 E 7 D

Sample Question 1

10 G

11 C

12 F

13 A

16 A

17 D

18 C

19 D

22 D 27 A

23 B 28 A

24 D 29 B

25 B 30 C

The study of train's reliability, punctuality and number of complaints has covered the time span twelve weeks divided further into three sub-periods. In regards to trains' reliability there was slight increase in the second period, reaching the level of 100 percent. This high score has remained level for the rest of periods studied. Conversely, in terms of punctuality, after recording high score of 950/0 in the first period, it declined steadily in the two subsequent periods. Number of complaints per 100,000 passanger journeys has reached the level of 200 in the first 4 weeks studied. In the following period it has slightly plummeted. During the last 4 weeks of the study number of complaints rose sharply, peaking at level around 225. To conclude it is clear that increased number of complaints recorded in the last period, could be caused by constantly decreasing punctuality of trains.

Part 3 15 B 20 A

Part 4 21 C 26 C

Part 5 32 BE 33 ON 35 THE 36 MORE 37 BY 38 WHEN/IF 40 FROM

22 FORIAS

34 TO 38 IS

Band 3 A reasonable achievement of the task. All content points are covered. An adequate range of structure and vocabulary. Organisation and cohesion are good, and register and format are reasonable. However, there are issues of control, e.g. the writer moves between present perfect and past simple, and there is also an omission of articles. Overall, it is a higher band 3 for most of the General Impression Mark Scheme criteria.

Report: Changes in Reliabitity, Punctuality and Number of Complaints. Reliability: In general, whilst about 980/0 between Dec 13 and Jan 9, the reliability of this train operator made an upward movement to 100% in the next eight weeks, from Jan 10 to Mar 6. Punctuality: The of punctuality were always fewer than reliability in the same period. 12 weeks saw a falling trend from 95% to 92 %. Complaints: As numbers per 100,000 passenger journeys there were 190 complaints in second four weeks, from Jan 10 to Feb 6, which were slightly down on the first week's figure, about 200 complaints. Conclusion: In the 12 weeks, the percentage of timetabled trains actually running at this train operator is up to 1000/0. The punctuality took a down towards 92 0/0. But complaints had a growth so that the operator should take more care to the passengers. Band 2 Nicely organised with headings. All content points are covered. However, there is a certain amount of awkward phrasing, which obscures communication and has a negative effect on the target reader.

Part 6 41 44 48 51

YOURSELF 42 CORRECT 43 UP ALL 45 SUCH 46 THE 47 OR THAT 49 WHILE 50 CORRECT US 52 SHOULD

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Key

Test 4

Question

c

Sample

Report on the sales of Fax machine FX007.

Sales Report

To: Mr. R Hanson, Managing director.

To Managing Director,

From: Ms Debbie Green, Manager of the sales department.

I am so sorry that our Product A met sales winter during the past six months. The sales turnover and profit declined so much. I have analized this matter. here is my report about product Ns sales problem. Product A is our early one. Since it was pushed to market. it has been 3 years. at the beginning of saling product A, we sold it ourselves, but recently we take a strategy of it to distributors for saling because of our cost-cut. For the past six months, our distributors have sold product A badly. Qur product A has been taken over by productB of Co. B and product C of Co. C. The problem is serious because product A contribute to 1/3 of our turnover. There are three points about sales problem of product A. One is our product A is old one, product B of Co. B and product C of Co. Care new products, our product A cannot meet needs of customers, the second one points is that our distributors' work are so bad, they sold product A but didn't regard it as important product. they put so few workers and so little energy to product A. And Co. B and Co. C give these distributors more commission than ours. The third point is world slow down. After many big 911 in USA. world economy product A problems and troubles. our order from USA and Euro decline so much that it is only 80% of normal level. We should take some methods to change these disadvantages. Firstly, we should design new product take the place of product A. we should some distributors. we some new who can their all energy to our product sales. we should go to other market and instead of depending on USA and market only.

Band 2 but there are All content points are frequent errors, some of are quite basic. The overall result is a negative effect on the reader.

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I. Introduction 1.1 This report is submitted to the managing director. 1.2 The purpose of this report is to solve the problem regarding the sales of FX007 fax machine's low performance for the past six months II. Findings. 2.1 Recent sales pattern This three

of fax machine is largely sold by distributors in the country.

