Barrall-irene-business-partner-b2-coursebook-answer-key compress – Unit 1 Corporate culture 1 – Studocu

Unit 1 Corporate culture

1 Workplace culture

1

Students’ own answers

2A
Possible answers
(examples of benefits companies may give workers)
 redundancy pay (if someone is let go or made
redundant)

 car allowance (money for using your own car)
 profit-sharing (receiving part of the profit of
a company)
 stock options (receiving shares in the company)
 retirement plan
 paid maternity and paternity leave for all
(including adoptions)
 comprehensive health care and medical
insurance
 paid annual leave
 life insurance
 employee discounts for shops, concerts,
gyms, etc.
 fitness centre in the company
 day care in the company (company crèche)
 vouchers for public transport
 company-run buses to bring people back and
forth to work
 free parking (reserved parking space)

 subsidised canteen

2B
They made the pay equal for everyone in the
company. This meant that some got pay rises and
some had their salaries cut.

3
1 They gave everyone a minimum salary of $70,
a year. This meant that some got pay rises and
some had their salaries cut.
2 Korinne could afford to live closer to work.
3 Alyssa was able to pay off her car loan, credit
card debt and move into a better home.
4 They left the company because they felt their
skills and experience were not recognised in the
new structure.
5 The employees felt respected and this increased
their productivity.
6 The company pulled in (received) a lot of new
business.
7 Staff felt better about being part of the company
and worked harder with customers.
8 They bought him a Tesla car (worth $90,000).

4

Students’ own answers

5A

1 c
2 a
3 d
4 b

5B
2 minimum salary – the lowest amount of pay
that someone can receive
3 pay rate – a payment fixed according to
a standard scale
4 pay structure – a system that determines the pay
an employee will receive based on factors such as
years in the company, position, managerial
responsibility, etc.

6
1 Incorrect – Company hierarchy refers to staff
organised on various levels. (In such structures,
staff are organised into levels and people at one
level have authority over those below them and
report to those above them).
2 Incorrect – The values of a company are the
principles and practices a business or organisation
feels are important and tries to follow.
3 Correct
4 Incorrect – A good atmosphere in a company
means a pleasant or positive feeling that a place
gives you.
5 Correct
6 Incorrect – Company structure means the way
an organisation is structured. (It does not refer to
a specific or strict hierarchy.)
7 Incorrect – The image of a company refers to
the general opinion that most people have of an
organisation or product. (This is not limited only
to their advertisements or TV commercials.)
8 Correct
9 Correct

7
1 values
2 structure
3 pay
4 code
5 flexibility
6 strategy
7 atmosphere
8 image

8

Students’ own answers

1 Employee retention

1

1 menial tasks
2 sabbatical
3 promotion
4 work–life balance
5 diverse work

2
Students’ own answers

3
(month-long paid) sabbaticals, (swifter = faster)
promotions, (fewer) menial tasks, (more) diverse
work
The text also mentions:
take Friday night and Saturday morning off, keep
two hours a week for personal business, take every
weekend off, relaxed dress code, (huge) bonuses,
humane working environment, proper career
development

4
1 F (now extended to include only some junior
bankers)
2 F (they have relaxed their dress code to business
casual)
3 F (non-bankers may think these work–life efforts
are not important …)
4 T
5 F (21- to 36-year olds prioritise job security above
everything except money …)
6 T

5A

will have told – Future Perfect Simple
will have made – Future Perfect Simple
will be doing – Future Continuous
will be working – Future Continuous

5B
Hopefully, within a few yearsthese new initiatives
will have made a real difference.
… whether their employer will be doing business in
the future is …
… they will be working there when it happens.

5C
1 will
2 be
3 present ( -ingform)
4 will
5 have
6 past

6

1 will be taking (will be in progress)
2 will be changing (will be in progress)
3 will have rested (will be finished)
4 will have improved (will be finished)
5 will be doing (will be in progress)
6 will have promoted (will be finished)

7A

1 will you be looking for
2 will you have finished, you won’t have finished
3 you will be doing
4 will you have reached

7B
Students’ own answers

1 Communication skills:

Building relationships

1

Possible answers
Trust quickly
Advantage: It can inspire collaboration and open
up opportunities quickly.
Disadvantage: You trust the wrong people.
Trust slowly
Advantage: You make better decisions which
people to trust because you have more evidence.
Disadvantage: You may come across as selfish and
self-seeking to business partners.

2
Sanjit’s concerns are:
1 that Go Global have different values.
2 that they’re going to completely take over
the project.
3 that their priority will be profits.

