Business Partner B1 TB Unit 1kekeyeye ek ey ye ele y – Organisation 1 Unit overview CLASSWORK – Studocu

Organisation

1

Unit overview

CLASSWORK FURTHER WORK

####### 1.

A news
organisation

Lead-in Students look at vocabulary related to typical departments
in a company and the roles of each department.

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s
resources: extra activities;
Reading bank
Pronunciation bank: p.
Word stress
Teacher’s book: Resource bank
Photocopiable 1 p.
Workbook: p Exercises 1 and 2

Video Students watch a video featuring fi ve employees from ITN,
a British news organisation. The employees explain their roles
and responsibilities, and how the organisation works.
Vocabulary Students look at vocabulary related to roles and responsibilities
in the workplace.
Project Students roleplay showing someone around an organisation/
campus, putting the language from this lesson into practice.

####### 1.

Innovative
organisations

Lead-in Students discuss the diff erences, advantages and disadvantages
of tall and fl at organisational structures.

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s
resources: extra activities
Grammar reference : p.
Future forms
Teacher’s book : Resource bank
Photocopiable 1 p.
Workbook: p Exercise 3,
p Exercises 1–3, p Exercises
1 and 2, p Exercise 3

Listening Students listen to a radio discussion with an organisation
consultant, where she talks about tall and fl at company
structures, and their benefi ts and drawbacks.
Grammar Students study and practise future forms.
Writing Students practise using future forms by writing an email.

####### 1.

Communication
skills: Managing
fi rst meetings

Lead-in Students think about being polite and building relationships
in fi rst meetings.

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s
resources: extra activities;
Interactive video activities;
Functional language bank
Pronunciation bank: p.
Intonation and politeness
Workbook : p Exercise 1

Video Students watch a video about diff erent ways to approach fi rst
meetings in the workplace. Two possible options are introduced,
which students explore and discuss.
Refl ection Students think about diff erent communication styles during fi rst
meetings and how they themselves approach fi rst meetings.
Functional
language

Students look at questions and answers that are commonly used
when we meet people and help to develop a business relationship.
Task Students practise the functional language from the lesson
through a mingling activity.

####### 1.

Business skills:
Small talk in fi rst
meetings

Speaking Students think about small talk in fi rst meetings. MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s
resources: extra activities;
Functional language bank
Workbook: p Exercise 2

Listening Students listen to an interview with a communication coach
about using small talk to manage fi rst meetings.
Functional
language

Students look at useful language for managing small talk in
fi rst meetings.
Task Students roleplay a fi rst meeting with a visitor and practise
making small talk.

####### 1.

Writing:
Emails – Organising
information

Lead-in Students think about the organisation of an email and look
at some useful phrases for diff erent parts of an email.

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s
resources: extra activities;
Interactive grammar practice;
Writing bank
Workbook: p Exercises 1–

Functional
language

Students look at more useful phrases for the diff erent parts
of an email.
Task Students write a reply to an invitation email.

Business

workshop 1

Offi ce space

Listening Students listen to employees giving their views on their
workspace.

MyEnglishLab : Teacher’s
resources: extra activities
Reading Students read two texts about millennial-friendly workspaces.
Task Students brainstorm, discuss and present their ideas for the
design of a new offi ce space.

The main aim of this unit is to introduce students to the concept of organisation. An
organisation is a group of people that operate together for a particular purpose. An
organisation could be a company, a government department, a service like a hospital or
a worldwide organisation like UNESCO or the World Health Organization. Note that all
companies are organisations but not all organisations are companies.

The word organisation also refers to the way something is structured. For example, many
companies are organised into departments. Each department performs certain functions ,
for example, the human resources department is responsible for recruiting people,
providing training, promotion and discipline.

Each member of staff or employee in a company or organisation has a role and
responsibilities. For example, ‘Human Resources Director’ is a role and that person’s
responsibilities include recruiting and training new employees. The operations of the
various departments must be coordinated and teams work together.

We also think of ‘organisation’ in terms of the shape of a company. For example, some
companies are fl a t , i. they do not have many layers and most of the employees have
a similar status. There are usually only a small number of managers and often the manager
will be hands-on and have direct contact with the staff.

Typically, start-ups are fl at and small – a start-up may have only a few staff. Twitter, for
example, started with four people. Smaller companies with a fl at structure are thought to
be more innovative and more adaptable. Staff are more directly involved in the decision-
making process. However, smaller companies have less security and are often in danger of
being bought by bigger companies. Career opportunities for staff can be limited.

