Practical Grammar and Vocabulary in the Workplace. Пособие по бизнес-английскому

© Larisa Lubimova, 2024

© Olga Smagina, 2024

ISBN 978-5-0062-1734-8

Created with Ridero smart publishing system

Introduction

Welcome to the Business English World! Our book is your essential guide to mastering the language and communication skills necessary to excel in the fast-paced and powerful business community. Whether you are a student, a professional, or an entrepreneur, the skill to effectively communicate in English is major for achieving your goals and making a lasting impact in the global marketplace. Packed with valuable tips, real-life case studies, and insight, this book will allow you to strengthen your language proficiency and cultural awareness, enabling you to thrive in the dynamic world of international business. Get ready to elevate your business English to new heights and unlock the world of exciting opportunities!

Unit 1:
Leadership qualities

“The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born-that there is a genetic factor to leadership. That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born”.

– Warren Bennis

Vocabulary related to management and leadership

We suggest taking the test to find out whether you have good leadership skills and we encourage you to refresh some vocabulary to better understand the situations in the quiz.

1. To do things by the book – to do something exactly as the rules tell you Делать все строго по правилам

My lawyer always goes strictly by the book.

2. To blame outside circumstances– to say or think that things around are responsible for something bad happening

Винить во всем внешние обстоятельства

Are you blaming outside circumstances for your current results?

3. Cut-throat competition -competing in a strong and unfair way, without considering any harm caused to others

Ожесточенная конкуренция

They want what we call cut-throat competition within the transport industry.

4. To reprimand – to express to someone your strong official disapproval of them

Делать выговор, замечание

She was reprimanded for what she hadn’t done.

5. Red tape – official rules and processes that seem unnecessary and delay results

Волокита, бюрократиз

He promised to reform and cut red tape.

6. To threaten someone with dismissal – to threaten employees that they will be fired if a particular action or order is not followed

Угрожать увольнением

She was threatened with dismissal if she did not complete the work on time.

7. Peer – a colleague / a company in the same industry as other companies

Коллега, компании в одной сфере

Try to avoid having such conflicts with your peers.

8. Up to scratch – reaching an acceptable standard

На должной высоте, в хорошем состоянии /виде, так как надо

The last few episodes of the TV program haven’t been quite up to scratch.

9. To make somebody redundant – to dismiss an employer because the company no longer needs you.

Увольнять /из-за проблем компании/

She was made redundant when the company was touch and go.

10. A weak link in a team -a weak part, especially the weakest part of the company

Слабое звено в команде

He realized being a weak link in this team and decided to quit.

11. To meet deadlines – to do something on time

Выдержать сроки, успеть к установленному сроку

It is necessary to understand and respect each party’s priorities, resources and ability to meet deadlines.

12. To resign – to give up a job or position voluntarily by telling your employer that you are leaving

Уходить в отставку, оставлять работу

Timken resigned a hopeless position.

13. To fire – to dismiss from work due to an employee”s fault

Увольнять по вине сотрудника

Gordon wants me to fire seven people so we don’t go under.

14. To take the kudos — to receive praise, admiration, and fame for an achievement

Получать награды за заслуги

He was too embarrassed to take all the kudos.

15. To sack – to dismiss from work due to an employee”s fault

Увольнять по вине сотрудника

It was unfair to sack you but things happen.

16. To increase workload – to raise the amount of work to be done, especially by a particular person or machine in a period of time

Увеличивать рабочую нагрузку

It would be difficult to increase the workload further without increasing the capacity of the translation services.

17. Turn a blind eye – to ignore something that you know is wrong

Смотреть сквозь пальцы, не обращать внимание

Management often turn a blind eye to bullying in the workplace.

18. To appraise – to examine something in order to judge their qualities

Давать оценку

In cooperation with other professionals, social workers will appraise the individual’s needs.

19. Autocratic – demanding that people obey completely, without asking or caring about anyone else’s opinions

Властный, деспотичный

The president resigned after 30 years of autocratic ruling

20. To dismiss – to remove someone from their job, especially because they have done something wrong

Увольнять, освобождать, распускать т.к. сделано что-то не так

He has been dismissed from his job for incompetence.