• Orders on line are also accepted from five years ago. 2.2 Factors on the low sales Since the attack 911, the target market American is depressed and the consume power is getting lower and lower. Our rival company Oval has launched a new type of which is more fashion and userthing is friendly. the most that its price is twice lower ours. • Other small and medium their products on line or lot of money on delivery. as well.

selling order save a competitive

• Recently, many complaints are received which are showed the consumers' dissatisfied with our after-sales services.

The sales pattern also needs to be expanded, not only selling by the distributor, but also selling on-line or by mail orders. • The R&D department should put more effort to research a new type machine meeting customers' needs and wants. • The Asia can be set as the target marking with its lower-cost labour and large market demand.

Band 3 Although there has been some misinterpretation of the word 'pattern', all content points are addressed there is some information as, within the about the recent pattern. The rest of the response meets the General Impression Mark Scheme for a band 3.

Question 3 Sample

Dear Sir/Madam, I am on behalf of STARTECH. Our company is third biggest producer of medical equipment in Poland. Last year's sales of our products reached more than $20bn. We were also awarded the prize for the best medical equipment by the National Committee of Health Service. The company was established in 1994 and was developing very fast. Today we are enjoying the position of a credible and successful supplier and business partner. We have the best R&D department in the sector is medical equipment and the number of our loyal customers rising constantly. However, recently we have certain problems. Two ago we to enter the Russian Unfortunately, the expansion turned out to be a failure and we had to withdraw. This led to dramaticallosses and now we are looking for possible ways to cut costs and recover. I am writing to ask you for a consultancy concerning suitable methods of reducing costs in our company. I would like to invite your consultants to come to our head office to discuss further details of the contract. If it is possible, we would like to meet them on the 6th of June at 11 a.m. Please let me know if the proposed date or time is unsuitable for you. If you have or requests, please contact me on We are looking forward to hearing from you.

III. Conclusions and Recornmandations

Yours faithfully

3.1 Conclusions

xxxxx

According to the above findings, the services should be improved and the cost-cutting measures should be set. 3.2 Recommandations An extra budget is essential to be given to the service department.

Band 5 An excellent response with a reade~ a the keeps at a lower

• The sales pattern also needs to be expanded, not only selling by the distributor, but also selling on-line or by mail orders.

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Sample Dear Sirs I am writing to require your help for our recent company problems. The company I work for products are of a high wide variety. Our supply Our strenghts are have a school education skills in addition we work with the newest creanvity, technolic maschines. Recently we came across some big problems in our company. One problem we have is, that our management do not come along with our workforce. Therefore we decided to ask for help from outside. In opinion one of the reason of this that the management have to train emotional intelligence. Another problem is the motivation. There is a high rate of unmotivated persons. Furthermore we have a high turnover in staff fluctuation. We already have tryed to find a solution for all this problems by ourselves. However we could not deal with it so we hope that you can help us. To get an overview we like you to invite in our company so you are able to get your own impression. Please let me know about some appropriate dates and times for you. I am looking forward to hearing from you. Yours faithfully xxxx Band 2 All content points covered. The organisation is reasonable. However, there is a limited range of structures and a number of spelling and lexical errors. This results in a band 2.

Test 4 Question

Sample

Sample INTRODUCTION Proposal on how to deal with visitor complaints To: Paul Smith (Chief Executive) From: Katharina Kremer

The purpose of this report is to find solutions to the complaints that our organisation has recently received.

Over the last three months we have received several complaints from people company. There are two main reasons

It has been found that the attitude to external callers and visitors has been somehow unpleasant recently. In addition to this some clients have had some problems with ~ur newest product and our After Sales Service has not been capable of prividing them with a quick and effective solution.

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

SOLUTIONS

12

there were complaints about the tnendlvness of our employees who welcome our and show them our production facilities. Obviously they tend to be unfriendly and do not like to answer questions. Secondly, we do not provide information material for our visitors and the staff showing them around is not able to answer all questions.

It is therefore recommended to design information packages for our visitors including details and figures on our production facilities and giving a general overview about the history of our company, Additionally it is suggested to talk to our staff dealing with the visitors and assess if a training course on how to deal with visitors is necessary. Band 4 Fairly natural use of language, although not error free. Good internal cohesion. A positive effect on the target reader.