Other companies are tall , i. there are lots of layers between the bottom and the top of
the organisation. We also describe this kind of structure as hierarchical. Higher levels of
management usually have limited direct contact with the staff , in many cases because the
company is simply too big. Walmart, the American retail corporation, has about 2 million
employees worldwide, so a large structure of middle management is required to run the
various branches and departments in each country. Large companies have the advantage
of providing employees with the opportunity for promotion , training and developing
a career within the company. At the same time, large companies can be impersonal and
make staff feel remote from the decision-making process.

It is important to note, however, that not all large companies are necessarily hierarchical
or impersonal. Often the culture of the company will depend on the approach of the CEO,
and these days some CEOs prefer to avoid the stereotype of a large company and continue
to operate with the fl exibility and speed of a smaller company, maintaining a fl at decision-
making process and keeping all members of staff involved.

It is important that students are aware of the diff erent ways in which companies and
organisations are structured. For students who are not yet working, understanding what
kind of company they want to work for and the kind of role they want to take on will help
them when they enter the job market. Working students will probably already be aware of
their own company’s structure but may need to develop a wider range of understanding
about how other companies work and how businesses do not always conform to the
small–large stereotypes.

Business brief

Organisations and

your students

3 A 1.1 Tell students they are going to watch a video
about fi ve people who work for ITN. You could pre-teach hub ,
gather , deploy and bulletin , which are used in the video and
will help students answer the questions. Check that students
understand the meaning of the jobs in the box, then play the
video, twice if necessary, and get students to complete the task.
Encourage students to listen just for the information they need
to complete the task. Check answers with the class.

1 News Editor 2 News Reporter 3 Programme Director
4 Director of Human Resources 5 Finance Supervisor

3 B Discuss the question as a whole class, getting students to
justify their answers.

Arti Lukha and Nick Thatcher probably work closely
together on a daily basis since she would pass the news
to him to report on. Nick probably also works closely with
John, who has to coordinate the news programmes.

4 1.1 Explain to students that sentences 1–8 are
spoken by the people in the video. Give students a few minutes
to read the sentences and try to guess the missing words
where possible. Then play the video again, pausing after each
sentence where the gaps occur for students to complete the
information. Check answers with the class.

1 roles 2 coordinating 3 reporter 4 operator
5 teams 6 conductor 7 operational 8 payments

5 Put students in pairs or small groups. Suggest they write
the name of each person and Likes most and Likes least on
the right to make a table and note down their ideas. Go round
the class and monitor. Then check answers with the class,
encouraging students to justify their answers.

Extra activities 1.

A 1.1 This activity gives further practice of key
vocabulary from the video. Ask students to complete
it individually, then check answers with the class.
Alternatively, you could play the video again for students
to check their answers.

1 leading 2 hub 3 deploy 4 covering 5 bulletins
6 base 7 ongoing 8 broadcast live 9 build-up
10 tightly 11 behind the scenes 12 billing

B Students could do this individually or in pairs.

1 behind the scenes 2 base 3 broadcast live
4 covering 5 hub 6 bulletins 7 billing 8 tightly
9 deploy 10 leading 11 ongoing 12 build-up

####### Vocabulary: Roles and responsibilities

Students look at vocabulary related to roles and
responsibilities in the workplace.

6 Explain that sentences 1–4 are used by the people in the
video to talk about their jobs. Go through the words and
phrases in the box with the class, then ask students to complete
the exercise individually. During feedback, point out the verb
form after involves and responsible for (- ing ).

1 involves (If an activity or situation involves something,
that thing is part of it or a result of it.)
2 lead (the position of having control of or responsibility
for a group of people or an activity)
3 running (organising or being in charge of an activity,
business, organisation or country)
4 make sure (check that something has been done)

7 You could ask students to do this exercise in pairs or get
them to complete it individually and then check answers in
pairs before class feedback. Encourage students to record the
expressions in their notebooks.

1 to 2 of 3 with 4 after 5 of 6 for 7 of 8 with

8 Tell students that this is an opportunity to practise the words
and phrases from Exercises 6 and 7, and get them to complete
the texts individually or in pairs. Check answers with the class.

1 lead 2 involves 3 charge 4 report 5 care
6 responsible 7 coordinate/work 8 sure

9 Put students in pairs. Depending on whether your students
are in work or not, ask them to describe either their own job,
a job they would like to do or a job from the box. You may want
to go through the job titles in the box as a class before students
begin, to check that they understand the meanings. Go round
monitoring, and help students with any extra vocabulary they
may need.

Extra activities 1.

