PART THREE
Questions 15 - 20
Read the following extract from a book on management and the questions on the opposite page .
For each question 15– 20,mark one letter (A, B, C or D ) on your Answer Sheet for the answer you choose
In the last few years, managers throughout industry have seen more changes than many of them could have expected to see in their entire working lives having to communicate information which often leads to feelings of insecurity has become a key activity. From being regarded as relatively unimportant in many companies , management employee communication has become a central corporate need.
Concordia International provides a good example of a company that has adjusted well to the changing needs for communication . since 1995 , Concordia has been turned inside-out and upside-down, to ensure that it is a marketing –led, customer-responsive business, one that looks outwards at customers and competitors, rather than inwards at its own processes and the way things were done in the past. In the last eight years, Concordia has reduced its workforce by more than 80.000 people - or 35% -on a voluntary basis, with further downsizing anticipated.
From being an engineering company, Concordia is now remaking itself as a service company. The role of employee communication in such a context is to build people’s self-confidence, to persuade them that, although it is inevitable that the changes will go ahead, they also bring with them new opportunities for employees. However, this is not an easy task. People tend to be skeptical of these claims and to feel that they are losing touch with the company they have worked for over many years. This is understandable, since many of the old certainties are being swept away , including the core activities of the company they work for. Above all , they have had to face up to the fact that they no longer have a job for life.
Research indicates that people respond to this predicament in a variety of ways. The bulk of employees fall into two main categories in terms of their response to the new situation: on the one hand there are the “ pragmatists” and on the other “ the highly anxious” the former see their job as a means to an end and have a relatively short-term perspective, with strong loyalty to their local term , rather than the company as a whole . the second category, usually the majority, may respond to threatened changes with a feeling of having been let down, and even feel anger at the company for what they see as changing the terms of their employment.
` The employee communication process needs to be capable of accurately directing its messages at a variety of employee groups and departments within the workforce . this is why middle managers and line managers are so key to communication. They are the people who know about the full rage of concerns among the workforce. The problem in the past was that this crucial area was often the responsibility of a separate, relatively isolated unit. Concordia puts responsibility for communication firmly on line managers. All their research points to the same conclusion: people prefer to get their information face-to-face from their line managers. That is the key relationship and where arguments and hearts and minds –are lost.
The general rule in company communication is to tell employees as much as you can as soon as you can. If you can’t provide details, then at least put the news in context and commit yourself to providing greater detail when it becomes available another rule of company communication is that there must be a fit between what the company is telling its employees and what it is telling its shareholders.
15: in the last eight years, Concordia has
A made over 80.000 employees reduncdant
B completed a period of downsizing
C reduced its workforce of 80.000 by 35%
D given 35% of departing employees voluntary redundancy
16 from Concordia’s point of view, the role of communication is to
A win employee support before going ahead with the changes
B change the company’s core activities.
C emphasise the positive aspects of the changes
D explain the need for the changes
17 what does research show about most employees’ response to change?
A they expect it to have a bad effect on the company
B they feel completely powerless
C they become less loyal
D they fell they have been treated unfairly
18 Concordia’s communication process mainly relies on
A printed communication
B departmental heads
C personal communication
D a separate, specialized unit
19 According to the writer, what is the guiding ;principle about giving information within an organization?
A Never make promises about future developments
B Give people an overall view at the earliest possible stage
C always include plenty of hard information
D Hold back until all the details can be provided
20 which of the following would be the most suitable title for the article?
A employee attitudes to company communication
B making company communication more effective
C Researching company commmucation
D Making employees feel less powerless
PART FOUR
Questions 21 -30
Read the article from the Chairman’s statement in a pharmaceutical company’s annual report
Choose the correct word to fill each gap from (A, B, C or D) on the opposite page .
For each question 21-30,mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your Answer Sheet .
There is an example at the beginning , (0)
Charman’s Statement
Two year ago we undertook to increase our sales and to at least (10) our earnings. We published this (21) in order to demonstrate our resolve to lead the business successfully through the demanding period following the expiry of patents which had given us the exclusive right to develop two of our major products.
I am very please to (22) that we achieved what we set (23) to do. We have achieved increased of 4% and 6% in sales and earnings (24) this comes despite considerable losses (25) the expiry of the patents. It is testimony to the depth and vitality of our portfolio of medicines that we have been able to survive the largest single patent expiry our industry has known.
Looking further ahead, I firmly believe that this company can continue to deliver strong , sustainable growth, enabling us to stay at the (28) of the research-based pharmaceutical industry.
The power and pace of technological and scientific development, combined with economic and social pressures, are (29) huge changes in our industry, the successful companies of the future will be those that anticipate and (30) to this change, integrate new technologies effectively, and are closest to their customers. I have full confidence in our ability to remain a major player in our industry.
21 A warranty B obligation C commitment D contract
22 A inform B specify C notify D report
< sourcevalue="23" >23 A in B out c aside D up
24A respectively B serially C consecutively D sequentially
25 A pursuing B resulting C following D depending
26 A contribution B donation C investment D subsidy
27 A numbers B figures C sums D points
28 A foreground B forefront C lead D advance
29 A forcing B impelling C urging D thrusting
30 A meet B suit C correspond D respond
PART FIVE
Questions 31-40
Read the article below about getting a pay rise.
For each question 31-40, write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet .
There is an example at the beginning, (0) .
There is a commonly held view that the only way to get (0) decent pay increase is to move on: to go out into the job market and find someone (31) is prepared to pay you a figure more in line (32) the talents you can offer. Whilst changing employers from time (33) time is something we probably all need to do to advance our careers in the directions we want them to take, it is nevertheless an activity that carries quite definite risks. Irrespective of (34) well we research prospective employers, a new jib is still largely a step into the unknown . It may turn (35) to be a good move or it could prove to be a complete disaster : most of us (36) had experience of both. The point here, though, is that changing employers is not something we want to be doing all the time and certainly not (37) time we feel the urge for better pay . We’d (38) taking more risks than we needed to just to achieve a pay rise. Getting a pay rise should always be viewed (39) a serious business. There are no quick fixes or gold methods with “ guaranteed “ results. Quick fixes only serve to trivialize the issues and could (40) some circumstances get you into very serous trouble indeed.