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Task 1
A: Well, you see, our company is going to attend a trade fair in the US.
B: Yeah, sounds exciting. Since we've never done that before, we need to have good advance preparations for the trip.
A: You're right. The first thing to do is of course to make travel and accommodation arrangements, such as choosing an airline offering good services and the flight of the right time so that we can arrange things well and in an effective way.
B: This can be done by making several phone calls. And we have to make advance reservation with a local hotel so that the people for the trade fair can have a place to stay immediately after they arrive in the country.
A: With early booking, we may even enjoy some discounts. And it's better to choose a hotel near the trade fair. That can save the time traveling there.
B: Or we can arrange beforehand to hire a car from a local car rental company.
A: In addition, it would be useful to know about some business customs in the US, including commonly accepted business practices, ways of doing business, and laws and regulations, etc.
B: Yeah, especially those different from ours. Say, different ideas about punctuality. I heard that in the United States, people tend to be very time-conscious. Being late would be considered poor etiquette.
A: Also in China, business transactions are often concluded by treating business partners to lavish dinners and giving them expensive gifts, I'm afraid they seldom do it this way in the West or in the US.
B: I was told that in Western countries, people attach much importance to formal agreement and contracts with detailed terms and conditions. They never feel comfortable with verbal agreements. In China, however, business is often concluded simply by verbal agreement.
A: We should also learn about business customs such as the different systems of measurement. For instance, we use the day/month/year system for dating while the US use month/day/year system. And there are many other differences including topics acceptable in conversation.
B: Also, Chinese businessmen tend to have business negotiations in a rather indirect manner, while American businessmen have a more direct style. Our people should be made to understand all these differences.
A: But how to find out about all this?
B: I think there are many ways to find out about these before the trip, say, we can go to the Internet, read some reference books or get tips from experienced colleagues and clients.
A: They could be effective ways. Let's do them.
Task 2
A: You see, in the past year one of our clients kept losing staff and suffered a heavy loss. They worry a lot and turn to us. Have you got any constructive suggestions?
B: Yes. Our client should first examine their staff recruiting. There must be something wrong with their recruiting practice.
A: Why?
B: You know, keeping staff turnover low begins with hiring staff members who are a good match for the practice and the position. So it can be beneficial for the client company to change its idea from "attracting and retaining the best employees" to "attracting and recruiting the suitable employees."
A: Good idea! By recruiting the appropriate new staff, our client builds the employees' commitment and retention will necessarily follow.
B: Exactly.
A: Then how to recruit the right staff is crucial to our client.
B: Yes. To recruit the appropriate new hires, it's important to advertise the job vacancy in the newspapers and magazines targeting at the ideal candidates.
A: To ensure that a candidate's skills match the job, it's also important to limit the conditions and requirements of candidates on the job advertisement.
B: Yes. Besides, it's better for our client to conduct thorough reference checks and find out why a candidate left a previous job.
A: Yeah, that's important. Still there are other contributable factors that our client should consider, such as providing information of the current state of their future work environment, offering staff with proper training, talking to staff members and solving problems as they emerge. All these can be important in keeping staff turnover low.
B: You are right. Furthermore, the client company should strive to provide superior leadership in their practice, such as keeping communication lines open, periodically taking time to examine the workplace from the employee's perspective, and continually seeking to improve it.
A: Yeah, that will help to create and maintain a place where people want to work and stay. In addition, giving the employees a sense of empowerment should not be ignored.
B: For example?
A: Such as providing a breathing space to take risks, to use their own best judgment, and to be accountable for the decisions they've made etc.
B: Yeah, that surely works.
adj. 大方的，丰富的，浪费的 vt. 浪费，慷慨给予