C Explain to students that this activity will help them
check their vocabulary from this lesson, and get them
to complete it individually as a quick vocabulary quiz.
You could get them to compare answers in pairs before
checking answers with the class.

1 look after 2 report 3 involves 4 charge
5 closely 6 head 7 lead 8 Running

Pronunciation bank
p: Word stress

Warm-up
Check that students can identify the number of
syllables in a word. Write vacation on the board
and ask the class how many syllables it has
(three). Ask students to break the word up into
the three syllables: va-ca-tion. Now ask students
to identify which syllable is stressed (the second
syllable, ca).
Get students to read the explanation in the
box. Check they understand by getting a few
students to pronounce photographer correctly.
Model its pronunciation if necessary. Finally, ask
a student to come up to the board and mark the
pronunciation pattern for vacation (oOo).

1 Put students in pairs for this activity. Do advertising
as an example with the class, then give pairs 3–
minutes to categorise the rest of the words in the box.

2 P1 Play the recording for students to check
their answers. Then play the recording a second time
for students to listen and repeat. You could drill the
words chorally fi rst, then individually.

1 Oo: programme, website
2 Ooo: manager, marketing
3 Oooo: advertising, operator
4 oO: involves, report
5 oOo: director, resources
6 oOoo: coordinate, responsible

3 Put students into pairs. Make sure each pair has one
large coin and three small coins. Alternatively, you could
use paper circle cut-outs. Do an example with a stronger
student: put coins/circles into one of the patterns
(e. Oo) for the student to say a word from Exercise 1
with this stress pattern (e. website ). Then ask him/her
to use this word in a sentence. Students then practise in
their pairs. Monitor and make a note of any errors/points
to highlight during feedback.

####### Project: Showing someone around

Students roleplay showing someone around an organisation/
campus, putting the language from this lesson into practice.

10 A Put students in pairs or small groups and explain the
situation. Working students are going to show a new member
of staff around their organisation. Students who are not yet
working are going to show a new/overseas student around
their campus. Go through the bullet points so students are clear
about what they need to decide, and give students some time to
prepare for their roleplays. Encourage them to make notes, and
to also think about questions they could ask the three people
they are being introduced to. Depending on your class size, you
could put students into larger groups, and ask them to also
assign roles for the people who are being introduced.

10 B Students roleplay the situation. Depending on your
teaching situation and the time available, students could
do their roleplays in the classroom or you could get them to
physically walk around the building, showing their partner(s)
around. Monitor and note down any errors or points to
highlight during class feedback.

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s resources: extra activities; Reading bank
Pronunciation bank: p Word stress
Teacher’s book: Resource bank Photocopiable 1 p.
Workbook: p Exercises 1 and 2

1 Innovative organisations

GSE learning objectives

– Can compare the advantages and disadvantages of
diff erent types of company structure.
– Can understand charts and visual interpretations of
company structure.
– Can understand the key points of a radio programme
on a work-related topic.
– Can express opinions and attitudes using a range of
basic expressions and sentences.
– Can use a range of future forms to talk about
intentions, plans and predictions.
– Can write an email giving some detail of work-related
news and events.

Warm-up
Write on the board: small companies vs. large companies.
Put students in small groups and ask them to think
about and discuss the diff erences and the advantages/
disadvantages of each. To help them, you could write
prompts on the board of diff erent aspects to think
about (e. structure? number of employees? layers of
management? security? career opportunities? training?
contact between management and staff ?). You could also
ask them to discuss whether they would prefer to work for
a smaller or larger company. Give students 4–6 minutes
to share their ideas. Once students have discussed in their
groups, you could broaden this into a class discussion.

####### Lead-in

Students discuss the diff erences, advantages and
disadvantages of tall and fl at organisational structures.

1 Ask students to look at the two organisational structures
and describe the main diff erences. Ask a few questions to
check that students understand the diff erence between the
two structures, e. Who is the person at the top of each
structure? How many layers are there in each structure? Then
discuss the question as a whole class. You could put students’
ideas on the board into a table with two columns ( Advantages
and Disadvantages ) and two rows ( Tall organisation and Flat
organisation ). This will allow you to come back to the list when
students do Exercises 2B and 7.

9 Get students to do the exercise individually. Make it clear
that there is more than one answer to some questions and
remind students that they can refer to page 118. Go round the
class and help where necessary. When students have fi nished,
get them to check their answers in pairs. Monitor again and if
there are any points that are still causing problems, go through
them with the class during feedback.