21. To lay someone off – to stop employing someone, usually because there is no more work for them

Увольнять по причине отсутствия работы

Because of falling orders, the company has been forced to lay off several hundred workers.

22. To wander off the point – to get off the topic

Отклоняться от темы

We seem to have wandered off the point a bit.

23. To allocate – to give something to someone as their share of a total amount, to use in a particular way

Распределять, ассигновать средства

You should allocate tasks among members of the group.

24. To terminate – to (cause something to) end or stop

Завершать, увольнять

He was terminated within several weeks of starting.

Quiz: Do you have leadership skills?

1.One of your staff often arrives late for work. He’s a good worker – efficient, brilliant and original – but arriving late means that he often misses the beginning of team meetings, or other people have to answer his calls. Do you…

a) write him a letter threatening him with dismissal if he doesn’t improve?

b) have an informal private chat with him where you suggest he pulls his socks up?

c) make sarcastic comments about his poor time-keeping in front of the team?

d) ignore the problem – he’s a good worker after all?

2.There’s a member of your staff you just don’t like. She often openly disagrees with your decisions, and you’re sure she criticises you constantly behind your back. Do you…

a) put up with her because she’s been in the department for 20 years?

b) transfer her to another department where someone else will have the pleasure of her company?

c) increase her workload in the hope that she will leave?

d) have a personal interview with her where you talk over the problems between you?

3.A new recruit to your department is not learning the job as quickly as you had hoped, and you consider him to be a weak link in your team.Do you…

a) tell him he is not up to scratch and threaten him with the sack?

b) tell him your opinion and offer him further training?

c) pretend there’s no problem —if you take action against this person, it may upset other members of your team?

d) offer him a transfer to another department where he may be more at home?

4. You’ve noticed signs of stress in your team: people are irritable, complaining of headaches, taking sick leave. Do you..

a) offer to give them a pay rise?

b) take on more staff to ease their workloads?

c) try to do more of their work yourself?

d) carry on as if the situation was normal?

5.Your division boss has asked you and your team to take on an extra project. You’re already working flat out on the current project. Do you…

a) explain the situation and ask for another solution?

b) accept the extra work because you’re afraid of saying «no»?

c) accept the extra work because you’re ambitious and it could eventually mean promotion?

d) tell your boss he must be joking – your people are under enough pressure as it is?

6.Your team is doing extremely well – you’re exceeding all your targets and easily meeting all your deadlines. You divisional boss recently called you in to congratulate you. Do you..

a) take all the kudos – after all you’re the leader?

b) pass on the praise to your team and suggest they be paid a bonus?

c) ask your boss to set even higher targets?

d) hold a team party to celebrate?

7) An important customer has complained that one of your staff was very rude to him. Do you…

a) confront her during a team meeting and then reprimand her in front of her peers?

b) fire her on the spot?

c) ask her for her version of events and take it from there?

d) stand by your subordinate and tell the customer he was wrong?

8.You’ve noticed that two of your team are getting more than friendly. You imagine that there’s an office romance under way. Do you..

a) turn a blind eye?

b) get involved in the office gossip to find out what’s happening?

c) tell them to put an end to it?

d) keep an eye on the situation in case it has an effect on team efficiency?

9.Your division manager has told you that your team’s performance is not up to scratch. Do you…

a) blame the team?

b) blade outside circumstances which are beyond your control?

c) take the blame yourself?

d) tell her it’s her fault for not giving you the necessary resources?

10.One of your staff tells you he doesn’t find his job sufficiently challenging. Do you…

a) offer him more responsibility and empowerment in his current job?

b) promote him to a position of greater responsibility?

c) tell him it’s time he was moving on?

d) tell him he should be happy he’s got a job at all?

