BUSINESS ENGLISH
Samenvatting 1ste semester schijf 1
Business English 1 1
,UNIT 1 : Organisation
Learners can use vocabulary related to a range of job roles and responsibilities within a company
or organisation.
Learners can use the tenses correctly.
Learners are aware of different ways to manage first meetings and can use a range of phrases for
greetings, introductions and goodbyes.
Learners can use a range of questions and responses to make small talk in first meetings.
Learners can organise information in a work-related email and write a reply to a work invitation.
1.1. A news organisation
Company departments :
Finance -> cash flow , invoicing
Human resources -> healthy and safety , recruitment
Marketing -> brand image , promotion , customer service
Operations -> supply chain
Production -> manufacturing , quality control
Sales -> pricing
Jobs :
News Editor
News Reporter
Programme Director
Director of Human Resources
Finance Supervisor
My job involves newsgathering for a major news organisation.
-> if an activity or situation involves something, that thing is part of it or a result of it
My role as Programme Director is to lead the production team.
-> the position of having control of or responsibility for a group of people or an activity
I’m responsible for running the human resources team.
-> organising or being in charge of an activity, business, organisation or country
We need to make sure we’re getting cash in.
Check that something has been done
Expressions + propositions :
I report to the IT Director
I’m the head of sales
I work closely with the head of marketing
I look after the company website
I take care of the export documentation
I’m responsible for coordinating the production team
I’m in charge of the research and development team
I coordinate with all departments to ensure customer satisfaction
Business English 1 2
, 1.2. Innovative organisations
Words + definition :
Promotion = a move to a more important job in a company or organisation
Innovative = new, different and better than before
Hierarchy = a system of organisation in which people are divided into levels of importance
Bureaucracy = a complicated official system that has a lot of rules and processes
Centralised = organised the control of an organisation so that everything is done or decided in one
place
Decentralised = moved parts of an organisation, etc. from a central place to several different
smaller ones
Tall organisations have lots of management levels. There is generally more bureaucracy and decision-
making is slow and centralised in the top levels of the hierarchy (top-down decision-making). A criticism
of tall organisations is that they are slow to innovate and therefore are less competitive. However, there
are also many opportunities for promotion. Large complex corporations with a lot of staff are typical
examples of tall organisations.
Organisations with taller structures can be slow to change and innovate
Flat organisations are less hierarchical. There are fex levels of middle management. Decision-making is
more decentralised and therefore quicker. The lines of communication between staff and senior manager
are more direct and two-way (top-down as well as bottom-up). Flatter organisations are said to be more
creative and innovative. However, with fewer management levels, there are fewer chances pf promotion.
Managers can have more responsibilities and stress. Start-ups with fewer staff are typical flat
organisations.
Tall organisations Flat organisations
+ clear management structure + faster decisions
+ better supervision + better communication
+ more chances for promotion + employees have more responsibility
- slower decision-making - managers can be overloaded
- poor communication - fewer promotions opportunities
- more expensive to run - can be hard to control
Business English 1 3
Samenvatting 1ste semester schijf 1
Business English 1 1
,UNIT 1 : Organisation
Learners can use vocabulary related to a range of job roles and responsibilities within a company
or organisation.
Learners can use the tenses correctly.
Learners are aware of different ways to manage first meetings and can use a range of phrases for
greetings, introductions and goodbyes.
Learners can use a range of questions and responses to make small talk in first meetings.
Learners can organise information in a work-related email and write a reply to a work invitation.
1.1. A news organisation
Company departments :
Finance -> cash flow , invoicing
Human resources -> healthy and safety , recruitment
Marketing -> brand image , promotion , customer service
Operations -> supply chain
Production -> manufacturing , quality control
Sales -> pricing
Jobs :
News Editor
News Reporter
Programme Director
Director of Human Resources
Finance Supervisor
My job involves newsgathering for a major news organisation.
-> if an activity or situation involves something, that thing is part of it or a result of it
My role as Programme Director is to lead the production team.
-> the position of having control of or responsibility for a group of people or an activity
I’m responsible for running the human resources team.
-> organising or being in charge of an activity, business, organisation or country
We need to make sure we’re getting cash in.
Check that something has been done
Expressions + propositions :
I report to the IT Director
I’m the head of sales
I work closely with the head of marketing
I look after the company website
I take care of the export documentation
I’m responsible for coordinating the production team
I’m in charge of the research and development team
I coordinate with all departments to ensure customer satisfaction
Business English 1 2
, 1.2. Innovative organisations
Words + definition :
Promotion = a move to a more important job in a company or organisation
Innovative = new, different and better than before
Hierarchy = a system of organisation in which people are divided into levels of importance
Bureaucracy = a complicated official system that has a lot of rules and processes
Centralised = organised the control of an organisation so that everything is done or decided in one
place
Decentralised = moved parts of an organisation, etc. from a central place to several different
smaller ones
Tall organisations have lots of management levels. There is generally more bureaucracy and decision-
making is slow and centralised in the top levels of the hierarchy (top-down decision-making). A criticism
of tall organisations is that they are slow to innovate and therefore are less competitive. However, there
are also many opportunities for promotion. Large complex corporations with a lot of staff are typical
examples of tall organisations.
Organisations with taller structures can be slow to change and innovate
Flat organisations are less hierarchical. There are fex levels of middle management. Decision-making is
more decentralised and therefore quicker. The lines of communication between staff and senior manager
are more direct and two-way (top-down as well as bottom-up). Flatter organisations are said to be more
creative and innovative. However, with fewer management levels, there are fewer chances pf promotion.
Managers can have more responsibilities and stress. Start-ups with fewer staff are typical flat
organisations.
Tall organisations Flat organisations
+ clear management structure + faster decisions
+ better supervision + better communication
+ more chances for promotion + employees have more responsibility
- slower decision-making - managers can be overloaded
- poor communication - fewer promotions opportunities
- more expensive to run - can be hard to control
Business English 1 3
