English for Business
1 Work and jobs
A. What do you do?
What do you do? To find out what someone’s job is
I work for To be an employee of someone
Ex. a large European car maker
I work on To spend some time improving or producing something
Ex. a car design
I run To manage something
Ex. the design department
I manage To manage something
Ex. a team of designers
X people work under me I manage x people
Responsibilities A thing which one is required to do as part of a job, role
Ex. new designs are finished on time
I’m in charge of Having control or responsibility over something
Ex. design budgets
I deal with To be about something
I’m responsible for It is your job or duty to deal with it and make decisions
relating to it
Ex. coordination between design and production
I work with To work with people
Ex. managers
Note:
In charge of + noun
Responsible for + verb + -ing
Responsibility + infinitive/-ing
➔ One of my responsibilities is to make sure that…
➔ One of my responsibilities is making sure that….
You don’t say: “I’m a responsible”
1
,B. Word combinations with “work”
You work or have work You have a job
Work The place where you do your job
In work To have a job
Out of work Without a job
I leave for work To be on your way to your job
I go to work by train He goes to his work by train
I get to work You arrive at work
I arrive at work You get there
At work On the workspace
Take time off work Away from your work
C. Types of jobs and types of work
A full-time job One for the whole of the normal working week
∙ To work full-time
A part-time job Working less than full-time hours
∙ To work part-time
A permanent job A job that does not end after a fixed period
∙ Permanent work
A temporary job A job that finishes after a fixed period
∙ Temporary work
D. Exercises
1. Rebecca leaves home for work at 7.30 am. She drives to work.
2. The traffic is bad and she worries about getting to work late.
3. She usually arrives at work around 9.
4. I could never take time off work.
5. She loves what she does and is glad to be in work.
6. Some of her friends are not lucky: they are out of work.
2
,2 Ways of working
A. Working hours
Office worker An employee who works in an office
Nine-to-five job A job you do during normal office hours
Regular working hours Standard working hours
Swipe card A card to get into the office
Flexitime People can work when they want, within limits
Shifts To be on duty during a time
Clock on At the beginning of the shift
Clock out At the end of the shift
Day shift Working during the daylight hours
Night shift Working during the night
To work more hours than usual for more
To work overtime
money
A journey you take from home to work and
Commute to work
house
Work from home You work from your house, not at the office
Commuters Someone who has a lengthy trip to work
Working from home and using the computer
Teleworking/telecommuting
and phone to communicate with other people
Note:
You can also say clock in and clock out.
BrE: flexitime
AmE: flextime
B. Nice work if you can get it
All these words are used in front of job and work:
Satisfying
Stimulating
➔ The work is interesting and gives you positive feelings
Fascinating
Exciting
3
, Dull
Boring ➔ The work is not interesting
Uninteresting
Unstimulating
Repetitive
➔ The work involves doing the same things again and again
Routine
Tiring
Tough
➔ The work is difficult and makes you tired
Hard
Demanding
C. Nature of work
+noun
Human contact
Long hours
Teamwork
My work involves
I like/ dislike/ prefer/ enjoy + -ing
Working with figures
Dealing with
customers
Solving problems
D. Exercises
1. Work in shifts
→ A construction worker on a building site where work goes on 24 hours a day.
2. Work under a flexitime system
→ A designer in a website design company. Has to be in the office, but can decide when she wants
to start and finish work each day.
3. Telecommute
→ A technical writer for a computer company. Lives in the country and visits the company once a
month.
4
,4. Commute to work
→ A manager in a large city, lives in the country.
