Chalk ‘n’ Talk by Brian Rhodes is a series of video lessons exploring advanced English grammar topics. In this lesson, Brian takes a look at reduced relative clauses (sometimes referred to as reduced adjective clauses).
Premium Members: Study Notes | Online PracticeDownload: Podcast Video
In this Email Tune-up lesson, we’re looking at an email from Jimmy, who is the training officer for his company. Jimmy wants to notify the various department heads of an upcoming seminar their staff will be attending. This is an internal email, which usually means it’s a bit more informal than something being sent outside the company. However, it’s being sent to managers at a higher rank than Jimmy’s, so the tone must be respectful and not too informal.
Premium Members: PDF Transcript | Online PracticeDownload: Podcast Video
This is the second of a two-part Business English Pod series on idioms related to money.
Many of our day-to-day business transactions involve money, so it’s common to hear money idioms used frequently in business discussions. We use them to talk about handling money and to describe situations with lots of money or no money at all. But we also use them to talk about situations that have nothing to do with money – such as evaluating ideas or speculating on their impact.
In the last episode, we met Kevin and Leah, two employees at a cosmetics company. They’re planning a promotional campaign on a small budget. So they’re brainstorming ideas that will spark customer interest at a reasonable cost.
Now, they’re thinking of ways to show that their company’s cosmetics line is good value for money-conscious consumers.
Listening Questions
1. What idea does Kevin suggest at the beginning of the dialog?
2. What are two things the company will have to do if it accepts Kevin’s idea?
3. What are Leah’s concerns about the idea?
Download: Podcast MP3
This is the first of a two-part Business English Pod series on idioms related to money.
It’s difficult to imagine business without money. After all, making money is the main goal of many businesses. Profits often determine a company’s success. And companies must spend money, and budget carefully, to reach their business goals. So, it’s not surprising money idioms are featured regularly in business conversations.
We’ll be covering many of these idioms today. Take note of them as you hear the dialog, but don’t worry if you don’t understand them the first time around. They’ll all be explained in the debrief and you’ll have a chance to practice them at the end.
We’ll be listening to Kevin and Leah, two colleagues at a mid-sized cosmetics company. Cosmetics is the industry name for make-up – products used to enhance a person’s appearance, such as mascara or eye shadow. They are discussing promotional plans for the coming year while working on a tight budget, so there isn’t much money to spend. Kevin and Leah don’t agree on the best way to spend the money and must find a compromise.
Listening Questions
1. What promotional plan does Kevin suggest?
2. Does Leah agree with this idea? Why or why not?
3. What does Kevin think the company needs to show?
Download: Podcast MP3
This is the second of a two-part Business English lesson on English for teleconferences.
Teleconferences allow people from different locations to have a meeting over the telephone. While convenient, teleconferences do have some issues to keep in mind, such as keeping track of who’s talking. Sometimes two people talk at the same time or talk too quickly. Because participants can’t see each other, it’s helpful to use “signposts” or short statements that prepare others for what’s about to be said. Other issues such as laying out an agenda and managing the time also come into play.
In the last episode, we heard a conversation between Craig and Elsa, two employees at StarCom, an electronics manufacturer. Craig has his first teleconference coming up and Elsa gave him an informal tutorial, teaching him about the equipment and some of the protocols for a teleconference.
Today, Craig is participating in the teleconference. The host of the teleconference is Tony, a manager in Chicago. Also participating are Diana, a colleague in London, and JP, who works in Marketing at the Dallas location. They’re discussing the upcoming holiday season, new product lines, and advertising.
Listening Questions
1) How does JP help Craig with the agenda?
2) According to Diana, why were the printer test results disappointing?
3) Why doesn’t Diana think the problem will be resolved quickly?
Download: Podcast MP3