1 a – scheduled event
2 c – personal intention
3 b – plan/arrangement with the client (Option c is also
possible if viewed as an intention and the speaker
doesn’t have a fi xed arrangement with the client.)
4 c – personal intention
5 b – plan/arrangement with the friends (As in question 3,
option c is also possible if viewed as an intention and
the speaker doesn’t have a fi xed arrangement with his/
her friends.)
6 c – prediction
7 a – scheduled event
8 c – The speaker is asking for a prediction.

10 A Tell students to work individually and, again, clarify
that there may be more than one possible answer to some
questions. Remind students to use contractions where possible.
Do not confi rm answers at this stage.

10 B 1 Play the recording and ask students to check
if they have used the same future forms as the speakers. Then
play the recording a second time, pausing after each line of the
conversation. Ask students to explain each answer and discuss
any answers that are diff erent from theirs. If time allows,
you could put students in pairs and ask them to practise the
conversation.

1 does the department meeting start – scheduled event
2 ’m going to be – prediction
3 Are you going to be – prediction
4 ’m giving – plan/arrangement
5 ’s going to be – prediction
6 ’re moving – plan/arrangement
7 ’m not going to tell – personal intention
8 ’m going to sit – personal intention

Extra activities 1.

B This activity gives further practice of future forms. Get
students to complete the exercise individually and then
check their answers in pairs before checking with the class.
During feedback, ask students to explain their answers.

1 going to have (prediction)
2 are you doing (question about a plan/arrangement,
i. the exam)
3 are meeting (plan/arrangement)
4 going to rain (prediction)
5 closes (scheduled event)
6 going to look (personal intention)
7 doesn’t fi nish (scheduled event)
8 going to ask (personal intention)

####### Writing

Students practise using future forms by writing an email.

11 Go through the task with students. Brainstorm ideas as
a whole class and write students’ ideas for each bullet point on
the board (e. a holiday in Japan, fl ying and taking bullet train;
old-fashioned Japanese inn; may be hot; visit temples in Kyoto ).
As the email is quite short, this exercise could be done in class.
This gives you an opportunity to go round the class and give
students individual advice and feedback.

Model answer
Hello Paul,
Guess what! We’re going to Madrid for a long weekend
in December. We’re taking the high-speed train from
Barcelona on Thursday 1st and coming back home the
following Monday. I expect it’s going to be cold there at
this time of year but I don’t mind. There’s so much to see
and do in Madrid.
The train gets to the city at 11 a., so we’re going to leave
our bags at the hotel and then explore. On Saturday we’re
going to the Renoir exhibition. I’ve booked tickets for that.
We’re staying right in the centre and it’s going to be easy
to walk to lots of interesting places.
Write soon and tell me your news.
Best wishes,
Caroline

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s resources: extra activities
Grammar reference: p Future forms
Teacher’s book: Resource bank Photocopiable 1 p.
Workbook: p Exercise 3, p Exercises 1–3, p Exercises 1 and 2,
p Exercise 3

1 Communication skills

####### Managing fi rst meetings

GSE learning objectives

– Can make simple recommendations for a course of
action in familar everyday situations.
– Can extract key details from conversations between
colleagues about familiar topics.
– Can initiate, maintain and close simple, face-to-face
conversations on familiar topics.
– Can make formal introductions in a professional or
work-related situation.

Warm-up
Write on the board: First meetings: creating a good fi rst
impression. Put students in pairs or small groups and
ask them to think about what might help them make
a good impression when they fi rst meet someone. You
could limit this to a business context and ask students to
think about a fi rst meeting with a particular person (e. a
new colleague, a potential employer). Give students 3–
minutes to discuss in their pairs/groups, then elicit ideas
from diff erent students and list them on the board. You
could then discuss the list on the board as a whole class.

####### Lead-in

Students think about being polite and building relationships
in fi rst meetings.

1 Tell students they are going to look at how we behave when
we meet people for the fi rst time and also at how we approach
business relationships. Put students in pairs and ask them to
discuss the questions. Tell them that it is important that they
think about other cultures as well as their own. Encourage
them to think of the diff erent situations in which we meet
people (at work, socially, in other countries, etc.). They should
also think about verbal communication (what we say) and
non-verbal communication (how we behave, our gestures,
body language, etc.). Once students have discussed in their
pairs, you could broaden this into a class discussion.

