Writing For Impact

Writing
for l111pact
Tim Banks
~CAMBRIDGE
V UNIVERSITY PRESS Cambridge Business Skills
CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Singapore, Sao Paulo, Delhi, Mexico City
Cambridge University Press
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Information on this title: www.cambridge.org/9781107603516
© Cambridge University Press 2012
This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception

and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without the written
permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published 2012
Printed and bound in the United Kingdom by the MPG Books Group
A catalogue recordfor this publication is available from the British Library
ISBN 978-1-107-60351-6 Student's Book with Audio CD
Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or

accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in
this publication, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is,
or will remain, accurate or appropriate. Information regarding prices, travel
timetables and other factual information given in this work is correct at
the time of first printing but Cambridge University Press does not guarantee
the accuracy of such information thereafter.
Contents
Getting ready to write for impact 4
Introductions, requests, enquiries 6
A Introduce yourself in emails and letters
B Enquiries and requests in emails and letters
2 Notes and minutes 10
A Note-taking skills
B Meeting minutes
3 Invitations and letters 14
A Write, accept and decline invitations
B Formats for business letters
4 Preparing a report 18
A Analyse what makes a report effective
B Making notes for a report
5 Making your case in a report 22
A The Introduction
B Present information and describe data
6 Getting the tone right 26
A Ensure the style is right
B Apologise and thank in emails and letters
Case study 1: Kompleet Solutions 30
7 Making and responding to complaints 32
A Make complaints
B Handle complaints
8 The body of the report 36
A Link your ideas and build effective paragraphs
B Think about the reader
9 Negotiating in writing 40
A Negotiate via email: confirm agreement
B Structure negotiating emails
10 The report concluded 44
A The Conclusions section
B The Recommendations section
1 1 Making arrangements by email 48
A Set up meetings: confirm and change arrangements
B Check understanding: clarify meaning
12 Finishing a report 52
A Write an Executive summary
B Edit and check your writing
Case study 2: ADC 56
Audio scripts 58
Answer key 64
Additional materials 80
Extended writing tasks 84
Extended writing tasks: Model answers 88
Acknowledgements 96
3
Getting ready to write for impact
Everyone working in business needs to write, whether it's a few lines in emails
or long reports. Indeed, with changes in information technology we use written
communication more than ever before. Written business communication is
about more than just good language- to be effective you need to write clearly
and concisely, and make your message relevant to the people who read it.
Tim Banks
Welcome to Writing for Impact, one of a new series of co urses from Ca mbridge
University Press designed to develop excellence in business commu nication
in English. In addition to this book and Audio CD. there are full Trainer's Notes
and ideas on how to get the most from the course at
http: //www.cambridge.org I elt /writingforimpact
The secret of writing for impact

Whether you're working in a small private company, a multinational or a public organisation
or preparing to start work, you need to be able to write for impact in English.
This course will enable you to:
• Write confidently and effectively in English.
• Write with greater ease, using a process approach.
• Organise your writing to create impact.
• Write the most frequent types of business English documents: emails. letters, reports.
notes and minutes.
• Tailor your writing to the needs of the readers.
• Use an appropriate styl e, whether it's a formal document or an email to a colleague.
• Edit and check your writing to be more accurate and more effective.
• Develop the range of language you use in your writing.
The approach
Effective writing doesn't take place in isolation, and nor does learning to write effectively.
In each module of Writing for Impact you'll find examples of business documents, with
a variety of listening tasks and speaking activities. Writing is part of a process of business
communi cation and this course reflects that reality.
Each module allows you to re late the topic to your own learning context and to reflect on
what you have learnt in order to apply it to your own unique circ umstances.
Practice is clearly important. and every modu le offers you opportunities to t ry out what you
have learnt and develop your skills.
Writing practice
Each module:
• Includes short activities to develop the skills you need to write effectively and for impact.
• Ends with an .nto action section providing practice of the areas covered in that module.
• Has an accompanying Extended writing activity to give you the opportunity for further practice.
There are also two Case studies, after Modules 6 and 12, which provide you with
comprehensive writing practice. At the back of the book you will find the Audio scripts, the
Answer key, which includes model answers, some model documents. and the Extended
writing tasks. with model answers.
4
Flexibility
Writing for Impact can be used flexibly. You can select the parts that are most relevant to you. There are 12
modules which can be taken in any order, although we would recommend that you cover the report-writing
modules in the order they are in the book.
Writing for Impact and you

(f) Texts with this symbol by them have been taken from the Cambridge English Corpus- one of the world's
largest databases of aut hentic written and spoken English.
Before you begin using t he course, take a few moments t o co nsider your own needs. Tick the comments that
apply to you. and see how Writing for Impact can help you develop your w riting skills.
0 I would like to develo p my writing

skills in all areas and for all types of
+ You can follow the whole course in sequence. This will
develop your business writing skills in all areas across a
business document. range of business documents.
0 I need to write emails and sometimes

letters in English.
+ Modules 1, 3, 6, 7, 9 and 11 focus particularly on aspects
of writing letters and emails. Other modules will also help
you develop your writing more generally.
0 I need to improve my writing of

business reports in English.
+ Modules 4, 5, 8, 10 and 12 focus on aspects of writing
reports. Other modules will also help you develop your
writing more generally.
0 I often take notes and minutes of

meetings in English, and would like to
+ Module 2 focuses on taking notes and writing minutes of
meetings, with practice activities to develop your skills.
develop this skill.
0 I'm not confident about using an

appropriate style in my writing.
+ Module 6 focuses on getting the tone right in your
writing; Module 8 looks at using plain English. Other
modules also include advice on cultural considerations,
the length of your writing and considering your reader.
0 I find it difficult to check and correct

my writing.
+ Module 12 looks particularly at editing and checking your
writing, with a suggested checklist to use.
0 I feel I need more practice in writing

business documents.
+ Each module has practice activities, the Extended writing
sections offer more practice. and the two Case studies
practise a range of document types.
0 I sometimes have problems getting

started and organising the content of
+ Module 4 focuses on developing and organising content
for your writing -this should help you get started and
business documents. plan your writing.
0 I have trouble presenting data and + Module 5 looks at presenting information in various
information clearly. formats, such as tables and graphs.
0 I would like to develop the range + Module 1 looks at introductions, requests and enquiries;
of phrases I use to write things like Module 3 deals with invitations; Module 11 focuses on
invitations and enquiries. making arrangements.
0 I have to deal with complaints from

customers and would like to improve
+ Module 7 looks at both making and handling complaints,
with patterns to help you write responses.
how I do this.
5
Ill Introductions, requests, enquiries
mims _ __
Introduce yourself in emails and letters
Consider greetings. opening lines and endings
Consider these questions.

1 What kind of email/letter makes a good
impression on you? lllip
2 What kind of email/letter makes a bad Commas can be used after the greeting
impression on you? and after the ending, but they are
optional. However, you should be
2 • • 02 Listen to two business people, Sue consistent; if you use a comma after the
Evans and David Anderson, answering these
greeting, then also use one after the
two questions and make notes. Are their
endirt'g.
opinions similar to or different from yours?
3 (!) Look at the beginnings of six emails and letters. Which do you think come from emails
and which from letters, or which could come from both, and why?
1 letter 2 letter 3 email

Dear Mr and Mrs Johnson Dear Sir Jill
I am writing to thank you I am writing to enquire about your business Would you mind if we move
for your past gifts to the advisory service. We are a young company our meeting to 3.30 this
University Libraries. developing and producing innovative office afternoon? I've double-booked
equipment. Headquartered in Mainz. we have myself again!
4 production sites in Breganz and Friedrichshafen.
Dear Paul both 6 email
I'm writing to apologise 5 both Dear Sir or Madam
for not having been Dear Ms Pons I'm writing to enquire about
in touch to arrange a Let me introduce myself. My name is Elena Ortega vacancies with your company.
meeting. and I work for Edibliss, a very well-known Spanish As you can see from my 01
company in the food sector. (attached), I have several years'
experience as a ...
lllip
The greeting in an I 4 Match the greetings from the extracts in 3 to the situations w hen they are
email or letter is like usually used.
the handshake when Greeting Situation
you meet someone.
Dear Sir o r Madam d0 a Formal. You don't know who you're writing to,
The greeting you
but you know it's a man.
choose depends on
2 Dear Sir a 0 b You know the person. You may have met them or
how well you know the
had previous contact with them.
person, the subject of
the communication, 3 Dear Ms Potts e 0 c You know the person. probably quite well. They
and the local culture may be a colleague.
and the culture of your 4 Dear Paul b 0 d Formal. You don't know the person you're writing
company. to, or if you're writing to a man or woman.
I 5 Jill c 0 e Quite a formal situation. You know the name of
the person, but you don't know them well.
6
5 Choose from the greetings in 4 and match them to the endings. You can use the greetings
more than once.
r-
Greeting Ending
dear sir/dear sir or madam Yours faithfully

Thanks
Jill
Dear Ms Potts I Dear Paul Regards
dear Paul Best wishes

dear Ms.Potts Yours sincerely
Dear Ms Potts I Dear Paul Best/Kind regards
Jill See you
Jill Bye
IIJip _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___,
Begin emails to a group with Dear All or nothing at all.
Don't use the first and family name together in a greeting. Write Dear Susan or Dear Ms Barnett
(not Dear Ms Susan Barnett), depending on how well you know the person.
Don't use job titles (not Dear HR Manager). This doesn't create a good impression. It's better to
use t he name of the person if you know it, e.g. D~ur Mr Wulk~r, ur D~ur Sir/Mudum if you don't
know the name of the person.
6 Look back at the six email and letter extracts in 3.

1 Complete the f requent opening line in emails and letters. What other wo rds/ phrases can
you th ink of that might continue this opening line?
thank you for ..a.
reply to
writing to
I am /I'm ........................................................ enquire about ..request/inquiries
.
apologise for ..an
. apology or mistake
2 Find two ways of introducing yourself f your company.
Let
a ........................... introduce
me ................................ myself. My name is
.
We are
b ············· a young company developing producing/ which .specializes
............................................................................................................................. in developing
and producing
............................. and ............................. .. .
3 Complete t hese sentences to form more ways of introducing yourself f you r company.
to introduce
a I'm writing .......................................................... myself to you.
name is/..................................
b My ........................ name's Brian, and I was given your emai l address by .. .
company is a world leader in the field of t elecommunicat ions, and we .. .
c My .............................
7 Eeftection What are the conventions for greetings and endings of letters in your language?
Are the conventions the same for emails? Is a particular style of writing preferred where
you work?
8 IIJnto action Write the beginnings of t w o emails.

1 Briefly introduce yourself and your company to a potential client who has contacted your
customer services f reception staff and asked for some basic information.
2 Email a colleague you work with closely, to tell t hem about the pot ential cl ient. as you will
be away on holiday for several days.
7
lEI Introductions, requests, enquiries
~i ms__________________~
Make enquiries in emails and letters
Make requests in emails and letters
1 Consider these questions.

1 In what situations do you make I handle enqu iries by
email or letter?
2 Which enquiries are usua lly handled by ju nio r staff and
which by managers?
2 (;) Read the letter and answer these questions.

1 What is the purpose of the letter?
inquire an estimate price
and expected time delivery
2 Find three phrases in the letter t hat a re used to make
polite requests.
FASHION LINE
B LOCK B M EJ\ DO\V O FFICE P ARK N OTTINGHAM NGS 6LS
Personalised Goods
Luxia Co. Ltd
75 West Donghu St
Guangzhou
China 530500 26 October 20__
Dear Sir/ Madam,
I am writing to ask you to provide a quotation for the following promotional items.
Product: USB memory sticks (8GB) embossed with our company logo (Ref: NG 237691)
Quantity: 2,000
Could you please include in the quotation the cost of delivery to our premises, and give a n
estimate of the time from placing an order to delivery of the goods?
I would be grateful if you could provide the quotation as soon as possible by fax or email
(details below).
I look forward to hearing from you.
Regards,
Ben Harcourt
Marketing and Promotions Manager
llliP-----~~~~::-::-:;;:::j
It's usua lly good to be concise in business writing. Your aim is to achieve clear and e ffective
communication, and this is best done by keeping your message short and simple.
8
"can you" is the most direct and informal
"i'd be grateful if you" and "..." are the most tentative
and formal.
3 Choose phrases from t he box to complete the sentences. Which phrase is t he most direct
and info rmal? Which phrases are most t ent ative an d formal?
I am w riting to ask you Can you I'd be grat eful if you

Could you please Would you mind I'd appreciate it if you
1 Would you
.........mind
........ ............ .. helping me to organise the event next Friday?
Can you
2 ...................................................... send me a link to t hat site you mentioned t his morning?
I'm writing to ask you t o refrain from using our company logo on your w ebsit e.
3 .........................................................
I'd be grateful if you
4 ......................................................... could send the invoice before t he end of the month.
5 Could you please
......................................................... return th e complet ed order form t o our sales department?
6 I'd appreciate it if you
......................................................... wou ld allow our MBA students to visit yo ur offices as part of
t his research.
4 «:) Complete this short email.
Dear Mr Zhukov,
enquire about the possibility of cooperation between our
I'm writing to ' .............................
companies with regard to transportation .
Our company is a leading manufacturer of high-quality wooden furniture, with a good
share of the market in Central Europe. We are currently looking to develop our share of
interested in
the Russian market, and I am 2.......................................................... identifying a transportat ion
partner to work with.
3 Could you please
............................................ ............ . . ............................. tell me if your company would be
interested in this?
Regards,
5 t 03 Listen to the extract from a telephone

conversation.
get a quotation/ book a venue for a conference HR
C onference for '......................................................... .
1 What does t he caller want to do?
managers
2 Complete the notes made by the hotel manager 50 delegates
z.............................
during the call.
Con ference suite - main mee t ing room and
three? smaller m eeting rooms
6 Eeftection Which phrases w ill you use when you
3
introduce yourself in an email or letter? What have Confe rence for 2
............... ........ . ..... days
you learnt in this module that will improve your A ccommodation for ~.............................
2 nights
email writing? f.arly 5
June
. .................... ....... .
R eque st for two separate quotes - guest

7 IIJnto action The caller in 5 needs to get a range conference venue
rooms and ' ......................................................... .
of quotes so he can choose the best venue. He
decides to send emails to other hotels. Write the
email he sends to the hotels, introducing himself
and making similar requests.
B ourse links_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _--,

For further practice, go to Extended writing task M odule 1 on page 84.
For more on letters and emails, go to Modules 3, 6, 7 and 11.
9
fll Notes and minutes
lmims ___________
Practise and develop note-taking skills
Write mi nutes of meetings
Consider these quest ions.

In what work situations do you take notes?
2 What are your tips for taking notes? key point, short words, easy to remember
2 t • 04 Listen to a phone call and take notes on the message for Petra Shaw, who is away
from her desk.
IS M ESSAGES
depart 3, landing 5, expected to come in 6.30
meeting at 7 instead of 5
Trevor Jenkins called

Flight delayed and mobile not working
meet at his hotel at 7 pm, not 5 pm
//
3 t • 04 Listen to the conversation again. What questions does Petra's colleague ask to get
the important information?
message can I give
1 What ................................................. ................................................................ to Petra?
could
2 OK- and ............................. you ..... ....... tell me your name ........................ ?
lliip -
One of the most important note-taking skills is picking out the crucial information. This is
true not just in notes from a telephone call, but also in making notes when reading and taking
notes in a meeting. In the telephone call in 2, for example, there is very little really important
information -most of what is said is background information and explanation.
:Y' ..."' \ q.P ~·IA.ri';::;;~ . -Jc.~~tu..