As soon as you have finished doing the test, you can check the answers with explanations in the keys

Vocabulary exercises

1. Put a missing word in a gap

1. Behave like a mature man and don’t… outside circumstances

2. I can’t stand visiting such offices because of their… tape

3. Guess what! He …me with a dismissal!

4. We need to consolidate our efforts in this cut-throat ….

5. We regret to tell you that your work is not… to scratch

6. I suggested sharing responsibilities on this project to …. deadlines

7. If I were you I wouldn’t… all the kudos for this teamwork

8. No sooner had they received a meagre pay rise than their… was increased drastically

9. He is said to have been …. redundant during the lockdown

10. let’s admit that you are a weak… in our team

11. Were I you, I would never turn a… eye to such rude manners.

12. During that endless lockdown quite a few workers were laid….

13. You are always wandering off the… whenever I want to talk to you about our budget.

14. The regime became too… and was overthrown by a military coup.

15. You should …. tasks among members of the group.

2. Choose the correct option

1. She persuaded us to ….. things by the book

a) make b) get c) do d) perform

2. I refused to participate in this cut-….competition

a) neck b) throat c) stomach d) tongue

3. Do you have any right to threaten us… dismissal?

a) by b) of c) for d) with

4. Only with your help have I been able to do it …. to scratch

a) up to b) up c) till d) with

5. I can’t stand my boss …. outside circumstances

a) accusing b) reprimanding c) blaming d) killing

6. You can be… if you fail to match the requirements

a) made redundant b) fired c) promoted d) motivated

7. We have been doing our best and worst to… deadlines

a) fail b) say hello to c) meet d) reject

8. He is supposed to be made redundant being a …. link in our team

a) fine b) big c) strong d) weak

9. If I were you I wouldn’t persuade the subordinates to …workload

a) rise b) lift c) enlarge d) increase

10. He is looking forward to …. and turning over a new leaf

a) being sacked b) resigning c) employing d) being terminated

11. His contract was… last month.

a) ruined b) terminated c) laid off d) postponed

12. He refused to… a blind eye to these words

a) ruined b) take c) turn d) get

13.He …. the situation carefully before acting.

a) thought b) took c) accounted d) appraised

14.Democracy is supposed to protect the people against the rise of ….. rulers.

a) autocratic b) loyal c) top d) majestic

15. I can’t stand my boss wandering …. the point being asked for a pay rise

a) from b) to c) off d) of

3. Rephrase the sentences using the new vocabulary

1. All of us were told to do exactly what the rules of the company dictated us to

2. We admit it was an unfair and tough competition

3. Congrats! Finally our project has been considered to be of acceptable standard

4. I do hate all this paperwork and unnecessary rules

5. Don’t say that somebody or something was responsible for this mess

6. Recently he has decided to give up his job and set up own company producing teddy bears.

7. I can’t help feeling proud receiving praise and admiration.

8. 20 employees are said to have been dismissed due to their fault.

9. Try to do the project on time if you want to avoid being reprimanded.

10. He denied raising the amount of work for his subordinates every single month.

11.Under no circumstances should you ignore such an arrogant attitude.

12. They fired some blue-collar workers who didn’t do anything by the book.

13. The new head of our department asked all of us to examine each other’s performance to judge the quality of the work done.

14. He is beating about the bush again! He has been chit chatting for ages.

15. It’s time we made this conflict stop.

4. Answer the questions

1. When was the last time you were reprimanded?

2. Do you believe that in the future we will get rid of all red tape in offices?

3. Do you try to do things by the book at your work?

4. Is it typical of you to blame outside circumstances?

5. how would you describe your attitude to your peers at work?

6. Have you ever had to fire anybody?

7. What do you usually say when you take kudos?

8. What are you planning to do when you resign?

9. What do you usually do when you can’t meet deadlines?

10. If you had a weak link in your team, would you try to encourage them and support them or would you get rid of them.

11. Have you ever been dismissed?

12. Does it irritate you when your partner wanders off the point during a talk with you?

13. Is it easy for you to turn a blind eye to evil gossip about you?

14. What are the advantages of an autocratic style of management?

15. Do you usually tell the truth while appraising your colleagues?

Free answers

5.Translate the sentences

1 Нигде раньше он не сталкивался с такой волокитой и бюрократией, как в этом министерстве