Possible answers
1 In diff erent cultures and between individuals, there
is often a signifi cant variation in what people say
and do during fi rst meetings. For example, in some
cultures, it may be polite to ask lots of questions and
to show curiosity. In other cultures, it may be more
respectful to be silent or say very little. For body
language, handshakes are expected in some contexts;
in others, a kiss and hug may be typical; in others, it
may be appropriate to bow.
2 Many diff erences exist with both verbal and non-
verbal behaviour, and practices such as gift-giving,
types of clothing worn, where the relationship is built
(at home or in a restaurant), etc.
3 This is an important question as there are signifi cant
diff erences here across cultures and personalities
in terms of which comes fi rst; in many cultures, for
example, it is impossible to do business until
a relationship and a level of trust has been established.
In addition, there are diff erent expectations about how
long to spend on relationship-building and how deep
and trustful the relationship must be before you can
do business together.

####### Video

Students watch a video about diff erent ways to approach
fi rst meetings in the workplace. Two possible options are
introduced, which students explore and discuss.

2 A 1.3 In the fi rst sequence, two people who work for
the same company, Matt and Stefanie, meet for the fi rst time.
Stefanie is visiting Matt’s offi ce. Matt has two options: to focus
on developing a good relationship or to focus on work, and
students are asked to think about and discuss which option is
best. Explain to students that they are going to watch a short
video about two businesspeople who are going to meet each
other for the fi rst time. Give them a minute to read questions
1–3 and then play the video. Check answers with the class.

1 Stefanie works in Germany (Cologne), and a little in
Switzerland. Matt works in London.
2 Matt heads the UK operations. Stefanie is the manager
of the German offi ce.
3 Matt is the project lead. Stefanie will provide all
technical support.

2 B 1.3 Go through the adjectives in the box with
students and check that they understand the meanings. Ask
students if they remember which adjectives Matt and Stefanie
used to talk about themselves. Go through the rubric and
play the video for students to match the adjectives with the
speakers. Check answers with the class. You could play the
second part of the video again, asking students to note down
what other words the other speakers use to describe Stefanie
(see answer key below).

M: open, fl exible, informal
S: effi cient, eff ective, organised, work-focused
Other speakers: work-focused, rude
Not used: friendly, polite, professional, quiet
(other words the speakers use to describe Stefanie:
excellent, demanding, gets results, good person to have
on a team)

2 C Discuss the question with the whole class. Encourage
students to give reasons based on the video and also to use
some of the adjectives in Exercise 2B.

Possible answer
It’s diffi cult to predict how they will work together. They
are similar in important ways, e. both are work-focused
and want to be polite and manage relationships with
others eff ectively. But Matt’s fun and more informal
approach contrasts with Stefanie’s more serious style,
which might make it diffi cult for them to cooperate.

3 A Explain to the class the idea of Matt having two options
when he meets Stefanie and go through the details of options
A and B with the class. Make it clear to students that they can
choose which option they want to see fi rst. Put students in
small groups and ask them to discuss the two options, giving
reasons for their answers. Elicit ideas from a few students and
then, as a class, decide which video to watch fi rst.

3 B 1.3 1.3 Tell the class to answer the questions
for Option A or B depending on their choice, and play the video.
You could ask students to discuss the questions in their groups fi rst
(the same groups they worked in for Exercise 3A), and then check
answers as a class. Do the same for the second video.

Possible answers
Option A
1 with fi rst name only (Matt)
2 showing the offi ce and meeting people – because it’s
important to build a relationship to work well together
3 In this meeting Matt focuses on relationships fi rst. He
tries to be informal, friendly and positive, and wants
Stefanie to meet the team in the offi ce. Matt believes
it is important to build relationships as a basis for
a project’s success. His approach is unclear and
confusing to Stefanie at the beginning. However, the
result is positive as Matt convinces Stefanie of the
importance of strong relationships, and she makes the
decision to stay in London to help drive the project.

Extra activities 1.

A This activity gives further practice of useful language
for managing fi rst meetings. You could do it as a whole
class, checking answers as you go, or ask students to do
it individually and compare their answers in pairs before
checking with the class.

1 How’s it doing going?
2 Thank you for going coming today.
3 Did you have a good travel trip?
4 Good to fi nally know meet you in person.
5 Have you known met Stephanie before?
6 Ta k e Have a good trip home.
7 Let’s go to and have lunch.
8 Lovely to see you more again.
9 Sorry for to leave so soon.
10 Alistair, she this is Stephanie.

Pronunciation bank
p: Intonation and politeness

Warm-up
Write on the board: What do you do exactly?
Turn to a student and ask him/her the question,
using fl at, uninterested intonation. Then turn
to another student and ask the same question
using rising, interested intonation. Ask the class
what they think the diff erence is between the
two versions. Elicit or explain that there is
a wider range of intonation in the ‘interested’
version, and stronger stress on individual words.
Get students to read the explanation in the box,
and point out the importance of intonation
when asking questions: incorrect intonation
may result in misunderstandings or listeners
even taking off ence!