3B
Option A
1 production location and use of local distributors
2 China
3 quality and reliability
4 He uses expressions such as: ‘Let me say that
I really appreciate the effort you’ve made’, ‘I respect
that’, ‘Based on your experience’.

Option B
1 if their position to go with local people is being
considered
2 They’re small with limited finances (a risk to
sales).
3 He asks for data.
4 because Claudio acknowledges that EN-Tek
clearly has a focus on local partners and says
that they are open to that in principle

1 Writing: A company news blog

1

1 the
2 back
3 which
4 for
5 the
6 to
7 with
8 that
9 be
10 if

2A
1 off
2 delighted
3 chance
4 salary
5 preparing
6 hesitate
7 link

2B
Title/Introducing
Great news!
New opportunity for all staff!
Why not take advantage of an exciting new
scheme?
Informing
The changes come into place next month.
The company is happy to announce that …
We are opening our first office in Ecuador.
Concluding
We would welcome any comments you might
have about …
Let us know if you wish to participate.
If you are interested, please contact …

3A
Possible answers
Title/Introducing
Company sponsoring overseas volunteer projects
Informing
Project idea – Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Learn
about marine life. Learn how to surf!
One month to travel around the country afterwards.
Concluding
Contact HR if interested.
Next year’s sabbatical schedule to be finalised by
end of month.
Other ideas welcome!

3B
Model answer
Volunteer projects for sabbaticals
Want to take that sabbatical but don’t know how
to arrange it? Then you are sure to be delighted to

learn that we are sponsoring sabbaticals next
year which involve overseas volunteer projects.
The company is happy to announce that it would
welcome ideas for volunteering projects from
all staff. One example idea has already been
suggested. It is a sabbatical working with a marine
charity on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
In Australia you could take advantage of the
opportunity to both learn about marine life and
how to surf. As you are likely to want to see more
of the country, you will have one month to travel
around the country after your volunteering work.
If you are interested in this opportunity or have your
own idea to submit, please contact HR by the end
of the month, when next year’s sabbatical schedule
is to be finalised. Please don’t hesitate to contact
us if you have an idea you would like to discuss
informally.

Unit 2 Training and

development

2 Learning on the job

1

1 a development, b training
2–3 Students’ own answers

2
Lucrece: induction training
Kina: mentoring
Ashley: online training

3
1 company
2 part
3 policies
4 professional
5 one-to-one
6 departments
7 access
8 device
9 face-to-face

4
Students’ own answers

5
1 career development
2 induction programme
3 job-related training
4 mentee
5 online courses
6 delivery method

6A

1 g
2 a
3 h
4 b
5 f
6 d
7 c
8 e

6B
standards: the level that is considered to be
acceptable or the level that someone or something
has achieved (definition iv)
emotional intelligence: the ability to keep one’s
emotions under control and show understanding
for others (definition vi)
practical courses: courses which teach specific
skills rather than general theory (definition i)
skills set: the particular abilities a person has
or has learnt (definition x)
competency: having reached a level of possessing
enough skill or knowledge to do something to
a satisfactory standard (definition v)
rapport: friendly agreement and understanding
between people (definition ii)
motivation: eagerness and willingness to do
something without needing to be told or forced
to do it (definition vii)
understanding: the ability to understand people’s
behaviour (definition viii)
needs analysis: a careful analysis of what training
is necessary for a group or individual (definition ix)
benchmarking: to use something as a standard
by which other things can be judged or measured
(definition iii)

7
1 mentoring
2 mentee
3 trainer
4 training
5 analysis
6 analytical
7 motivation
8 motivated

2 Human resource strategies

1

Model explanations
‘Job-orientated’ is in ‘training’ because it involves
teaching the specifics of a particular job.
‘Task-orientated’ is in ‘training’ because it involves
learning how to handle tasks needed in a particular
job.

‘Blended learning’ is in ‘either’ because both
training and development courses can be delivered
with the combination of online and face-to-face
meetings.
‘In-house training’ is in ‘either’ because it can be
used for specific job training or more general
development courses.
‘Cross-functional approach’ is in ‘development’
because it is used to train employees to use skills
for more than one department or job.
‘General business skills’ are in ‘development’
because they can be used anywhere in the
company.
‘Preparation for future challenges’ is in
‘development’ because it is needed to help
employees with their careers.

2
Model explanations
‘Short-term goals’ and ‘skills specific to a job’
belong in ‘training’ because they deal with the tasks
of one particular job or department and need to be
learnt quickly.
‘External training’ and ‘mentoring’ belong in ‘either’
because they refer to the delivery of the courses
and not the content.
‘Long-term goals’ and ‘preparation for career’
belong in ‘development’ because they look ahead
to the future and train employees for moving up in
the company.