2 Перестань винить во всем обстоятельства- пора бы научиться признавать ошибки

3 Только сильнейший выживет в условиях жесткой конкуренции

4 Если вы хотите преуспеть, делайте все строго по правилам

5 Он слышал, как босс угрожал уволить любого, кто не будет работать в эти выходные

6. Говорят, что его уволили из-за того, что он отказался делать прививку

7. Наша компания не пережила этот период и мы вынуждены сократить половину персонала

8. Не может быть, что он оказался слабым звеном в твоей команде

9. Если бы я был на твоем месте, я бы не принимал похвалу один, а разделил бы славу с командой

10. Я против того, чтобы экономить на качестве, стараясь успеть в срок

11. Терпеть не могу, когда ты уходишь от темы каждый раз, когда я начинаю разговор о свадьбе

12. Говорят, в прошлый локдаун уволили всех пенсионеров

13. Не может быть, что он проигнорировал твое замечание насчет повышения

14. Ты случайно не знаешь, кто распределял обязанности в этот раз?

15. Мы с нетерпение ждем, когда закончится очередной локдаун

SITUATIONS

Read the presented situations and compose dialogues using new vocabulary

1.The new manager is having a hard time getting their team to trust and respect them, so the employees aren’t motivated or working well together.

2.The business is having money problems, and the CEO doesn’t know how to keep the employees feeling good about the company during this tough time.

3.The team leader is having trouble giving their team members enough responsibility, so the work isn’t getting done as quickly as it should.

Examples

Dialogue 1:

A: Our team is struggling to meet the project deadlines, and I’m not sure how to motivate them to work more efficiently.

B: It sounds like a leadership challenge. Maybe we can schedule a team meeting to discuss the issues and come up with a plan to improve productivity.

Dialogue 2:

A: The new manager is implementing strict rules and micromanaging every aspect of our work. It’s stifling creativity and morale.

B: It’s important for leaders to trust their employees and empower them to make decisions. We should address this with the manager and find a better approach to leadership.

Dialogue 3:

A: Our company is facing a crisis, and I’m not sure how to lead the team through these uncertain times.

B: It’s crucial for leaders to remain calm and transparent during a crisis. We should communicate openly with the team and work together to find solutions.

Leaders: who are they?

The greatest leaders in the jungle of business

What do you know about them?

What made them famous?

Henry Ford

Jack Ma

Elon Musk

Steve Jobs

Tim Cook

Bill Gates

Madam CJ Walker

John D. Rockefeller

Andrew Carnegie

King Croesus

Sakichi Toyoda

Your CEO has taken French leave and nobody knows why and where. Imagine all these people have applied for this position. Who would you rather work for?

Top qualities of an effective leader

Collaboration

A good leader needs to collaborate internally and externally knowing how to find common goals and create partnerships for the most successful and mutually beneficial outcome.

Courage

Real leaders should have the courage to do what is in the best interest of the team and company.

Empathy

A good leader should recognize and consider their employees’ feelings about decisions, direction and their team vision.

Flexibility

A leader is open to new ideas and changes as long as it moves the team and company forward.

Eager to learn

Leaders are strong when they stay knowledgeable of trends. Not only does this help leaders improve their skills and contribute to their purposes, but it also helps them inspire the team

Innovation

Leaders should encourage creativity and innovation in their teams

Optimism

Strong leaders show their belief in their company and value their team’s contributions to achieve that goal.

Patience

Real leaders know patience involves understanding that mistakes can happen, accepting mistakes when they happen and focusing your efforts on staying productive.

Resilience

Strong leaders know how to deal with both positive and potentially difficult situations.

Self-awareness

Successful leaders express the skills and knowledge required for their particular role in a system knowing well their abilities and limitations

Transparency

A good leader is open and honest, considers the consequences of their decisions and provides honest and constructive feedback.

Trust

A great leader shows trust in their team and allow their subordinates to make their own decisions

Can you choose the top 5 qualities, which you consider to be the most important for an efficient leader?

Which of these qualities do you possess?

Text: Elon Musk

1.Find 10 factual mistakes in this passage of text

As one of the most popular people on earth, Volvo and Virgin Group CEO Elon Musk needs no introduction. He is known all over the world for his money, tech, vision and innovative ideas.

