Stories for English Learners

Unit 1 – Connections 06

In this English conversation, Johanna and Peter discuss their recent trip to Krakow and the potential location for a project site. Discover how they use the English language to communicate and problem-solve in a business setting.

Get insights from experienced professionals in production planning, quality assurance, and communication processes. Join Holly Cheng, Elke Seifried, and Harvey Benson in optimizing your operations for a global market.

Uriel Benitez
May 4, 2023
Everyday Idioms 2
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Everyday Idioms 2

Warm Up

How do companies determine their pricing strategy, and what factors influence their decisions?
What are some effective strategies for managing and motivating employees to improve productivity and overall performance?
What role does marketing play in a company’s success, and what are some key elements of an effective marketing strategy?

Vocabulary for the Exercise

Vocabulary Word/Phrase	Example
Production planning	Holly Cheng is accountable for everything that goes on in production planning at her company.
Quality assurance	Elke Seifried is responsible for optimizing the quality assurance procedures at her plant in Austria.
Optimize	Elke Seifried is empowered to jettison any sub-standard products and has the task of working out what went wrong in order to optimize the production process.
Global market	With the worldwide strategy gathering speed, Holly Cheng is realizing the importance of looking at the global picture.
Best practices	Harvey Benson's process for coordinating communication between departments has been selected as a benchmark for best practice.
Procedures	Elke Seifried has been continuously improving procedures at her plant to ensure that they only produce parts of the highest standard.
Empowered	Elke Seifried is empowered to make decisions about the production process at her plant in Austria.
Benchmark	Harvey Benson's process for coordinating communication between departments has been selected as a benchmark for best practice.
Coordinating	Harvey Benson's role is to coordinate what happens between departments in order to optimize communication.
Marketing strategy	Marketing plays a critical role in a company's success, and companies typically develop a marketing strategy to attract and retain customers and differentiate from competitors.
Brand recognition	Effective marketing strategies can help build brand recognition and loyalty.
Target audience	Effective marketing strategies are tailored to the needs and preferences of the target audience.
Perceived value	Companies set prices based on the perceived value of their products or services to customers.
Pricing strategy	Companies develop a pricing strategy based on a variety of factors, such as production costs, competition, and perceived value.

Exercise A.1

Are you confident in your ability to speak English like a native? Share your skills with us here!

Press the button below and read the following paragraph:

"Hi, I'm Harvey Benson from Atlanta. Our company has been growing rapidly and we're struggling to keep up with demand. As the department coordinator, I focus on optimizing communication between teams through various channels. "

Speaking...

Audio

Audio 1.2

Hi, my name’s Holly Cheng. I’m from the Singapore office, and, well, I’m accountable for everything that goes on in Production Planning. I’m pleased to say that after two years in the job I’ve now managed to get on top of things and can see ways of further improving our ability to deliver on time. Lately, I’ve been concentrating on local production, but with the worldwide strategy gathering speed, it’s becoming more and more important to look at the global picture. What’s the point of me being here today? I guess I’m ready to take on board anything I can about how to improve communication between my team and our counterparts around the world. I do have a tendency to talk too fast so, please slow me down! Or stop me if you can’t understand what I’m saying!

Hello. For those of you who don’t know me already, I am Elke Seifried from Graz in Austria. My responsibilities include optimizing the quality assurance procedures at our plant there to ensure that we only produce parts of the highest standard. I’m empowered to jettison any sub-standard products and have the task of working out what went wrong. I’d like to point out that over the years, I have been continually improving procedures, and I hope to share some of my ideas with you here.

Hi, there. As most of you will know, I’m Harvey Benson from Atlanta. What can I say? Well, it might surprise you to know that we’ve had a few great years and we’re just rolling the stuff out. The point is, we’re finding it really tough to keep on top of demand, but, well, you gotta give the customer what they want. Basically, my role is to coordinate what happens between departments, making sure that communication is optimal – this entails a lot of talking, mailing, getting on people’s cases, and so on – so I might not be everyone’s favourite person! You’ll be happy to know that we’ve been selected as a benchmark for best practice, due to the process that I developed. To get to the point, we want to help out all the sites around the world in optimizing their communication processes – I can’t wait to share our expertise with you and to help you embrace the changes you’ll be facing over the next few months.

Exercise B

Comprehension

1. What is Holly Cheng accountable for in Production Planning?

2. Why does Holly Cheng want to learn about improving communication between her team and counterparts around the world?

3. What is Elke Seifried's responsibility at the plant in Graz, Austria?

4. What task does Elke Seifried have when it comes to sub-standard products?

5. What is Harvey Benson's role in the company?

Exercise C - Writing

Write a proposal to your supervisor or manager proposing a new project that you believe would be beneficial for the company.

Use business vocabulary related to project proposals, such as “feasibility study,” “project scope,” and “budget estimates,” to describe the project and its potential outcomes. Additionally, use some of the less common words from the conversation to describe your approach to the project or the skills you possess that would help in completing it.

Conclude by requesting a meeting to discuss the proposal and address any questions or concerns that may arise.

Tips:

Be clear and concise in your writing, using bullet points or headings to organize your thoughts and make your proposal easier to follow.
Use specific data or metrics to illustrate the potential outcomes and benefits of your proposed project, such as projected cost savings, expected ROI, or potential growth in market share.
Use vocabulary related to project proposals and project management, such as “feasibility study,” “project scope,” and “budget estimates,” to clearly outline the details of your proposal.
Describe how the proposed project would involve collaboration with other departments or stakeholders in the company, and use vocabulary related to teamwork and collaboration to convey the importance of involving others in the project.
Be open to constructive feedback or suggestions for improvement, and demonstrate a willingness to learn and grow from the input of others.

EXAMPLE:

Proposal for a New Sales Training Program

We propose to launch a new sales training program to enhance the skills and knowledge of our sales team and increase sales revenue. The program will involve comprehensive training sessions on sales techniques, product knowledge, and customer relationship management. We plan to bring in experienced sales trainers to conduct the training sessions and provide ongoing support and coaching for our sales team. The program will be tailored to meet the specific needs and challenges of our sales team and will be aligned with our company’s overall sales strategy and goals. We anticipate that the program will have a significant impact on our sales revenue, as well as our customer satisfaction and retention rates. We welcome any feedback or suggestions for improvement, and we are committed to making this program a success for our company and our sales team.