~~0 "' ;\.I
... ~.-..->"'V' \,~ .
7-t-"1 (\~0 '1
9.S, "'o,..o~, .;~b~J;:c..---, f<.Sf\V
'"' 1>
V~"'AULn-J& r ' t..~
., t ~~ ~ ~ c.~
~~~~ ...Y\. . ''"" ,~~ \_j' r-- ~·\5
v..~ r:P <.. ~.,.. _. j f'~~ct!_
4 • 05 A com pany has formed a working group to investigate ways of making the company
more environmentally friendly at the same time as making savings on costs. One of the
members of this worki ng group is reporting to a management meeting. Listen to the
record ing and complete the notes below.
M ember of workmg group reporting back on: initial ideas from the working group
2 Looked at two areas: a .. resource

....... .. areas with highest spend
b .......... .. with most potential for environment impact
areas
air travel
3 First area identified is: ................ .
4 R ecommendat ions to be studied further: a .more video conferencing facilities = less travel to meetings
use land travel, esp train, rather than fly
b
c group meetings together in hubs
The role of the note-taker or minute-taker is to identify what the main points are and record
them accurately. In a business meeting, the main points are rarely the exchange of different l
views nnd opinions. What is important is usua lly the decisions and actions, and sometimes the
information which led to these or the options for further investigation. When you're taking
otes like this, it's often best to listen to the whole of a speaker's point before writing anything
own. Otherwise, you start writing down too much and may miss the main point- which is
what you really want to record.
-- --
5 Prepare a short talk on an aspect of your work or company. It co uld, for example, be a
progress report on a project or a plan to do something. Your talk should be no more than
two to three minutes long .
Work w ith two or three partners. Take turns to deliver your talks and practise making notes
as you listen to your partners. After each speaker has finished, ask them questions to check
that your notes are accurate.
6 Eeftection What w ill you do to improve the quality of your note-taking? Do you think it's
possible/advisable to be both a participant in a meeting and the minute-taker?
7 lllnto action You work for the company you heard

about in 4. You are having a meeting with the
suppliers of videoconferencing equipment. You need
to discuss and agree on:
• costs of setting up the facilities
• costs of using the equipment
• staff training
time to install the equipment.
Work in groups and decide on the subject and w ho

will have what role in the meeting. One person should
be responsible for taking minutes. Have the meeting
and at the end take time to reflect on wh at was
agreed. Work alone and note down what you think
were the main points of the meeting. When you have
finished compare your notes with the minute-taker's. "No, I haven't seen the minutes."
11
~~ Notes and minutes
~ims ____________________________________
Review the purpose of meeting minutes
Compare and evaluate different styles of meeting minutes
Read the quotes about meetings.

= essencial
'Meetings are the symptom of a bad 'Meetings are indispensable when you
organisation. The fewer meetings the don't want to do anything.'
better.' Peter Drucker J.K. Galbraith
1 What do these quotes suggest the speakers think about meetings?

2 How do you feel about attending meetings?
3 What is t he purpose of taking minutes in a meeting?
2 Work in groups. You have been asked t o come up w ith an action plan to develop team-
working within your office/department.
• Think individually about what you could include.
• Hold a meeting to discuss ideas and choose the best ones to take forward for further
development and implementation. You should each take notes on w hat you decide
during the meeting.
• When you have finished the meeting. individually write up the minutes. and then compare
with each other to see if you have noted the same points.
3 f't 06 listen to three people giving their views on taking the minutes of a meeting.
Complete the notes below.
Speaker 1 Speaker 2
Dislikes meefinqs fhaf 1 G-V"oups havinq meefinqss~,outd dec.ide

a waste of everyone's time what the purpose of the meeting is
2 One puv-pose or meefinq minufes: 2 R>ssible puv-poses or minufes:

a .................................................................
record desicion and action, .
keep meeting on track, reduce the time wasting
reflect what was said
b ................................................................. .
Speaker 3
P...ereV"s c.tea~" and simple minufes so

st.,e can see:
desicion
deadline
2 ..................................................................... .
what she need to do
3 ..................................................................... .
12
4 Look at the three extracts from meeting minutes on page 80.
For each one, answer t he four questions in the Tip. lllip _ _ --------,
I The style of meeting minutes you
5 Look again at the three examples of minutes on page 80. use will depend on the nature
1 Which gives you the best idea of what was discussed in the meeting? of the meeting. Is it an internal
2 Which is the easiest to follow and check decisions/actions? meeting? Will the minutes be
published more widely or only to
6 llfleflection Which of the three st yles of minutes is closest t o what participants? Is it external, with
you use in your company or organisation? Which st yle of minutes a client or partner? Is it a formal
would you prefer to read/write? meeting such as an AGM, where
the minutes may be published?
7 .nto action • 07 You're going to listen t o part of th e wee kly All of these questions will affect
meeting of the marketing and communications t eam of a medium- your choice of template and
sized company. You will hear Simon Lest er, th e chair, Marianne Oram the amount of detail you need
and Karl Jelinek. to include.
1 Listen and complete the agenda items for the meeting.
Item Led by Time Minuted points Action points When by

Review minutes Chair (Simon) 5 mins All actions completed NA NA
of previous
meeting
2 Marianne 10 mins
3 Karl 10 mins
2 Now listen again and complet e the minutes and action points of the meeting_
Rourse links _ __ _ __ _ _ _ __ __ _ __ _ ___,

For more on making your writing concise, go to Module 9 .
Ill Invitations and letters
lmims________________,
Write invitations
Accept and decline invitations
1 (5) Read the letter below and

answer the questions. Note that the
paragraphs are in the wrong order.
1 What is the purpose of the letter?
2 Does the writer know the recipient?
3 What is the recipient expected to do?
Dear Ms Afzal,
A We would like to invite you to the launch presentation, which is to take place at
The Pavilion restaurant on Friday 2 June at 8 pm. You will be able to sample the
snack before the presentation, during which dinner will be served.
B We are very interested in your opinion of our product and we hope you will be able
to attend the presentation. If you are able to attend, please contact Sarah Smith:
[email protected].
C Our company has recently developed an innovative snack product that we hope
will be interesting to your chain of supermarkets.
0 We believe that it will be vital to the success of the new product to organise
promotions in outlets where people can try the product, and wondered if you
would be interested in participating.
E This product is a new kind of potato snack and comes in onion, olive, Chinese
mushroom and beef flavour.
Yours sincerely,
~
Charles Marceau
2 The paragraphs of the letter are in the wrong order. What is the correct order?
c .....
1 ......... e
2 ............... a
3 ............... d
4 ............... b.
5 ..............
3 What helps you find the correct order of paragraphs? Answer these questions.
1 Paragraph C: 'an innovative sna ck product'- why 'a(n)'?
2 Paragraph E: 'This product ... '-which product?
3 Pa ragraph A: 'the snack'- why 'the'?
lllip
Good use of reference words like those in 3 helps to make your writing clear and easy to
follow. It also helps to avoid unnecessary repetition. In most writing there is a chain of
references like this which links a ll the sentences and paragraphs together. I
14
4 Use t he following phrases t o complete the sentences below, which are all f rom invitations.
would like to Would you like t o Why don't you w rit ing to invit e you
How about would like you t o
1 how about joining us for lunch this Saturday?

2 would you like to attend the premiere screening of the new film?
would like you to take
3 I will be hosting a workshop for senior managers and ....................................................
part, if you can.
writing to invite you to the opening of our new hea dquarte rs.
4 I'm .........................................................
would like to
5 I ......................................................... invite you to present an award at our awards ceremony in
May th is year.
why don't you
6 ........................................................ come over t o my office on Friday, at say 11.0 0, and we can
ta lk about t he details t hen?
Two of the phrases for inviting are informal. Which are they?
5 t 08 Listen to Sonia Afzal talking to a colleague, lan MacDonald, about t he invitation.

1 Which letter below, A or B. does she send?
Letter A Letter B
Dear Mr Marceau, Dear Mr Marceau,

Thank you for your letter inviting me to the Many thanks for the invitation to the launch of
launch of your new product. your new product.
Unfortunately, I am unable to attend because of I would be happy to attend the launch event.
a former engagement. However, my colleague, I look forward to see ing you there.
Ian MacDonald, from our Supplier Relations
Regards,
department, would be happy to attend the
function in my place. Sonia Afzal
Yours sincerely,
SoniaAfzal
2 In the letters find:

a two phrases for acknowledging the invitation
b a phrase for accept ing an invitation
c a phrase for declin ing an invitation.
3 In which letter might you see t hese phra ses and sentences: Letter A, Letter B or Letter A or B?
I'm afra id I won 't be able to .. . ...............
I'm delighted to accept the invitation . .............. . ll1ip _ _
I'm sorry to tell you t hat I ... ............... It's normal to give some sort of
I'll be happy t o see you there . ............... an excuse when you decline an
invitation. It's polite, a nd allows the
I'm very grateful to you for t he ... ............. ..
person inviting to avoid losing face.
It's very kind of you t o ... ...............
6 Eeftection How often do you receive letters of invitation? Do you respo nd to t hem all?
Which phrases will you use next time you write an invitation letter?
7 lllnto action Think of a situation in your work when you might write an invitation. Write
the letter of invitation in an appropriate style.
15
II Invitations and letters
lnims, _ _ __ __ _ _~
Analyse when letters are used
Look at formats for business letters

1 How often do you send and receive letters?
2 What kind of communication still usua lly comes in letters?
3 Do you have any particular difficulties writing letters in Eng lish? What are they?
2 f• 09 Listen to two speakers, A and B, talking about letters they receive. Answer the
questions and circle A or B.
1 Who receives a lot of advertising material by post? A B
2 Who doesn't read much of the advertising material? A B
3 Who receives most items by special delivery? A B
4 Who receives documents from his/her headquarters? A B
5 Who is invited to attend events by post? A B
How similar is your experience to the two speakers?
3 (f) Look at the letter and complete the descriptions of the format.
Address of the The

Mr Filip Knoflicek ELEaRON/C PARTS
Include name, Director- Sales EXPORTERS address (not
............................. Electro Svet 29 Richmond Terroce needed if
and company if ~ Nuselska 39 London printed on
Greeting-
known Prague 4
Czech Republic
Dear Mr Knoflicek
20 20L
Janu'"Y
SE5 2BC
headed paper)
optional comma Leave a line

after name; in Re: Electronic Parts Exporters' Exhibition space between
r
the US, a colon As a previous exhibitor at the annual Electronic Parts Exporters' the address and
is sometimes date
Exhibition, I'm writing to invite you to take part again this year.
used
Our forthcoming event will be the largest yet exhibition, and we
Subject line - are confident that it will be an even greater success than last year.
makes it clear As a valued member of the Association and previous exhibitor, we
what the letter are able to offer you a special promotional rate for a stand at the
is about exhibition. Please find full details of this promotion and a draft
schedule for the event enclosed.
Body of the
I look forward to hearing from you soon. Closing-
letter. Leave a optional comma
4
...................... Yours sincere ly - after closing
space between
paragraphs Sin10n Sc.hol1etd
Simon Schofield Signature
Events and Promotions Manager

Electronic Parts Exporters Name and title
16
What type of letter is the one on page 16? Does it fit w ith what was said by t he two
speakers in 2? Where you work, how differe nt is the letter format from this sta ndard
English format?
lllip _ - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - ----,
This is a common, standard format for letters in English . You will see other formats as well, but
this is always acceptable and is also easy to follow. Ma ny companies have their own standard
template for letters, which may be different.
4 Use th e notes below t o complete this formal le tter of invitat ion in your own words.
Dear Alex,
I'm very pleased to tell you that we have now

completed 1..................................................................................... .
It is largely thanks to your 1...................................................... .. . n to Business

work on ext ensJO
........................................................... , that we have been able
School Library
t o complete this project.
t time. expertise. money
z generos f Y·
I would be delighted if you would accept our
invit e - be guest of honour at
3
whic h will take place on 26 February at 18.00, in the ope ni ng ceremony
new extension. let me knoW - at tend?
Please 4.... ............. ........................ .............. ..... ......... ........ .... .. ...... ..
....................... , and once again many thanks for your
continuing support.
Regards,
Sam
llliP-----------------~
Using standard formats and fixed phrases such as I look forward to hearing from you soon and
I'm writing to . .. will help you write more easily and quickly, as well as make your writing more
fluent. A standard format also helps make your letters clearer for the reader.
5 Eeftection Can you use the format given here for your business letters in English? Does
this fit with the corporate style/culture whe re you work?
6 . n to actio n Imagine you are Alex and you have received the letter in 4 . Writ e back to
Sam, e ither accepting or declining the invitation. Fi rst, look back at the la nguage in 3A and
the formats in 3B.
Rourse links _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ __,

For further practice, go to Exte nded writing task Module 3 on page 84.
For more on letters and emails, go to Modules 1, 6, 7, 9 and 11.
For more functional language like invitations, go to Mod ules 1, 6, 7, 9 and 11.
17
II Preparing a report
lmims__________________________~
j Ana lyse what makes a report effective
Identify sections of reports
Annual Report
1 What kind of reports do you read and write? Think about t he
subjects. purpose. audience and length.
2 What makes an effective report? Note down your ideas.
3 How many sections of a report can you t hink of? Make a list.
2 ff 10 Listen to an interview with Jan Waterman, the marketing

director of a software company. Wh at is her advice on writing
effective reports? Note her four important points below.
How many of her ideas are the same as yours?
Important points Notes

content
1 ......................................................... Questions to ask yourself to check this:
is a report is necesasry
what's the purpose of the report
what are the main points you want to make
does the research/evidence support these
report
what's new/ interesting in the report
clarity
2 . .......... .................. .................... How do you achieve this?
be as concise as possible
don't use language that is too formal
3 ... ... skim value
".............................................. Why is this important?
busy managers don't have time to read it all
they may only read parts of it
writing is a processWhat do you need to do?
4 .........................................................
plan
write a draft
review it
check it
3 f'f 10 Listen to Jan Waterman again, and complete the notes above.
18
4 Match the sections of a report in column A to the descriptions in column B.
A B
1 Recommendations [E A A list of sources used in the writ ing of the report
2 Introductio n D B A summary of t he report with final remarks
3 Find ings D c Ext ra . detailed information, charts. graphs
4 Execut ive summary D D The name of the report . date. writer and version
5 Conclusions D E The writer's suggestions. based on the findings
6 Bibliography D F A briefing on the main points of the report
7 Title page D G The results of the research carried out
8 Table of contents D H What you will find in the report. page numbers
9 Research D What the report's about, why it was w ritten
10 Appendix D Where t he data is from, how it was found
How many of these sections are in the list you made in 17
5 Put the sections in the order that they would usually appear in a report.
1 Tit le page
2
The order you write the sections in
l
3
is usually different from the order in
4 the final report. You'll often write up
5 Research the research and findings first, and
6 the following sections will flow from
7 that. Sections like the Contents,
8 Appendix, Executive summary
9 and Bibliography will probably be
written last.
10
In which order would you probably write the sections?
6 Look at the extracts from different reports. Write which section of a report they come from.
3 ..
1 0 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ....... ........ ..
5 ........ .
Based on the best quotation.
The working group looked at Failure to implement wide-ranging
outsourcing cleaning services
available data, both internal and changes will leave the organisation
would save 25%annually on current
external, over a five-year period. open to significant risk.
arrangements (see Append ix 2 for
details of quotations).
2 ........................................................ . 6 ...................... '' ...................... ..
We therefore recommend that 4 ..................................................... .. The headquarters relocation
Ms Lily Chon be appointed to the project was approved by the
The findings reported above
position of Regional Manager, Executive Board on 20 April 20
indicate frequent failures to follow
East Asia. This report gives details of ...
financial procedures.
7 Eeftection Which of the points made by Jan Waterman in 2 is most important for your
w riting? Which of the report sections in 4 do you usually include in your reports?
8 lEnto action Write a short report (about 150 words) about why it is important for you
and your colleagues to study business writing in English. Refer back to the four important
points in 2.
19
Ill Preparing a report
~ims____________________~
Find out about the process of writing
Practise preparing and making notes for a report

1 How do you approach writing a report, letter or email?
2 What do you do first? What stages do you go throug h?
2 In t he Part A interview, Jan Waterman mentioned t he process of writ ing. The d iagram
below illustrates a possible process. Complete the d iagram using the words in the box.
• Structuring I Organising
• Focusing 1Selecting
• Generating content
• Drafting
llllip_--===----:-:-~~:-:-;::~~:
Reviewing and evaluating at each stage is vital. It will allow you to focus on what's important
and leave out irrelevant information. This will help you achieve content value and clarity, and
keep your writing concise.
3 Getting started can often be one of the most difficult stages of writ ing. Read the situation
below, and then look at t wo techniques for generating and focusing content.
Avenues is a medium-sized consultancy company based in Berlin. It is looking

t o move t o new. larger premises as it expands. The Facilities Group within the
company has identified two preferred options and researched these in detail.
The company Executive Board is expecting a report summari sing the findings
and recommending the best option.
Technique 1: Using questions to help

focus you r t hinking and planning
llllip - - - - - I
Using detailed questions like these
What questions will the Board expect to
will help you focus on what is relevant
be answered in the report? Write detailed
a nd important to include from the
questions (e.g. What is the cost per m27)
rather than general ones (e.g. Where reader's point of view. This can help
should we move?). you develop and select content ideas.
When you've written your questions, read the short report on page 81 to see if it answers them.
20
llliP --~
I Using spidergrams
can help you develop
content ideas.
Organising your
thoughts like this
also helps you group
information into
sections, and you
can use much of the
language in drafting
the actual report.
Complete this spidergram for the report you've just read on page 81.
4 After you have developed the content in this way. you ca n create a plan to structure your
w riting. Complete the outline plan below for the Avenues report.
Executive summary
Introduction
Research W.h.y. ..?.9.p.ti.Q.O.~?..W.h.9.t.r..!?.~f?.9.r.~h...4.R!!.?...:: ..qf?.?.~•..!?.?.ttJt~..9.fl~l1t?., ..~(:!r!.qf.9.r.~h.tJ.t!.4.Y.i.?.it?. .....
Findings
Conclusion
Recommendation
lniP----------------------------------~
When you write the outline plan, you structure the ideas you've generated into sections and
give them headings. If you use spidergrams or focus questions when developing the content,
this can be easy to do.
5 m e ftection How will you change the way you approach writing to make it mo re
effective? Which techniques will you use to prepare yourself for writing work documents?
6 lllnto action Think of a situation where you work that you could be asked to write a
report about. Use the techniques presented in Module 4 to generate the content and plan
the outline of your report.
Rourse links _____ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _--,

For furt her practice, go to Extended writing task Module 4 on page 84.
For more on the process of writing, go to Modules 8 and 12.
For more on reports, go to Modules 5, 8, 10 and 12.
21
II Making your case in a report
Eims _ _ __
Write the Introduction of a report
Consider the language for expressing objectives
1 Read two different versions of an Introduction to a report. Which do you prefer, and why?
Introduction 1
This report has been produced at the request of the Management

Board in their meeting on 21 September.
The committee, consisting of three members from the Finance,

Resources and HR departments, was asked to report to the
Management Board on the problems that led to industrial action
by a large section of the company's staff in early September, and to
recommend an action plan to address these problems.
Introduction 2
The purpose of this report is to identify lllip _ __

the issues which led to a large section The Introduction to your report
of the company's staff taking industrial needs to be very clear and concise.
action in early September, and to You should say what the report is
about and why it has been written
recommend an action plan to address
(the purpose) , what it will include
these issues.
(the content), and possibly how
the report is organised. If you're
The report has been prepared at the
writing a very short report, the
request of the Management Board by
Introduction may be only one
an ad hoc committee representing sentence. In longer reports it may
various departments. be several paragraphs.
Read the two versions again.

Describe how they are different.
"These latest figures are encouraging- profits up.

market share increased and efficiency levels at an
all-time high. Remind me, Celia, what is it we do ... "
22
2 Look at these paragraphs from four Introductions to reports and proposals. Answer the
questions about each paragraph.
1 What is the purpose of the report or proposal? 3 Which are internal com pany documents?
2 Wh ich is most formal in style? 4 Which phrases give the purpose of the
report or proposal?
1 2
LGA has prepared this proposal in response to a tender This report analyses the training provided by our
from the Local Area Health Authority in Catalonia company. It details the current training provision
for information systems management. The proposal and presents results of a training needs analysis
outlines LGA's previous experience of managing conducted with staff and managers so as to make
information systems in the health sector. provides recommendations for future training provision.
technical details of LGA's proposed solution, and
includes a provisional costing.
4
3 CS Solutions is pleased to submit this proposal
in response t o the referenced Request for Quote
The purpose of this report is to compare the costs
(RFQ) for the Call Centre under the Barnett's Bank
of our current office cleaning arrangements with
Multi·Channel Contact Centre Services Tender. CS
those of an outsourced cleaning company, in order Solutions' proposal is fully responsive to Barnett's Bank
to recommend the most cost-effective solution. requirements, and adheres to RFQ instructions.
3 Answer these questions about structuring a report.

1 What other words are often used in phrases like these?
compare .. . compares .. .
The purpose of this report is to analyse .. . This report analyses .. .
evaluate .. . evaluates ...
2 Which phrases in paragraphs 2 and 3 above link the research carried out to t he reason for
doing it?
so ........................................................ . in ..........................................................
4 Use the information in the table to complete the statements of purpose for these two
reports/proposals.
Subject Purpose
1 Report Address low staff morale Recommend team-building events
2 Proposal Market research proposal Respond to request for bids
1 This 1............................. examines and evaluates the current state of staff morale, which is
perceived to be low. and 2.... ......................... introducing team-building events as o ne w ay of
3 ............................ this problem.
1 2
2 This market research proposal is submitted in ............................ to the ......................... from
Thomson Hill for bids.
5 Eettection What could you change to make the Introductions to your reports clearer?
6 llfnto a c t ion Write a statement of purpose for each of the situations below .
Subject Purpose
1 Report Sales performance in Q4 Review results and recommend actions
2 Proposal Recruitment services Present outsourced recruitment agency and benefits of this
23
Ell Making your case in a report
lmims __________________~
S Exchange rate
Present information
~I I ~ ~= ~' ~ ~' " "~:"

Describe data

• ,,
1 How confident are you about presenting and la~1 year TMye.r Neli.t~ll'
describing data?
Direct Costs Last This Next
2 Do you understand data better when it's in tables, presented Summary year year year
visually as in graphs and charts. or described in text? Staff 19 19 21
Premises 5 7 7
3 When you read business documents. whic h of these t hings Running 3 4 5
do you find most persuasive? Materials 15 18 20
Total 42 48 53
• detailed explanations. e.g. of benefits
• tab les of data
• visuals such as graphs
• reference to research
• testimonials from other clients/customers
• real stories you can relate to.
2 f • 11 Listen to Carmen Yung and Daniel Norvak, who are both sales directors, discussing
these questions.
Which speaker
wants the purpose to be obvious?
Carmen Daniel
lliiP-----~
Business reports and proposals naturally
is persuaded by testimonials from involve the presentation and description of
other clients? data, usually in the Findings section. You
wants a summary of the most need to be able to do this effectively, as it's an
important information? essential part of business writing. This type
may not always believe what they read? of data may also, of course, be presented in
may contact previous clients? emails, letters and other forms of writing.
-- ~ -- ------- - ---
Which speaker do you agree with most?
3 Look at the following data presented in a table and graphs. which is part of the CS
Solutions ca ll ce ntre proposal in SA. Answer these questions.
1 Which form of presentation gives you the clearest information?
2 What happens to the total cost as the volume of enquiries increases? Why is this?
3 Which type of enquiry costs t he least to handle?
Projected volume of enquiries and cost of handling
Tel. calls Price per Emails Price per Online Price per
volume unit Total cost volume unit Total cost requests unit Total cost
2014 50,250 0.75 37.687.5 45.100 0.5 22.550 39.200 0 .5 19.600
2015 57,400 0.73 41,902 48,200 0.5 24,100 49.100 0.5 24,550
2016 65,300 0 .7 45,710 5 0.350 0.45 22,657.5 60.600 0.4 24.240
2017 70.250 0.68 47,770 53 .070 0.45 23,881.5 70.450 0.4 28.180
Figure 7
24
I
:::::=:
80,000 60,000 80.000
I ________.. I ~··"" I ~
50,000
60,000 - - -Tel. calls
volume I
I 40.000 volume
60,000
I ~ ---Online
requests
40,000
20,000
--Total
cost
30.000
20,000
10,000
.- • • .......... -+-Total
cost
40,000
20,000 1
________. _._roU '---
cost
0 0 0
2014 2015 2016 2017 2014 201 5 2016 2017 2014 2015 2016 2017
Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4
4 Read the description below of the data for telephone calls and answer these questions.
1 What is the difference between the numbers given in the table and those in the text?
2 Which three words in the text show that a number is not exact?
3 Which one word in the text suggests that the fig ure is surprisingly low?
Based on projections from Barnett's Bank, CS Solutions llliP- - - - - - - - - ,

projects that the volume of telephone calls to the Call Centre
Different people prefer to see data
will rise steadily from 2016 to 20 17, from around 50,000 calls
presented in different ways. To make
per year to approximately 70,000 calls per year. The proposed
your report effective for everyone it's
cost of telephone call handling is SO. 75 at 50,000 calls a year,
good to present data in a variety of ways
falling to S0.68 as the volume of calls increases. This means
that the total cost of telephone call handling w ill be nearly -in tables, in graphs and charts, and
$40,000 in 2016, rising to only $47,000 by 2017. This fall in described in text. Very detailed data is
unit cost of telephone call handling will be achieved through usually included as an appendix rather
economies of scale as the volume grows. (See Figures 1 and 2.) than in the main text.
5 Complete the text describing the data for email enquiries.

More than one answer is possible for most items.
lllip _ _ __
We expect the volume of email enquiries to ' .............................
Although you can use simple words like
gradually over the period, from 2............................. 45,000 in
'rise' and 'fall' to describe many trends in
2014 to 3............................. 53,000 in 2017. As with telephone
calls, the unit cost w ill •............................. as t he volume of
data, your writing will be better if you use
enquiries 5............................. . At 45,000 enquiries the cost will a wider variety of words/ synonyms, e.g.
be $0.5 per enquiry, 6............................. to $0.45 when the rise: increase, go up, grow, climb
volume reaches 50,000 enquiries. Our projection is that this no change: remain stable, remain
t otal volume will be reached in 2016. (See Figures 1 and 3.) unchanged, stay steady, stay level
fall: decrease, go down, shrink, contract,
drop, collapse
The words you choose will depend on t he
6 Eeftection In which tasks at work w ill you use the language
context a nd the exact meaning you want
in SB? What will you do to improve the effectiveness of the
to convey.
data presentation in reports you write in English?
7 IIJnto action Write a paragraph describing the data in Figures 1 and 4 .
Bourse links --------------------------------------------------,

For further practice, go to Extended writing task Module 5 on page 85.
For more on reports, go to Modules 4, 8, 10 a nd 12.
25
II Getting the tone right
~ims________________________________~
Find the right style for emails
Make sure the style is culturally appropriate
1 ~ Read five emails. Mark them on the scale of most formal to most informal.
Forrra Informal
1 ~· ,. II': IJI1n ·.-.