1 P1 Explain that students will hear two
versions of each of the three questions: one sounding
polite and interested and one sounding impolite
and uninterested. Play the recording for students to
identify the intonation patterns, and check answers
with the class.

1 A polite and interested; B impolite and
uninterested
2 A polite and interested; B impolite and
uninterested
3 A impolite and uninterested; B polite and
interested

2 P1 Explain that this time students will
only hear the polite and interested version of each
question. Play the recording for students to mark the
stressed words, and get them to check answers in
pairs before checking with the class. Then play the
recording a second time, pausing after each question
for students to repeat.

1 Are you very busy at the moment?
2 Where are you based?
3 Do you travel a lot for work?

3 Put students in pairs and explain the activity.
With weaker classes, you could do an example with
a stronger student. Give students 3–4 minutes to
practise in their pairs. Go round monitoring and
help, correct or model as necessary. As a round-up,
you could ask students if intonation for sounding
polite and interested is used in the same way / is also
important in their language.

####### Task

Students practise the functional language from the lesson
through a mingling activity.

9 A With the whole class, choose an industry from the box
and write it on the board (e. architecture ). Elicit a fi ctional
company name (e. DPE Architects ), a job title (e. Head of
Planning ), and a (fi ctional) location for the company (e. Helby,
UK ). Put students in pairs and ask them to choose an industry
and do the same. Explain that they will use these details in a
roleplay in the next stage.

9 B Explain the scenario and make sure students have a pen
and paper to make a note of any useful contacts they fi nd. They
should stand up, mingle and try to speak to diff erent people at
the public event. Each time, they should introduce themselves
and their colleague, ask about the other person, start some
small talk and fi nally say goodbye, having made a note of the
person’s name if they wish to. During the activity, monitor and
make note of any errors students make with the functional
language for this lesson to highlight later.

9 C Get students to feed back to the rest of the class on people
they met and contacts they think are useful. Encourage
students to give as much detail as possible.

9 D In the same pairs, students refl ect on and discuss the
roleplay: which phrases from Exercise 7 they used and any
diffi culties they had in communicating. As feedback, get
students to share their ideas with the class and highlight any
errors you noted during the roleplay. Round off the task by
asking how students will handle fi rst meetings in the future.
You could get them to write three action points starting
In future fi rst meetings I will …

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s resources: extra activities; Interactive
video activities; Functional language bank
P ronunciation bank: p Intonation and politeness
Workbook: p Exercise 1

1 Business skills

####### Small talk in fi rst meetings

GSE learning objectives

– Can follow a recorded interview or talk on work-
related topics.
– Can understand the details of someone’s personal
and professional experience from an interview or
presentation.
– Can recognise the use of small talk when welcoming
guests and visitors.
– Can use polite questions to build rapport in work-
related social situations.
– Can initiate, maintain and close simple, face-to-face
conversations on familiar topics.

Warm-up
Write the following questions on the board: When was
the last time you met someone for the fi rst time? What
questions did you ask him/her? What questions did he/
she ask you? How did you feel about being asked those
questions? Put students in pairs or small groups and give
them 3–4 minutes to discuss. Once students have discussed
in their pairs/groups, ask diff erent students to share their
answers with the class. Try to elicit/pre-teach small talk.

####### Lead-in

Students think about small talk in fi rst meetings.

1 Put students into pairs and give them 3–4 minutes to discuss
the questions. Then discuss as a class. Ask students for some
examples of small talk and put them on the board (e. How
was your journey? It’s hot/freezing today, isn’t it? ).

Possible answers
1 Small talk is a form of polite conversation which people
use in fi rst meetings and informal moments or between
discussions of more serious topics.
2 When meeting in business, it is typical to ask questions
about travel to the meeting place, to off er a drink, etc.
3 Asking questions puts some pressure on your
counterpart to answer, which may be stressful.
Additionally, some people may feel that asking too many
questions, especially on personal topics, is impolite.

####### Listening

Students listen to an interview with a communication coach
about using small talk to manage fi rst meetings.

2 A 1 Tell students that they are going to listen to
an interview with a communication coach about small talk
and the importance of getting to know people in a business
context. You could ask students to think of possible answers to
the questions before they listen. Play the recording and discuss
the answers as a class.

