Laboratory work № 6.
Participating in meeting.
Giving your opinion Asking for opinions Agreeing and disagreeing
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Good business practice.
This unit introduces language for participating in a variety of different types of meetings, from small and informal to large and formal, international meetings, where participants come from a range of cultural backgrounds. Whatever the type of meeting, participants may need to consider the following:
Are the aims and objectives of the meeting clear? (Why are they attending the meeting?)
Is there anything that the participant needs to do to prepare for the meeting? (Will they be expected to comment, report and have opinions on particular topics?)
Cultural attitudes may affect the following:
Agenda (having an agenda or having a more informal discussion with no agenda)
How participants give opinions and agree and disagree (direct or indirect)
Interruptions (the style of interruptions, how they are dealt with and whether they are considered acceptable)
Style of debate (energetic or cool).
Discussion
You are participating in a meeting where people have lots of different opinions. Tick the things that you think are a good idea.
Listen to what people say.
Be aggressive.
Use polite phrases to agree and disagree.
Make personal comments.
Make your point in short, simple sentences.
Good business practice. Participating in meeting.
| DO | DON’T | |
| Be confident | Prepare well. Dress appropriately. | Arrive late. |
| Be positive | Keep your voice positive. Stay on the topic of the meeting Use polite phrases to agree and disagree. | Make personal comments. Be aggressive. - Focus on the negative. |
| Be heard | Speak clearly and confidently. Make your point in short, simple sentences. Listen to what people are saying | Be discouraged if people interrupt you. Wait until they finish and then continue making your point. |
Giving your opinion
ü Reading1
The Orion Group is a soft drinks company. The CEO calls a meeting to decide the company's ten-year plan. He asks for ideas about what changes will influence the soft drinks market in the next ten years. Four people give their opinion.
1 Read the opinion of the four speakers. Write the correct speaker number next to each opinion.
a Health drinks might increase. 4
b Consumers will be older. 3
c Sports drinks will increase. 1
d There won't be much change. 2
Speaker 1:I think sports drinks will be a big market. More and more people are taking out gym membership and want to keep fit. So we could see a big increase in this area.
Speaker 2: I don't think there will be any great change. Kids will still want fizzy drinks in ten years' time. Let's stay with our current target market - children and teenagers.
Speaker 3: I'm sure the over-55 market will grow. All our research shows that older people will definitely be an important market in the next few years. But will they want to buy fizzy drinks?
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Speaker 4: It's possible that health drinks could be an important area. In the future people won't want lots of chemicals in their soft drinks. They'll want to drink something that's good for them.
2 How do the speakers introduce their ideas? Read again and complete the sentences.
1 I …… sport drinks will be a big market. think sports drinks will be a big market
2 I …… think there will be any great changes.
3 I’m …… the over-55 market will grow.
4 It’s ……. That health drinks could be an important area.
Asking for opinions
Listening1 (CD15)
At the Orion meeting, the chairperson asks three key departments for opinions about the drink. What three departments do you think he will ask to hear opinions from? Listen to the recording. Did he mention the departments you noted?
Listen again. Complete the questions with on or about.
1 What's your opinion …… the drink?
2 What do you think …… this?
3 How do you feel …… the production side?
4 Has anyone else got thoughts …… this?
Agreeing and disagreeing
Look at the phrases and decide which you would use to agree (A) or disagree (D).
That's right. I don't think...
Sorry I don't agree. That's a good point, but...
I'm not sure about that... I see your point.
I (totally) agree. I know exactly what you mean.
A local charity asks your company to help with one of its community projects. The project will invest in the community and your company will increase its local profile. Look at the information about three projects. Write the possible advantages and disadvantages of each project. Make a dialogue deciding which community project your company should help with. Use phrases to ask for and give opinions, and to agree and disagree with the other people in your group.
| Thank you for helping the local community by investing in one of our projects. Please read the information about three projects and let me know which one your company would like to sponsor. Community transport This project organises a minibus for older people in the community. The bus collects people from their homes. The bus route includes the community centre, health centre and local shops. The bus would then take people back to their homes. Many older people have difficulty using the public bus service as they cannot walk long distances to the bus stop. The bus would have your company's logo on the side. Sponsorship will need to include maintenance of the bus. School entrepreneur This project works with local schools to finance business projects for students aged 12-18. The school children are encouraged to work in teams on a project. A business consultant provides advice on setting up the business and helps with setting up a business plan. This gives students an opportunity to work in a real business situation. Any profits from the business would be used to finance educational projects for the schools. Any advertising for the entrepreneur projects on local radio and TV would mention your company. As part of the project, we would also like an employee of your company to come and give regular talks to the school children. Community garden This project helps create gardens in cities. Local people can come to the garden to relax. There would also be communal vegetable gardens. A local gardener will provide help and advice. This would help all members of the community to come together to help with work on the garden and provide food that could be given to poorer families in the area. All volunteers working on the garden would wear T-shirts with your company name and logo. |
Результат лабораторной работы:
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Представление теоретического материала с мультимедийным сопровождением по разделам:
- Giving your opinion
- Asking for opinions
- Agreeing and disagreeing
При подготовке материалов по всем разделам студентами должны быть приведены примеры диалогов по аналогам в Listening и Reading. Диалоги должны быть разыграны на защите.