Tag: Business English

No More Bosses

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Holacracy is a method of removing job titles and hierarchy. In this system, decision-making is distributed among self-managing teams. In this method, certain positions in the business hierarchy such as managers are dissolved.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What are the benefits of having a boss/manager? Can you think of any disadvantages in the absence of one?
  2. Do you agree with holacracy? Are there companies in your country that practice holacracy?
  3. Describe your relationship with your former and current bosses. How helpful were they to you?

US-China Tech Firms Tension

B2 – Upper Intermediate

China claims that its tech companies have been victims of “naked bullying” by the US. The American government has taken restrictions measures on Chinese applications such as TikTok and WeChat. The hindering of the said apps was a result of issues with data security. Who are affected by these two largest economies’ trade war?

Let’s read more about China’s claim of naked bullying and USA’s The Clean Network through this article:

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-54052765

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is naked bullying?
  2. What do you think of USA’s data privacy efforts? Do you have such policies in your country?
  3. Do you use any Chinese applications? Describe their use in your daily life.
  4. How is the trade war between US and China affecting the world?
  5. Do you think Chinese applications are danger to any country?
  6. How important is data security and privacy?

Accusing Business Rival of Stealing Staff and Trade Secrets

B2 – Upper Intermediate

The world’s top electric-vehicle manufacturer Tesla claims that its rival Rivian Automotive Inc. has repeatedly poached their employees and stolen some of their intellectual property.

Read more about this news on business rivalry and stealing talents and trade secrets from the link below:

https://www.aljazeera.com/ajimpact/tesla-lawsuit-accuses-rival-stealing-staff-trade-secrets-200723051819087.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is your reaction to Rivian’s alleged pattern of poaching its employees and stealing trade secrets from Tesla?
  2. Talk about your experience being poached by other companies. How did it happen?
  3. Do you think it is ethical to divulge information/knowledge you have acquired from your former company to your present employer?
  4. How does your company protect itself from poaching and intellectual property theft?
  5. What is your direct competitor/s like? Do you think your company has the same problem as Tesla with them?

Email Etiquette Rules Professionals Should Follow

B2 – Upper Intermediate

On average, most employees spend almost 1/4 of their workweek going over all their work e-mails. Even though we use e-mails all the time, many workers still have the tendency to commit embarrassing mistakes when using e-mails as a way to communicate at work. 

Read this article to know some of the most essential e-mail etiquette rules every employee must know. 

https://www.inc.com/business-insider/email-etiquette-rules.html

Discussion Questions:

  1. Which rules did you not know or follow before?
  2. Do you agree or disagree that “it’s better to leave humor out of emails unless you know the recipient well”?
  3. Talk about your experience when miscommunication via e-mail occurred between you and a colleague or customer/client. What do you think are other ways to avoid misunderstandings when using e-mail as a means of communication?
  4. What do you do when you receive an e-mail that wasn’t meant for you?
  5. What is your reaction to: “Every electronic message leaves a trail.”?

Things Selling Out This Summer

After months of quarantine, things would change this year due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Many people have now adapted to the “new normal” and families are looking for alternative solutions to enjoy this summer season.

More and more people are opting to enjoy their time in comfort of their own backyards or to take up outdoor recreation.

This gave rise to the popularity of inflatable pools, bicycles, and roller skates. It might be difficult to find and buy these items now. The same way hand sanitizers and toilet papers were sold out at the beginning of the quarantine.

Read this article and be able to answer the questions that follow:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/reviewedcom/2020/07/07/10-things-selling-out-everywhere-summer-pools-floats-bikes-and-more/53v88942002/

Discussion Questions:

  1. During this pandemic, what are some of the recreational items/toys/products that are selling out nowadays in your country?
  2. What have you bought recently that you think is useful? What about something that is recreational? Explain why.
  3. Do you agree with the things that are mentioned in the article?
  4. What new recreational activities have you started doing during and after the pandemic?
  5. How did you cope with living the “new normal”?

Ice Cream Business

B1 – Intermediate

Nestlé is one of the biggest food companies in the world. One of their products is ice cream. However, it has not been successful in the US so they decided to sell the business to another company.

Read the transcript and listen to the audio about Nestlé’s ice cream business from the link below.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/ice-cream-business-level-1/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you know about the companies Nestlé and Froneri?
  2. Are you a fan of ice cream? What is/are your favorite flavor/s?
  3. How popular is ice cream in your country? What are other popular desserts there?
  4. Is the ice cream business doing well in your country? Why or why not?
  5. What is your opinion on Nestle’s decision to sell their ice cream business to another company?

Circus Has Problems

B1 – Intermediate

Cirque du Soleil was founded in 1984 and it has become very famous all over the world since then. They’ve had very successful shows in many different countries. 

However, due to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the company had faced a lot of money problems.

Read the transcript and listen to the audio from the link below.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/circus-has-problems-level-1/

Discussion Questions:

  1. What comes to your mind when you hear ‘circus’?
  2. Have you ever seen any Cirque du Soleil performances? Talk about it.
  3. Now that they might never see them perform again, would you have liked to watch their show or would you like to get the chance to see their show again?
  4. What was your reaction to this news?
  5. Do you think there is still a possibility for this circus group to have shows again in the future? Why or why not?

Dear Sir or Hey, Folks?

B2 – Upper Intermediate

Email is used in many different settings and it is widely used in the workplace as the formal tool of communication among people within the business. It is important to know how the recipient understood your message and just as important is the impression you leave on them especially if it is the first correspondence with them.

Read the article on whether to open emails with Dear, Hi, or Hey.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/course/lower-intermediate/unit-1/session-4/activity-2

Discussion Questions:

  1. How often do you use email in the workplace?
  2. How do usually start your work emails? What salutations do you use?
  3. According to the article, what are the preferences for email salutations?
  4. Do you agree with Giselle Barry on her opinion on using ‘Dear’ to start the work email?
  5. Share some interesting email correspondences you’ve had at and for work.

Store Sells Only Expired Food

B2 – Upper Intermediate

A nonprofit community grocery store called The Daily Table, founded by Doug Rauch, sells discounted food past its sell-by date. It aims to provide food to communities most in need at prices that are affordable to everyone thereby finding solutions to food waste and hunger.

Watch the video and be able to answer the questions that follow:

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you think of stores selling out-of-date food?
  2. Do you think this is a solution to reduce food waste and hunger?
  3. Do you think expired food is edible and safe to consume?
  4. What do you usually do with food past its expiration date?

Company Bankrupt

B1 – Intermediate

One objective companies’ have is to make loads of profit. However, they sometimes also face problems with money. When they go bankrupt, it can be a big problem for the company and their workers too.

Read the transcript and listen to the audio from the link below.

https://www.newsinlevels.com/products/company-bankrupt-level-1

Discussion Questions:

  1. What usually cause companies to go under?
  2. What happens when a company goes bankrupt?
  3. How can companies stay profitable?
  4. In your country, what kind of help does the government give to companies that are about to go bankrupt?
  5. Do you know any companies that went bankrupt? Talk about what happened.