剑桥商务英语高级真题集听力原文十二篇03

会计考友 · 发表于 2012-8-14 19:16:37

TEST 3This is the Business English Certificate Higher 2, Listening Test 3.
Part One. Questions 1 to 12.You will hear a spokesperson telling a group of business people about the Business Support Agency- an organisation which distributes business and research grants.
As you listen, for questions 1 to 12, complete the notes, using up to three words or a number.
After you have listened once, replay the recording.
You now have forty-five seconds to read through the notes.
[pause]
Now listen, and complete the notes.
[pause]
Woman: Thank you everybody, thank you. The Business Support Agency or BSA are very proud of the part we play in the development of business success. Today I’ll give you a bit of background on the Agency, and then outline the steps involved in applying for support. OK?
            What we do, basically, is distribute financial support from our funds, which come from the central government Department of Education on the one hand, and then that sum is matched - the amount fluctuates on a yearly basis – by contributions from a number of multinational companies. We then follow the procedures I’ll be outlining in a moment. Some examples of this work, if you’re interested, can be seen in our annual report - I’ll leave copies out for you to look at. Since we began, we’ve given out over three hundred grants. We made twenty awards last year alone, and expect that figure to rise to twenty-five next year. But we’re not simply giving this money away - our criteria are strict.
            So, how do you apply? Well, there are four steps to making an application. In the first place, you should get in touch with our Project Coordinating Office. You can call them on 0188 45 45 45 and express your interest. They’ll then send you an application form. It’s quite a lengthy document, I must warn you, and you’ll need to fill in information about the history of your company, outline your requirements, and include the predicted benefits. That gives us the beginning of a picture and enables us to make an initial decision about whether to proceed any further. The third step would be having a meeting with one of our regional consultants. This involves talking through your ideas for development if you get the grant and should help you to focus clearly on your exact needs. And the fourth step is producing a full plan, which needs to include all costs and dates. By this time, both sides will have a very clear picture. Now, all this obviously takes up quite some time, and you need to think carefully about which personnel within your organisation are going to be available to put in the necessary work. OK, well that’s then your role finished for the time being.
            Meanwhile, we continue to go through your plans in detail. Ultimately, whether or not you get a grant will be decided by our central committee. This consists of representatives from our funding bodies and a panel of experts. For logistical reasons, they only meet every three months, so it can take a while for you to hear from us. Now, assuming you are successful - and around eighty per cent of applications are - the BSA will be looking to fund seventy per cent of your overall requirement. That proportion is up from a maximum of sixty per cent last year. The payment will be made in quarterly instalments. This has proved to be the most generally useful method all round. The last job for you will be coming up with a progress review, which you need to do at the end of the first year. Right, well, are there any questions?

会计考友 · 发表于 2012-8-14 19:16:38

[pause]</p>Now listen to the recording again.
[pause]
That is the end 6f Part One. You now have twenty seconds to check your answers.
[pause]

Part Two. Questions 13 to 22.You will hear five different people talking about changing their jobs.
For each extract there are two tasks. Look at Task One. For each question 13-17, choose the reason for changing jobs, from the list A-H. Now look at Task Two. For each question 18-22, choose the problem area in the new workplace, from the list A-H.
After you have listened once, replay the recording
You now have thirty seconds to read the two lists.
[pause]
Now listen, and do the two tasks.
[pause]
Man:       I’d been feeling for some time that a move was overdue, and I suppose it was just the fact that I thought I’d miss the friendliness of the place that held me back. But in the end I realised that I could spend my life there and not move up the ladder - you could see how the roles with responsibility were filled by people who weren’t themselves about to move on. I’m glad overall - I can see my role will continue to develop here, and I’ve had no second thoughts - the only drawback is that it is a bit chaotic here. So even though I’d say I was pretty effective at meeting deadlines, there are others who aren’t, and their inability to sort out each day’s tasks can create bottlenecks that cause frustrations.
Woman: I was getting tired of the sense of doing the same thing over and over again and decided it was time to ring the changes. I’m pleased I did, because I’ve got a greater range of responsibilities now, and it means my skills and abilities are put to better use. It is a smaller outfit, of course, and the MD does rather keep himself to himself, but, generally, I like the independence that leaves me, particularly with such high-quality support staff. On the other hand, something that should be addressed here is the issue of assessment - the system here isn’t actually very relevant to what people actually do, so sometimes you’re judged on the wrong issues.
Man:    I’d been looking around for some time, but it wasn’t until I went to see a recruitment onsultant that I began to focus my aims. I suppose it’s not surprising - I was doing so many different things that it was actually quite hard to work out what the core of the job was - but it was certainly at some distance from what I’d spent so long studying, and the consultant helped me to realise my dissatisfaction came from under-using that background. So I do feel a lot more focused here. One drawback, I guess, is the failure to make the most of all the IT, so that, for example, I end up sitting here emailing away to colleagues who can’t even be bothered to reply o- react.
Woman: Well, I’d been convinced for quite a while that my old company wasn’t moving in the right direction. But of course it was only me that seemed to think so... everyone else was perfectly happy trundling along. So I was delighted when this opportunity came up, the chance to properly investigate market trends, even if it meant a greater number of trips. Some people might think it dull, but I get a lot out of it. I have to say I’d get even more out of it if I thought they had the big picture a bit clearer in their heads. At the moment no-one knows what to do with my findings because the Board don’t know where they’re going long term.
Man:       Hm, well I was feeling stuck. It’s not that I’m hugely ambitious - I guess I’d be looking at re-training myself if that was the case - but certainly my interpersonal skills weren’t being used to their full extent. All I’d ever done was deal with one or two suppliers occasionally, whereas now I’m meeting clients and other contacts on a daily basis, which is what I was hoping for. The downside is that my lack of knowledge about computers is beginning to show. This place is so well equipped with all the latest software that I’m a bit out of my depth. In my defence, I’d say it wouldn’t matter so much if they had more than one poor overworked guy that you could contact to ask for help when something goes wrong.
[pause]
Now listen to the recording again.
[pause]
That is the end of Part Two.
[pause]