FINDINGS

All the staff needs to be aware of the importance of our visitor and our customers. Our clients are our main asset therefore we shou.ld focus on treating them the best way possible. Their satisfaction is our success and for this matter need to change out current company's phylosophy. We ought to create a good impresion considering that our visitors are only prospects and we want them to become major clients. The changes will mainly affect after Sales Service staff, Sales department staff and the recepcionist.

(TOTAL) (SHARE) DIVIDEND(S) / DIVIDEND(S) PER SHARE (PRODUCTION) RECORDS WORKFORCE / (NUMBER OF) STAFF (STRONG) POUND (SELLING) PRICES (OPERATING) CAPACITY 15%/FIFTEEN PER CENT/PERCENT (WORKING) PRACTICES SUPPLIER BASE/SUPPLIERS MANUFACTURING CONSUMER(S) SPENDING / CONSUMERSPENDING (THE) MID(DLE) EAST

Part 2 13 G 18 G

14 E 19 C

15 C 20 E

16 B 21 A

17 H 22 D

24 C 29 B

25 A 30 B

26 A

27 B

Part 3 23 A 28 C

CONCLUSION

listening Test 4

Taking all the previous information into consideration it is vital for us to improve the after Sales Service department using the latest Technology and sorting our customers problems rapid and effectively. The recepcionist IS the first contact that the client has with our company therefore he or she should be treated nice and politely regardless of their importance.

This is the Business English Certificate Higher 4 ' Listening Test 4. Part One. Questions 1 to 12. You will hear the Chief Executive of a steel company talking to shareholders about the company's performance over the last year. As you listen, for questions 1 to 12, complete the notes using up to three words or a number.

Band 1 The candidate appears to have misinterpreted the question, which results in content omissions and some irrelevance. This has a very negative effect on the target reader, resulting in a band 1.

After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the notes. [pause]

Now listen, and complete the notes. [pause] Woman: Ladies and gentlemen, it has been, in general, a good year for the company. Although overall profits are down compared with last

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123

Key

year, they I am pleased to be able to announce, than we at this time last year: this year's figure is hundred and fifty-four million pounds compared with last year's figure of four hundred and fifty-one million pounds. The Board is recommending a final dividend of seven share, which makes a total year of ten p per share, identical to last The profit is UK plants, which performances, of production records. Deliveries to markets outside Europe were twelve per cent up on the previous year, largely due to economic conditions outside our control. Operating costs, we are pleased to report, were two per cent lower than- in the previous due mainly to reduced costs, as workforce was cut from thousand to thousand. to the less good news: there have been difficulties with our trade over the last year. The main culprit has been the strong which has reduced profits by approximatelv five hundred million pounds. our nrrv-orre-ner-cenrowned continued to be badly affected by depressed selling prices. Then Huntingdon's, our five-per-cent-owned joint venture in the encountered technical problems during the year, which mean that it is unlikely to resume onerannz at again until late this year. problems, your Board has taken a number of measures, which we believe will be effective within a short timeframe: firstly, we have established a target for all our businesses of achieving nrreen-rier-cenr return on assets. We are the organisation structures to make them flatter and more responsive to needs. We have also a team to look at our working with the aim of improving are creating a considerably more supplier base; and lastly, we are information more ,.--.-""'"1r",,,ol'\:7 turn now to the outlook in the and abroad: the is complex. The UK economy is forecast to slow down next year. For the economy as a whole, a recession is not for the manufacturing sectors, predictions of, shall we say, unfavourable conditions.

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Test 4 Globally, however, demand for steel may well strengthen over the next year, because of improving business confidence. In the US, for instance, analysts think that consumer spending will be maintained at high levels. Although we can never be one-hundred-per-cent sure how the markets will develop, we do feel confident that the Middle East offers profitable prospects and we some growth opportunities in steel or -.:tPPI-rPI:::ltf'(1 businesses in this region. [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part One. You now have 20 seconds to check your answers. [pause]

Part Two. Questions 13 to 22. You will hear five senior managers talking about why their companies selected new locations, and about a difficulty that affected the move. For each extract, there are two tasks. Look at Task One. For each question, 13-17, choose the reason selecting the particular location from the list Now look at Task Two. For each question, 18-22, choose the that each company had from the list After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 30 seconds to read the two lists. [pause]

Now listen, and do the two tasks. [pause]

Speaker One Man: We're a small firm that manufactures machine parts, and we wanted to expand. There was no space on our old site, so we realised we'd have to move to a different town. We had wellqualified staff who would have no difficulty getting other jobs without having to move home, and we needed to keep nearly all of them. So that meant looking for premises in towns that were within easy reach for most of the workforce. We found somewhere suitable, but within a very short time, several major employers moved to the area, as a rents rocketed. This was before lease, and suddenly the place we

almost beyond our means. In the end, we managed to get it, but it was a struggle.

