PART TWO
Questions 9-14
Read this text taken from al business magazine.
Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to filll each of the gaps.
For each gap 9-14, mark one letter (A-H) on your Answerl Sheet.
Do not use any letter more than once.l
There is an example atl the beginning.(0).
Plan your business
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. Whether it’s to back up an application for a loan, or to work out where you will be going over the next few years, businesses should have business plans. (0)… H… It’s true there are no guaranteed ways to predict a business’s chances of failure or success, but there are some useful indicators. These are : the people who will run the business, the marketplace it will operate in, the practicality of the basic idea, and the management of money. (9)… Such factors should also be checked after creating the plan, as a way of testing its validity.
It’s a good idea to go through this process whenever you are planning something new. You may well have had your business up and running for some time. (10)…. In particular, you should scan the environment where you operate or intend to operate, considering the political , economic, technical and social situation. Having done this, there are several points to decide. You need to be precise about the range of products or services you intend to sell. It’s also important to be clear about where you will position yourself in the market, in terms of price, quality and volume. Another point to establish is who your customers will be. (11)…..
Having looked at the general picture, and then your potential business, it’s time to look at yourself. Consider what skills you are going to need in order to make your business work. (12)….. This may be particularly true in the case of financial strategy, and you will probably need some input from your accountant. Together you can draw up a cash flow forecast. (13)….
You now have all the basic ingredients you need to put together your business plan. It’s important to remember that the plan is meant to be a way of mapping the scene so that you can make better decisions about your business, not a completely rigid set of instructions that you have to follow to the letter. Don’t expect your plan to be perfect first time. (14)….. In fact, you can be sure that almost as soon as you have finished it, something will change, such as the price of fuel. However, having a plan will enable you to decide how to respond to such changes.
Example: A You should make it monthly for the first year and quarterly afterwards.
B If you haven’t got them yourself, you need to involve people who have.
C As preparation for your plan, all these points have to be carefully considered.
D After all, it can only reflect the information you have available now and you can update it later.
E Your success will therefore depend on the speed of the operation.
F However, you should always plan as though it is a new business you are about to start.
G When you’ve decided that, work out how you will let them know that you exist as a business.
H They enable business people to have some control over their future.
PART THREE
Questions 15-20
Read the following extractl from an article about professional service firms and the questions on the opposite page.
According to management expert Tom David, a professional service firm- a company of consultants, lawyers or auditors, for example-is the best model for tomorrow’s organization in any industry. He says that these firms are typically informal and flexible in their structure, and good at teamwork and knowledge-sharing. In contrast, the world’s big old corporations can easily be portrayed as crawling along behind.
The reality is perhaps more subtle. The rapid growth which professional service firms (PSFs) are experiencing is causing them management problems which the typical big corporations addressed long ago. They are turning themselves into conglomerates, trying to coordinate themselves globally rather than by country, as corporations like Unilever have done for years. The more sophisticated big corporations today are moving towards the partnership model, with flexible structures which actively involve employees. But the bigger PSFs are moving the other way. They are becoming the clumsy giants of the future.
However, there are positive aspects of PSFs-leadership, for example. The secret of good leadership is to guide and steer people without actually managing them. This means being very clear about the firm’s objectives. If these are clear, then leaders can be flexible, encouraging employees to come up with their own solutions to problems. The leader’s job is to watch carefully and adjust people back towards the objectives. Because of this approach, in many PSFs, nobody is expected to spend more than half their time on management in the conventional sense.
Teams are essential in PSFs and are central to the training process. A huge amount of the training employees receive is in the discussion and debate with those who have been down that road before. When young people join the firm, they join teams. This works when there are enough senior people with enough time to devote to them.
At the same time, it is vital that people do not identify with the team too closely. The leadership skill is in ensuring you don’t create firms within firms. So you move people from group to group and you organize around clients. As well as focusing on the clients’ needs, it’s also important to keep the firm’s needs in mind. It’s relatively easy to narrow your focus to those clients that concern you, and leave worrying about your people as a whole to someone else. But the one thing which absolutely motivates junior people to stay is that senior people demonstrate they care about needs within the firm.
There is one more area in which PSFs claim a clear lead over other big companies: knowledge management. There are two main technology-based ways in which they transfer their knowledge from those who have it to those who need it. First, the creation of e-mail networks. Second, the logging of data onto central computer systems. Are they effective? Jane Griffith, head of Northern Consulting, gives an example: ‘Suppose I have a client in the ice-cream business and I need to find out about the industry. I don’t want to have to read all 5,000 electronic entries on ice-ream; what I do want is to use the system to find out one e-mail address of somebody who knows about the ice-cream business and then contact them to ask them about the ice-cream business. It’s that kind of cooperation that builds success’.