5. Clock in and out at the same time every day
→ An office worker in a large, traditional manufacturing company
6. Work overtime
→ A worker in a chocolate factory in the three months before Christmas
E. Exercises
1. Flight attendant
∙ Travelling a lot
∙ Physically demanding
∙ Dealing with customers
2. Accountant
∙ Working with figures
∙ Less boring than you think
∙ Involves human contact and teamwork
3. Software developer
∙ Mentally tiring
∙ Very satisfying to write a program that works
4. Postwoman
∙ Early in the morning
∙ Being in the open air
∙ Get a lot of exercise
5. Teacher
∙ Stimulating
∙ Not repetitive
5
,3 Recruitment and selection
A. Recruitment
Recruitment/hiring (AmE) Process of finding people for a particular job
A recruit/a hire (AmE) Someone who has been recruited
To employ/to hire To give someone work and pay them for it
To join a company To start working there
Recruiters/recruitment
An outside hire
agencies/employees agencies
Outside specialists, hired by firms to find talent and to
Headhunters
locate individuals who meet specific job requirements
Headhunted People recruited by a headhunter
Headhunting The process of recruiting someone
B. Applying for a job
Situations vacant Advertenties in de lokale krant
To apply for a job Solliciteren voor een job
To complete an application form Aanmeldingsformulier aanvullen
A jobs website A website with jobs on
To submit a formal application for something to someone
To make an application form
of authority
A document describing your education, qualifications, and
CV = curriculum vitae
previous jobs, that you send to a prospective employer
A letter that explains why you want a job and why you are
A covering letter
the right person for that job
Note:
Situation, post and position are formal words often used in job advertisements and applications.
BrE: CV
AmE: résumé or resume
BrE: covering letter
AmE: cover letter
6
, C. Selection procedures
Selection process The methods that the company uses to recruit people
Their experience of different jobs and their educational
Backgrounds of applicants
qualifications
Candidates Kandidaten
A group discussion A group interview
Individual interviews Individuele gesprekken
Psychometric tests To assess someone’s intelligence and personality
To shortlist To select a few candidates
References The previous employers, teachers you put in your CV
Referees Previous employers, teachers,…
To offer a job to someone To give someone a job
Turn it down You don’t accept an offer
To appoint someone Assign a job to someone
D. Exercises
1. I phoned to check on my application, but they said they’d already recruited someone.
2. This job is so important, I think we need to headhunt someone.
3. The selection procedure has lasted three months, but we’re going to appoint someone next
week.
4. I hope she accepts the job, because if she turns it down , we’ll have to start looking again.
5. The last applicant, was very strong, but I understand he’d had two other job offers already.
6. They’ve finally hired a new receptionist. She starts work next week.
7. Computer programmers wanted. Only those with UNIX experience should apply.
E. Divide the words in two groups
Recruit Accept
Headhunt Turn down
Appoint Apply
Offer
Hire
7
1 Work and jobs
A. What do you do?
What do you do? To find out what someone’s job is
I work for To be an employee of someone
Ex. a large European car maker
I work on To spend some time improving or producing something
Ex. a car design
I run To manage something
Ex. the design department
I manage To manage something
Ex. a team of designers
X people work under me I manage x people
Responsibilities A thing which one is required to do as part of a job, role
Ex. new designs are finished on time
I’m in charge of Having control or responsibility over something
Ex. design budgets
I deal with To be about something
I’m responsible for It is your job or duty to deal with it and make decisions
relating to it
Ex. coordination between design and production
I work with To work with people
Ex. managers
Note:
In charge of + noun
Responsible for + verb + -ing
Responsibility + infinitive/-ing
➔ One of my responsibilities is to make sure that…
➔ One of my responsibilities is making sure that….
You don’t say: “I’m a responsible”
1
,B. Word combinations with “work”
You work or have work You have a job
Work The place where you do your job
In work To have a job
Out of work Without a job
I leave for work To be on your way to your job
I go to work by train He goes to his work by train
I get to work You arrive at work
I arrive at work You get there
At work On the workspace
Take time off work Away from your work
C. Types of jobs and types of work
A full-time job One for the whole of the normal working week
∙ To work full-time
A part-time job Working less than full-time hours
∙ To work part-time
A permanent job A job that does not end after a fixed period
∙ Permanent work
A temporary job A job that finishes after a fixed period
∙ Temporary work
D. Exercises
1. Rebecca leaves home for work at 7.30 am. She drives to work.
2. The traffic is bad and she worries about getting to work late.
3. She usually arrives at work around 9.
4. I could never take time off work.
5. She loves what she does and is glad to be in work.
6. Some of her friends are not lucky: they are out of work.
2
,2 Ways of working
A. Working hours
Office worker An employee who works in an office
Nine-to-five job A job you do during normal office hours
Regular working hours Standard working hours
Swipe card A card to get into the office
Flexitime People can work when they want, within limits
Shifts To be on duty during a time
Clock on At the beginning of the shift
Clock out At the end of the shift
Day shift Working during the daylight hours
Night shift Working during the night
To work more hours than usual for more
To work overtime
money
A journey you take from home to work and
Commute to work
house
Work from home You work from your house, not at the office
Commuters Someone who has a lengthy trip to work
Working from home and using the computer
Teleworking/telecommuting
and phone to communicate with other people
Note:
You can also say clock in and clock out.