~~~~
Hi Rob, DearAnya. Dear Mr McLeod,
Apologies for the delay in getting Thank you very much for your Re: VISIT BY HER ROYAL HIGHNESS
back to you. Advantage's CEO hospitality on my recent visit. THE PRINCESS ROYAL
has been tied up with year-end I am writing to thank you for coordinating
I was very interested to learn
activity but I can now confirm that the Royal Visit on Monday on behalf of all
more about Barclays' methods
he will not be able to take part in of us at Lothian Regional Council. You all
of training these days and to
this project due to a number of deserve congrarulations for ensuring that
get your views on t he materials
big projects kicking off that will the visit was such a success, and l am sure
supplied. particularly videos. I
ultimately see him travelling for that it will be a great boost to all concerned
look forward to seeing Laura.
much of the next 2-3 months. with the project on its first birthday.
With best wishes.
Gordon Mair - the CEO- is deeply Many thanks.
apologetic and hopes to collaborate David Barnes
Yours sincerely,
in the furure on something else
-but for the moment he doesn't Suzanne Walters
have the time to spare for this.
Hope progress for you is going well 4 ,_ ,.... ,.--..
otherwise.
r !5!1
=--=- ~
Regards,
Amanda Hi Rita, Jenny
Sorry I missed you on Wednesday Thanks for all your help on the
- I had an urgent and unscheduled project - it went really well, I
meeting. think, and I couldn't have done
Can we meet next week, maybe on it without you.
Thursday? Sarah
Ahmed
2 Look at the five emails again and answ er t he questions.

1 Which of the emails are probably internal. i.e. within a
company. and which are probably external?
2 In which of the emails does the writer do the following?
a thank someone for providing information
-------=-··
- ---
·- ---.---___;-~--=-=- b apologise to a colleague for missing a meeting
c apologise for not being able to complete agreed plans
16vE <2Ppe~AA- ..
d thank a colleague for help
"I don't like your tone, Mr Barnes."
e thank someone for arrangements they made
26
What style of emails do you receive most- formal or informal?
2 What style of emails do you write most -formal or informal?
3 Where you work, is there a company style for emails? If so. what is it?
4 Which emails do you find easier to write- formal or informal ones?
4 • • 12 Listen to two speakers talking about styles of email and decide if the statements are
true or f alse.
True False
1 Speaker 1 says the style of emails is much the same D D lllip
in all cultures. Particularly when you're
2 Speaker 1 says the style of email depends on who D D I writing emails ro people
you're writing to. who aren't native English
speakers, use a clear and
3 Speaker 2 says organisations have different D D polite style, not very formal
internal cultures.
or very informal. Make the
4 Speaker 2 says there's a connection between the D D purpose of your email clear at
culture of the company and the style of internal emails.
the beginning, keep the main
5 Speakers 1 and 2 agree that a very formal style D D part of the message concise,
should be used when emailing external contacts.
and say politely wha~
6 Speakers 1 and 2 agree that you should consider the 0 0 I want them to do.
English ability of the person you're writing to.
How far do you agree with what the speakers say? Does w hat they say apply in your context?
5 The words and phrases you use can make an email more or less formal. Match the more
formal and more informal phrases below.
More formal Less formal
I'm writing to request ... 11] A Get in touch with our HR unit.
2 I'm afraid I need to postpone our meeting. 0 8 I'm writing to ask for .. .
3 I look forward to seeing you ... 0 C I'm sorry to tell you .. .
4 I regret to inform you ... 0 D Is 4 May OK for you?
5 I'd be grateful if you could send me ... 0 E I'll have to put off our meeting.
6 Please contact our HR unit. 0 F We'll need a signed copy of ...
7 I will reply on Friday. 0 G See you ...
8 We require a signed copy of ... D H I'm writing about ...
9 Would 4 May be convenient for you? 0 Can/Could you send me ... ?
10 I'm writing with reference to ... 0 I'll answer on Friday.
6 Eeftection When will you use the more

formal and more informal styles shown here?
I'm writing with the info you need about the promotional
7 lllnto action You received this email from event on Saturday.
a colleague. Write the email to Mr Schmidt It starts at 10 am in the Emirate Hotel ballroom -that's on the
giving him the information and asking him to first floor. There should be about 50 people. Sorry about this,
but can you ask Mr Schmidt to do the opening speech? Just a
make a short opening speech. You have met
few words is OK. Could you get him t o confirm by Thursday?
Mr Schmidt but you don't know him well.
Thanks.
Ruth
27
IIJ Getting the tone right
IIJims,_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _~
Apologise in emails and letters
Thank in emails and letters
1 t• 13 Listen to two voicemail messages. What is

the main point of each message?
Message 1 .......................................................................
Message 2 .......................................................................
2 f • 13 Listen again to the two voicemail messages

and complete the notes.
Message 1
......................................................... toY DonahUe's

due ........................................................ .
\ ' \ 1\...'\_.t_.,._ ---'-' \ '- - - - .... '-"""-1..1.
•••••••••••••uuuuu uuuuuw••
Wi ll be a sliqlrf
......................................................... PC5.5 on ............................. to
o/1 5tQFF For on eXcellent
l)etini·fel'1 senf fo fi-len'l by ·····························
.........................................................
L....bs ver;y .... ............ ..... ........ ,
............................. Ond
3 Look back at emails 2, 3 and 5 in 6A iMpressive .............................
and complete these sentences. Message 2
1 Thank .................................................................................................................................................
hospitality .. .
2 1 ....................................................................................... thank .........................................................
3 Thanks ....................................................
............................. project .. .
4 Look at the pattern for emails expressing thanks.

