Business : Int: Change

Describingchange

Write the verbs from the box under the correct prefix to make words connected with change_ Use a good dictionary to help you_ Some of the words can be used with more than one prefix.

assess - centralise - date - develop - grade - launch- locate - organise - regulate - size - structure - train

Complete these sentences with the correct form of the verbs from the box in Exercise A_ Use a good dictionary to help you_

1 Following the merger, the office layout was  reorganised  to accommodate the
new staff.
2 The most successful change in our company was the decision to the company. Now there is more opportunity for promotion.
3 It is now so expensive to rent offices in the city centre that many companies are
their operations to purpose-built business parks at the city limits.
4 The company has recently  its workforce. Reducing the number of
employees is the best way to stay profitable in the current economic climate.
5  To improve efficiency, the company has introduced new working p ractices. The HR  department will    all sales staff.
6 One of our products hasn't been selling well recently. The marketing team has decided to take it off the market and    it next year with new packaging.
7 The IT department report recommended that the company    the computer system as soon as possible.
8 The CEO thinks that too many decisions are made at Head Office. She wants to
  the decision-making process so that branch managers are more involved at an earlier stage.
9 The company has finalised the plans to    the disused car-park site. It is going to become a fitness centre for employees.
10 The logo and slogan are very old-fashioned. We need to    the whole image of the product and bring it into the 21st century.
11 There is a lot of pressure on the government from consumer groups to  the industry and remove controls, so customers can benefit from increased competition.
12 Following the report by the legal department and changes in the tax laws, the
management decided to    the situation and delay making a decision on
the takeover.

Match the words to form common word partnerships. (type the corresponding letters )

1 luxury                                                                      a) executive
2 chief                                                                        b) models
3 parent                                                                      c) effect
4 fourth                                                                        d) company
5 management                                                            e) brand
6 fuel-efficient                                                           f) style
7 team                                                                            g) approach
8 dramatic                                                                  h) quarter

Helpingcompanies to change

Anne Deering is Head of Transformation Practice at international management consultants AT Kearney. listen to the first part of the interview and complete the gaps.



1 What are they 1 , how are they going to 2, and how will they know they've  3  ?
2 Make sure people are    4in the change, that they feel this is something they are doing for    5 and not something which is being done 6

Past simple andpresent perfect

• We use the past simple for actions at a particular point i n the past.
             In 2002, Mercedes suffered a dramatic fall.
             Dieter Zetsche became Head of Mercedes in September 2005.
• We use the present perfect for actions linking the present to a point in the past.
              Since 2005, Mercedes has gone from the worst·performing of the large luxury car makers to the trailblazer.

Which of the following expressions are used with the past simple and which are used with the present perfect? Which are used with both?


Complete this short business brief about Vietnam using the past simple or the present perfect forms of the verbs in brackets.


Vietnam   (go) through many changes in its history and  (experience) many economic changes recently. It is currently experiencing an economic boom. In 1986, the government   (introduce) economic reforms or doi moi (doi meaning change and moi new). The reforms   (permit) the setting up of free market enterprises and  (abolish) the practice of collective farming. However, agriculture remains the most important part of the economy. Vietnam (recently/become) the second largest producer of rice in the world after Thailand. The industrial seclor   (show) dramatic improvement and expansion aswell. In 1993, the World Bank    (declare) 58% of the population to be living in poverty.
By 2005, this figure was less than 20%. Vietnam   (also/make) great strides on the international stage in the last decade or so. It    (become) a full member of ASEAN in 1995, and of the WTO in 2006. The effects of this new·found prosperity can be seen everywhere. Large, glitzy malls  (appear) in major cities, while streets once filled with bicycles are now overflowing with locally produced Japanese, Korean and Chinese motorbikes and cars. Business visitors wishing to relax in a more traditional Vietnamese town should visit Hoi An. Hoi An    (be) a major Asian trading port in the 17th and 18th centuries, and its picturesque architecture and relaxed lifestyle   (change) little over the years.