3A
Possible answer
Mike has been asked to work on a global strategy
for training and development. He’s visiting the
biggest sites to find out more about the different
approaches, starting in Brazil.
He speaks to Teresa about Brazil’s strategy
regarding training and development. They also
discuss the differences between the two.

3B
a It is a functional approach (one job or department)
and makes sure employees have skills they need to
do their job. It is job- or task-orientated with short-
term goals.
b It is part of long-term goals. It is a cross-functional
approach and used to prepare employees for future
challenges. It helps employees get general
business skills they can use in any department
and in their future career.
c The same methods can apply to either training or
development. Blended learning, in-house training,
external training or mentoring can be used.

5 to think carefully about how to handle the meeting
with EN-Tek

3B
Option A
1 to give the best advice on finance and quality
2 to coach and train the people working locally
to develop their skills and ensure quality
3 No, she isn’t. She immediately says that she
doesn’t think it makes sense.
4 Emma feels happy because she got the result
she wanted.

Option B
1 that they’ve had very good experiences with
them and that he has a lot of trust in their abilities
2 efficient production, good product quality and
a successful project
3 to run two pilot production processes based on
a more detailed set of requirements – one in China
and one locally in Bangladesh, to see if both can
be successful, and decide based on the results
4 On a verbal level, she is because she says,
‘Sounds fair’, ‘So shall we try that?’, ‘Do we all
agree with the idea to …’, but on a non-verbal
level she shows reluctance in the way she looks
at Claudio.
5 Emma is unhappy. She feels that the double pilot
idea will just delay reaching the conclusion that
China is the best option. She seems frustrated that
she took Claudio’s advice to be consultative and the
outcome is one she doesn’t agree with.

4
1 See answer key for Exercise 5 below.
2 Students’ own answers.

5
In Option A, Emma is direct and pushes her ideas
strongly. She reminds Sanjit and Paweł that her role
is to give advice on finance and quality, and says
that China is the only option. Sanjit agrees but it
goes against his values and vision. So, while Emma
is happy at the end, Sanjit isn’t convinced and the
team is a little divided.
In Option B, Emma is more collaborative and open,
which leads to the decision to set up two pilots.
Emma is not happy with the outcome and with the
delay it will cause. But Claudio points out that the
result is good from a team point of view, the
approach was collaborative, and new ideas were
produced.

7A
a 2, 5, 12
b 3, 6, 11
c 4, 8, 13
d 1, 9

e 7, 10

7B
1 What do you think we should
2 Why don’t we (This is the only correct answer
as it’s a question not a statement.)
3 If we do that, then
4 Just picking up on what
5 so shall we try

2 Business skills:

Facilitating a meeting

1

Possible answer
It is important to bear in mind that facilitation of
meetings is a very demanding task for a single
individual especially in a foreign language. This
is why it can be useful if the people present at
a meeting support and co-facilitate. However, in
some business contexts, the authority for facilitation
might reside in the hands of a single and possibly
senior person, and so shared facilitation may not
be possible.

2A
1 finding ways to digitalise learning, moving away
from traditional classroom training
2 to go around the table first, hear everyone one
by one, and then discuss
3 Sam wants to discuss budget but Takeshi
proposes to discuss it later after the presentations
from all the countries.
4 He insists that everyone speak up, give ideas
and get involved. He would like everyone to be
active in facilitating the meeting and to share
the responsibility.

2B
1 He seeks clarification on what is meant by soft
skills training.
2 He welcomes his disagreement and invites
opinions from others on that point.
3 He encourages her to give her opinion drawing
on her expertise.
4 He gives positive feedback by recognising that
Paula’s point is important. He then summarises
what has been said and identifies where people
agree, and recommends a discussion around the
risks of e-learning.

2C
1 Time is short and he thinks it is important to come
to a decision on next steps.
2 Takeshi suggests that Sam and Steve work
further on the topic and come up with a proposal
on how to move forward.

3 He says he thinks good progress has been made.
He also thanks the group for being proactive and
sharing the facilitation.

2D
Possible answers
Overall, it can be said that Takeshi facilitated the
meeting well. He provided a clear objective and
structure at the beginning. He encouraged people
to offer opinions and made clear to the group it was
important not to isolate the people dialling in. He
kept the meeting focused, tried to summarise
opinions and identify areas where people agreed.
He managed differences in viewpoints positively.
In the end, he had to cut short the discussion due
to a lack of time, not unusual with more complex
decisions, and gave a clear task at the end of the
meeting as to who should do what, with a promise
to take a decision at the next meeting.