15. In the first paragraph, Tom David praises professional service firms because they
A have specialist knowledge.
B are not organized in a rigid way.
C influence big corporations
D do not rely on teamwork.
16. The writer says that professional service firms are responding to growth by
A trying to be more sophisticated.
B going into industrial activity.
C organizing themselves internationally.
D focusing on their employees.
17. The writer says that good leadership is important because
A it can change people’s ideas.
B many employees avoid responsibility
C people need strong management.
D it makes everyone work towards the same goal.
18. What is said about teams in the fourth paragraph?
A They save time for the company.
B They can be changed frequently.
C They combine experience with discussion.
D They suit the way young people work.
19. According to the writer, what is the disadvantage of having teams?
A It can lead to high staff turnover.
B It may result in customers’ needs being neglected.
C They seldom generate new business
D They may operate separately from the rest of the company.
20. What are we told is the best way to transfer knowledge?
A using computers to make personal contacts.
B going to meetings with experts in the field
C studying comprehensive databases
D contacting senior managers of large companies
PART FOUR Questions 21-30
Read the article below aboutl data presentation.
Choose the best word to fill each gap from A, B, C or Dl on the opposite page.
For each question 21-30, mark one letter (A, B, C orl D) on your Answer Sheet.
There is an example at the beginning .l (0).
Clear presentation of data
The preparation and presentation of data is a common part of business life. In (0)… A… of preparation for meetings, it is essential to remember that it should be presented in a user-friendly way. That means it must be in a form to which members of the meeting can easily (21)….. . “Never under-estimate intelligence, but never over-estimate knowledge” is a good expression to remember in this context. Most people can understand the most complex information. (22)…. it is presented in a form they find accessible. Thus, all data should avoid jargon and use(23)…. Language. Written text should be presented in a way that will (24) …. to the average reader. It should be prepared carefully, (25) …. use of headlines, illustrations and photographs. Remember that the human eye sees a page as a picture. If the aim of a document is to be understood, it must be designed in a way that (26) …. The reader comprehends it. This may seem an obvious point but many business people do constantly (27) ….it . Public companies are required by law to produce an annual report on their financial and other activities. These tend to be expensive, professionally-presented documents. However, research (28)…. that only about 5% shareholders actually read and understand the content. The problem is that such accounts are often so complex that only the authors are (29)…of followi
g them. It’s essential to remember that the point of any document is that it is fully accessible to be (30)…reader.
21. A associate B relate C join D unite
22. A according B providing C depending D seeing
23. A ordinary B usual C typical D frequent
24. A appeal B interest C engage D attract
25. A doing B putting C taking D making
26. A convinces B confirms C ensures D allows
27. A make over B overlook C put over D oversee
28. A points B tells C indicate D informs
29. A able B possible C skilful D capable
30. A target B aim C goal D ambition
PART FIVE
Questions 31-40
l , Read the article below about communication in the workplace.
l For each question 31-40, write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet.
l There is an example at the beginning. (0).
A two-way dialogueTrue communication is essentially a two-way dialogue involving comprehension of each side’s viewpoint, concerns and priorities(0)… the other. Comprehension is essential before communication exists and this can only (31)… achieved by an exchange of information. This requires a dynamic process. Being an active rather (32)… a passive process, communication requires both dedication to a long-term process and an understanding (33)… the other side’s viewpoint. Indeed, it requires an appreciation that until (34)… side really understands what the other means, messages can be confused and misunderstood. Thus, to be a great communicator, one must (35)… only listen to what is being said, but also notice what is or is not being said. This takes time and practice. “The reason”, goes the old saying, “that we have one mouth and two ears, (36)… so that we can listen twice as much as we talk.” Sadly, the opposite tends more often to be the case. Furthermore, the passive state of hearing is all too often mistaken (37)… active listening. The manager (38) … claims proudly to talk to his or her employees regularly may be more admired than one who does not, but this is not communication. True communication will only occur when (39)… is consensus about the subject matter. In order to create true communication, both sides must be prepared (40)… listen-actively and continually.
PART SIX
Questions 41-52
Read the text below about supermarket checkouts.
In most of the lines 41-52 there is one extra word. It is either grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the meaning of the text. Some lines, however, are correct.
If a line is correct, write CORRECT on your Answer Sheet.
If there is an extra word in the line, write the extra word in the line, write the extra word in CAPITAL LETTER on your Answer Sheet.
