Choose the alternative that means the same as the word(s) in italics.

a)... but nothing I had learnt there provided an answer to

... (line 3)

i) gave

ii) decided

iii) removed

b)... the person being promoted above others... (line 6)

i) given a job with the same importance as before

ii) given a job with less importance than before

iii) given a job with more importance than before

c)... unspoken rules... (lines 9-10)

i) rules that employees did not know about

ii) rules that employees knew about but that they never

talked about

iii) rules that employees knew about and talked about

d)... the way his or her career actually developed, (line 14)

i) in fact

ii) right now

iii) presently

e) I realised that I needed to learn these rules fast to be...

(line 14)

 

i) succeeded

ii) achieved

iii) understood

f)... or risk being left behind, (line 16)

i) perhaps not succeed as well as others

ii) perhaps not work as hard as others

iii) perhaps not leave work when others left work

 

2 A company employee does these things, a)-e). Match each thing to one of the five unspoken rules in paragraph 2.

a) I realised that a client had a good sense of humour, so I put some jokes in a proposal that I was writing for him.

b) I thought I had good dress sense, but one day a colleague told me that my clothes were not suitable for the office.

c) In a performance review, my manager told me I was not ambitious enough to succeed. And I told her that she was too aggressive.

d) One day I realised that the company was not growing very fast, so I started looking for a job somewhere else.

e) When I joined the company, I followed the rules even if I thought they were stupid. Then, when I got promoted, I started to change them.

 

Over to you

Do you agree with the advice in the article? Why or why not? Is any of the advice useful for succeeding in your organisation? Can you think of other rules that are useful:

a) in your organisation?

b) in organisations in general?

 

 

TEXT VIII. CHOOSING THE RIGHT STAFF

Before you read

Use a dictionary to match the words with the correct definition.

1 to employ a)an organisation which produces or sells goods or services

2 staff b)all the people who work for an organisation

3 a skill c) to find new people to work for you

4 to recruit d)to pay someone to work for you

5 a business e)a person who tries to get a job

6 a candidate f)something a person does well because they have learned and practised it

Reading

Read this article adapted from FT.com and answer the questions.

The right person for the job

How does a small business become a big business? A company can't grow unless it employs the right staff to do important jobs. It is easy for companies to make mistakes and recruit the wrong people for important jobs. Sally Thomson is the managing director of Thomson Norton Consultants in Surrey, England.

 

The company's annual turnover is £500,000. The company needed a new project manager to work with important clients. It took a long time to advertise the job, check applications and interview and test candidates. Finally Ms Thomson chose the new project manager - but the person left after only six weeks.

How can employers recruit the right staff? Perhaps existing staff have got the right skills for a new position in the company. For example, a marketing person can have good financial skills. The ideal person for the job could already be working in your company.

 

From FT.com

 

1 Read the article again and answer the questions.

a) What is Sally Thomson's job title?

b) Which company does Sally work for?

c) Where is the company?

d) What job did the company advertise?

Are these sentences true or false?

a) It is easy for companies to employ the right person.

false

b) The annual turnover of the company is £100,000.

c) The company needed a new sales manager.

d) It took a long time to choose the right candidate.

e) The new employee left the company after six weeks.

Over to you

Put the recruitment steps into the correct order. Can you add any others?

How to recruit a new employee

a) interview candidates

b) employ staff

c) check applications

d) advertise the job

 

TEXT IX.BOOKSELLERS

 

Before you read

Use a dictionary to help you underline the correct answer.

a) An unemployed person

i) has a job.

ii) doesn't have a job.

b) You get experience in something by

i) reading a book.

ii) learning how to do a job or activity.

c) You celebrate when

i) something good happens or it's a special occasion,

ii) something bad happens or it's a normal day.

 

A.Read this article adapted from the Observer and answer the questions.

 

The Book People

 

How do you sell books to people who never read? An unemployed man and a young mother found a new way to sell books and became millionaires.

Fourteen years ago, Ted Smart was unemployed. He was 45 years old with a family. In the past, he had many different jobs. He was a salesman, a publisher and a photographer. He also lived in Hong Kong where he worked as a police officer.

Seni Glaister was 21. She had a small baby. She had a little marketing experience in the US. Smart and Glaister decided to sell books to people who didn't go to bookshops.

Smart and Glaister started a company called The Book People. Their company sells books to people at work in offices, banks, factories and schools. The sales people call at an office or factory six times a year. They leave some books at reception. The workers look at the books at work and decide if they want to buy any.

The salespeople return a week later and collect orders and money from the workers.

The company now has about 2.5 million customers. It is valued at £100 million. It sells 14 million books a year. Each year Smart and Glaister have a big party to celebrate their success.

From the Observe

B.In the article find four jobs and four places to work. Write them under these headings.

Jobs Places to work

salesman offices

C. Answer the questions.

a) What job did Ted have in Hong Kong?

b) Who had some marketing experience?

c) How old was Seni?

d) What does the company sell?

e) How often do the salespeople call at the offices and factories?

f) What do they have every year to celebrate their success?

Over to you

D.What other products could you sell to people at work? Would you like to buy things at work?

You could sell....

I / would /wouldn't like to buy things at work because....

 

TEXT X. A JOB-SHARING COUPLE

 

Before you read

Underline the correct words in italics to make true sentences.

a) A job-share is when two people do the same job in the same company /different companies.

b) Ideal is a very good /bad way for something to be.

c)Problem-solving is when you look for problems /find answers to problems.

 

Read this article adapted from the Guardian and answer the questions.

Mr and Mrs Boss

A job-share is when,two people do the same job in the same company. For example, one person can work mornings and the other can work afternoons. Or one can work two days a week and the other can work three days a week. Sarah and Simon Truelove share the same job in the same company. Together they work as the finance director for a company, in the UK.

A job-share with your partner can help solve childcare problems. When one person is at work, the other can look after the children. But it isn't a good solution for all couples. Some people don't want to work with their partner It is important not to talk about work all the time.

What are the advantages for employers? Couples are often good at problem-solving. Good communication is essential. Sarah Truelove says, 'The ideal person to communicate with is Simon because I see him every evening to chat about things. I think it would be more difficult if I was job-sharing with anybody else.'

 

From the Guardian

 

Match the words on the left with a word or phrase on the right that has a similar meaning.

1 a couple a) very important

2 twice b) talk

3 chat c) looking after children

4 childcare d) partners

5 essential e) two times

 

2 Use the words from the box to complete the questions.

When What Who Where

a) …………….. do Sarah and The same job in the same company.

Simon Truelove share?

b) ……………... is the ideal Simon

person for Sarah to communicate with?

c) ……………… do Sarah and Every evening

 

TEXT XI.THE TRAVELLING OFFICE.

Before you read

Look at the words in the box. Tick the things that a person can take on a plane when travelling on business.

filing cabinet photocopier mobile phone desk laptop palm pilot

Reading