3A
1 looking
2 ensure
3 around
4 hear
5 off
6 experience

3B

Referring to agreement/disagreement: 2 d, 3 b, 5 c
Managing how long people speak: 1 e, 4 a

3C

1 step
2 proposal
3 round
4 recap
5 progress

2 Writing: A training request

1

1 made
2 believe
3 offered
4 completion
5 motivate
6 possible
7 Furthermore
8 deal
9 know
10 information

2A

1 request
2 therefore
3 could
4 important
5 vital
6 interested

2B

Requests
Would it be possible for me to do a course?
I would appreciate it if I could …
It would be very helpful if I could attend a course.
Reasons
I start work in Spain soon so I need to study
Spanish.
I have just been promoted to manager so …
I do not have enough experience in this area.

3B
Model answer
As I am now having to negotiate new contracts with
our customers, I feel that it would be very helpful if
I could attend this new course to help me negotiate
more effectively.
I believe that the course is ideal because it focuses
on key skills such as being able to recognise how
negotiations can change during the process and
how to read the reactions of the people I am
negotiating with. It is very important to be able to
know if the other side is likely to accept our offer.
Another area where I need to improve my skills
is being able to listen actively. I sometimes find
it difficult to keep focused on listening so
I occasionally might not always ask the right
questions.
In order to create suitable strategies, the course
also looks at the value of careful planning and
preparation so that I can create effective strategies
to use during negotiations.
Since the next course is in two weeks’ time,
I’d appreciate it if you could confirm as soon as
possible if I can take this course as I have to
negotiate the new contract with our biggest client
next month.

c certain
d improbable
2
a planned
b probable
c probable
d planned

5B

1a and 1c have the same meaning; they are
certain.
1b and 1d have the same meaning; they are less
likely, although both sentences are negative.
2a and 2d have the same meaning; they are
planned.
2b and 2c have the same meaning; they are
probable/likely, but not 100 percent certain.

6

1 are going to
2 certain
3 unlikely that
4 will probably
5 probably won’t

7
1 after, before
2 after, before

8
1 Our online sales will probably rise sharply in the
next quarter.
2 They probably won’t achieve their sales targets
by the end of the month.
3 It is also unlikely that the share price will go up
this year.
4 She is also due to make a presentation at the
end of the week.

9A
Possible answers
For students who are still studying
1 Course sales in the next quarter are looking good
and the university’s revenues will probably go up by
10 percent because of an increase in the number of
foreign students.
2 The marketing department will also improve the
user experience on the university website to attract
more national students.
3 It is likely (that) the IT team will create an app to
help students choose their courses and timetables.
For students in work
1 Projected sales in the next quarter are looking
good and revenues will probably go up by
10 percent.
2 We’ll probably create an app and we’ll also
improve the user experience on our website to
boost online sales.

9B

Students’ own answers

3 Communication skills:

Managing bad news

1A

Possible answer
People who see the glass as half full are optimists
who focus on the positive aspects of a situation.
People who see the glass as half empty are
pessimists (some would say realists) who focus
on the negative aspects and risks of a situation.

2
1 Costs are 20 percent over forecast and there
are technical problems.
2 She says it sounds worse than it is and that
they’ve dealt with worse. She is optimistic and
indicates that she has successfully dealt with
things like this before.
3 He will see them as a major problem.
4 Go Global might take more control of the project
and insist on production in China.
5 Respect Claudio’s concerns. Tone down her
positivity and plan ahead so that she has alternative
plans which address Claudio’s probable concerns.

3B
Option A
1 He recommends moving production to China.
2 No – ‘only a little over budget. It’s not a bad
result’. She explains the costs away as start-up
problems that have now been overcome.
3 She mentions that ‘they are on schedule, at least.’
4 Claudio agrees to continue production in
Bangladesh provided that Katie gets things back on
track by the end of the month, as she has promised.

Option B
1 Yes – ‘It isn’t good enough. We won’t reach our
targets unless we change something.’
2 Because they may miss an opportunity to set up
a new production centre not only for Bangladesh
but also for the wider region.
3 sending a couple of technical people to
Bangladesh
4 Claudio agrees to organise sending a couple of
technical people to Bangladesh for support in order
to keep production running.

4
1 See answer key for Exercise 5 below.
2 Possible answer: Optimists bring passion, joy and
hope – which can be motivating; pessimists bring
a sense of reality and need to analyse.