1 People are strangers; they don’t know each other and
they (often) have to communicate in a foreign language.
2 You learn about the other person and so can build
a relationship.
3 Short, simple, starter questions with follow-up
questions. They allow an easy answer, they’re not too
personal, they can quickly break the ice and get the
conversation fl owing.
4 Ask about work responsibilities and the organisation
behind the person; on a personal note, travel is a good
topic.

2 B 1 Give students time to read the questions, then
play the recording again. If necessary, pause at key points to
allow students enough time to note down their answers.
Check answers with the class.

1 Silence in some cultures is a way to signal respect, but
she thinks silence slows down the process of getting to
know another person.
2 The content of some questions doesn’t matter, but
the questions do help to break the ice and get the
conversation fl owing.
3 You trust people you know well. Questions help you get
to know a person and so are essential to trust-building.

2 C Put students in pairs to discuss the questions, then discuss
as a whole class.

Possible answers
1 People from diff erent backgrounds respond to questions
in very diff erent ways – some more positively and some
less positively. Some will feel engaged; others might feel
the questions are impolite in some way. At work and in
life generally, we need to ask questions which are right
for the other person if we want to motivate them to
have a conversation. The challenge is to fi nd out which
questions motivate others. This is often a process of trial
and error.
2 Conversations can be easier if both people have
something to say about a topic which they know.
3 Conversations need many things to be successful.
Fundamentally, people must bring a positive attitude –
to want to talk – to the conversation. Finding topics which
both people are interested in will motivate interaction.
Finally, balancing participation – letting people talk
and listen in silence – in a way which is comfortable for
everyone is important.

3 A 1 Check that students understand the statements,
then play the recording. You could get students to compare
answers in pairs before checking with the class.

1 T
2 F (It’s her second visit.)
3 F (She works 20 percent in Geneva.)
4 T
5 F (Paul is leading the project.)

####### Lead-in

Students think about the organisation of an email and look
at some useful phrases for diff erent parts of an email.

1 Check that students understand induction day before
they begin, then ask them to do this individually. Get them to
compare their answers in pairs before checking with the class.

1 Dear Jill 2 Just a quick email to let you know
3 Firstly 4 Then 5 After 6 feel free to call me if you
have any questions 7 All the best

####### Functional language

Students look at more useful phrases for the diff erent parts
of an email.

2 A If you did the warm-up activity above, go straight into the
task. Otherwise, check that students understand the headings
in the table and briefl y discuss the organisation / diff erent parts
of the email. Ask students to complete the exercise individually
or in pairs, then check answers with the class. For this and the
next exercise, you could copy the table onto the board and
invite diff erent students to come up and write the answers in
the correct column.

See phrases in italics in answer key to Exercise 2B below.

2 B Before students begin, you could go through the phrases
in the box with the class or let students check any words they
don’t know in a dictionary (e. further to , confi rm , hesitate ).
Elicit or explain when Dear Sir/Madam is used (when we don’t
know the name of the person we are writing to).

Greeting/
Opening

Dear Jill
Dear Sir/Madam,
Good morning Jacques
Hello/Hi George
Reason for
writing

Just a quick email to let you know …
I’m writing to inform you that …
Further to our conversation, I confi rm
that …
Thank you for your email.
Ordering
information

Firstly,
Then,
A f t e r,
Finally,
Thirdly,
Concluding
email

Feel free to call me if you have any
questions.
Hope to hear from you soon.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if
you have any questions.
Closing All the best,
Yours,
Kind regards,
Regards,
Yours sincerely,

Extra activities 1.

A This activity gives further practice of useful phrases for
the diff erent parts of an email. Ask students to complete it
individually and then get them to check answers in pairs
before checking with the class.

1 Dear 2 for 3 Further 4 confi rm 5 Firstly
6 that 7 Finally 8 hesitate 9 seeing 10 regards

Optional grammar work
The email in Exercise 1 contains examples of the Present
Simple and Present Continuous, so you could use it for
some optional grammar work. Refer students to the
Grammar reference on page 118 and use the exercises in
MyEnglishLab for extra grammar practice.

####### Task

Students write a reply to an invitation email.

3 A Put students in pairs and refer them to the information on
page 126. Explain that they will be using this information to
reply to Greg’s email, and check that they understand re
(= about, on the subject of ) in e. If you did the warm-up activity,
you could refer students to the list on the board to help them.
Check answers with the class.

Possible answers
1 e 2 d 3 g 4 a 5 c 6 b 7 f

3 B Set a time limit for the writing task and remind students
to use the information from Exercise 3A and phrases
from Exercises 2A and 2B. Students can write their emails
individually and then come back together for Exercise 3C.
Alternatively, they can write their emails in pairs and then work
with a diff erent partner for Exercise 3C.

