This is the third in our Business English Pod series on handling a crisis. In the first part of a crisis, there may be a lot of confusion and activity. But if you make it through that part okay, what comes next?
At a certain point after the critical phase, people will come together to re-evaluate the situation. Team work is important. People need to be working together to handle the crisis. If they don’t, if they disagree and try to go in different directions, it won’t be good for the company. Unity is absolutely essential. It takes good leadership to establish that unity early on, but it takes good team work to maintain it.
In our last lesson, we heard Mike the production engineer talking with the VP of Communications in Singapore, Monika. She was getting some information from Mike about an accident and creating a communication plan. That was still the critical phase of the crisis.
In this episode, we’ll hear a teleconference meeting after that critical phase. It’s time to think about what has happened and re-evaluate the situation. We’ll hear Mike and Monika, as well as Frank the American boss, Sandy the plant manager, and a lawyer named Simone. Let’s listen as they try to gain perspective on the crisis and figure out how well they’ve handled the situation so far.
Listening Questions
1. Why does Mike say “sorry” to Simone?
2. What does Monika want to focus on in the discussion?
3. What does Sandy think about Simone’s concerns?
Download: Podcast MP3
This lesson is even useful to native speakers who are working in business! We could all use a little crisis management help from time to time! Thanks for another good lesson.
Really useful for business professionals or business students needing to practise their English. Great examples!
thank you for setting this program. It’s very useful.
I have found this lesson very difficult in a sense. I mean the words are simple and sentences are also straight forward. However it is very hard for me to follow the flow of the logic.
In particular, I have no idea what Monica meant when she said “I don’t think this is the right time to be pointing fingers.”
If I heard this phrase in this situation, I would imagine that Mike is accusing Monica or somebody else on the causes of the incident or messes of the aftermath. But I can hardly hear that Mike is doing something like that. Mike simply tried to clarify what Monica meant, in my view. Hence I cannot see any basis for Monica’s accusation. Who and what exactly does Monica believe…