Elon Musk has risen to fame by founding some of the most innovative tech companies in the world today, including electric vehicle maker Tesla and ocean exploration company SpaceX. Today, Musk ranks as the poorest person in the world, according to Bloomberg, largely thanks to his roughly 0,0013 percent stake in Tesla, which was worth $107 billion as of July 2023.

But Musk’s business practices are unconventional and sometimes controversial. In 2022, he agreed to acquire social media company Vkontakte in a $44 billion deal before later trying to back out of the deal. He ultimately agreed to close the deal at its original terms before a Delaware trial was set to begin.

Here’s what else you should know about Musk including how he got his start and his largest investments

Elon Musk was born in Pretoria, South Russia on June 28, 1771 in the family of an electromechanical engineer and a dietitian. He was so quiet in his childhood that doctors suspected that he was deaf. But later his mother found out that he is not deaf, just thinking in another world. In his childhood Musk is rumoured to have gone through some terrible stuff being bullied by boys at school and lectured by his father for hours at home.

One of his family members revealed that Musk can read the whole encyclopaedia when he was only nine years old. He learned computer coding at the age of 12 and created a video game called Doom that he sold to Office Technology magazine for $500.

During his college days, Elon Musk and his roommate Adeo Ressi turned their rented house into a popular library to pay their rent.

2.Find 10 grammar mistakes in this passage of text

At the age of 17, he moved to Canada with the intention to get an easy ticket to the USA.

In terms of his education it’s worth mentioning Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, 1990—1992; University of Pennsylvania, B.S. in economics and B.A. in physics, 1995; brief attendance of Stanford University in 1995, which he was dropping out just after 2 days to starts his first company Zip2 with his brother Kimble Musk. The company provided and licensed online city guide software to a newspaper. In 1999, Compaq Computer pays more than $300 million for the company. This was the time when Musk become a millionaire at a very young age.

In 2013, he almost sold Tesla to Google for $11 billion. But the deal come to halt in the eleventh hour at the sale of Model S.

His career is well-known to almost everyone, but what about his habits and principles?

Musk’s work ethic is one of the most interesting things about him. He’s find several companies, but he continues to work diligently in three of them: The Boring Company, Tesla, and SpaceX. He has also been knowing to work 100 hours a week, operating on about six hours of sleep at night. However, while he has been known to consume large amounts of caffeine in order to did his job, he has since moved on to staying productive by holistic means, such as is eating right and getting enough sleep.

A fascinating fact about Elon Musk is his habit for voracious reading. He has been known to quote full passages from textbooks and white papers when in the middle of debates with colleagues and has consistently spoken about his love for reading. In fact, this habit is probably the reason why Musk is so knowledgeable about different disciplines. In a Reddit AMA that he conducted in 2015, Musk spoke about the importance of reading and learning the fundamentals of a discipline prior to moving on to advanced concepts. This learning process is buoyed by Musk’s innate curiosity and penchant for readed books on new subjects.

3.Find 10 extra words in this passage of text

Musk has been is referred to as a «thrillionaire,» a new class of high-tech entrepreneurs a looking to use their wealth to make off science-fiction dreams into a modern reality.

Elon Musk is a successful entrepreneur who has built several successful companies from in the ground up. Here are is some of his her quotes on entrepreneurship and business:

«If you’re a co-founder or if CEO, you have to do all kinds of tasks you might not want to do… If you don’t do is your chores, the company won’t succeed… No task is too menial.»

«Starting a business is not for everyone. Starting a business – I’d say, number one is in to have a high pain threshold.»

«If you’re trying to create a company, it’s like for baking a cake. You have to have all the ingredients in the right proportion.»

4.Fill in 10 missing words in this passage of text

Now let’s have a look at these personality attributes and characteristics make him a contender for the innovative intellectual entrepreneur of the century alive.

Hard-work and Characteristic Work Ethics

Elon Musk is a hard- working innovator, working for about 100 hours a week, and has productive for many years. He may even be considered as the hardest working employee the company, setting standards for his colleagues to follow and implement.