Greeting: Dear Mr Mcleod 1 Hi Rita
Express thanks: I am writing to thank you ...
Explanation: I was very interested to learn about ... 1 I couldn't have done ...
Ending: Many thanks 1Regards
Find two phrases for apologising in emails 1 and 4 in 6A. Create a similar pattern
fo r apologising.
lllip _ __
Many types of email and letter- not only thanks and apologies but also requests, complaints
I and offers- follow a regular pattern like this. If you can identify the pattern and use it,
together with fixed expressions like t hose above, it will be easier for you to write and your
writing will be clearer.
28
5 Read t wo versions of the same email. How are they different and how are t hey similar?
,-
Hi Sven
Just writing to say that I'm really sorry, but the delivery
to you is going to be a bit late.
We've been having transport problems -you might
have read about the truck drivers' strike.
Anyway, the delivery should be with you by the end of
the week. I hope that's not a
big problem for you.
Regards
Jean-Paul
Dear Mr Larsson
I am writing to apologise for the late delivery of your
order No. 311267.
As you may be aware, a truck drivers' strike has caused
serious disruption to road transport.
I hope that we will be able to complete your delivery
by Friday 25 March.
I apologise again for the delay. and I hope that this will
not cause you any serious inconvenience.
Regards
Jean-Paul Berthier
6 Complete the email based on the second voicemail message in 1.
Dear All
Sally has asked me to pass on the following message
to all staff:
Thank you very much 1•.•..•.•..••••.•..•..•••••...
2
.•...•........•...•.......... a very successful visit.
I visit many of our offices around the world each year,

but this was one of the 3.....••..... ..•.. .•.....•..•. visits. It was
well organised, very informative and I was impressed
with the quality of work you are all doing.
4
•••.•.••••••••••.•.•.•••.•.•• again.
Jan
7 E e ttectio n How do the patterns identified in Module 6 fit with the emails you write? Can
you use these or similar patterns? Do you ever use templates for frequent types of email?
8 IIJnto a c tion Look back at 1 and write an email as requested in the first voicemail message.
Bourse links _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _-,

For more on emails and letters, go to Modules 1, 7, 9 and 11.
For more on style of writing, go to Modules 8 and 9.
29
Case study 1: Kompleet Solutions
lmead-in
What problems do companies face when t hey try to
expand into new markets?
2 What ca n companies do t o reduce t he risks?
Elriefing
Kompleet Solutions is a British company, based in
Bristol, that has expansion plans. In this case study you:
• learn about th ose plans
take part in promotional activity
• review the effectiveness of t he promotiona l activity
• write a report on company performance.
Elackground
1 f"• 14 Listen to a short interview from the business new s on a
local radio station, and answer the questions.
1 What service does Kom pleet Solut ions provide?
2 Who are the company's cl ients?
3 What expansion plans does th e company have fo r t he futu re?
2 r• 14 Listen again and complete the company profile.

Kompleet Solutions
Angela Hemmings Office premises Single fee
IT management Economies of 3............................ .
Centralised 2 .•..• Convenience
solutions for small and
medium companies
Low •............................
• ssues
Read the email on the right from Angela Hemmings
to her Marketing Director, Rod King. What does she Rod
want him to do? We really need to have a big push on
our new operation in Birmingham.
Task 1 As you know, the numbers aren't
looking great at t he moment - we're
Rod's team have set up an open event to promote
well behind on our plan figures for this
the new operation in Birmingham. You have been
year.
asked t o w rite an email to potentia l clients inviting
Can you urgently get your team (you,
them to atten d, and setting out the benefits of
Paul Rook and Martina Canales) ont o
Kompleet Solutions' service. finding new clients? I know they're
• Look back at previous modules. doing t his already, but we need to get
• Prepare t he inform ation you will include. results. And please keep me posted.
• Draft t he email. Thanks
• Check and edit your writing. Angela
• Write a final ve rsion of the email.
30
Reehng Market Minutes
t 15 After the promotional event, Rod and his team Objec Review of Birmingham event
have a meeting to review how effective it was. Listen to Pres Rod, Martina, Paul
them talking at the meeting, and complete the minutes.
Event was set up well. '............................. invitations
Task 2 sent
........................ to .... ....... people expected
Write a short email report from Rod to Angela setting out
Only 3........................... attended. Very disappointing.
the results discussed in the meeting.
Task 3 Three •..........................................................

One •............................. so far: small 6 ............................ .
Role-play the meeting between Angela and Rod after
company interested in one 7........................... ..
Angela has read the email report.
) Its?
I!Jrisis?
Economic •......................................................... .
Three months later Birmingham especially hard hit.
Small companies 9 .... .................................................... .
Look at the data o n Kompleet Solutions' performance
in four of its locations over the last three years, and two
tuat1on·
economic indicators.
10
35% ............................ .
Premises occupancy
.
:::8
1200
& 1000
g 800
600
~gg
0
Total income
0~8&0213 & 0C1S&

Brrnol
~ '--''w;;..".:::"'o:...."_ - . J
j 100
0
· IOO
·200
Profit
300 , . . - - - - -- - - - ,
200~
0~00000(; Q.O().Q
Year I Vtar 2
~
Year J
- london Oodlltnds
- B1rmmgham
8fiUOI
0
d :::.
L__:Swoc:'".::: "_-.J
·300 .___ _ _ __ _j
Year 1 Y~ar2 YewJ Ye~r I Year 2 Year 3
GOP growth rate Unemployment rate

location Approximate 3000,..------------.
break-even 2500
occupancy 2000
London Docklands 65% 1500
1000
Birmingham 57% 500
o.s
Bristol 56% (21 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Ql Q2 Ql Q4 Ql Q2 Ql Q4 Ql Q2 Ql Q4
Swindon 60% Ye¥ I Year2 vurl Year 2

• What are t he trends?
• What has led to the change in performance?
• Is th is a crisis for the co mpany. or can they recover?
Task 4
Write a report for Angela outlining th e current situation for Kompleet Solutions. You should
ba se you r report on the data presented at the team meeting, and other information in the
Case study, and use the outline structure below.
1 Confi dential: Management only 4 Research 6 Conclusions
2 Executive summary 5 Findings 7 Recomme ndations
3 Introduction
31
fll Making and responding to complaint,
~ims__________________~
Make complaints
Analyse the pattern for lettersfemails of complai nt

1 For what reasons do you complain about goods or
services you receive?
2 In what situations are you most likely to complain?
3 Describe an occasion whe n you made a complaint.
2 f • 16 List en to an extract from an informal meeting between Ben Jenkins and Zohra Ameri,
who are department heads at an insurance company, and answer the questions.
1 What is t he discussion about?
2 What have staff and customers complained about?
3 What specific problems are mentioned?
4 What action do the two speakers agree to take?
5 What might happen if there is no improvement?
3 <:) Zohra Ameri is the Head of Resources at the insurance company. Read her letter to
their cleaning service provider. Does she include all the points discussed in the meeting?
Dear Mr Mason,
I am writing to complain about the poor service we have received from your cleaning
company. Our firm has an excellent reputation in the insurance sector and we would
like to keep that reputation intact.
Unfortunately, we have realised that the reception area and most of our offices are not
being cleaned appropriately. Moreover, the computer screens have fingerprints on them
and the windows a re dirty. These are all tasks which are stipulated in our contract and
we are highly dissatisfied that we do not receive the right level of service from you.
This has a bad effect on our employees, who do not like to work in an unclean
environment, and on our customers, some of whom have complained about the state of
our office.
We insist that in future you provide us with a better service and fulfil our expectations.
We will reassess the situation in one week and make a decision based on the results.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask me.
Yours sincerely,
Zohra Ameri
32
IEip _ _
4 Put the sections of a letter/email of complaint into the
most likely order. As w ith most letters and emails, it's best t : j
be concise in your writing and to follow a
0 details of the complaint
set pattern. Give just enough explanation
0
0
0
response expected
purpose of the letterfemail
impact of the problem
to make your point clearly and effectively.
Giving too much explanation is likely to
reduce the impact of your letter/ email.
J
0 sign off
5 Look at these extracts from emails of complaint. Match them to the sections in 4.
1 4
We shall be expecting to receive your offer of I look forward to hearing from you.
compensation in writing by Friday 15 May.
5
2
The car you provided, although the same model,
I'm writing to express my dissatisfaction with the was not the same specifications as I had requested.
service provided during my recent stay at your hotel. Also, when I rented the car, it smelt strongly of
cigarette smoke. I later discovered that the car had
3
not been properly cleaned, as there were cigarette
These problems have caused significant distress to butts in the ashtray.
our staff members.
6 Complete this email complaining about the poor standard of work by a building
contractor. For some items there may be more than one possible word.
I am writing to ' ............................. 2...•...•....•.....•••.••....• the standard of work on our recent

premises refurbishment project.
The newly built storage lockers do not meet the standards 3............................. in our contract
with you. In several cases the doors do not close at all, and cannot be locked.
This is having a 4............................. impact on our ability to use the refurbished premises.
As required in the terms of the contract, I 5............................. that you will ensure that these
problems are corrected within 5 working days. The final payment will not be made until we
are satisfied that the work has been completed as per the agreed standards.
I look forward to 6 ............................. from you by tomorrow at the latest.
IEiP- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,
It's usually best not to use very formal language in letters/emails of complaint. Try to be
polite but direct. If the response is not what you expect, or if there is no response, your next
communication may well be more formal and more direct in tone.
7 Eettection What differences are there, if any, between the style of complaints you've
seen here and the standard in your culture? When will you use the pattern in 4?
8 .nto action Writ e a short email complaining about poor service or quality of goods you
have received , either at work or as an individual.
33
fill Making and responding to complaints
E ims --------------------------------~
Handle complaints
Analyse the patterns for responding to complaints
Read three letters writte n in response to the complaint made in 7A. How are t hey
different?
Letter 1
Letter 2
Dear Ms Ameri,
Thank you for your letter regarding the standard Dear Ms Ameri,
of cleaning at your premises. Thank you for your feedback on our cleaning
I am very sorry that you have not been satisfied service.
with the services provided by our cleaning staff. I have looked into the situation, talked to our
I have investigated your complaint, and feel that cleaning staff and inspected their work at your
your comments are justified. premises.
We strive to maintain the best possible service to Although I feel that we are delivering the service
our customers, and failures such as this are rare. as agreed in the contract, I realise that you are
I fully understand the importance of maintaining disappointed. I would be happy to offer you a
your premises to a high standard. discounted rate for the next month to show our
I have asked one of our managers to take personal good will, and I will continue to monitor the
responsibility for supervising the cleaning of your performance of our staff.
offices for the next two weeks, to ensure that you I look forward to hearing from you.
receive the quality of service you expect. Best wishes,
I hope that this will be a satisfactory solution for Donald Mason
you.
Regards, Dear Ms Ameri,
Donald Mason I am writing in response to your complaint about
the cleaning service we provide at your premises.
I understand that you are not satisfied with the
service. However, after investigating the issue,
I feel that our staff are delivering a high-quality
service, meeting the standards set out in our
agreement (enclosed for reference).
All six suppliers are complaining If you would like to discuss this further with me,
t hat you are not taking this please do call me.
selection process seriously! Regards,
Donald Mason
'-
Letter 3
• Which reply would you prefer to receive?

• How would you respond to each of the letters?
34
2 Match the three patterns to the letters.
A B c
Welcome feedback Welcome feedback State purpose of letter f email
Action taken Acknowledge the problem Acknowledge dissatisfaction,
Accept negative perception, Offer explanation politely reject complaint
but don't agree Propose a solution End politely- offer further
Offer something contact
End on a positive note
3 Which pattern is suitable for responding to the following?

1 A complai nt you don't accept. but want to maintain good relations with the client
2 A complaint you accept
3 A comp laint you don't accept
4 Look back at the letters. Find:

Three ways of opening the letter
2 Three phrases that acknowledge the feeli ngs of the person complaining
3 Three phrases explaining that you have checked the complaint
lniP--------------------------------~
The three letters demonstrate internationally acceptable patterns for letters and emails
dealing with complaints in English. But these patterns do of course vary across national a nd
corporate cultures. It's important to be aware of any differences in the culture where you are
working or of the places you are communicating with.
5 t 17 Listen to Karen Liu, who is a manager in a services company, talking about handling
complaints. Note down the main points in the advice she gives.
Good to recognise the ............................ of the complaining person.
Good to ............................. feedback.
If at fault, good to ............................. it, ............................. and offer a ............................. .
Person complaining probably not interested in ............................. of what went wrong.
How far do you agree with Karen's advice? Does it apply in your culture?
6 IEleftection Which of the three patterns will you use in your work? Where you wo rk, is it
ever acceptable to reject a complaint as in the third reply?
7 llnto action You are Zohra Ameri. You received Letter 3 from Donald Mason, and you
are not satisfied. You decide to write to the director of the company, w ho you originally
agreed the contract with, to complain about the cleaning problems and about the
response from Mr Mason. Write the letter.
Bourse links _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _-.

For more on letters, go to Modules 1 and 3.
For more on tone and style, go to Module 6.
For more on checking understanding and clarifying, go to Module 11.
35
II The body of the report
~ims ________________~
Link your ideas
Build effective paragraphs
1 Which section of a report do you think is most
~ ~~~i
important?
Executive summary Findi ngs
Introduction Conclusion
~
Resea rch Recommendations
2 t • 18 Two managers, Marta Kalouskova and Jim

Butler, are talking about the most important
sections of a report. Listen and complete the notes
for each speaker. Who do you agree with most?
Marta Ka louskova Jim Butler
"'iost i~portP-'1'-t se.c.tio"'-: '............................ . r:indin:JS Qnd Rec01'11'1e!ldoti011S il<1pOI"t.Cnt, M

1
.. .......................... .1\101"e iiV.portcnt.
............. ....... ... . ... ..
:r.t's tt.w. ~os t ' ............................ .
I. c.P.'I'. 'lASe. it P.S P.'l'. ' ........................... .. Lvhen Vel)' ;~....... .... .. ................ , it tel/5 IV.e ell :r
.3
Re.c.o~~e.'l'.dP.tio"'-s P.re bP.se.d O'~'. e.vide.'l'.c.e.
P.'l'.d ~............................ .
:rncl'-ldes p<-4f'p0Se, "'............................. ,
:r.t's li)(e. P. ~............................ . !>............................. end 6 ........................... ..
3 Read this paragraph, based on what Marta Kalouskova says in 2 . Match the underlined
linking wo rds/phrases in the paragraph to three of the functions below.
The. MSt i~tP.'I'.t se.c.tio"'- crt P. report is tt.w. Re.c.Oitl.~'l'.ootio"'-s se.c.tio'l'.. Jhi.s...i.s....
be.c.P.'!Ase. it is tt.w. MSt prMtic.P.l se.c.tio'l'.. :r. c.Q.'I-\1 for e.Xtt~le. 1 'lASe. it to c.reP.te. P.'l'.
Mtio"'- piP.'~'.. F·wtl¥:r~ore. 1 .si..1!.c& rec.Oitl.~'l'.dP.tio'l'.s P.re bP.se.d o"'- solid rese.P.rc.l.\. P.'l'.d
e.vide.'l'.c.e.1 tt.w. Re.c.o~~'l'.dP.tio'l'.s se.c.tio'l'. is li)(e. P. .s£,.ort S1A~~P.'] of the. whol e. report.
Functions Linking words/phrases

Clarificatio n and examples
Explanat ion
Addition and emphasis
Comparison and contrast I
Concluding
36
4 Add these linking words and phrases to the functions in 3.
due to e.g. although besides so lllip _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ __,

in conclusion also in addition
Good use of linking words and phrases helps to make
in other words however as a result
your writing clear. Linking words and phrases help
such as because of
'glue together' the parts of a paragraph and the whole
text, and also 'signpost' what you are saying. You can
5 Two typical patterns for paragraphs where you use them in any situation (emails, letters, reports)
make points and give reasons are: though they are more likely to appear in reports,
1 2 especially in the Conclusions and Recommendations
sections where you give reasons and analyse
Main point Reason I Evide nce
information. But you shouldn't over-use them or your
Reason I Evidence Reason I Evidence writing may sound unnatural.
Reason 1Evidence Main point
Which pattern is used in the paragraph in 37
6 Use words or phrases from 3 and 4 to complete the sentences in this paragraph, which is
from the Conclusions section of a report.
It appears that there have been cases of fraud by members of staff,