5

In Option A, Katie was herself and focused on the
positives. This can be motivational but, in this case,
it seemed to Claudio that the issues weren’t being
acknowledged. In the end, Katie guaranteed to
deliver in four weeks and Claudio became calmer
as his priority is the results. However, Katie now
has to deliver on her promise.
In Option B, Katie was more careful. By
acknowledging the fact that costs are too high,
she gives Claudio the impression that she is
practical and this makes him more open to her
suggestions. The result of this approach is that
they find a way to agree on managing the risks
effectively, and together decide to send experts
to the local area to monitor the situation.

7A
1 f
2 c
3 a
4 e
5 c
6 g
7 b
8 d

7B
(The correct categories from Exercise 7A are given
in brackets.)
1 d (a – highlight positives)
2 h (c – emphasise negatives)
3 b (d – show confidence)
4 a (e – express doubt)
5 g (f – support current strategy)
6 f (c – emphasise negatives)
7 c (b – minimise negatives)
8 e (g – propose changes)

3 Business skills:

Telephoning to clarify

1A

Possible answers
1 There isn’t a specifically correct answer here as
answers will vary depending on cultural context or
personal preference. Either way, it’s good practice
to clarify things you don’t understand regardless of
when you do it.
2 Option a is probably the better one as people may
not interrupt if they feel it impolite or inappropriate
to do so.
3 Both options could be both suitable and
unsuitable. It depends on the reason why the other
person doesn’t understand, which the speaker can
clarify before choosing options a or b accordingly.

2

1 He wants help to prepare for a test next week and
to better understand the concept of overall strategy.
2 some of the specific figures in a financial forecast
3 She offers to send printouts of a list of words and
expressions used in finance.

3A
1, 4, 5, 7, 8

3B
1 gross
2 quarter
3 column
4 margin
5 average
6 row
7 net

3C
b

4A

1 clarify
2 understanding
3 follow
4 unsure
5 right
6 go over
7 correctly
8 refer

4B

1 b
2 e
3 a
4 d
5 c

3 Writing: Annual report

summary

1

1 of
2 economy
3 margins
4 more
5 steady
6 was
7 in
8 repaid
9 despite
10 lines

2
1 mixed
2 making

5 tool
6 Platform

6
1 analyse
2 anticipation
3 conversion
4 disruption
5 disruptive
6 innovate
7 innovation
8 irritate
9 irritation
10 personalisation
11 personalised
12 predict
13 prediction
14 visualisation
15 visual

7
1 innovative
2 personalised
3 analysis
4 Predictive
5 irritation
6 disruptors
7 conversion
8 visualisation

8
Students’ own answers

9A & B
Students’ own answers

4 Talking technology

1

Students’ own answers

2
Dial 1 (left)
Turn the dial three segments in a clockwise
direction or one segment in an anti-clockwise
direction.
wireless earphones, real time, simultaneous
translation, voice recognition

Dial 2 (right)
Turn the dial two segments in a clockwise direction
or two segments in an anti-clockwise direction.
neat features, headsets, sensor technology,
artificial intelligence

3

Possible answer
The Multi-Babel app is an app that does
simultaneous translations using voice
recognition technology. It works in real timeusing
wireless earphones. If you use the Multi-Babel
app, you don’t need to speak the language of the
other person or hire an interpreter.

4
1 The Multi-Babel app translates conversations in
real time. It simultaneously translates using voice
recognition so that you can have conversations with
people whose language you don’t speak.
2 Now it can translate English, Spanish,
Portuguese, Italian, French and Cantonese Chinese
(six languages).
3 The presenter says, ‘When you’ve tried it, you
won’t be able to live without it!’ and that ‘you’ll want
to get one for all your family and friends’.
4 The reaction of the volunteer is very positive. She
says, ‘How marvellous!’ (in Spanish) and says that
she wants three of them.

5
1 upgraded camera
2 high-definition
3 remote control
4 priority
5 improved battery life
6 Chris
7 search on the internet
8 (important) meetings and birthdays

6
1 is, want
2 use, will be able
3 didn’t have, wouldn’t see

7A
1 c
2 a
3 b
4 d

7B
1 providing that
2 unless
3 on condition that
4 as long as

8
1 Unless a company developsits digital business,
it loses its competitive edge.
2 Our digital consumers might enjoy more
personalised services if we managedtechnologies
more effectively. But we don’t.