会计考友 · 发表于 2012-8-14 19:16:39

Part Three. Questions 23 to 30.You will hear Tania and Jerry, two managers from a furniture manufacturer, have just attended. discussing a meeting they have just attended.
For each question 23-30, mark one letter, A, B or C, for the correct answer.
After you have listened once, replay the recording.
You now have forty-five seconds to read through the questions.
[pause]
Now listen, and mark A, B or C.
[pause]
Woman: Whew, what a meeting! Were you as surprised as I was, Jerry?
Man:       You bet. When the Chairman called us to it, I thought it might be about the takeover that there have been rumours about, but I didn’t expect anything like the Chief Executive being forced out.
Woman: No. It doesn’t seem fair to blame him for the American project not making much money, when it hasn’t had long to establish itself. And I can’t see why the Board have decided to end it now. After all, they didn’t seem worried earlier this year, when the markets panicked about it and our share price dropped.
Man:       And fancy Keith Barnes becoming Chief Executive! Did you know he joined as a trainee, thirty years ago?
Woman: Yes, he certainly knows the company, but he’s had very little time in positions that’ll help him as Chief Executive. I doubt if he’s got what it takes to run a big company like this. If you ask me, the Chairman wanted to make an internal appointment, and Keith was in the right place at the right time. Well we’ll see how he turns out, but I reckon he’ll only keep the job for as long as the Chairman’s behind him.
Man:       Yeah, you’re probably right. And what about these new plans Keith talked about? It seems pretty risky to expand into areas where we’ve got no experience or expertise. This company has been making furniture for years, and we ought to stick to what we’re good at, and maybe expand through acquisitions.
Woman: Well, it might be a good idea.
Man:       I know our market share’s growing, but the strategy still relies too much on low prices to attract customers. What we really need to do more is to make people want our beds and furniture because they’re special, not because they’re cheap.
Woman: You mean moving into niche markets?
Man:       I’d describe it as staying in the mass market, but standing out from the rest.
Woman: Right. Consumers are becoming more demanding these days, after all.
Man:       Exactly. What about you, Tania? How do you feel about your new responsibility?
Woman: It’s going to be quite a challenge, I reckon. I mean, sorting out the reorganisation of the business into divisions sounds simple enough, but I suspect it’ll produce plenty of headaches. And with several brands to deal with, some of which cut across the divisions, it’s going to be pretty complicated. I suspect it’ll be tough to finish it in the time I’ve been given. And of course, congratulations on becoming Export Sales Manager, Jerry.
Man:       Thanks.
Woman: You don’t sound very enthusiastic. Don’t you want the job?
Man:       Oh yes, it’s just the sort of challenge I need. Something to get my teeth into, and the chance to use what I learnt when I was in Export Sales before. But there are other people who’ve stayed in the department who might resent me going back into it over them.
Woman: Well, surely if you work closely with them, they’ll realise you’re all right?
Man:       Yes, I’m sure I can do it. I just need to get things off on the right foot right from the beginning.
Woman: So will you be involved in the TV advertising campaign that Keith talked about?
Man:       I hope not! It’s all very well promoting our cabinet furniture brands, but I think the money would be better spent on pushing bed sales: that’s the side of the business that needs more consumer awareness.
Woman: Right. I can see why they’ve picked this time to plan a campaign, as advertising costs are relatively low at the moment, but I agree, they haven’t got the plan quite right. Actually I’m not very happy about the way they’ve allocated money in general.
Man:       You aren’t going to turn down the pay rise, are you?
Woman: No, I’m not that idealistic. And of course it’s right to spend money on new products and machinery. But we’ve been asking for ages for better facilities for the factory workers in particular, and it doesn’t look as though much is being done for them.
Man:       Maybe if we keep pressing for that...
[pause]
Now listen to the recording again.
[pause]
That is the end of Part Three. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Sheet.
[pause]
Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students when there is one minute remaining.
[pause]
That is the end of the test.

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[BEC真题] 剑桥商务英语高级真题集听力原文十二篇03

剑桥商务英语高级真题集听力原文十二篇03

剑桥商务英语高级真题集听力原文十二篇03