Little creativity was seen in recruitment before.

?Read the text below about communicating in groups.

?In most of the lines 41—52 there is one extra word. It is either grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the meaning of the text. Some lines, however, are correct.

?If a line is correct, write CORRECT on your Answer Sheet.

?If there is an extra word in the line, write the extra word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet.

0 Communicating in groups ensures that each person present there is hearing the

00 same information at the same time. Group communication also allows people to

41 interact with each other about the changes and can help people develop a sense of

42 team, particularly that in a climate of adversity. Communicating in groups also has

43 some disadvantages. In many organizations where there will be people who will

44 not feel comfortable in talking in a group context. The more "personal" the

45 effects of the change, and the more likely people will withdraw from the group

46 process. A second danger of group communication is that for one or two

47 particularly vocal and negative people can set the tone for the group, and then foster

48 unproductive negative discussion out. While expressions of concerns about change

49 are healthy, the "doom-sayer" can cause this process to become destructive. So for

50 this reason, group communication needs to be managed with skill and expertise.

51 Sometimes an external facilitator person is necessary. Finally, there are some issues

52 that cannot be discussed within a group. For example, when in downsizing situations, it is inappropriate to announce to a group that John and Mary are losing their jobs. When changes are likely to create a high degree of upset to individuals, they must be dealt with in private.

(41)

?Read the article about management buyouts of companies．

?Choose the best sentence to fill each of the gaps．

?For each gap(9-14)，mark one letter(A-H)on your Answer Sheet．

?DO not use any Ietter more than once．

Management Buy-outs of Companies

Involving staff in management buy-out(MBO)negotiations can help smoo．th the path for the future．Employees are becoming increasingly familiar with the fluctuations and instability that their working environments can present．It's not just mergers and acquisitions that can upset the situation．Internal MBOs can also be particularly unsetting for employees．In some cases，the MBO takes place to save an ailing company．In others，it is the result of senior management and board disagreements，or is to prevent a hostile takeover bid． (9) ．This insecurity can be very damaging．One of the most important factors，often not considered during the process of an MBO，is the reaction of the workforce，yet it is those employees who more often than not can make or break the future Success of any new management team． (10) ．By maintaining channels of communication across the floor．new management teams could find the rank and file a useful ally in the bid to take over． Showing those employees that a buy-out could be to their advantage，creating new opportunities for promotion or career development，will in the long-term be advantageous to the entire company．

The challenge for new management should be to reinspire employees． (11) ． If the new team doesn't engage old employees in future plans or consider the contribution they can make，the idea that the MBO was meant to save everyone is lost．In this situation，long-term employees begin to see the new management team and shareholders as the only beneficiaries in the buy-out and feel in the end that the only people saved are those at the top of the corporate ladder． (12) ．This will mean that the rescue will fail before it has really started．

It is depressingly common for new MBO teams not to learn from the past． (13) ． If the new team can find innovative ways to involve staff activelv in various aspects of the buy-out process，the benefits are manifold． (14) ．A package with such components can gain their support and be invaluable in building success for the venture，and iS one that enlightened MBO teams tend to adopt．

A．Including them in any buy-out，discussions can improve the new company's future prospects．

B．In such circumstances it is easy for the new board to make the same mistakes as the old．

C．Possibilities for realising these include decision-making，setting goals，and offering the chance of a future stake in the new company．

D．Whatever its origins，those lower down the corporate ranks can often be left out of the equation，wondering what is to become of them．

E．Nobody benefits if the company fails to meet its objectives．

F．Yet the new start represents a golden opportunity．

G．This requirement is particularly relevant when a company has failed or when staff have lost faith in the previous management．

H．Internal MBOs can also be particularly unsettling for employees．

(9)

Read the text below about Nike.

For each question 31—40, write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS

Eliminating Sweatshops at Nike: Just De it!

Over the past decade, Nike has been one of the most profitable companies in the United States. However, at a time when the company's spokesperson, Michael Jordan, was bringing in over $10 million, the young, mostly women workers in its Indonesian plants were taking home only $ 2.23 a day. (31) , working conditions in Nike's Serang plant, 50 miles west of Jakarta, were far from ideal. Hundreds of workers, some children, were crowded into vast sheds where they glued, stitched, pressed, and boxed 70 million pairs of (32) a year. Collusion between local management and government made organizing workers into unions both difficult and dangerous, and the high level of unemployment left workers powerless. Taken together, these labor practices helped keep cost so low and quality so high that a pair of running shoes that (33) for $75 retail in the United States cost just $18.25 to manufacture.