3 We will never bean innovative organisation
if we don’t change the way we work and digitalise
everything.
4 This device adapts to the user’s preferences
as long as it receivesdata from a smartphone.
5 Provided that their product demonstrations
were successful, digital personal assistants
would sell worldwide.
6 If I wereyou, I’d develop voice recognition
technology further to reduce our dependence
on touchscreens.
7 Smartphones will soon be replaced by robots
on condition that artificial intelligence improves.
8 We will become one of the world’s most
revolutionary companies as long as we don’t
stop innovating.

9A–C
Students’ own ideas

9D
Model answer
Write better and faster with Ghost Tablet!
This tablet is like any other tablet, but with one
major difference: it can write for you using voice
recognition technology. Firstly, if you dictate a short
email, the tablet will simply write it for you. You then
click on ‘Edit’, make any changes, then click ‘Send’.
The second option is for longer reports or
assignments. You choose the text type, the
language and the number of words, e. ‘essay
in English’, ‘250 words’ and write the title. Our
software then looks for similar writing in its
database and suggests a suitable format. Next,
you type in some key phrases and dictate your
ideas. The laptop then writes your essay! The
essay will be grammatically correct provided that
you have dictated the information correctly. And,
unless you are writing a novel, it’ll save you a lot
of time. When it has finished, you just click on
‘Edit’ and check it.
If your essay is similar to that of another person
using the same tablet, you will get an alert. It’ll
make suggestions for further changes to
personalise your text.

4 Communication skills:

Handling difficult communicators

1B

Possible answers
Behaviour Technique to control
Dominator: Interrupt and insist that others
have the opportunity to give their
views.
Non-responder: Invite individuals explicitly by
name to contribute.

Contradictor: Remind people to stay open and
positive towards ideas longer.
Joker: Ask people to stay focused on
the business discussion.
Analyser: Remind people not to go into too
much detail because of the time
constraints of the meeting –
a decision is needed.
Technology user: Propose a rule that mobile phones
are switched off at the beginning
of the meeting.

2A

1 He is an independent marketing expert who
Go Global sometimes work with.
2 to discuss recent marketing campaigns
3 new thoughts on how to improve branding and
the location of advertising
4 Paweł can’t work with him because he says
that Gary always thinks he knows best.

2B
Possible answer
Giving advance information on challenging
communicators to colleagues can help them to
prepare. However, it can prejudice a colleague’s
view on the individual and it is subjective so may
be an inaccurate and unfair description. In some
organisations, criticising individuals to a colleague
may be seen as against company ethics.

3B
Option A
1 Gary says Sanjit should rethink the branding.
2 detailed analysis of potential EN-Tek customers
3 the product logo
4 the marketing budget
5 Possible answers: Sanjit didn’t get to discuss
the items on his agenda. He got to hear new and
relevant ideas on other matters, e. the logo and
detailed analysis of potential customers. Several
team members are demotivated/frustrated by
Gary’s communication style.

Option B
1 the advertising concept
2 the marketing budget
3 ‘Let her finish please. Her views are important.’
4 ideas on promotion, especially using local
sporting events
5 Possible answers: Sanjit managed to keep Gary
focused to support Sanjit in the way he wanted, with
Gary responding positively to Sanjit’s leadership
style. However, he didn’t get to hear Gary’s ideas.

5
In Option A, the ‘accept and adapt’ approach gives
Gary the opportunity to express his concerns, to

3A

1 e
2 g
3 d
4 h
5 b
6 c
7 f
8 a

3B
Model answer
This proposal evaluates the possibility of investing
in driverless battery-powered vehicles to transport
people around the city. Our long-term strategy is
to ban gas-powered vehicles completely from the
centre within three years to reduce congestion
and pollution and to encourage more people to
use public transport.
Driverless buses would be an excellent solution.
They are reasonably priced, cheaper to run than
traditional forms of public transport and much
cleaner for the environment, so there would be far
less pollution. People who drive into the city usually
leave their cars parked 95 percent of the time, so
using these vehicles would free up car parks for
other uses. In addition, the city would not have
to build new infrastructure as these vehicles can
travel safely on existing roads and bridges.
Although initial investment is high, these battery-
powered vehicles are cheaper to run than other
forms of transport. As travel costs would be lower
for customers, this could persuade more people
to use public transport. We could run a trial by the
end of the year in part of the city. In conclusion,
I therefore recommend the city invests in driverless
vehicles and runs a trial route before the end of
the year.