Speaker Two Woman: The company I work for does contract work for the government, and we moved here from London. In fact, the original designs were for a much building, but that caused a major furore, a local newspaper running a campaign against it, so it had to be scaled down. London was great, but the high overheads and the difficulties of travelling meant we had to move - almost It was important to staff as possible, so the retain as many bosses did a to find out what would make people agree to The majority were fairly mobile, as their children had grown up, and what emerged as their priority was that house prices should be within their reach. This place is ideal in that respect.

Speaker Three Man: The original plan was to construct a new manufacturing plant here. Because we use 'just in time' methods, we didn't want to have components and raw materials coming great distances, so we picked this town because we could most of these from local sources. But soon we started we realised we didn't require additional capacity after all, and decided to use the site for a big distribution serving the whole of Europe, and to close smaller centres. So construction of the plant was new plans were drawn up, and we went the whole procedure of getting planning again. But it all went very smoothly, and we were still able to open on the original date.

Speaker Four Woman: I work for a foreign company which moved a here from another country fairly size of the available site was it was the of state aid determined where factory ended up. There was a lot of competition to construct it, and in the end, the contract went to a consortium, but had all sorts of problems, financial ones and there was a lot of between involved. The upshot it all was that move was overdue. Luckily, there was a penalty clause the so we didn't lose as much money as we would done otherwise, but a lot of the people we'd offered jobs to went elsewhere.

Speaker Five Man: In my sector, there are lots of small companies, with frequent mergers and acquisitions, and high staff turnover. Of course, that can be a disadvantage, but on the other hand, ideas for new products tend to grow, not just from internal research and development, but through the informal contacts that staff have with people at other firms. We really couldn't create those links where we were, because we were geographically isolated, so to get close to a cluster of similar meant we had to move. Rents were so that the boss decided to invest in having something built. Initially, he hired a small building firm, which went under just after they'd started the work. Apparently they'd overstretched themselves by taking on too many jobs, had serious cashflow problems, and couldn't pay their creditors, but he found another firm straightaway, who managed to meet the original deadline. [pause]

Now listen to the recording again. [pause]

That is the end of Part Two. [pause]

Part Three. Questions 23 to 30. You will hear a conversation between two Human Resources managers, Maria and David, about how to reduce staff turnover in their company. For each question, 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer. After you have listened once, replay the recording. You now have 45 seconds to read through the questions. [pause]

Now listen, and mark A, B or C. [pause] Woman: David, this issue of staff turnover has been brewing for a while. I assume you've had time to read the from the consultants we called in to look at problem? And I was horrified to see that turnover of staff is now to cent a Can we put our see we can come up with? Man: Yes, I've read the report and I agree we need to deal with this fairly urgently.

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Key

Woman: Now, I'm aware that our pay rates have not been competitive for a while, but we still seem to be able to recruit, so we need to look at what happens when people actually start here. They seem to become unhappy when realise how much we require of them - and in difficult circumstances as well. I think most staff are conscious of how essential they are to our success, but that's clearly not enough ... what's your view? Man: Well, report, it seems are serious issues affecting all grades of staff - for example, they mentioned the fact that, although new recruits are well catered for, there's no real ongoing training. Then it noted that, once sales staff reach a certain level, there's nowhere for them to go. And also it found that the higher levels of management would a more clearly defined role in the organisation. seems there are a range of problems. Woman: Yes, and it's not been helped by that newspaper article about our expansion. It was so critical that I think it will start affecting our ability to attract new staff. We've already got too many skilled staff leaving, and having a shortage in other areas will just compound the problem. Certainly the article didn't present a very confident view of our future - but people on the inside have more faith in us, thank goodness. Man: Well, we've got a range of options, haven't we? I think we've got a good communication system in place now most of the managers feel that's working fairly well. But we need to make sure we're all working towards the same recognisable end. We need a system in place so everyone knows what they're doing and why. Other alternatives, like offering rewards for achieving performance targets, don't really address the underlying problem. Woman: Hmmm - I know that our closest competitor, Harston's, had a similar problem a few years ago, and they seem to have addressed it successfully by deciding to get all the staff together every year, somewhere different like a hotel, and getting them to talk about what's bothering them. But I think you get the same result by using an appraisal system. I think Harston's also tried to prevent problems arising in the first place by setting up a system where all new staff were assigned a mentor, but, er, I'm not sure how effective it's been.

