Tag: business and business english

Huggable Robots

C1 – Advanced

For kids, going to the hospital can be a terrifying and sometimes boring experience. An interesting innovation from researchers and roboticists may be a good solution- a robot companion.  This robot’s creators aim to know if it can can have therapeutic value for hospitalized children. Can it really alleviate sick children’s anxiety, pain, and isolation?

Let’s meet this blue bear who’s making sick kids less blue.

Discussion Questions:

1. What do you think of “Huggable”? How does a child respond to it?
2. What suggestions did one of the kids give to make it a better robot companion?
3. How else can we make a doctor’s visit less dreadful for children?
4. Did you enjoy hospital visits when you were a kid? How about now?

Winter and HBO Spain

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Whether you are a big fan of US TV series or just a couch potato, here’s good news for you. HBO is launching a Spanish service real soon.  No specific date yet but officials are saying that it is coming very soon.

Read this article about HBO along with one of the most well-loved TV series Game of Thrones coming to Spain.

The US channel responsible for hit series including Game of Thrones, Girls and True Detective is launching a Spanish service.

Although no exact launch date has yet been confirmed, the streaming platform is expected to be active within days after HBO Spain activated a twitter account with the announcement that it was “coming very soon”.

¡Aquí estamos! No te pierdas nada sobre #HBOEspaña. Muy pronto, lo mejor de HBO y mucho más a un solo click… https://t.co/Dj8courKpp pic.twitter.com/Or29YxApMv — HBO España (@HBO_ES) November 16, 2016

A message from Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, who plays Jaime Lannister in the hit series Game of Thrones, and is currently on location in Spain filming Season Seven also had a message to fans.

“Very soon everyone in Spain will be able to watch all the seasons of Game of Thrones fans on HBO España,” he said on in a clip filmed in Seville.

Alguien tiene algo que decir… Síguenos y no te pierdas nada sobre HBO España: https://t.co/Dj8coua9xR @nikolajcw pic.twitter.com/qxAhPiJdAZ — HBO España (@HBO_ES) November 16, 2016

HBO has teamed up with Vodafone to offer the streaming service, with customers able to access it for €7.99 a month, after initial free trial periods.

READ MORE: Ten incredible Spain locations for Game Of Thrones Season 7

It looks like there will be an option for non-Vodafone customers to access HBO España as well, although the price point hasn’t been made public yet.

The US company promises access to an initial catalogue of over 3,000 titles including documentaries, Hollywood blockbusters and kids’ shows.

New episodes of current hits such as The Night Of, Vinyl, Westworld, Divorce, and of course, Game of Thrones will be available as they premiere in the US.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Would you consider yourself a fan of the show Game of Thrones?
  2. Why do you think GOT has become of the most famous series of all time?
  3. What other shows do you enjoy watching and why?
  4. How much television do you watch everyday?
  5. Are you happy with the programmes on TV? Why or why not?

Working Abroad

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Migrating to another country would be a breeze if we all spoke one language and had similar cultures. However, once you leave your home country, you start to realize that things are actually very different.

There are many differences among various cultures across the globe. Your ability and willingness to cope with these differences determine how your experience will be like living and working in a foreign country.

Watch the video below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.

Discussion Questions:
1. Do you agree with the speaker that the best way to compete and succeed in today’s economy is to move to other countries?
2. What are the main reasons people move abroad?
3. What are some of the benefits of working in another country?
4. What do you think are the main challenges people face when working abroad?
5. When is the best time and What’s the ideal amount of time to work abroad? Why?

Customer Service

B2 – Upper Intermediate

How important is it really to take care of the customers’ needs? Customer service is making sure a customer is rendered superior quality service and assistance before, during and after a purchase of a product.

Discussion Questions:

  1. Discuss Jackie’s recent customer service experience.
  2. What is the importance of having an excellent customer service?
  3. Do you think companies should invest more on this area? Why or why not?
  4. Talk about the best and worst customer service you’ve ever had.

Ways To Drive Traffic To Your Website

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Almost everyone in the world is on the world wide web nowadays. Doing business online has never been more important for businesses in offering their products and services and for reaching out to their target markets.

Read the article below and be ready to answer the questions that follow.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/robertadams/2017/04/10/23-proven-ways-to-drive-traffic-to-your-website/?sh=668d84ec2654

Discussion Questions:
1. What do you think of Jeff’s idea to compete against yourself? Do you think this would work?
2. What are the benefits and drawbacks for a business to go online?
3. Does your company do business over the internet?
4. What features do you look for in a website when doing some transactions?
5. How do online businesses make the market competitive?

What Is Branding

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The businessdictionary.com defines “branding” as “the process involved in creating a unique name and image for a product in the consumers’ mind, mainly through advertising campaigns”.

Watch this video explaining what branding is in a nutshell.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What did you learn about branding from the video?
  2. What are ways to build a strong corporate identity?
  3. How do you think branding has changed because of social media and the internet?
  4. What is your company’s branding like? How can it be improved?
  5. Name some companies you think has the best and the worst branding. Describe their brand and explain why you find it impressive or otherwise.

Giving Employees an Ownership Stake

C1 – Advanced

Employees of Chobani learned that they are getting ownership stake that could make them millionaires. They are getting shares worth up to 10 percent of the company when it goes public or is sold. Hamdi Ulukaya, the CEO, believes it’s just right to give the wealth back to his workers who have helped him build this company that is already several billion dollars worth.

Watch the video below to find out more.

http://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/chobani-ceo-giving-employees-an-ownership-stake-in-yogurt-empire-674292291768

Discussion Questions:

1. What do you think of Hamdi Ulukaya’s gesture? If you were him, would you do the same thing?
2. What are things that can transform business to a higher level?
3. What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of being your own boss?
4. Have you ever thought of starting a business?

The Rise of Alternative Funerals

B2 – Upper Intermediate

In most countries, planning your funeral is something not often talked about. But a new generation of entrepreneurs are encouraging people to be more open and comfortable about it.

Click on the title below to read more about the business of death and how businesspersons are breathing new life into it. Be prepared to discuss words and expressions.

http://www.bbc.com/news/business-35235590

Discussion Questions:

1. Describe the different funeral business featured in the article and what they offer.
2. What is your general opinion of a less traditional funeral?
3. Why do you think this business is starting to pick-up in the UK?
4. What is the advantage of having an alternative type of funeral?

Barbie the Most Famous Doll in the World

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The Barbie doll has always been an iconic toy. It’s  famous throughout the globe. During the past decades, Barbie doll has undergone through many developments in terms of its appearance. But recently, another toy company has produced a doll that also captures the eyes of children.

Read this lesson about Barbie, the most famous doll, turning 50.

http://www.english-online.at/hobbies/barbie/barbie-famous-doll-at-50.htm

Discussion Questions:

1. Was the Barbie doll famous during your time? How about now?
2. What are some of the popular toys that became part of your childhood?
3. What can guarantee the popularity of a certain toy or merchandise?
4. What kind of toys are good for children?

Business Ethics on the Job

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Ethics is all about doing the the moral or right thing and making sure that you know how your decisions will affect others. It is a very important to uphold some ethics when doing business.

For this activity, you will be able to know words and phrases used when dealing with business ethics. Be ready to answer some discussion questions.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is the purpose of business, in your opinion? Is it just to make money?
  2. Are some jobs more ethical than others? Explain.
  3. What examples can you give of businesses behaving badly?
  4. What ethical issues does the industry you work in face?
  5. Why do you think companies are becoming more interested in corporate responsibility?
  6. What can employees do to try to change the behaviour of businesses that are behaving unethically?