Business English Writing …………. Grammar, exercises and vocabulary for business communication. Increase the skills to write and speak at work. Guide for managers and business leaders.
• M ASTERCLASS I NTERNATIONAL S CHOOL …………. Copyright © 2020 Masterclass International School All rights reserved. Introduction Organization of The Text Some Observations About Language British English, American English and Other Varieties of English Chapter 1 EMPLOYEES TEAM BUILDING Chapter 2 EMPLOYEES STAFF MOTIVATION Chapter 3 COMPANIES START-UPS Chapter 4 ACTIVITIES MARKETING Chapter 5 INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION NEGOTIATION Chapter 6 PEOPLE MONEY Chapter 7 PEOPLE STRATEGIES Chapter 8 PEOPLE SUCCESS Chapter 9 PEOPLE JOBS Chapter 10 COMPANIES TRENDS Chapter 11 ACTIVITIES DISCUSSING ISSUES Chapter 12 ACTIVITIES DESCRIBING PEOPLE AND THINGS Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Introduction Before working on this new Business English Writing text, I asked myself several questions, two or three of which surfaced more than others in my mind, causing doubts and perplexities. The first question concerned what exactly I should offer the reader in the book, while the second asked how I could organize the material to create a dynamic and above all useful text.
My passion for the subject, supported by the need to provide new perspectives for study and linguistic reflection to the student, led me to justify the preparation of Business English Writing, which fits into the panorama of English teaching for purposes special and, in particular, business English. In the current working landscape, although characterized by a difficult economic situation, English continues to maintain its role as an international language, used for international trade and for many other activities related to the business world. Therefore, today's students will certainly continue to have to do with business English and especially those who will have the "luck" to work in a company or in a reality where it is necessary to use the language of specialty with a certain ease. Business English Writing can be more generally a valid reference tool also for those who want to improve their skills in the micro-language of business, driven by the professional opportunities that the knowledge of English offers, thus keeping their English updated where it already represents a precious daily work tool.
Therefore, Business English Writing is not configured as a text for a limited audience. My work has focused on the search for material suitable above all for people whose knowledge of the business-economic world is still limited, in the process of being trained and who, precisely for this reason, do not necessarily have to sectorise their linguistic knowledge at this stage (pre- experienced learners). But even for those who already work professionally (managers, accountants, consultants and other specialists), I can believe that they will find a stimulating material, useful for deepening the business language outside of those technicalities that (probably) they already know because they are an integral part of the their job (job-experienced learners). The activities and exercises present in the various units seek to stimulate the student not so much to theoretical language learning, but to active communication in English and to reflection on the issues of greatest interest for modern businesses.
Organization of The Text Business English Writing is divided into twelve units inspired by the company and the human resources that work in it, taking into consideration the globalized reality in which we live today. Each unit focuses on a topic (new businesses, personnel management, marketing, negotiation and so on), at the basis of which there is a newspaper, magazine or specialized website article. This is followed by a range of activities related to the development of the four language skills, although greater attention has been paid to oral skills (especially the development of the speaking skill). Therefore, the activities of the various units revolve around the initial article, often accompanied by a glossary of different types (more or less complete according to the purposes required by the related activities).
The new words are inserted in the exercises and in the example sentences (in the part called grammar revision) to encourage the student to acquire a more natural acquisition of the new lexicon. Most of the units focus on a grammatical topic providing a brief reference to theory, followed by a series of related exercises, which are still useful for linguistic reasoning and consolidation of the proposed structures. The text also presents a series of supplementary activities, mostly related to listening skills. Practical links to the articles are provided in many of the proposed units and in this the student's personal initiative can also contribute significantly to improving their oral comprehension skills.
Some Observations About Language When studying a language, especially at an advanced level, it is necessary to consider words from a new perspective, a broader viewpoint with regard to the following aspects: basic meaning, polysemy, synonymy, collocation, connotation and register as well as the geographical variety of the language, e. British English, American English, etc. Every word has a basic meaning, so if we were to analyse a sentence such as Along with our customers, the main asset of the company is that we are a highly motivated, committed and capable force and we didn’t understand the meaning of a word, of course we could look it up in a dictionary where we could find the explanation. Let us suppose that the unknown word is asset; the dictionary would give the following definition: anything valuable or useful (English), or another word with a similar meaning: possession (English).
This is the basic meaning of the word, but more often than not words can have other meanings, and this is what we call polysemy. A polysemous word has multiple meanings, just like the word asset which also means stock (2), advantage (3), resource (4). This is just an example of how many different meanings words can have and this is true for other lexical items in the sentence we have taken into consideration. Of course, the context is often helpful in understanding the word when spoken or in a piece of writing.