Unit 5 Performance

5 Performance and rewards

1 & 2

Students’ own answers

3
Experiences of younger and older workers
at CyberAgen
The young person we hear from (Takato Oku)
doesn’t complain about CyberAgent. He likes
it because, unlike many traditional Japanese
companies, it rewards its workers based on
performance, not age, and he was able to
become a manager quickly.
We don’t hear directly from an older worker, but
the HR Director (Tetsuhito Soyama) says that it’s

natural for older workers to feel awkward to see
their younger colleagues being promoted first. The
report also says that traditionally in Japan, workers
could expect lifelong employment with salaries that
kept rising.

Phrases mentioned: become a manager,
corporate world, keep raising salaries, new salary
model, oldest got the biggest salary, rewards its
workers based on performance
Phrases not mentioned: highly qualified and
innovative, new recruits, recent university graduates

4
1 Takato Oku was frustrated because he knew
that it would take a long time to get a pay rise or
a promotion.
2 He quit and joined an online media and
advertising firm.
3 He was surprised to have staff (in his team) who
were older than he was and that he had a boss
who was younger.
4 Tetsuhito Soyama felt it was unfair that older
people got the highest salaries.
5 People lost their jobs (jobs were cut).
6 Revising policies regarding rewards does not
always work. Unless you can turn the business
around, you just create unhealthy competition
among employees.

5
Students’ own answers

6

1 a
2 b
3 a
4 a
5 b

7
6 7 2
1 5 9
8 3 4

8
1 promote – promotion
2 appraise – appraisal
3 recognise – recognition
4 reward – reward
5 evaluate – evaluation
6 fail – failure
7 achieve – achievement
8 advance – advancement

9
1 achievements
2 appraisal

3 failure
4 recognition
5 reward
6 promotion

10
Students’ own answers

11C

Model answer
Dear …,
Thank you for discussing your innovative idea for
changing the reward system and basing it on an
agreed set of targets rather than the length of time
someone has been in the company. This new
perspective on recognising new employees for their
achievements could also lead to higher retention
of our young talent. Due to your well-thought-out
ideas, we feel that you are ready to lead a small
team. We would like you to take on this new
position at a higher salary at the beginning of
next month and feel it is a step in helping move
the company forward.
Please contact me with any questions you may
have.
Sincerely,

5 A culture of rewards

1

Students’ own answers

2
1 encourage them to work harder
2 managers in an organisation who help make
important decisions
3 per item they produce
4 £100,
5 has

3
piece-rate scheme, public ceremony, being
aware of and setting targets, praise, status,
job satisfaction, a competition

4
1 F (Top managers and executives have complex,
hard-to-measure jobs.)
2 T (On fruit farms, a piece-rate scheme,
performance pay for the managers and competition
among workers which encouraged them to set up
productive teams boosted productivity.)
3 T (There was a public ceremony where they
were honoured for their work in selling additional
products.)

4 T (Unlike part-time sales people or fruit pickers,
pilots have high status, six-figure salaries and
powerful unions.)
5 F (Pilots who hit specific targets on fuel
consumption experienced the highest job
satisfaction. Salaries were not increased.)
6 F (To get people to do a good job you need to tell
them what success looks like to you and that you
have noticed when they have achieved it.)

5
b

6
1 though
2 in spite of the fact that
3 Despite
4 On the one hand, (but) on the other hand
5 despite the fact that

7
1 Despite
2 on the other hand,
3 in spite of
4 Even though
5 Nevertheless,
6 although
7 Despite the fact that
8 though

8A
Students’ own answers

5 Communication skills:

Managing challenging feedback

2

1 the (badly designed) marketing campaigns
2 She didn’t like what Claire said to her and feels
it wasn’t fair. / She’s upset that Claire told her
she wasn’t doing her job properly / her marketing
campaigns shared a lot of the blame for low sales
figures.
3 Possible answer: Claire has the right to express
her disappointment with the campaigns, but it was
inappropriate for Claire to tell Katie that she’s not
doing her job properly because it’s not professional
to make personal comments (i. questioning her
professionalism) instead of addressing the problem.
This resulted in people becoming even more
stressed about an already stressful situation.
4 Students’ own answers

3B
Option A
1 that the market has been slow to respond to
new environmental initiatives by the government

4 aspects
5 cause
6 plan
7 useful

3B
1 d
2 c
3 c
4 d
5 a
6 b
7 a
8 b

3C
1 d (a)
2 f (b)
3 c (c)
4 e (c)
5 a (d)
6 b (d)

5 Writing: Performance

review summary

1

1 demonstrate
2 give
3 delegate
4 ensure
5 recognise
6 support
7 earn
8 adapt
9 take
10 manage
11 meet
12 Keep

2A
1 ability
2 aptitude
3 exhibit
4 consistently
5 impressed
6 Although
7 achievement
8 confident
9 met
10 However

2B
Positive comments
You have empowered staff with authority.
Your work indicates a good knowledge of …

Constructive criticism
This can easily be resolved with more targeted
training.
This can sometimes lead to delays.
Unfortunately, the results indicate that goals
were not always reached.