~............................. cooperating with suppliers to profit from higher quotes.
2............................. these have been small scale up to this point, there is a
real danger that the situation could become worse. 3 ..... ........................ of
the urgent nature of the problem and 4........................... .. to the high risk
posed by possible fraud, action needs to be taken immediately.
7 Use words or phrases from 3 and 4 to complete this paragraph from the Recommendations
section of a report.
The evidence of fraud is clear. In 1......... .... ...... ........ .. , there is strong
evidence showing who was responsible. 2............................. this evidence
is not 100% conclusive, it is enough to act on. As 3........................... ..
............................. , we recommend that the members of staff involved
have their contracts terminated immediately. We 4............................ .
recommend that the manager of the procurement department is
moved to a position with less financial responsibility, and that ...
8 Eeftection Which of the two paragraph patterns in 5 do you use most? Will you try to
vary this? Which linking words do you use most often? What alternatives will you use to
make your writing richer?
9 lllnto action Look back at the notes you made of what Jim Butler said earlier. Write them
up as a paragraph, using one of the patterns in 5 and using appropriate linking words and
phrases from 3 and 4 .
37
I:J:I The body of the report
lmims__________________________________-,
Think about the read er when writing
Use plain English
1 Read the marketing report on pages 82-3 and answer these questions about it.
1 What is the purpose of the re port?
2 Who is the report written for?
3 Do the intended readers (the audience) already know about the subject?
4 What do they need to know?
5 How much detail do you think they need to make a decision?
6 What style is used in the report. on a scale of very formal to very informal?
lliip -------:-==::;;;-;;:;;-::::;::;:~=t-
The questions in 1 cover the main areas you should think about when writing any document-
a report, an email, a letter or a proposal. The areas are:
Purpose: Question 1
Audience: Questions 2-5
Style: Question 6
If you're writing in English for a non-native speaker audience, you could add the question
What is their average level of English?
Think about these questions early in your preparations for writing. They will help you meet
the needs of the audience you are writing for. The more you meet their needs and the easier it
is for them to get what they need, the more effective your writing will be.
2 Answer these questions about the reports that you read at work.
1 How far do the writers think about the audience?
2 Are the reports set out in a way that makes them easy to follow?
3 How easy are the reports to understand?
3 Look at this report after a visit from the company auditors. What is wrong with it?
INTRODUCTION money. For example, we don't always

The CEO asked me to write this report get different quotes for comparison,
following their recent visit. and so may be paying more than we
should.
~ECOMMENDATIONS
Therefore, we should introduce a new
The auditors identified a number
purchasing policy that requires all
of problems with the procurement
staff responsible for ordering things to
process in our office. One of these
get quotes for comparison and to show
was that many purchases are made
them to the relevant budget manager.
without getting evidence of value for
38
4 Rewrite the Int roduction section of th e extract in 3 to improve it .
5 Read t his paragra ph from the Conclusions section of a

short report . What makes it difficult t o underst and?
Based on all the evidence collected, in view

6 Compare th e paragraph on t he right t o the original in
of the fact t hat the product is aimed at the
t he market ing report on pages 82-3. Wh ich is easier t o
read and why? higher end of t he soft drinks market , it is
suggested that Option A is t he most suitable.
This is on the grounds that this option shares a
lllip _ _ _ _ _ __ __ ----., similar demographic to our target customers,
For your writing to be effective in any kind of as well as the location being a good fit with
document, the reader must be able to understand our proposed scope of activities. The fact that
i t easily. Avoid using over-complicated or unusual our brand image is well reflected by that of
l anguage, and unnecessarily long sentences, which can The Times Square Shopping Mall also played a
make the w riting very difficult to understand. part in forming this recommendation.
7 These are some features that are used in more formal writing, but which shouldn't be
over-used. Find examples of these features in the paragraph in 5.
Features Examples
Passive voice
It + passive at the beginning of a sentence f clause
Long sentences w ith many clauses
Unusua l vocabulary
8 Rewrite these sentences to make them clearer and easier to understand.

1 It has been accepted by t he company that it may bear some responsibility for the errors.
The company will endeavour to correct the problems.
2 It has been decided that in order to increase the flexibility of our human resources it
is necessary to reduce the overall amount of contracted staff and replace t hem where
req uired with non-contracted temporary and part-ti me st aff.
3 The replacement machine parts have been despatched to you.
4 At this moment. we have no record of the whereabouts of your luggage.
5 We should be glad if you would acquaint us with the appropriate procedure.
9 E eftection What will you change about the way you write to make your writing cl ea rer?
Do you need to write differently for different audiences? How will you do this?
10 lllnto actio n You have been asked to write a short report (1 50-250 words) about an
incident that occurred in your company which led to a serious complaint from a client. The
client later withdrew his/her business from your company. You should include the background
information, the investigation conducted, the findings, conclusions and recommended actions.
Bourse links _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _--,

For more on complaints, go to Module 7.
For more on style and tone, go to Module 6.
39
II Negotiating in writing
~ims ________________~ CJ
Negotiate via email
Confirm agreement ~ \
~
1 In what situations do yo u or might you
negotiate by email rather than by phone or
~
~
face to face?
-
2 What problems have you had or can you
imagine having when negotiating by email?
3 What are the benefits of negotiating by email? ~~
2 ( t 19 List en t o Richard Chapman, the Procurement Manager f or an internat ional

manufacturer, ta lking about t he quest ions in 1 and complete the notes.
Richard Chapman ment ions two problems: 2 He also mentions two benefits:
a You can't see how a You can take your time when you want to
think about ......................................................... , check
b ............................. , caused for with ......................................................... , or find some
example by time zones or the other
person ............................. your email b E.mail means you can make sure
......................................................... and check your own
How far do you agree with w hat Richard Chapm an says?
lllip ----=-=::-:-:~~~:
As well as actually negotiating by email, you can use emails as a good way of checking things
you negotiate face to face or on t he phone. They help make sure all participa nts are aware of
the details, and provide a quick record of what you discussed.
3 Read the em ail from a Resources Manag er looking for a pot ential supplier. Is it clear what
she wants? Is there any important information missing?
lllip _ __ __
Try to include all the essential
I am looking to source a new supplier able to lease six multifunction copier1 information in your first email.
printer Iscanners. This avoids a long chain of
We are currently seeking tenders from a number of companies with a view emails establishing the basic
to finding a long-term supplier. information, before you even
I would be grateful if you could send me details of the products and get an initial quotation. At the
services you can provide. and a quotation including all costs. same time, try to keep your
I look forward to hearing from you. email reasonably short.
Regards
Rebecca Jones
40
4 Pham Tran wrote back from the suppliers with the information requested. Rebecca Jones
is now replying, and negotiating the details. Read the emails (A- F) and put them in
chronological order.
Dear Tran Dear Rebecca I Dear Pham Tran

Thanks for the confirmation. One Following our talk on the phone Thank you for your email giving
last point: our standard payment yesterday,rm writing to confirm details of your company's services.
terms are by bank transfer w ithin that we can offer you a 5% discount As we are leasing six devices and
30 days of receiving an invoice. I on the lease of the devices. would like to sign a two-year lease
hope these terms are acceptable Regards agreement. what discount could
to you. you offer us?
Tran
Rebecca I look forward to hearing from you.
Regards
Rebecca
Dear Rebecca Dear Rebecca I DearTran

Yes - certainly. That's a standard The payment terms are fine for us. If Thanks for your email.
service we provide under the terms you are happy with all of the points, Could you also confirm that, if
of the lease. I'll prepare a contract and send one of the devices breaks down,
Regards it over to you for signing. you will provide a temporary
Tran Tran replacement at no extra cost?
Best wishes
Rebecca
102 0 3 0 4 0 5 0 6 0
What do you notice about the style and tone of the emails? How does it change through
the chain of emails7
5 Find phrases in the emails with similar meanings to these.

1 Can we pay less than your original quotation?
2 Tell me that you agree with my suggestion.
3 Yes, what you said is correct.
4 We won't pay any extra fee for this service.
5 This is our usual w ay of paying suppliers.
6 I'll draw up an agreement.
6 Eeflection In what situations will you make use of the positive aspects of negotiating by
email?
7 . n t o action Think of a situation in your context where you may negotiate by email.
Write an exchange of emails negotiating in this situation.
41
II Negotiating in writing
~ims______________~
Get the length right in emails
Structure negotiating emails
1 Look quickly at t hese t wo emails.

What are t hey about?
Email1
We have been looking into the possibility

of changing from our current arrangement,
where we own our own copy machines,
printers and scanners, and pay a monthly
charge fo r servicing the machines, to a
system where we lease the machines,
and the supplier provides all routine
maintenance as part of the cost.
The reason for investigating the possible
change is that we would like to increase
efficiency, provide better service to s taff,
and have problems fixed rapidly. We
considered a number of different
I We recommend changing to leasing multifunction
copier/ printer/scanner devices.
suppliers, comparing the quality of
service offered and the cost. This will have a number of benefits:
Please find attached a summary of the • Reduced costs (summary of costs attached)
costs involved. • Better quality
• Quick action when machines break down
Email2
2 Read the two emails again and answer t hese questions.
1 Which email do you find most effective and why?
2 What is different between the two emails?
3 What is the benefit of using bullet points?
4 Are longer emails better than shorter emails in a negotiation?
lllip _ _ _ _ __
I Try to avoid 'thinking aloud' in your em ails. Usually the important information, the questions,
the recommendations and so on are what you need to include. An email is not the best place
to explain the thinking or justification behind these. Supporting evidence, such as a report,
statistics and so on, can be included as an attachment if required.
42
3 The multifunction devices are now ready to be installed in the office. Rebecca Jones sends
the following email to staff. Read it and answer the questions.
1 What effect will this email have on the staff?
2 Which information in the email is useful and interesting for the readers?
Dear All
You may be aware that we have been discussing possible changes to
the way we do copying , scanning and printing in the office. There are a
number of reasons for this, including trying to be more environmentally
friendly, as well as making cost savings. Many of you have been consulted
as part of this decision-making process.
We are now ready to introduce the new MFDs (multifunction devices)
in the office. They will be installed next week. and all old devices will be
removed from the office at the same time.
We will of cou rse try to help you all adapt to the new situation as easily
as possible. and one part of this is providing training in using the new
devices. There will be training sessions for all staff over the next week.
which wi ll only take about 1 5 minutes. as I can assure you that the new
devices are very easy to use. Please sign up for a convenient training
se~~iun.
Regards
Rebecca
4 Rewrite the email, making it more concise and relevant to the reader.
lnip ____________________________________
Some cul tures prefer more social content in emails and letters, rather than just the
transactional business. In general, though, you should avoid putting unnecessary content in
your emails. Most people appreciate emails that are short and clear, but polite.
5 IElettection Would you say your emails are usually of an appropriate length? What will
you do t o ensure that this is the case?
From Natasha at A lsalia

6 lllnto action .• 2·0 Listen to the voicemail
message from a regular, iong·term client of If extend contract, wauld like a
your company. Note the key points that they ..........................................................
are asking for. Z Change payment terms from
............................. after delivery
Write your email reply to the client.
to .............................
Rourse links_·- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,
For more on letters andemails, go to Modules 1, 6, 7 and 11.
For more on style of w~iting, go to Module 6.
For more on checking and clarifying, go to Module 11.
43
Ill The report concluded
lmims•----------------------------------~
Consider the Conclusions section
Link the Findings, Conclusions and Recommendations sections
1 Look at the statements about the Conclusions section of a report. Which are t rue and
which are false?
In the Conclusions section of a report: True False
draw a conclusion
to consider the facts of a you present new information. D D
situation and make a decision
about what is true, correct,
you discuss t he fi ndings. D D
likely to happen, etc. you can discuss the issue of the report from different D D
I'd seen them together sa often I perspectives.
drew the Logical conclusion that
they were husband and wife.
you make recommendations. D D
you make reasonable deductions based on the find ings. D D
From Cambridge Advanced
you summarise the other sections of the report . D D
Learner's Dictionary
IIJiP ---~==~~~=
The Conclusions section provides a link between the detailed Findings and the
Recommendations that follow. Make sure the Conclusions you write have their basis in the
..
Findings and are logically drawn from them.
2 Look at three extracts from the Conclusions sections of reports and answer these questions.
1 Which one is best? Why?
2 What is wrong with the others?
c
A Conclusions
Conclusions Based on the Findings above,
The Findings are detailed above. and analysis it is clear that the company
of them leads to the Recommendations is not prepared to react
which follow in the next section. to sudden threats to its
business such as w ould be
B caused by natural disasters,
Conclusions civil disturbances, etc. It is
The Findings indicate a number of conclusions: therefore recommended that
the company draws up a clear
• The role of quality assurance within the factory has been
plan of what steps it will take
neglected, with not enough attention paid to this on the
in these circumstances.
part of senior managers. This has led to careless practices
becoming accepted, and this in turn has led to poor quality
and sometimes faulty goods being supplied to customers.
44
3 A group of researchers was asked to write a report on when would be the best time to
launch a high-value toy in order to maximise sales. Part of the data they used is presented
in the graph.
Monthly Traditional Toy Sales

Value £m
4 06
134 14 2
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
1 •• 21 Listen to two report-writers, James Walker and Chantal Ambrose. discussing the
findings. and note down the four main findings they mention.
1 .............................................................................................................................................................................
2 ....................................................................................................................................................... ..................... .
3 ............................................................................................................................................................................ .
4 ............................................................................................................................................................................ .
2 What conclusions could you draw from these findings?
4 Look at the Conclusions section of the marketing report on pages 82-3.

1 How are the Conclusions presented in this report?
2 When is this kind of presentation of Conclusions appropriate?
3 How appropriate would this type of conclusion be for the report in 37
lniP----------------------------------~
Not all reports include all the possible sections of a report. In shorter and less formal reports
the Conclusions may appear together with the Recommendations. Some reports you write
may only be a few paragraphs long, but you should still think about the language you use and
how you arrange the ideas.
5 Eeftection In the reports that you write is there a Conclusions section? If so, how
important is it?
6 lllnto action Write the Conclusions section of the report on toy sales in 3, based on the
findings discussed by James and Chantal.
45
liJ The report concluded
~ i ms__________________________________~
Look at the language for making recommendations
Consider the Recommendations section
1 Which section of a report do you look back at more than once? Why?
2 ( • 22 Eli Wang and Hans Leysen are preparing a report on security issues in a large
department store. They have investigated the problems, and written up their findings.
They are now discussing their recommendations.
Listen and note down what their recommendations are.

1 ..................................................................................................................................................................................
2 .................................................................................. ................................................................................................ .
3
3 As well as the recommendations about security of money collected, Eli and Hans have
written up their recommendations for t he prevention of theft. Look at the two versions
of the Recommendations section. Which ve rsion is clearer and why?
Version 1
The security manager should be relieved

of his duties and replaced immediately.
There is evidence of both careless work
and involvement in theft. Version 2
We recommend that the number of Recommended Reason Priority

CCTV cameras is increased from the action
current 15 cameras to 20 cameras. This 1 Security manager to Recent, documented High
will eliminate a number of 'blind spots' be relieved of duties examples of
careless work and
which are not covered at the moment,
involvement in theft
and where theft has occurred.
2 Increase number of Eliminate blind spots _ Medium
The store should increase the number CCTV cameras from where theft is high
15 to 20
of uniformed security staff from 8 to 10.
3 Increase number of Minimum 4 staff on Medium
This will mean there can be at least four
uniformed security duty at all times
uniformed staff on duty at any one time staff from 8 to 10
during opening hours.
4 Store manager to Address lack of High
manage security clarity of roles and
We strongly recommend that the
inconsistent practice
responsibility for and management --
of security come directly under the

management of the store manager, as the
management so far has been unclear and
inconsiste nt.
46
llliP- - - - - - - - - - ,
There are several ways to format
the Recommendations section of a
report. Plain text as in Version 1 is
fine, if you make sure the sentences
are clear, usually using a separate
sentence for the recommendation
and any reason. A table, as in
Version 2, makes this separation of
recommendation and reason even
clearer. A bullet-pointed list is also
easy to read, and concise.
A numbered list is best when there
is a sequence or order of priority in
the list.
4 Highlight the phrases used in Version 1 to make recommendations. Then re-order these
words to make recommendations.
1 reduce I you I company I investment II I that I in I the I recommen d I your
2 closing I we I consider I unprofitable I should I branches
5 Rewrite these sentences using the phrases you highlighted in 4.
1 It's extremely important for the company to change the way it makes payments to suppliers.
2 We think it would be useful for the company to review how it chooses suppli ers.
3 It would be very good to provide refresher training for staff in standard procurement
procedures.
4 It is vital that the company acts on the recommendations in the audit report .
5 The company wou ld benefit from increasing the number of finance staff.
lllip _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ ____,
The Recommendations section of the report is like an action plan. It's best to use language that
suggests actions, for example writing The company should ... rather than We think it would be
useful to ....
6 Eeftection What format of Recommendations is most appropriate in the type of reports

you usually write? What will you do to improve the way you write Recommendations?
7 .nto action Look back at the notes you made of the recommendations in 2. Write them
up as the Recommendations section of a report. You can use either plain text o r a table
format .
Bourse links _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _-,

47
Ill Making arrangements by email
lmims ______________~
Set up meetings
Confirm and change arrangements

1 When do you make arrangements by email?
2 Which do you prefer to do - make
arrangements by email or on the phone?
3 Are the arrangements mostly internal, with
colleagues, or external, w ith clients?
2 Read the em ails below and answer these questions.