126

Man: Umm ... and what about this issue of training that the consultants raised? Woman: Well, I think we'll have to consider a bigger programme, but to save costs, perhaps we should only send our more motivated staff on courses? That may work better. Man: I'm not sure that we do need more. And I actually think it's the courses that need careful planning rather than focusing on who attends. If the programme is appropriately directed at particular topics, then it will be relevant to all the staff involved in that area. Woman: Mmm - suppose so. Man: We've also got to look at how we can compensate people better when we're not in a position to raise our basic salaries. Woman: Yes well, for the moment, we could perhaps increase staff loyalty by offering stock options as a carrot say when people have been here for a year. If we go down the route of offering bonus payments, then it looks attractive initially, but I'm not sure it's effective in the long run, because it depends on reaching targets. You know, considering what those consultants charged, they haven't really come up with any useful solutions, have they? Man: No, you're right. Look, let's go away and get this down on paper and then we can draw up a detailed proposal of what we think should be done in the next year. We'll give that to the MD and, if he agrees, he can take it to the Board next month. Woman: OK, I'll email you something, and we can meet next week . . . [pause] Now listen to the recording again.

[pause] That is the end of Part Three. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Sheet.

[pause] Note: Teacher, stop the recordings here and time ten minutes. Remind students when there is one minute remaining.

To facilitate practice for the Speaking test, the scripts followed by the interlocutor for Parts 2 and 3 appear below. They should be used in conjunction with Tests 1-4 Speaking tasks. These tasks are contained in booklets in the real Speaking test. Interlocutor frames are not included for Part 1, in which the interlocutor asks the candidates questions directly rather than asking them to perform tasks.

Interlocutor: • Thank you. Now, B, please ask A a question about his/her talk.

Part 2: Mini presentations (about six minutes)

Part 3: Collaborative task and discussion (about seven minutes)

Interlocutor: Now, in this part of the test, I'm going to give each of you a choice of three different topics. I'd like you to select one of the topics and give a short presentation on it for about a minute. You will have a minute to this and you can make notes if you you have finished your talk, your partner will ask you a question. All right? Here are your topics. Please don't write anything in the booklet. [Interlocutor hands each candidate a booklet and a pencil and paper for notes. Allow one minute preparation time.}

Interlocutor: Now, B, which topic have you chosen, A, B or C? A, please listen carefully to B's talk and then ask him/her a question about it. [Candidate B speaks for one minute.}

[Candidate B asks a question.}

Interlocutor: Thank you. • Can I have the booklets, please?

Interlocutor: Now, in this part of the test, you are going to discuss something together. [Interlocutor holds the booklet open at the task while giving the instructions below.}

Interlocutor: You will have 30 seconds to read this task carefully, and then about three minutes to discuss and decide about it together. You should give reasons for your decisions and opinions. You don't need to write anything. Is that clear? [Interlocutor places the booklet in front of the candidates so they can both see it. Allow 30 seconds for candidates to read the task.}

Interlocutor: I'm just going to listen and then ask you to stop after about three minutes. Please speak so that we can hear you.

Interlocutor: • Thank you. Now, A, please ask B a question about his/her talk.

[Candidates have about three minutes to complete the task.}

[Candidate A asks a question.}

Interlocutor: Can I have the booklet, please?

Interlocutor: • Now, A, which topic have you chosen, A, B or C? B, please listen carefully to A's talk and then ask him/her a question about it.

[Interlocutor asks one or more of the follow-on questions as appropriate, to extend the discussion.}

[Candidate A speaks for one minute.}

Thank you. That is the end of the test.

That is the end of the test.

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Sample Answer Sheet: Reading

Sample Answer Sheet: Reading

© DeLES 2009

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129

Sample Answer Sheet: Listening

Sample Answer Sheet: Listening

Supervisor:

© UCLES 2009

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131