3A
Positive comments: 1, 3, 6, 8, 11
Criticism: 2, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10

3B
Model answer
I am very pleased to report you demonstrate very
good communication skills in your role and an
ability to communicate information clearly and
concisely with your team and colleagues. In
addition, you have exhibited the ability to listen
actively and you are quick to understand
information and new ideas. With regard to your
team, you display an aptitude for developing the
skills of others to help them solve any problems
they have. You also always take responsibility
for your team’s actions, which is a very important
quality for someone in a management role.
Moreover, you also remember to praise your staff
when they have done something well and always
give constructive feedback if they have not. It is
also pleasing to note that you have successfully
met all your targets and sometimes even exceeded
them.
I am encouraged by your work so far, although
there are still some areas which could be improved.
Nevertheless, I am confident this can be done with
more training. Occasionally you seem to lack a little
confidence when under pressure so a leadership
course would be beneficial. Also, improving your
time management could help you avoid some of
the pressure you find yourself under.

Unit 6 Ethics

6 Ethical choices

1

Students’ own answers

2
1 Maxine Bédat – see caption: Co-founder of ethical
brand, Zady
2 Mike Barry – see caption: Head of Corporate
Responsibility at Marks & Spencer
3 Alienor Taylor: ‘The more I found out about the
fashion industry, the more I kind of, I thought it
was really horrible, the environmental and ethical
impacts that (it) has on the world, I just … I just
don’t think are acceptable.’

4 Domenica Delfini Arroyo: ‘The ethical debate in
the fashion business has created a tension between
the top priced labels and the mainstream brands.’
5 Peter Ingwersen: ( Presenter) ‘ Danish designer
Peter Ingwersen told news cameras that fashion
will become an ethical business.’
‘In the future I actually believe that we won’t see
any separations between ethical fashion and more
mainstream fashion, I think it’s all gonna be one.’

3
1 Who made my clothes?
2 2013
3 killed (over) 1,000 workers
4 (try to) brand themselves
5 Marks & Spencer
6 ethical clothing
7 students
8 tension/conflict
9 mainstream
10 solution
11 ethical business

4
Students’ own answers

5
fashion

6
Dial 1 (left)
Turn the dial one segment in a clockwise direction
or three segments in an anti-clockwise direction:
moral approach, unethical conduct, tough
conditions, low pay
Dial 2 (right)
Turn the dial two segments in a clockwise direction
or two segments in an anti-clockwise direction:
ethically sourced, clothing brands, sweatshops, fair-
trade cotton

7
1 look across
2 have been accused of
3 was responsible for
4 take responsibility for
5 is aware of
6 campaign against, have an impact on

8
1 across
2 conditions
3 shops
4 against
5 aware
6 industry
7 of
8 for

9 ethically
10 retailers
11 responsibility
12 fair-trade
13 on

9
Students’ own answers

10
Model report
How ethical are our clothes?
Findings:
According to our class survey, we found that less
than 50 percent of the class owns a garment made
from fair-trade cotton, whereas about 60 percent of
us often give our clothes away to charity. Only
20 percent of us have bought clothes made of
recycled materials but almost all of us wear leather
goods, such as shoes, boots or belts.
Regarding consumer habits, 40 percent of the class
buys fast fashion items every four months, but less
than 10 percent of the class purchases clothes
once a year or less.
Finally, it is estimated two-thirds of us are wearing
clothes that were probably made in countries such
as Bangladesh or China, although it is difficult to
know whether these clothes came from
sweatshops, while approximately 20 percent of
our clothes were made in our home country.
To conclude, most of us would prefer to be more
ethical when buying clothes, despite the current
trend of purchasing fast fashion every season.

6 The triple bottom line

1

Possible answers
Ethical activities could include: being transparent
about recruitment processes; being transparent
about supply chain processes and tenders or new
contracts; looking after the health and safety of
employees; employing staff based on merit rather
than contacts or nepotism; encouraging employees
to use public transport or cycle to work to help
reduce carbon emissions, the greenhouse effect
and therefore the organisation’s ‘carbon footprint’;
ensuring the health and safety of customers or
users as well as staff; having an energy-saving or
green energy policy; having a ‘paperless’ policy to
save on paper and energy; using recycled paper;
making sure the company recycles responsibly both
in production and administration; sourcing raw
materials locally, etc.