Advanced English lessons by Business English Pod

BEP 204 – English Job Interviews: Switching Careers (1)

This is the first of a two-part Business English Pod lesson on English job interviews for when you’re changing jobs or making a career shift.

You’ve racked up a lot of work experience and you’re proud of your special accomplishments. And you know enough to have clear opinions about how things should be done. But it’s time for a bit of a change. Maybe you’re switching careers altogether, or maybe you’re just looking to change roles. Regardless, you’re going to have to explain your accomplishments and express your opinions carefully in order to a make a good impression.

In an interview, it’s not just about what you say, it’s about how you say it. You will be asked some difficult questions, and you may only have one shot at it. The stakes are high, and the competition may be great. You need to sell yourself and demonstrate why you are the right choice for the position.

In this lesson, we’ll hear Nina and Frank interviewing Patrick. Patrick is a seasoned accountant looking for a career shift. He’s applying for a job with one of the major accounting advisory firms. Patrick is going to highlight his unique experience, politely criticize his former employer, admit challenges, and talk about past conflict. These are all tough things to do well, but Patrick handles them wisely.

Listening Questions

1. Why is Patrick talking about changes to a company’s internal controls?
2. How does Patrick describe financial meetings with executives?
3. How does Patrick say he dealt with the executives?

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Skills 360 – Making the Most of Personal Learning 2

Advanced, Business English, Business Skills 360, Training / September 25, 2011

Welcome back to the Skills 360 podcast.

The Skills 360 Podcast is now available in iTunes:
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In this lesson, we’re going to look at some more tips and ideas for making the most of your personal learning. Last week, we looked at setting yourself up with a system of personal learning. Today, we’re going to look at how to maintain your momentum and stay on track.

Discussion Questions

1. Do you have a regular schedule for studying English?
2. How can you know whether you’re improving your English skills?
3. What are your greatest personal motivators for studying English?

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Skills 360 – Making the Most of Personal Learning 1

Advanced, Business English, Business Skills 360, Training / September 18, 2011

Welcome back to the Skills 360 podcast.

The Skills 360 Podcast is now available in iTunes:
Free iTunes Subscription

We’ve got a great lesson today on making the most of personal learning. We’ll start by looking at setting SMART goals and personalizing your studies with a personal learning plan. We’ll also look at how you can vary your input by using a variety of sources and study what is interesting and relevant to both you and your job.

Discussion Questions

1. What are the different things you do to study or practice English?
2. What aspect of English would you most like to improve?
3. What do you find are the best online resources for studying English?

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BEP 178 – English Presentations: Making an Impact (2)

Advanced, Business English, Persuasion, Presentations in English / January 30, 2011

This is the second in a two-part usiness English Pod series about adding impact to your business English presentations.

Nobody likes a long and boring presentation. In fact, a long and boring presentation can do a lot of damage. People might actually feel less convinced of your idea. And that’s certainly not what you want. It doesn’t matter if you’re giving a presentation at a staff meeting or a sales presentation to a potential client. You have to make an impression. Most business people have to sit through a lot of meetings and presentations, and it can be difficult to impress them. So how are you going to make them sit up and listen? How are you going to convince them of your idea?

You need impact. Fortunately, there are specific things you can do to add impact. And that’s what we’re talking about today.

In our last episode, we heard Ben talk about the problem of too many documents on too many computers in too many locations. He finished by suggesting that he has a solution to this problem. In today’s lesson, Ben will continue his presentation. He’s going to talk about cloud computing, which he thinks can solve many problems in the department. He’ll use several different techniques for adding impact.

Listening Questions

1. What are the benefits of the system that Ben is suggesting?
2. Why does Ben mention several large companies such as IBM and Dell?
3. What does Ben think that people should spend less time doing?

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BEP 177 – English Presentations: Making an Impact (1)

Advanced, Business English, Persuasion, Presentations in English / January 23, 2011

This is the first in a two-part Business English Pod series about adding impact to your business English presentations.

We’ve all sat through boring presentations before. And we’ve all worried during our own presentations that others might be feeling that way. So what can we do to prevent this?

A presentation needs impact. It needs to make the audience feel something, understand something, or believe something. And it needs to make them want to do something. Fortunately, there are some simple techniques and language that you can learn that will add impact to your presentations. And then people will look at you, and not out the window.

In this lesson, we’ll hear part of a presentation delivered by Ben. Ben is going to talk to his colleagues and managers about cloud computing. But first he is going to identify a problem and then show that there needs to be a solution to that problem. Only then can he help them understand what cloud computing is and what benefits it might bring to the company.

Listening Questions

1. What happened to Ben on Monday morning?
2. Where is Ben’s stuff stored?
3. What does Ben say about the number of documents in their department?

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