BrE: flexitime
AmE: flextime
B. Nice work if you can get it
All these words are used in front of job and work:
Satisfying
Stimulating
➔ The work is interesting and gives you positive feelings
Fascinating
Exciting
3
, Dull
Boring ➔ The work is not interesting
Uninteresting
Unstimulating
Repetitive
➔ The work involves doing the same things again and again
Routine
Tiring
Tough
➔ The work is difficult and makes you tired
Hard
Demanding
C. Nature of work
+noun
Human contact
Long hours
Teamwork
My work involves
I like/ dislike/ prefer/ enjoy + -ing
Working with figures
Dealing with
customers
Solving problems
D. Exercises
1. Work in shifts
→ A construction worker on a building site where work goes on 24 hours a day.
2. Work under a flexitime system
→ A designer in a website design company. Has to be in the office, but can decide when she wants
to start and finish work each day.
3. Telecommute
→ A technical writer for a computer company. Lives in the country and visits the company once a
month.
4
,4. Commute to work
→ A manager in a large city, lives in the country.
5. Clock in and out at the same time every day
→ An office worker in a large, traditional manufacturing company
6. Work overtime
→ A worker in a chocolate factory in the three months before Christmas
E. Exercises
1. Flight attendant
∙ Travelling a lot
∙ Physically demanding
∙ Dealing with customers
2. Accountant
∙ Working with figures
∙ Less boring than you think
∙ Involves human contact and teamwork
3. Software developer
∙ Mentally tiring
∙ Very satisfying to write a program that works
4. Postwoman
∙ Early in the morning
∙ Being in the open air
∙ Get a lot of exercise
5. Teacher
∙ Stimulating
∙ Not repetitive
5
,3 Recruitment and selection
A. Recruitment
Recruitment/hiring (AmE) Process of finding people for a particular job
A recruit/a hire (AmE) Someone who has been recruited
To employ/to hire To give someone work and pay them for it
To join a company To start working there
Recruiters/recruitment
An outside hire
agencies/employees agencies
Outside specialists, hired by firms to find talent and to
Headhunters
locate individuals who meet specific job requirements
Headhunted People recruited by a headhunter
Headhunting The process of recruiting someone
B. Applying for a job
Situations vacant Advertenties in de lokale krant
To apply for a job Solliciteren voor een job
To complete an application form Aanmeldingsformulier aanvullen
A jobs website A website with jobs on
To submit a formal application for something to someone
To make an application form
of authority
A document describing your education, qualifications, and
CV = curriculum vitae
previous jobs, that you send to a prospective employer
A letter that explains why you want a job and why you are
A covering letter
the right person for that job
Note:
Situation, post and position are formal words often used in job advertisements and applications.
BrE: CV
AmE: résumé or resume
BrE: covering letter
AmE: cover letter
6
, C. Selection procedures
Selection process The methods that the company uses to recruit people
Their experience of different jobs and their educational
Backgrounds of applicants
qualifications
Candidates Kandidaten
A group discussion A group interview
Individual interviews Individuele gesprekken
Psychometric tests To assess someone’s intelligence and personality
To shortlist To select a few candidates
References The previous employers, teachers you put in your CV
Referees Previous employers, teachers,…
To offer a job to someone To give someone a job
Turn it down You don’t accept an offer
To appoint someone Assign a job to someone
D. Exercises
1. I phoned to check on my application, but they said they’d already recruited someone.
2. This job is so important, I think we need to headhunt someone.
3. The selection procedure has lasted three months, but we’re going to appoint someone next
week.
4. I hope she accepts the job, because if she turns it down , we’ll have to start looking again.
5. The last applicant, was very strong, but I understand he’d had two other job offers already.
6. They’ve finally hired a new receptionist. She starts work next week.
7. Computer programmers wanted. Only those with UNIX experience should apply.
E. Divide the words in two groups
Recruit Accept
Headhunt Turn down
Appoint Apply
Offer
Hire
7
