Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English idioms we use to describe innovation.

The world is changing at a faster rate than at any other time in history. The way we work and the tools we use today were hardly imaginable 25 years ago. At that time, the average worker didn’t even use a laptop, let alone a smartphone. And somehow most people lived without email.

But now, with new ways of working, communicating, planning, and selling, this truly is the age of innovation. And “innovation” is a very common topic of discussion at all levels of an organization. In English, we have many idioms to describe innovation, and in this lesson we’ll learn some of these expressions.

In today’s dialog, we’ll rejoin Kristina, Kevin, and Fran, three colleagues at a telecommunications company. They have been discussing recent and upcoming innovations in their company. In their discussion, they use lots of different idioms. As you listen, see if you can pick out these idioms and we’ll talk about them later in the debrief.

Listening Questions

1. What does Kristina say about the work being done in the Analytics division?
2. According to Kevin, what was the purpose of the recent meeting about the Analytics division?
3. What does Fran think about the idea of a company incubator?

Download: Podcast MP3

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on English idioms for describing innovation.

In the 21st century, companies that fail to change will likely fail to survive. For this reason, corporate leaders are constantly thinking and talking about change and “innovation.” Of course, when we hear the word innovation we immediately think about technology. And while it’s true that technology is changing the world of business at an amazing pace, innovation is about more than just adapting to the digital age.

Companies innovate in all sorts of ways. We see changes in how businesses are organized, how they communicate, how they learn, and how they build relationships with customers. Innovation is simply about doing things in new ways. And in English we have many idioms to describe innovation, as we’ll hear in today’s lesson.

In the dialog, we’ll hear a conversation between three colleagues at a telecoms company. Kristina, Kevin, and Fran are chatting over coffee about all the recent innovations in the company. They’ll use lots of different idioms in their conversation. Try to pick out these idioms as you listen, and we’ll talk about them later in the debrief.

Listening Questions

1. What innovative idea or service does Fran think the company should not pursue?
2. In what area does Fran say their company is ahead of other companies?
3. In which area does Kevin believe their company is very innovative?

Download: Podcast MP3