With this type of cost and price structure, it is easy to see how Nike became so profitable. However, the ability to sustain these practices became an issue in 1996 when the U.S. media exposed these sweatshop conditions. As consumers became increasingly aware of (34) their sneakers were actually being made, some felt guilty, and human rights groups went so far (35) to organize boycotts of Nike products. Given the damage to Nike's image and future profitability, something had to be done.

At first, Nike CEO Phillip Knight defended his operations, noting that Nike pays its workers no (36) than its rivals do and that these workers make more than minimum wage in the host countries. Critics countered that the level of pay was (37) the subsistence level and much lower than what is paid by other U.S. companies such as Coco-Cola, Gillette, and Goodyear.

To end this image problem (38) and for all, on May 12, 1998, Knight pledged to (a) raise the minimum worker age requirement, (b) adopt U. S.-style. safety and health standards, and (c) allow human rights groups to help monitor working conditions in all foreign plants. He again showed his commitment to reform. six months later (39) raising wages 22 percent to offset the currency devaluation that rocked Indonesia in the fall of 1998. Knight used both occasions to challenge his competitors to do the same, realizing that their failure to do so would put Nike at a competitive disadvantage. Although it is currently unclear how these (40) will respond, it is obvious that Nike is at least trying to establish its image as a trend setter in both footwear and working conditions in international locations.

(30)

&8226;Read the text below about customer care.

&8226;In most of the lines 41-52 there is one extra word. It is either grammatically incorrect or does not fit in with the meaning of the text. Some lines, however, are correct.

&8226;If a line is correct, write CORRECT on your Answer Sheet.

&8226;If there is an extra word in the line, write the extra word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet.

Customer care

Apart from ensuring that an efficient electricity supply for our customers, NatElectric provides an invaluable service in other areas

41. as well. While our Customer Helpline (charged at local rates) is the

42. first point of contact with when you want to make an enquiry and

43. we receive a huge number of calls from customers - on

44. average, there are 50000 calls a one week. Available 24 hours

45. a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, our Helpline on advisors

46. aim at to answer 95 per cent of all calls within 15 seconds. There

47. are more than 200 advisors, working in around the clock to

48. provide for this service, backed by a further 80 support staff

49. who do handle any necessary paperwork. Although our target

50. is to reply to letters within 10 working days, NatElectric regularly

51. responds within three to four days, and we are especially proud of the

52. very high standards achieved of our customer relations team.

(41)

e you've all registered and obtained your name badges and information packs. I would like to point out some additional information and changes to the agenda you will find in your packs. The four seminar workshops are now as follow.

Room Six—" Marketing".

Bishop's Hall One— "Communications", which re- places "Taxation".

Bishop's Hall Two—"Strategic Planning", which now includes small business as well as large companies.

Room Five—"Human Resources".

I'll just run through that again. "Marketing" is in Room Six. In Bishop's Hall One we have a change to the original programme and "Taxation" has been replaced by "communications". "Strategic Planning" in Bishop's Hall Two now includes small businesses and Room Five is "Human Resources" We will stay in the Convocation Hall for the first morning session which runs from nine-thirty till eleven o'clock, when we shall all meet up in the Memorial ball for coffee and biscuits.

The eleven-thirty session will be held in Bishop' s Hall One.

A buffet lunch will be held in the self-service restaurant from one to two. We are hoping that this system will prove quicker than waitress service and ensure a prompt start to the afternoon session which begins in Bishop's Hall Two at two o'clock and runs to three-thirty. Please note, however, that we shall be in Room Five for the four to five- thirty session.

Tea and biscuits will be brought to you between three-thirty and for o'clock.

At five-thirty we invite you all to the Assembly Hall for an hour's general forum. There will be time for questions based on the day's sessions. This session in the Assembly hall is intended to give you an opportunity to clarify and problem areas which may have arisen during the day and to ask any questions you may have. There will be a general exhibition of books and resource materials in the Abbey Room which will be open for the whole day. Anyone in- terested in purchasing any of these materials will be able to order them at the various stands.

Please feel free to visit the Abbey Room at any time during the day up until the Centre closes at seven- thirty p.m.

May I draw your attention to the fact that notes ac- companying the seminars will be provided by the speakers. It is therefore not necessary...