Another characteristic of words is synonymy. Synonyms are words with a very similar but slightly differing meaning. For example, the word customer has some synonyms in client, patron, consumer, shopper, buyer, user. Sometimes these words are interchangeable, so you can decide to use one or another, but this is not always true.
While customer and client are now very similar – someone who buys products or services - the word patron is mostly used for habitual customers of bars and restaurants. But in spite of the fact that the word customer can always replace the word patron, the opposite is not true. Another typical aspect of words is that they are often accompanied by a fixed set of words, so they are used with each other more frequently. Collocations are common word combinations.
For example the adjective motivated is often accompanied by extremely, highly, strongly, very, well. This is the reason why new vocabulary should not be learned as an isolated part of the language, but together with the word with which it is associated. Connotation has to do with the associations that are linked to a certain word, the emotional aspect that word evokes, which opposes the literal meaning of the word, called denotation or the dictionary definition. For example, the word rose refers to a specific type of flower, but symbolically it can recall love and passion.
Another example may be given by adjectives. If you wish to describe someone as refusing to comply or agree, which of the following adjectives would you use? stubborn, unyielding, headstrong, obstinate, dogged, resolute, adamant, pertinacious, pig-headed, persistent, unwavering, resolute, firm. And which of the above adjectives would you use to define someone who has determination or strength? Be careful! Words may have a similar denotation but a different connotation. Another important language aspect is register.
It is the style related the purpose, audience and social context where communication takes place. It has to do with the degree of formality in use, so a formal register would require something like Mr. Smith, would you like a cup of tea?, whereas in friendly, informal context we could just say Paul, want some tea? The context regulates register which will basically be formal or informal. As for the geographical variety of the language, we should remember that what is commonly said in Britain may differ from what is said in America, in Canada or in Australia as well as in other English speaking countries.
American English tends to be the most dominant variety in the world nowadays and some American words are also used or understood by speakers of other varieties of the language, but sometimes this does not happen. Barrister, biscuit and flyover are British English; the same words in American English are attorney, cookie and overpass. Apart from lexical differences between AmE and BrE, there are also spelling differences which will be dealt with in the next paragraph. British English, American English and Other Varieties of English We are aware of the geographical varieties of English and we know that American English and British English are the most taught ones within programs of English language teaching all over the world.
There are more than a few grammatical differences between BE and AE, but the outstanding divergences are in pronunciation, vocabulary and spelling. It is important to conform to one of the two standard varieties without mingling American and British elements at the same time. Though, it may be important, if you opt for one of the two standards, to know as many alternatives as you can in the other variety, just to be able to face with the language in most contexts possible. We are not going to focus on pronunciation here as this is not a book of English phonology.
We just aim to remind learners that there are some typical differences in the way the same words are pronounced in the two forms of the language. If you are familiar with the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet), you will be able to see how to manage most differences. As regards spelling we have indicated some of the most typical differences between the two varieties of English, but since exceptions do exist we recommend referencing a good dictionary for a more detailed treatment of the subject. Spelling difference British English American English -our, -or Colour, honour, humour, Color, honor, humor, labor labour -re, -er Caliber, centre, fibre, Calibre, centrer, fiber, manoeuvre manoeuver -ce, -se Licence (noun), license (verb), License (noun and verb), practice (noun), practise practice (noun and verb), (verb), defence, offence defense, offense -xion, - ction Connexion (now rare) Connection -ise, -ize Organise, realise, recognise Organize, realize, recognize -yse, -yze Analyse, catalyse Analyze, catalyze -ogue, -og Catalogue, dialogue Catalog, dialog ae/oe, e/e Anaemia, anaesthesia, Anemia, anesthesia, estrogen oestrogen The final consonant of an English word is sometimes doubled in both spelling systems when adding a suffix beginning with a vowel.
Normally, this happens only when the word's final syllable is stressed and when it also ends with a single vowel followed by a single consonant. In BrE, however, a final -l is often doubled even when the final syllable is unstressed. Doubled consonants British English American English -ll (in BrE) Cancelled, counsellor, Canceled, counselor, cruelest, cruellest, quarrelled, quarreled, signaling, traveler signalling, traveller -ll (in AmE) Fulfil, enrol Fulfill, enroll BrE sometimes keeps silent e when adding suffixes. This does not happen in AmE.
Dropped E British English American English -e (in BrE) Ageing, likeable, sizeable Aging, likable, sizable Chapter 1 EMPLOYEES TEAM BUILDING Pre-reading activity Before reading the article below try to answer the following question: Do you know the difference between an away day and a day off? _________________________________________________________ _________________________ The expression away day is used in business English to describe a meeting, frequently of an entire department or sales team, which is not held on the premises, so away from the employees' regular office environment, usually for a whole day or a weekend.