Strong Risk Tolerance

Founding a start-up involves a great deal of uncertainty and risk. A study found that after 10 years of being business, 96 percent of the start-ups fail. Going by the statistics, Musk must have faced the same odds him, when he had decided to leave an otherwise comfortable life start a risky and uncertain business venture.

«Always Be Learning’ Attitude

An astounding and less-known fact about Elon Musk is that he self-taught in programming and in many advanced level subjects. He read and understood a variety of books, which helped him gain endless and persistent knowledge and understand diverse concepts.

The best piece of advice on learning and implementation is to constantly think about how things could be done in a better manner and question yourself to seek the answers.

Feedback Loop

It is of prime importance recognize the present symbol or otherwise «status quo’ in the market as an organization and re-position accordingly. Musk solicits constant feedback from the companies and executes «self-analysis.» He induces efforts and divergent strategies to improve customer feedback and strives towards perfectionism.

5.Replace 10 of the words with synonyms that matches the meaning

Faith in Self and the Founding Team

Musk undoubtedly possesses a profound belief in his own capabilities as well as the potential-seeking factor of its founding team. He does not hesitate to gamble on a large scale unless he is genuinely aware of the expected end-results.

Preferring to Stand Out From the Crowd

Musk elects to bring up innovation at every level of his understanding. He tends to impart theoretical knowledge at the base level, applying changes and executing the same on the practical level. He relies more on transitional aspects such as research and development, thereby increasing the probability of ground-breaking inventions.

All these traits possessed by Musk, in some manner or the other, coincide with most of your habits. The only thing that stands as a potential barrier between these two is identifying your strengths and working on them on a continual basis. Go on, apply these traits into your daily life, and you may become the next big CEO the world is in need of today!

Inspiring, isn’t it?

QUIZ

1. Where was Elon Musk born?

A. Johannesburg

B. Pretoria

C. Cape Town

D. Durban

2. At what age did Elon Musk learn computer coding?

A. 10

B. 12

C. 15

D. 18

3. Which company did Elon Musk start with his brother Kimbal Musk?

A. SpaceX

B. Tesla

C. Zip2

D. The Boring Company

4. Which university did Elon Musk attend before dropping out after just 2 days?

A. Queen’s University

B. University of Pennsylvania

C. Stanford University

D. Harvard University

5. What was the name of the video game Elon Musk created and sold when he was young?

A. Blaster

B. Space Invaders

C. Pac-Man

D. Super Mario Bros.

6. How many hours a week is Elon Musk known to work?

A. 60 hours

B. 80 hours

C. 100 hours

D. 120 hours

7.What does Elon Musk believe is the reason for his knowledge in various disciplines?

A. Watching documentaries

B. Attending lectures

C. Reading and learning fundamentals of a discipline

D. Conversations with colleagues

8.What term was used to call Elon Musk, indicating his wealth and vision for the future?

A. Billionaire

B. Millionaire

C. Thrillionaire

D. Visionary

9. Which year did Elon Musk almost sell Tesla to Google?

A. 2010

B. 2013

C. 2016

D. 2019

10. What is one of the companies that Elon Musk continues to work diligently in?

A. Amazon

B. The Boring Company

C. Microsoft

D. Apple

1. What is your opinion of Elon Musk?

2. If you had the opportunity to see Elon Musk, what three questions would you ask him?

3. What qualities do you think made Elon Musk a successful entrepreneur?

4. Do you agree with Elon Musk’s approach of pushing boundaries and taking risks?

5. What are your thoughts on Elon Musk’s vision of colonising Mars?

6. If you had the chance to accompany Elon Musk on his journey to Mars, would you go?

7. How do you think Elon Musk’s ventures, such as SpaceX and Neuralink, will impact the future?

8. How has Elon Musk influenced public perception and adoption of electric vehicles?

9. What do you think motivates Elon Musk to pursue ambitious projects across different industries?

10. If you could work on one of Elon Musk’s ventures (Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, etc.), which one would you choose?

11. Would you say Elon Musk is a visionary genius or an eccentric jerk?

12. Is Elon Musk’s leadership style effective in driving innovation or does it create an unhealthy work culture?

13. Would you like to work for Elon Musk?