1 Which ones are internal and which are external?
2 Which are more formal and which are less formal? Why is this?
Email 1 Email 2
r
·- . . tJ~
.t•t
Dear Sarah
Juan Could we arrange a meeting with you
Are you free at 10.00 tomorrow to talk for Tuesday 17 July to discuss the staff
about the budget plan for next year? association's concerns about the office
restructuring?
Carmela
If you agree, I'll send a meeting invite.
Regards
Tony
Email 3 Email4
Dear Carlo Dear Mr Mailing

Thanks for the update you sent last I'm pleased to tell you that you have been
week on progress on the market shortlisted for the position of Human
research. Resources Manager.
I think we're over·due for a meeting to I would now like to arrange an interview
review the project. Would you be able with you. The interview will be at 14.00 on
to come to our office next Thursday, Wednesday 20 October at our office, and
to meet me and the rest of the team will be with the Director, Kim Johnson and
to give us a short briefing and check the outgoing Human Resources Manager,
progress against the timeline? Geoff Reid. It will last around one hour.
If Thursday's possible for you, could you Further details of the inrerview procedure
suggest a time? I'm free all day. are in the attachmenr.
Thanks Could you confirm by Friday 15 October that

you will attend the interview?
Harriet
Regards
Mohamed Osman
48
3 Read the emails again and highlight all t he phrases used for making arrangements.
4 Compl et e the gaps in t hese sentences.

I w ould like .......................................................... a meeting with you next week.
2 .......................................................... meet on Thu rsday to discuss this furthe r?
3 Would you .......................................................... to visit t he constructio n site on 16 February?
4 Are you .......................................................... Monday to chat about the co mplaints from All ied?
5 Could you ............................. that you'll be avai lable for t he meeting tomo rrow?
5 Read the extracts from replies to the emails in 2 . Match the replies to t he ori ginal emails.
Which replies accept the arrangements and which decline them?
A B
You're right, we are due to meet. Thank you for the invitation. I'd
Next week's not good for me, I'm like to confirm that the date and
afraid- I'm away on business until time are fine and I will attend the
Friday. Would the Thursday the interview.
following week work for you?
c D
Sure. Talk to you tomorrow. Certainly. 2 o'clock would be
possible for me. Could you invite
Gabriel as well?
6 Highlight the phrases used in the replies for accepting/declining the arrangement s.
lnip ___________________________________,
If you are declining an invitation or arrangement, you should usually give a reason a nd suggest
an alternative that is possible for you, preferably as close to the original suggestion as possible.
7 Eeftection What phrases have you seen that you will use in your context?
8 lllnto action • 23 Listen to the extract from

a telephone conversation between an architect
and a client. Make notes about the arrangement.
·························································
Now write a short email from the architect
confirming the arrangements.
Time:
·························································
Ptac.e:
·························································
~ofes:
..........................................................
49
1111 Making arrangements by email
lmims__________________________________~
Check understanding
Clarify meaning

1 Have you ever misunderstood what someone meant in an email?
2 If you don't understand exactly what the writer means. what do you do?
3 What do you do to avoid problems and misunderstandings when you write?
lnip ___________________________________
l
One of the advantages of using email rather than phoning is that you have time to think about
what you want to say, and to check what you write. Make sure that you don't press Reply too
quickly, because writing quickly without checking can easily lead to misunderstandings.
2 Read the email and answer these questions .

1 What do you think the situation is?
2 What's the relationsh ip between the writer and reader?
F~~,
Dear Becky
I've checked the detailed figures as you requested, and it seems it's all on target.
Also, I've arranged for you to meet the guy who came to the office early last week
-I've booked him in for 3 o'clock.
What shall I do about tomorrow?
Nigel
3 What exactly in this email could lead to misunderst andings?
lnip _ __ __ _
Misunderstandings may often come
from the content, style and tone as well
as the grammar or vocabulary. Giving
too little information, for example, can
cause confusion. Being too informal or
formal can also cause problems. Try to
give enough information at the time
people need it. This can often prevent
problems and save a long exchange of
emails clarifying details.
so
4 Read Becky's reply to Nigel. What impression do you think Nigel's email has created?
Dear Nigel
Your email was a little unclear. Could you clarify a couple of points for me?
Which figures did you check, and which report did you use to get them?
I'm not sure which chap you mean. Could you give me a name? And I need a day too.
Also, please don't add meetings in my calendar without checking with me first.
Can you let me know what's happening tomorrow, and whether I should be there or not?
I don't remember arranging anything.
Regards
Becky
5 Highlight the phrases in the reply which clarify meaning and check understanding.
6 Complete the sentences using these phrases.

1 Can you ....................................................................................... when you will complete th e work?
2 ............................. report did you ............................. to check the budgets?
3 .......................................................... clarify which model you would like to orde r?
4 What ............................. I prepa re for the meeting tomorrow?
7 (i) Read the email. Is there anything that is not clear from this email?
"?"P""'f
.'
~ • - r > ~ • • (' i ~,..- "V • >r ~
. : . ,.. :i~ f!!l!!" ~ ~
Re: PABX Installation

Dear Nguyen Trang
Further information regarding the installation as you requested:
We will be able to come to your office to install the new system at some point next week.
Installation should be completed reasonably quickly and you will be able to continue using
your current system for most of the installation period.
We can provide training for you and your staff in using the new system, although t his will incur
an extra cost not covered in the original quotation.
If you require any further information, please let me know.
Regards
Cindy Tan
8 Eeftection What can you change about the way you write em ails to avoid
misunderstandings or requests for clarification?
9 lllnto action Write a reply from Nguyen Trang to the email in 7 asking for clarification
and further information.
Bourse links _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ___,

For more on emails, go to Modules 1, 6, 7 and 9.
For more on length and clarity in emails, go to Module 9.
51
lfl Finishing a report
mims ----------------------------------~
Write an Executive summary
Ensure your writing has 'skim' value

1 What is the purpose of an Executive summary?
2 What sort of reports and proposals are likely to include an Executive summary?
3 Why is an Executive summary important?
2 Allow one minute to read the marketing report on pages 82-3 and write down t he
main points.
How did you read the report to get the main points? Did you:
• try to read through t he whole report in the time allowed?
• use the section headings to help you?
• skim through the whole report?
• look first for the Conclusions or Recommendations sections?
• start at the end and work backwards?
3 ( • 24 Listen to Olivia Hamilton, founder of a successful company, talking about her work.
What does Olivia Hamilton enjoy about her wo rk?
2 What does a typical day at work involve?
3 Why does she say it isn't a problem that she doesn't have time to read reports?
4 What does she want to see in an Executive summary?
IIIJip _ _ _ _ _ ---:-~=-==~~~~
Busy people who receive a lot of reports often don't have time to read all of a longer report.
They want to get to the main points quickly, and also decide if they need to read all of the
report. When you write a longer report, make sure you write a strong Executive summary to
meet their needs, and to make sure you get your message across to t hem.
=--V/ ~
4 Tick the advice about writing Executive summaries that
# . . //
you agree with.
/( ~ // It's good to w rite the Executive summary
before the rest of the report. D
2 It should include the report writer's reflections
on the report-writing process. D
3 The summary should include t he main findings,
conclusions and recommendations. D
4 It should be as short as possible. D
5 You don't really need an Executive summary
" ... In summing up, the future looks bright for those for a short report- less than four or five pages.
of us who can manage to avoid incarceration." for example. D
52
5 Read this example of an Executive summary from an internal report on a potential t hreat.
What is the situation and how will the company respond?
Executive summary
We have learnt that Amsel, one of our main competitors in a number of

regions. is planning to launch its products in North Africa, a region where until
now we have had an unchallenged position as the market leader.
This report assesses the threat to our business and proposes an action plan to
protect our position.
Based on our knowledge of Amsel's previous launches and tactics, three main
responses are proposed :
Develop the strength of our relationship with wholesalers and retailers and
where possible sign them up to exclusive agreements, to raise the barriers
to market entry for Amsel.
2 Plan an aggressive promotional campaign to coincide with the initial

launch of Amsel products on the market.
3 Bring forward the launch of our own updated product range, which we
believe is superior to Amsel's range. Launch this new range shortly before
or after the Amsel launch.
We believe that this strategy will prevent Amsel getting a foothold in this
region, and so preserve our market leader status at relatively little extra cost.
6 Read the Executive summary again and complete the following tasks.
1 What is the style of the w riting?
2 How deeply do you need to read the rest of the report to understand the situation and
proposed action?
3 Write the outline plan of t he report it summarises.
lniP ----------------------------------~
A good Executive summary is one aspect of ensuring that your report or proposal has 'skim'
value: the reader can get what they need from it without having to read the report thoroughly.
Other ways to achieve this include:
• a good table of contents (in long reports) • use of lists, bullet points and tables
• clear and informative headings • text broken up by empty space.
7 Eeflection Which reports that you write need an Executive summary? How important is
'skim' value in the type of reports you write?
8 .nto action Write an Executive summary for the marketing report on pages 82-3 which
you read in 2.
53
a Finishing a report
lmims______________- ,
Edit your writing
Check your writ ing
1 Consider these questions. ..... ..

1 When you have finished writing a draft of a
business document, what do you usually do?
2 Do you check and edit your writing before
sending it to someone?
3 What methods can you use to check and edit
your writing?
4 What should you be looking for when you check your writing?
2 ~· 25 Listen to laura Bloomberg, a trainer in business writing, talking about the questions in
1. laura says why she thinks editing is difficult, and mentions four ways of approaching it.
Complete t he notes about what she says.
1 Editing is something most people find difficult.

lllip - - - -- '
In some situations, small
Why difficult?
mistakes aren't a disaster
1
If you know something's wrong, you .... ...... ..... ......... . .
- people will tolerate
them if the meaning is
If you knew how to write something better, you clear. In very informal
emails, accuracy isn't
2 Ways of approaching editing: so important. In formal
Get someone else to 3......................................... ............... .. situations, such as emails
to external contacts,
Use a 4......................... .. .. reports and published
5............ ........ .. ...... . documents, check the
Create your own
text thoroughly. Accurate
Use the 6
............................. ~md 7
............................. check.
writing in these situations
is important.
Which piece of advice do you find most useful?
3 Read the paragraph below from a food manufacturer's

report and answer these questions.
lllip _ _ _ l
Computer spelling and
1 Do you understand what it is saying?
grammar checks can
2 Which section of a report does it come from?
be useful, but they are
3 How many mistakes can you find in the text? limited. They will only
correct some misspellings,
This report details how we developed hour new desert,
are rarely helpful in
and the way in which we were able to test the produce
correcting grammar, and
in as ample market. It drawers on data collected during
can suggest corrections
test marketing, and during the first year of wider
which are not necessary,
distribution. It described our plants to expand the
or even wrong.
brand into overseas in the future.
54
4 As Laura Bloomberg mentioned in 2, using a c hecklist can be helpful. Here is a possible
checklist . Which do you think is the most useful advice for you7
Does my text:
make the purpose of my use headings, sub-headings

writing clear? and subject lines as
appropriate?
take into account what the
reader knows or doesn't look good on the page (e.g.
know already? is there some white space)?
use an appropriate, use unnecessary words/

generally direct and positive phrases?
tone? It's not just grammar and
avoid using jargon, possibly spelling problems you should
include all necessary unknown abbreviations, look for when checking your
information? unnecessarily complex writing. The other points
words?
include accurate in the checklist are at least
information? have accurate spelling and as important, and all of
grammar? these features contribute to
follow a clear, logica l
making a positive or negative
structure?
impression on the reader.
You can also create your own checklist. Look back at texts you have written before, where
parts were corrected. Identify the areas where you commonly have problems. Use these to
create your checklist.
5 Look again at the paragraph in 3. Rewrite it to make a clear and concise paragraph.
6 Read this short paragraph from an internal report on IT. There are no grammatical or
spelling mistakes, but how well does it meet the other criteria in the checklist in 47
Glossary
If you think there is a problem, the first thing is to check SA to make sure
SA = System Availability
there hasn't been an SOl. This, of course, is when you are dealing with
SOl = System Outage Incide nt
financial system problems or travel and expenses claims. If you can't find a ESG = Easy Step Guide
solution to the problem using the relevant ESG (which can be found through ITM = IT Manager
AITM = Assistant IT Manager
the Help menu), then you can escalate the problem to your ITM or AITM.
7 E eftection How will you check your writing to

ensure you create the most effective text you can? ~~tels l Dear John flirt
~Thanks ytltl for all your help wit h t he event

8 lllnto action Write an improved version of the
wh ich # e raA in your office building.
paragraph in 6.
I' am happy to tell you t hat the event that-
we ran in your office building was a great
Rourse links _ _ _ _ _ ____, success. We ~ succeeded in
For more on reports, go to Modules 4, 5, 8 and 10. d attracting a good number of people, many of
For more on clear writing, go to Module 8. them _people who working in the building.
For more on style and tone, go to Module 6. We were able to gi ve gave them good ~h'
advice on our services and a-s a result I' am t>e<
~confident that t hey will benefit cor
55
Case study 2: ADC ADC Plastics Ltd
Ill eo d-in
1 What problems might a company face when it
starts producing goods in another country?
2 What cultural issues does it have to be aware of?
3 What problems might it face at home?
E ackground
1 Read the information about ADC.
ADC started as a small manufacturing company making plastic mouldings. It was founded
in the UK in 1973 and is still a privately owned company. ADC's main business has been
providing ready-made plastic products to be used in the building trade. It has built up a
good client base with the major housing and office builders in the UK.
Although economic conditions were difficult in the 1970s, ADC built a strong business on
its reputation for quality and on providing tailor-made products for its clients.
ADC expanded steadily through the 1980s. adding new factories and maintaining its
reputation for quality.
By the 1990s. the company was facing increasing competition from firms offering similar
products. at similar quality but lower prices. Much of this growing competition was from
companies in Asia. particularly in China.
After 2000, ADC responded by focusing on what it saw as its greatest strength:
specialised building solutions. The company has continued to do well, but with more and
more companies competing on price by producing cheaper goods overseas it is faced
with a dilemma. Should it:
• continue producing only in the UK?
• move production overseas where labour is cheaper?
• continue to produce in the UK but move some of the production overseas?
If the company decides to move some or all of its production overseas, the change
will bring about many challenges: developing or acquiring the skills needed; customer
perceptions of the company; quality control; communications.
2 Complete the notes about ADC.
Industry: ..................................... 1990s: ......................................................................