?You will hear an introduction to a course in Business Management Today.

?As you listen, fill in the information for question 1—12, complete the notes using up to three words or a number.

?After you have listened once, replay the recording.

BUSINESS MANAGEMENT TODAY

Seminar/Workshop programme

MARKETING 1 ______

2 ______ Bishop's Hall One

STRATEGIC PLANNING Bishop's hall Two

HUMAN RESOURCES 3 ______

TIMETABLE LOCATION

9. 30-11.00 4 ______Hall

Coffee and biscuits 5 ______

11.30-1.00 6 ______

Lunch 7 ______

2.00-3.30 8 ______

Tea and biscuits

4.00-5.30 9 ______

5.30- 6.30 1

?Read this text taken from an article about Personnel Management.

?Choose the best sentence to fill each of the gaps.

?For each gap 9—14, mark one letter (A—H) on your Answer Sheet.

?Do not use any letter more than once.

Personnel Management

Personnel management is regarded as a profession. Many observers believe that the most important and pressing problems of future industrial societies will not be solely concerned with production or technical questions, but will be people-oriented and will involve a knowledge of social and behavioral sciences and of the personnel function" H The role of personnel management has, of course changed over time. Originally it was used by management to obtain and maintain an effective work force only and the emphasis was on production and economic rewards. (9) . This is now only one part of the function. Later it was realized that if worker needs could be understood and met, for example, security, achievement, and job satisfaction, then the organization itself could better achieve its maximization of goals such as profits. Recently added to this has been the social (community) responsibility of the organization. (10) .

Personnel management is about people. The management of people is an integral part of the organization and of the process of management itself. (11) . Personnel management is not something that is only carried out by the personnel department; it is an organization-wide activity. All levels of management are engaged in managing personnel. (12) . They are involved in working in co-operation with the personnel department and its staff in such areas as recruitment, training, appraisal, counseling safety and health and job-design. Personnel management in its broadest sense involves all matters in an organization regarding people decisions. (13) . The first is that of human relations, in which such matters as individual motivation, leadership, and group relationships and behavior. are covered. The second is the field of organization theory, which considers job design, managerial spans of control, the flow of work through the organization, and so forth. The third consists of the specific kinds of decision areas for which the personnel manager or personnel department is directly responsible for acquisition, development, rewarding, and maintenance of human resources.

The bread definition of personnel management illustrates that the scope of personnel management pervades the organization. Every person in an organization is involved with personnel decision. (14) . Similarly, non-managerial employees will be exposed to performance appraisals, selection interviews when hired, and so on.

A It is through people that organizations accomplish their goals~ thus the management of people is a vital aspect of an organization's functioning.

B Later there was a move towards a welfare oriented personnel function such as benefits and health.

C This broad view focuses attention on three distinct but interrelated topics. Thus personnel management may now be involved in certain community activities, in equal opportunity employment in developing policies, for example, in employing racial minorities of physically handicapped people and in seeking to provide and maintain a climate in which individual and organization goals are achieved.

E Line managers of other departments e.g. marketing and production of various departments of sections in the public service and public agencies e.g. Telecom all have personnel/human resource management duties.

F Personnel managers didn't see a need to make sure that their employees were comfortable in the work environment and ensure all their needs were being met.

G

?Read the article about goods and services.

?For each Question 31-40, write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet.

Most of the activity of our economic system is connected with the production and consumption of goods and services. A commodity is anything that (31) human needs. The bread that I eat, the shoes that I wear, the house that I live in are all goods. Individual (32) will differ, of course. I do not happen to care for roses, but as long as someone does, they are a good. Two conditions are (33) for the existence of a good: a human need and a means to meet that need.

Goods may be divided into two main (34) : free goods and economic goods. Free goods are those that are so much supplied by nature that no human effort is (35) to get them. Economic goods are those that are so scarce and relative to human wants that human effort is required to get them. It will be (36) to the reader that whether a commodity falls in the part of free goods or economic goods will depend upon the (37) . On a small island, coconuts might be considered a free good. But when we consider the effort necessary to gather and (38) them, coconuts in New York City are an economic good. Probably the only goods that are free goods under nearly all circumstances are (39) air and sunshine.

A service is any nonmaterial good. The acts of the barber who cuts my hair, and of the railroad that carries me to Chicago are services. Since (40) are generally consumed at the same time that they are produced, it is sometimes convenient to draw a distinction between them.

(31)