Model answer
Dear Greg,
Thank you for your email about the induction day next
week, which I am very keen to attend.
Unfortunately, I am unable to attend on Thursday as
I’m going to an important conference with the Finance
Manager and will be away from the offi ce all day.
Therefore, I hope that it will be alright for me to have the
induction day on Friday. However, I may be slightly late in
the morning on Friday as I have a dentist’s appointment at
8 a.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Kind regards,

3 C In their pairs, students evaluate and discuss each other’s
answers. Monitor and make a note of any errors/points to
highlight during feedback.

MyEnglishLab: Teacher’s resources: extra activities; Interactive
grammar practice; Writing bank
Workbook: p Exercises 1–

Business workshop 1

####### Offi ce space

GSE learning objectives

– Can summarise the main message from simple
diagrams (e. graphs, bar charts).
– Can infer speakers’ opinions in conversations on
everyday work-related topics.
– Can identif y and exchange key information in an
extended text or article.
– Can express opinions as regards possible solutions,
giving brief reasons and explanations.

####### Background

Students read about Ditigal, an internet media organisation.

1 Put students in pairs and ask them to read the background and
discuss the questions. Check answers with the class. For question
2, you could use your classroom to check/elicit/explain features
like noise level, light, space, windows, view, furniture, etc.

1 Arbejdsglæde means ‘happiness at work’.
2 Possible answers: People in dark, noisy offi ces with
very little personal space may feel more stressed and
therefore less happy and productive. People with
more space and nicer views from the window may feel
more relaxed at work and therefore happier and more
productive. Offi ce temperature and lighting can also
aff ect a person’s productivity.

####### Finding out what employees think

Students study a bar chart showing employees’ views on their
workspace and then listen to employees giving their views.

2 A Refer students to the bar chart and check they understand
communal , distractions and acoustic. You may also want to
check they understand the phrase X in Y in terms of percentages,
e. one in four = 25 percent. Check answers with the class.

1 nicer communal areas 2 more private meeting rooms,
bigger personal work space 3 half / 50 percent of
4 access to outdoors 5 work away from the offi ce

2 B Once students have discussed the question in pairs, you
could broaden this into a class discussion.

Possible answers
The survey suggests that staff want more space in general,
including personal workspace as well as private meeting
rooms and nicer communal areas where staff can gather.
It also seems clear that staff don’t like current noise levels
nor the fact that they don’t have much ‘visual and acoustic
privacy’, perhaps when talking on the phone or due to
being seen by colleagues and managers.

3 BW 1 Play the recording once only and check
answers with the class.

a Speaker 3 b Speaker 1 c Speaker 2

4 BW 1 Play the recording again and tell students that
they can make notes while listening. If they are struggling, you
could play the recording a third time.

Speaker 1 wants more fl exible work spaces such as more
meeting rooms and quiet zones for individual work.
Speaker 2 wants the offi ce design, furniture and artwork to
refl ect the company’s innovative, fun-loving, techy image
of itself.
Speaker 3 wants to have more public spaces for
communication and collaboration between departments
such as a bigger kitchen / dining room, a ping-pong table
and an outside space where staff can go.

Extra activities Business workshop 1

A BW 1 This activity practises key vocabulary from
Exercises 1–4. Go through the words/phrases in the box
before students begin, and ask them to do the exercise
individually. Play the recording for them to check their
answers, and clarify any vocabulary queries as necessary.

1 cramped 2 tied down 3 open-plan
4 distractions 5 fun-loving/tech-savvy
6 tech-savvy/fun-loving 7 work–life
8 working hours 9 presenteeism 10 tiny
11 welcoming 12 mingle

####### The offi ce as somewhere to enjoy

Students read and discuss two articles on millennial-friendly
workspaces.

5 A Put students in pairs and assign A and B roles. Explain that
students are going to read one article each and summarise the
article for their partner. Refer students to their articles and give
them time to read and make notes on the main points.

5 B In their pairs, students summarise their articles for their
partner and then discuss the question. Point out that they
should use their own words in their summaries and not read
from their texts. If time allows, discuss the two companies as
a whole class and have a vote on the top three features.

Possible answers
GoCardless in London has an open-plan design, informal
furniture (picnic tables) and game consoles (Xbox) to create
an informal atmosphere. The company spends money
on staff meals and entertainment. They want staff to like
actually being at the offi ce rather than choosing to work
from home.