.................................................... . ............................................................... ...............
Founded: ........... ..... ............... Since 2000: ........................................ ..
1970s:
Current dilemma: .............................. .
1980s:
3 What do you think ADC should do and why? Which option do you think is the safest/riskiest?
56
Eurther developments
ADC's Management Board has decided to
Dear Kim,
continue to produce some of the more
specialised products in the UK, but to move As you are aware, we have moved the production of window frames
for the houses built by Koster Homes to our new facility in East Asia.
production of their standard products to Asia.
During the summer, a team of five senior staff came from the
Asian factory to learn the necessary skills that they would pass on
Read the email to Kim Hughes, the UK
to their colleagues when they returned home. We did our best to
business development manager, from Steve
accommodate them and to train them to the best of our abilities.
Morris, the production manager in Cardiff. We are therefore surprised that we are dealing daily with requests
from the Asian factory on how to manufacture the goods. As I am
Task 1 sure you are aware, this is not a good use of our time and seems not
You are Kim. Write a short reply to Steve to be part of the cost-effective plan you had in mind when switching
production.
telling him that you wi ll investigate the
matter and get back to him soon. We would therefore suggest that you contact the Asian office and
find out what the actual problem is. We are happy to help, but
would like to get to the root of the problem rather than dealing
Task 2
with questions on a daily basis.
You are Kim. Write a short email to a
Regards,
colleague, who you know very well, telling
Steve Morris
him/her about the problem.
Production Manager
. nvestigation
1 -• 26 Kim has decided to contact the Asian office to find out what has
gone wrong. Listen to the co nversation between Kim and James Cheng,
senior manager of Asian operations, and answer the questions.
1 What problems did the Asian team face in the UK?
2 What would James like to happen so they can try to solve the problems?
2 t 26 Listen again and complete Kim's notes about the telephone call.
1 When they went for training the Asian team were treated .............................
2 If they had problems they were told to .......................................................................
3 They didn't get the training they expected on ............................. • .............................
and ............................. of machinery.
4 Trainers should go to Asia to see the .......................................................... they work under.
5 I need to see if we can get ............................. to send trainers over there.
Task 3
You are Kim. Writ e an email t o Steve telling him what you found out about the situation when
you contacted the Asian office. Tell him what you would like him to do as regards his own staff.
Task 4
Role-play an informal meeting between Kim an d a senior manager in the UK. Kim wants to
secure funds for further t raining in Asia. The senior manager is unhappy that there wasn't
adequate training when the Asian team visited the UK.
Task 5
You are Kim. The Management Board want to know what happened and why you are now
asking for more funds to supply training that they feel shou ld have been addressed when the
Asia n team were in the UK. Write a report for them covering the following:
• the background to the situation • your conclusions
• the details of the complaint you received • your recommendations to prevent such
• your investigation and what you found incidents happening again.
57
was
ben
Audio scripts the
the
• Track 02 8: Just for two days. and we'd need ~· Track 05

are
the guest rooms for two nights. dec
lA Exercise 2 2A Exercise 4
A: And when are you planning to nee
Sue Evans: Well, of course it depends Speaker: Thank you for inviting me Ire;
have the conference?
to some extent on the context, but I'd today to report back on the initial ideas thrc
8: It'll be in early June this year - the
say there are some things that usually from the working group. ana
exact dates wi ll be confirmed soon.
make a good impression- being We started by looking at two areas.
Could you give me a quote for that? In
·~·
concise. for example - especially in which were identifying the resource
fact. can you quote separately for the
emails, but it's true for letters too. If areas where the company currently 28
conference venue and the hote l
I open an email and I have to scroll spends most money, and coming at the
rooms, please? Sim
down to read it all- that's not really a question from the other side, using ou r mir
A: Of course. I can get you an initial
good thing. I prefer emails to be quite experience and the experience of other
quotation later today. Could you give 27
direct and to the point- not too much companies doing similar th ings, to look the
me your contact details?
introduction and stuff. As I say, that's at where we would expect the most buc
also true for letters- I don't want to • Track 04 environmental impact to be gained. spe
read several pages of a letter- but they We then compared these two lists
2A Exercises 2 and 3
do tend to be more formal, and have a and prioritised areas for more detailed mu
bit more in terms of introduction. Petra's colleague: Good morning, investigation. Iitt I
David Anderson: It's easier for me to Petra Shaw's phone. Now. probably not too surprisingly, tha
say what makes a bad impression. If I Caller: Good morning. is Petra as an international organisation,
there? qu<
struggle to read it- I have to work hard one area that stood out was travel, IOVI
to understand it- then that's really Petra's colleague: No- I'm afraid particularly air travel, for trips abroad.
bad ... I don't mean so much that the she's away from her desk at the As I'm sure you're aware. travel by
language has to be perfect. Some moment. Can I take a message for her? plane is expensive, inefficient and by
people write far too much and try to Caller: Oh, yes. please. I'm supposed comes with a very very high carbon res
be too formal when they're writing to be meeting Petra this evening. but footprint. as .
-they use complicated struct ures I've been delayed - you may have This is the first area where we
heard about the problems with air
me
and words that just make it harder to think we'll be able to make so li d
follow, to understand. traffic control - all flights to London recommendations t o reduce both costs me
have been delayed and it's a bit and the company's carbon footprint.
• Track 03 chaotic here- I'm in Berlin, by the way. The recommendations that we're to
1B Exercise 5 Petra's colleague: No, I hadn't taking for further study include: clc
heard. What message can I give investing more in videoconferencing
A: Good afternoon. George Hotel. how cu·
to Petra? facilities to reduce the need to travel
can I help you?
Caller: Well, as I say. I'm going to meetings: encouraging land
8: Hello. I'm arranging a conference all
to be delayed. It looks like I've got a travel, especially by train, for shorter
for a client. and I'm enquiring about me
flight leaving here at three o'clock. journeys such as from London to Paris
possible venues. pi<
so I should be landing at Heathrow at or Brussels: developing our regional
A: OK, I'm sure we can help. Could of
about five. I guess that means I'll be in HQs as hubs for meetings- grouping
you give me some details of what
central London for about six thirty. meetings in such hubs would reduce
you need?
Petra's colleague: OK- and could the need for individuals to make
8: Yes, it's a conference for Re
you tell me your name? multiple journeys.
Human Resources managers- about ne
Caller: Oh, yes, sorry. It's Trevor
fifty people. I'm interested in your gi\
Jenkins. Petra's expecting to meet me ·~· Track 06
conference su ite and also hotel
at my hotel at five o'clock. Co uld you 28 Exercise 3
rooms for the conference delegates. de
ask her to meet me at the hotel at
We'd need a room large enough to Speaker 7: Well, we all, I think, loc
seven o'clock instead, if that's OK with
accommodate all fifty pa rticipants hate meetings that are a waste of th.
her? I'm afraid my mobile battery's
for the main sessions and also several everyone's time - where nothing's
dead, so she won't be ab le to
sma ller meeting rooms- large enough decided. For me. one of the purposes
contact me.
for about fifteen people. Can you of minutes is to keep meetings on an
Petra's colleague: OK- no problem.
provide that? track, so as to reduce the time-wasting. co
I'll pass on the message as soon as
A: Yes. certainly. We have all the Speaker 2: Any group that has reo
she's back.
facilities you need. Could I ask how
Caller: Thank you very much.
meetings and writes minutes needs to ar:
long the meeting will be for? decide amongst the group what the th
purpose of the minutes is. That purpose in1
may be just to record decisions and n·
actions. or it may be to reflect what so
58 Audio scripts
was actua lly said - perhaps for the Marianne: OK. Well, I wasn't sure at by courier. rather tha n normal post.
benefit of absent colleagues. Whatever fi rst, but now I think it'll work. Also invitations to forma l events,
the purpose is- that's likely to affect Karl: Am I right in saying we're like confe rences and promotions, or
the style of minutes you choose to use. generally happy with the plan. but receptions. So it's fair to say that a lot
Speaker 3: Yes, I prefer minutes that we'd like to see a bit more money of it is very formal, t ransact ional stuff. I
are clear and simple, so I can see the being put into some launch events to get a lot of promotional lite ratu re too-
decisions and deadlines, and what I coincide with the online promotion? although I tend not to look at t hat. It's
need to do before the next meeting. Marianne: Uh-huh. I think so. often straight in the recycle bin.
I really don't want to have to read Simon: Yes, I think that's a fair
as throug h lots of reported discussion summary. So Karl, you'll work with you r af Track 10
and such. team on making those changes and 4A Exercises 2 and 3
.. you' ll send round an amended plan by Interviewer: So, reports can be many
.• Track 07 next week. Is that right? different things, and the va rious types
28 Exercise 7 Karl: Correct. will of course have different features.
Simon Lester: OK, that deals with the But what would you say, in general,
minutes. Shall we move on to item • Track 08
makes an effective report?
2? Marianne? How are we doing with 3A Exercise 5 Jan Waterman: Well. there are
the Marketing and Communications Sonia Afzal: Oh no - another invitation various things t o consider, and. as yo u
budgets? Are we on track with to a product launch. say, it depends to some extent on the
spe nding? /an MacDonald: Oh -what's it for type of report- its length and so on,
Marianne Oram: Yes, we're pretty this time? but there are a few rea lly im portant
much right on track overall. We're a Sonia: An 'innovative' potato snack things. First. the content. Does it
little over-spent on advertising, but -so probably a packet of crisps, but in answer the questions the aud ience or
that's because of the big campaign in funny flavours . reader want answered? You cou ld ca ll
quarter 2. The next quarter should be ian: What flavours? this content value. If t he reader already
lower. Sonia: They've gone for Chinese knows everything in the report, they' re
Simon: OK. mushrooms. not going to be int erested.
Marianne: We're also underspent ian: Sounds great! I bet that'll be Interviewer: Right -so how do you
by 1OK against our plan for market popular. Are you going? make su re you've got this?
research, but I th ink that's intentional, Sonia: Well, actually, I was thinking Jan: Well, t he fi rst t hing to ask is:
as Julie's planning for an external you might like to do this one- you is a report necessa ry? Sometimes it
market research exercise in the spring. know- build relationships with a isn't- a quick email or a summary in a
Simon: OK- so all in order at the potential supplier? meeting will do. If you decide a report
;ts moment? ian: Great! So you don't want to go? is necessary, then you can ask yo urself
Marianne: That's right. But we need Sonia: It's not that I don't want some questions to check t hat you're
to make sure we monitor closely to get to. It's more that it'd be such a good on the right lines: what's t he purpose
close to our planned spend, or HQ will opportunity for you! And it's in The of the repo rt? What're the main points
cut the budget for next year. Pavilion - you know- that new you want to make? Does the research
Simon: Right- so an action point for restaurant we were talking about the and evidence you provide rea lly
all budget managers and unit heads: other day. suppo rt these po ints? What's new and
monitor budgets and make sure you've ian: Do I have to? useful in the report?
planned to use your budget by the end Sonia: Well, somebody should go. Interviewer: OK- so conte nt's
of the financial year. obviously critica l. What else?
Marianne: Got that. .• Track 09 Jan: Clarity is also really important.
Simon: Now, on to the next point. 38 Exercise 2 This might sound obvious. but you
Reviewing the promotional plan for the Speaker A: I think it's certainly true, of read loads of reports where it's difficult
new product launch. Karl, could you course, that I receive a lot less letters to understand what's be ing said. You
give us the main points and issues? than someone in my position would want to make it easy for the reader to
Karl Jelinek: Yes. I sent round the have done twenty years ago. maybe understand -you know- without them
detailed plan yesterday for you all to even ten years ago. I do still receive having to make a rea l effort to get at
look at. Did you get a chance to see quite a lot of post at work, though. A the information. Yo u should aim to
that? lot of it is promotional stuff- direct be as concise as possible, and try not
Simon / Marianne: Yes. mail advertising, often from banks, or to use overly formal lang uage. Keep
Karl: Good . The only real questions from potential suppliers in our field. it brief and simple, and your message
are the higher level ones. Are we And also internal things- things sent should be clear.
g. convinced that going primarily online, as out from my head office. Interview er: Great- so we've got
recommended by the agency, is really Speaker 8: I'd say that a lot of conte nt and clarity - anything else?
appropriat e for this product? And do we the things I send and receive are Jan: Well, the last one is especially
think we're putting enough resources formal documents- documents that important for longer reports. Let's
se into it for such an important launch? need to be signed in hard copy, for say you' re writing a report on some
There's still time for some adjustments. example. Contracts and things of market research fo r your boss- he or
so please tell me what you think. that nature. Quite a lot of that arrives she is probab ly very busy. They don't
Audio scripts 59
have time to read th rough all t he data their feedback. Of course. information and set up a briefing with them next cove
and search for- whatever it is - the about the company is important too. week. I haven't finished it. obviously. they
Recommendations or something. So but it's often the stories that get my or I wouldn't be calli ng you . I've done therr
you need to make it easy for the reader attention first. most of it but I haven't had t ime to edit that
to get the main points quickly- after a and check it. so it's not ready to go to achit
quick read t hrough. Some people call t Track 12 t hem yet. Could you do me a real ly big PI
this 'skim ' value. This is where sections 6A Exercise 4 favou r and write to them expla ining very
like the Executive summary and Speaker 7: Well, yes. in my experience t hat there wi ll be a slight delay, and seve
Recommendations are really important. the style of emails does vary across that I' ll definitely get it to them by the you ·
because in some cases they may be the cultures. and of course it also depends end of next week- sorry. I mea n the this ~
only parts people read . on who you're w riting to. I think that week after next. Thanks so much. I'd A
Interviewer: Right- so the main within all cultures there are different do it myself but I don't have all the a co
things are content, clarity and styles- more or less formal- but contact details with me. See you soon. flexi'
'skimability'. if I can call it that. That's that some office cultures tend to be Message 2
risk.
really useful. Any other advice? at the more formal end of the scale Speaker: Jan. hi. Could you just- it's
agre
Jan: One more thing - and this is than others. In some Asi an cultures. me, Sally. by the way- coul d you just six n
related to what I was saying before. I for example. people tend to use a pass on my thanks to all your staff for to ir
think it's important t o see that writing more formal style. even between thei
arranging such an excellent visit for
is a process. You don't just sit down colleagues. than would be t he case me? I visit a lot of our offices around char
and bang off a long report, or even F
in the UK. When you're working in the world, of course . and this was one
an email or letter. You need to spend an international context. emailing to of the best visits I've had -very well futu
a bit of time planning, thinking about people from different countries and organised. very informative and I was f
what you want to say. what you need grm
with different levels of English. it's most impressed with the quality of the
to in clude. You' ll probably write a draft. best to keep your messages clear and work you are all doing. So if you could and
and at each stage it's important to simple. and to use a polite style. unless just thank them all for me. that would plar
look back over what you've done- to you know the person you're writing to locc
be great. Thanks.
review and check it ... exp
very well.
Speaker 2: It's interesting that Track 14 nea
· Track 11 Case study 1
some companies have very different
58 Exercise 2 we'
internal cultures. and that affects the Background: Exercises 1 and 2
way people write emails. The kind of as i1
Carmen Yung: What one reader finds
Presenter: Today. we' re talking about us t
most persuasive can be different to house style of some companies is very
a local success story in the services
another- but. for me, in a report or informal - the kind of compani es that
industry. and asking two questions:
proposal, what I'm looking for is that encourage staff to dress informally and (t
what has led to this success? And what
it should be very clear. In a proposal where there's not much gap between
does the future hold? The company in Ca!
for example. I want to know quickly levels in t he hierarchy. In these question is Kompleet Solutions. which
what it is that the person or company organisations. the internal emails are Me
has its headquarters in Bristol. and with
is proposing. Then, I'd say I want this likely to also be very informal. Others
us this morning is Angela Hemmings.
Roc
to be backed up with some solid have a more. what's the best word?
founder of the company. Good
data -they need to convince me that -a more traditional style. and they're Yes
morning. Angela .
what they say is true, correct. and that likely to write more formal emails. In Angela Hemmings: Good morning.
can be difficult to do, especially for either case. t hough. when people are fan
Presenter: Angela. could you start
instance in an unsolicited proposal. com municating with external contacts. pu~
by giving a quick introduction to what
where I've got no reason to believe especially people they don't know. hOI
your company does?
what they're saying. Of course. I and haven't met. the style's going to do
Angela: Certainly. We offer a
want the data to be presented in a be at least polite and neutral. if not
complete outsourcing solution for
meaningful and accessible way. There's very formal. and of course you need to companies- small and medium-
thE
no need for very detailed tables of take into account whether the person po·
that don't want al l the headaches
data in most cases- that can be in you're writing to is an English native of·
of ma naging their own offices and
an appendix or just referred to. What speaker or not. WE
busi ness processes. We provide office
I want is t he main points, the critical we
't Track 13 space. ful ly equipped. manage all the
information - if I need more. I can ask we
IT and suchl ike. and provide centralised
for it. 68 Exercises 1 and 2
financial services. Companies can
Daniel Norvak: Well. what I find sh<
Message 7 choose to use our full service or select
more persuasive is stories- they give Speaker: Hi Jane. it's me. George. the parts of it that su it their needs, so
a much rounder picture. So if I read a Sorry to leave this with you but I'm they have great flexibil ity.
company prospectus. I'll often look for ev.
just going away on my holiday and Presenter: So you own the
examples of the company's previous I remembered something I hadn't office space?
work. That could be an outline of what is i
finished off. I sa id I'd get the research Angela: We lease the office space,
they've done or an actual testimonial report for Donahue's completed and and then sub·let it to our clients. The
from a client. If I want to check further. h i~
sent to them by the end of this week. clients pay a single fee to us which
I can always contact t he client to get
60 Audio scripts
covers the premises and all the services Rod: So. Martina. how many Zohra: Well. lots of the computer
they choose to use. so it's easy for of those have we got follow-up screens have fingerprints and dust on
e them. and provides economies of scale meetings with? them, the windows are dirty, and the
dit that a small company could never Martina: So far. we have three pla nts are never looked after- they all
0 achieve operating on their own. meetings arranged, all with small need to be watered regula rly- it gives
oig Presenter: And the company's been start-ups. I've had a meeting with a bad impression.
very successful. and expanded to one of those already- they're a new Ben: So. what's the plan? You're
several cities across the UK. What do consultancy company. and they're very going to write to the company
e you think has been the main reason for interested in taking a full-service office explaining the problems and what we
this success? space. We're waiting for the other two want done. are you?
Angela: Well. as I mentioned, it's to get back to us. Zohra: Yeah. that's right.
a combination of the convenience. Rod: So I'm supposed to go back to Ben: Well. don't forget to mention
l. flexib ility. reduced costs. and also low Angela and tell her we've got one new that we've had complaints from
risk. We don't tie companies in to long client. who wants to take one unit? We customers, and tel l them there's a risk
agreements- typical contracts are for need to do better than this. to our reputation.
six months- and this allows our clients Martina: I know it's difficult ... Zohra: Sure.
to increase or decrease the size of Rod: Yes. and what's the problem? Ben: And make it clear that we
their business quickly in response to Why aren't we getting the clients? expect to see some immediate
changing circumstances. Paul: There just aren't that many improvement, otherwise ...
Presenter: And what does the potential clients out there at the Zohra: Yes, we'll reconsider the
future hold? moment. The current economic contract. certainly.
Angela: Kompleet Solutions has climate's not good. and Birmingham's
grown rapid ly over the last three years. especially hard hit by the recession. f.• Track 17
e
j and we expect that to continue. We Martina: That's right- and small 78 Exercise 5
plan to bring our solutions to more companies are closing all over the Karen: Well. of course. the first point
locations in the UK. and are considering place. not opening up at the moment. is that it's best not to do anything
expansion to other countries in the I think the timing's just not good for that leads to complaints- but that's
near future - so a very bright future! us. And don't forget. that's what I said unrealistic for most of us. I think the
Presenter: Thank you. Angela. and when we started the Birmingham second point is that we shouldn't be
we'll be following Kompleet Solutions project. scared of complaints- they can be very
as it develops. Thanks for joining Rod: Great. so now we've got valuable, possibly the most valuable
us today. a premises with thirty-five percent feedback that you get from customers.
Angela: Thanks for having me on. occupancy. losing money and you're You don't learn all that much f rom
just giving up on it? ... What's our what happy. satisfied customers tell
t Track 15 recovery plan? you. nice as it is to hear.
Case study 1 So. how to respond to complaints
Meeting t Track 16
when you get them? Well, it's always
h 7 A Exercise 2
Rod King: OK. let's start. shall we? good to recognise the feel ings of the
Paul Rook I Martina Canales: Sure. Ben Jenkins: Hi, Zohra. So ... let's sit person who's complaining. even if
Yes. of course. down here a minute. What's it about? you don't agree with or accept the
Rod: So. Angela's waiting for Zohra Ameri: Well, you know we actual complaint. so you can say that
fantastic results from our promotional discussed the problems we've had with you understand that they are upset,
push. What can you tell me? Paul - the cleaning company ... without accepting that you've done
how was the event? What new leads Ben: Yeah - has something else anything wrong. It's also a good thing.
do you have? happened? I think. to welcome the feedback
Paul: Well. I thought we set up Zohra: Well. yes. though it's more explicitly - to let the customer know
the event well -we'd identified good of the same, really. I've been doing that you want to get their opinions and
potential clients through the Chamber regular checks. as we agreed. to see that you value them.
of Commerce and other local contacts. the standard of their work. and it's If you investigate and fi nd that your
We sent out a hundred invitations and really not getting any better. company was at fault. t hen it's good
were hoping that forty to fifty people Ben: No? to admit it -so long as this doesn't
would attend. Zohra: Not really. Several of the make the company look too bad - it
j
Rod: Sounds good -so how many staff have mentioned the dirt to me could be damaging to the company's
showed up? -they really don't like it and say it's reputation so it's good to admit it-
Martina: Not quite that many. affecting their work. And we've also and then apologise. You should also
Paul: No. there were fifteen at the had more complaints- well, comments offer a solution -what are you going
event - so not as good as we'd hoped. really. from customers as well. They're to do for the person compla ining? Will
Rod: Fifteen??? That's not great. commenting on the cleanliness of the you offer a refund. a rep lacem ent. or
is it? reception area and in the offices. compensation. for example?
Paul: Well, no, but they were quite Ben: What sort of things are most The last thing I'd say is that it can be
high-potential leads. obvious? very tempting to start making excuses
Audio scripts 61
-to give long explanations of what w hat you want, and even get wh at you James: Exactly - there are hardly I ti lls
went wrong, for example, or to blame w ant using email, but generally face to any differences. The seco nd po int t hat obvi
someone else. Generally, the customer face is most effective for me. jumps out is the massive seasona l focus tills
doesn't want to hear all this. To them, There are some possible problems in the last two months of the year. ton
you're the one at fault- they don't with emails when you're negotiating Chantal: Certainly, and that's hardly
I to a
,..
care what caused it, they just want to - it depends of course on the type surprising in the UK. mar
J
know what you're going to do to help of negotiation, though . If you're just James: You're right. I also think an
them now. t rying to agree on the price of a hotel important findi ng is the slight peaks in
room for a business trip or something, March last year and April this year and 11~
·~· Track 18 then email's fine. but for a bigger June in both years. -
Arc/
SA Exercise 2 business deal. less so. The problems Chantal: Yes- and t hat's ha rder to
goo
Marta Kalouskova: Well, of course . -well, there's the obvious fact that explain. We need to look at t he other
you
it depends on the type of report, to you can't see how the other person data of course, but I'd speculate that
(
some extent, anyway. Having said reacts to an offer, for example- are it has to do with Easter holidays and
Tue
that, for me, I think without doubt they laughing at it or considering it? school summer holidays. Anyway, let's
I
the Recommendations section is most Then there's the delay - for one thing, not go into the conclusions yet.
,,I OK,
important, for a few reasons . I'll try especia lly if you're in different time James: No, no ...
to explain why I say that. It's mainly zones, there can be natural delays, and Chantal: It's interesting as wel l to
l1l at t
because of the. well. because it's the also it can be easy for the other person note that the volume of sales in some
part that's most practical for me. It's to ignore your email until they're ready. cases d id not change much, suc h as in
wht
what I can turn into an action plan. It Some of these can also be positives, October to December, but t he value
you
tells me as a manager what I should do though- like when you don't want did and also ...
to make things work better, be more to answer immediately- maybe you
( tTrack 22 brir
successful, etcetera. Also, if I trust the want to think about your response, or
wit
people who wrote the report, then I check with someone else or find some 108 Exercise 2
information. That's perfectly possible
,.
have to trust that they have based their Eli Wang: Right, so what do you want ByE
recommendations on the evidence and natural with emails. And another to look at fi rst? The ris k to money
and that the research is sound, so the benefit- if you're using a second col lected?
Recommendations section is almost language, you can take your time to Hans Leysen: Yea h, OK. So we 12,
like a summary in itself as well, by make sure you've understood and to found that t here's only one person, -
make sure your own writing is clear. Olil
implication. the ma nageress, taking all the cash
of<
Jim Butler: All the sections are col lected to the ban k at midday-
( t Track 20 Of i
important, or else they wouldn't be it's not usually all that much at t hat
98 Exercise 6 enj
there. The Findings section is very time of day, but it's st ill a definite risk
Du
important- that's rea lly the heart Speaker: Oh, hi, this is Natasha here, and she could be attacked, and the
ha1
of a report of this type- and the from Alsalia. I'm calling to ask about money could be stolen. What shall we
lur
Recommendations, of course. But for the terms of our contract if we renew it recommend?
or
me the most important, in a longer for another two years- you remember Eli: Well, I don't t hink it's that
rec
report anyway, is the Executive we mentioned it briefly when we met difficult. I'd recommend that t here are
summary. Sometimes that wil l be last week, but didn't agree anything. always two people w hen cash is being
ha•
the only section I read -when, for Anyway, the key questions are: if we taken to the bank, and that whenever
me
example, I'm very busy and I don't extend, do we get a loyalty discount? possible, one of them should be a
un
have the time to read it in more detail, I'm thinking ten percent would be fair. security guard.
to
or the content doesn't really involve And secondly, we'd li ke to change Hans: Right, yea h. And what about
pe
me that much but I need to have an the payment terms to payment within cash stored on the prem ises? At the
to<
overview. The Summary will tell me thirty days of delivery, rather than moment it's kept in a safe, but t he
sa1
what I need to know- the purpose, the fifteen days at the moment. So could safe's not fixed down - it could easily
ml
method, the most important results you just drop me a line with your be carried away.
ev
and recommendations too- so I get thoughts, and we can discuss it in Eli: That's right- we com mented,
wt
the whole lot. Or at least, a bite·sized more detail when we meet next week? didn't we. on how easy it would be to
taste of the whole report. Maybe it's Than ks very much. take it. Also, it's not a fireproof safe.
de
just me, and I'm a bit lazy- I can't be So we recommend the installation of
f't Track 21 lik·
bothered to read the w hole thing . a fireproof safe, and that it sho ul d be
to
1 OA Exercise 3 fixed to the f loor or wa ll.
:t Track 19 So
James Walker: So, looking at the data Hans: That sounds fine. Were there
su
9A Exercise 2 in the graph, what does it show us? any other points about the security of -i
Richard Chapman: Like most people, Fi rst ... cash co llect ed?
pc
I thi nk I'd prefer to negotiate - or at Chantal Ambrose: Yes, the first thing Eli: Yes, there was the po int a,
least usually prefer to negotiate- in is obviously that the pattern of sales is about cas h tills being kept locked
person rather than by email. There may clearly very similar across the two years at all times- the find ings showed
be times when it's actua lly easier to say of the summary. a lot of people faili ng to lock their
62 Audio scripts
t ills between transactions. with the t f Track 25 Kim: Oh, I'm sorry to hear t hat. I got
3t obvious risk of cash being taken from 128 Exercis_e_2_ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ the impression from Steve t hat it was
:us
t ills by opport unist ic thieves. We need t he guys in his factory who were the
Laura Bloomberg: I conduct a lot
t o recommend regular reminders frustrated ones.
lly of traini ng sessio ns for pract ising
to all staff. and spot checks by duty James: Well, he would say t hat,
business people, aimed at helping
managers to follow up o n t his. wouldn't he?
them make the most of their skills in
Kim: What do you mean?
n f Track 2 3 communicating effectively in w rit ing
James: Well. we've had nothing but
j
11 A Exercise 8 in English.
One of the areas people often want problems from them since day one.
Architect: Yeah. yeah , that sou nds Kim: Really?
to ask me about is how to check, edit
good. OK, so when w ould be best for James: Yes, first of all w e had the
or correct their writing- I think it's
you to meet? something that people naturally find problem that w hen we went for
Client: Could you manage next training there we were treated
difficult to do: if you knew someth ing
Tuesday? was wrong, you wou ldn't have written rather poorly.
s
Arrhitect: Yes, Tuesday should be it in the first place; it you know how to Kim: Oh, w hat do you mean?
OK, around 1 o'clock? say something better. or more clearly, James: There w as this kind of
Client: Sounds fine. And we'll meet hostility tow ards us. It was as if they felt
you'd say that the first t ime. These are
at t he site? all good points. we were there to take over their jobs
Architect: OK. I'll need to check that or something. If we had any problems
1 There's really no single. simple
w hen I'm back in the office. Can I send answer. There are a lot of different they just told us to look at the manual
you an email to confirm everything? answers- ways you can help yourse lf -you know how difficult that is, and
Client: Sure, no problem. Could you it's not as if everything can be found in
check and edit. For example, you can
bring the latest version of the plans the manuals.
ask someone you trust to read over
with you? what you've written -that's probably Kim: Oh, sorry to hear that. And
Architect: Of course. See you then. the most effective, but you need to is this why you think that Steve is
Bye. have someone who doesn't mind telling me t hat your team keep asking
questions?
f Track 24 spending t ime on it. It's certainly worth
James: Of course it is. We didn't
doing for any very important writing.
12A Exercise 3 get the training that we expected
like an email to an important contact
Olivia Hamilton: I know it sounds a bit or a report or proposal for external when we came over, not just about
of a cliche- like I'm some stereotype contacts. the production, but the logistics and
of a driven businesswoman- but I do the maintenance of the machinery, so
Another way is to use a kind of
enjoy being busy. doing lots of things. checklist. On it could be things like now we have to ask them everything.
During a typical day at work I often looking at the length of senten ces, or It's almost as if they w ant it to be
have meetings back to back, a quick some kind of secret informatio n or
checking for use of the passive voice.
lunch often while talking about work something.
Another possibility is to kind of
or at my desk, and of course I send and Kim: Well, I'll certainly be having
create your own checklist. You get
receive a lot of emails and take calls. words with Steve about this, but
someone else to look at your writing
Unfortunately, that means I don't and comment on areas where you moving forward, what do you think we
have much time for reading anything should be doing?
often have problems - these could be
more than a page or so long- it's James: Well, we really need the
anything from style- being too formal
unfortunate in a way. because I'd like or informal -to spelling or grammar training and we need it to be done in
to know all the detail, and I know the most effective way that's possible.
mistakes. Then use these to make
people work very hard on putting Apart from the obvious problems w e
your checklist. and check against
together reports and things. but at the encountered in the UK. w e feel that
that after writing.
same time, it's, that's not really what One more thing, of course, is the some trainers need to come here and
my job is- I don't really need to know spelling and grammar check on your see the unique circumstances we're
everything. I have to trust the peopl e working under. It's nothing like the UK,
word processor, but they're notoriously
w ho work wit h me. as you must understand.
unreliable. Still, better than nothing.
Anyway. that's why if a report Kim: Sure. Look, leave it to me and
doesn't have a summary page, I'm not f Track 26 I'll see if I can get the funds to get a
likely to read it - I'll ask someone else Case study 2 team of tra iners to come over to you
to read it and give me the highlights. and provide training and also to look
Investigation: Exercises 1 and 2
So, what I'm looking for in an Executive at how we can help you. Of course.
Kim Hughes: Hi James, I take it you got I understand that some of the issues
summary is just what you'd expect
my message and know why I'm calling? you've got are probably quite different
-an outline. an outline of the main
James Cheng: Hello. Kim, it's good to what we experience here in the UK.
points- what I need to know to make
to hear from you. Yes. we have a few
a decision.
problems with producing the window
frames. I'm glad you called. as it has
been really frustrating.
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Writing

© Cambridge University Press 2012

This publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception

First published 2012

A catalogue recordfor this publication is available from the British Library

ISBN 978-1-107-60351-6 Student's Book with Audio CD

Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or

The secret of writing for impact

Writing for Impact and you

0 I would like to develo p my writing

0 I need to write emails and sometimes

0 I need to improve my writing of

0 I often take notes and minutes of

0 I'm not confident about using an

0 I find it difficult to check and correct

0 I feel I need more practice in writing

0 I sometimes have problems getting

0 I have to deal with complaints from

Consider these questions.

1 letter 2 letter 3 email

dear sir/dear sir or madam Yours faithfully

dear Paul Best wishes

Dear Ms Potts I Dear Paul Best/Kind regards

Jill See you

6 Look back at the six email and letter extracts in 3.

8 IIJnto action Write the beginnings of t w o emails.

1 Consider these questions.

2 (;) Read the letter and answer these questions.

I am w riting to ask you Can you I'd be grat eful if you

4 «:) Complete this short email.

5 t 03 Listen to the extract from a telephone

R eque st for two separate quotes - guest

B ourse links_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _--,

Consider these quest ions.

Trevor Jenkins called

:Y' ..."' \ q.P ~·IA.ri';::;;~ . -Jc.~~tu..

2 Looked at two areas: a .. resource

7 lllnto action You work for the company you heard

Work in groups and decide on the subject and w ho

Read the quotes about meetings.

1 What do these quotes suggest the speakers think about meetings?

Dislikes meefinqs fhaf 1 G-V"oups havinq meefinqss~,outd dec.ide

2 One puv-pose or meefinq minufes: 2 R>ssible puv-poses or minufes:

P...ereV"s c.tea~" and simple minufes so

Item Led by Time Minuted points Action points When by

Rourse links _ __ _ __ _ _ _ __ __ _ __ _ ___,

1 (5) Read the letter below and

1 how about joining us for lunch this Saturday?

5 t 08 Listen to Sonia Afzal talking to a colleague, lan MacDonald, about t he invitation.

Dear Mr Marceau, Dear Mr Marceau,

2 In the letters find:

1 Consider these questions.

How similar is your experience to the two speakers?

Address of the The

optional comma Leave a line

Simon Schofield Signature

Events and Promotions Manager

I'm very pleased to tell you that we have now

It is largely thanks to your 1...................................................... .. . n to Business

Rourse links _ __ _ __ _ _ _ _ __ _ ___,

Rourse links _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __,

Bourse links _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _--,