2019年商务英语BEC中级考试试题

2019 年商务英语BEC中级考试试题1、Questions·Readthearticlebelowaboutjobinterviews.·Choosethebestsentencefromthelistontheoppositepagetofilleachofthegaps.·Foreachgap8-12markoneletter(A-I)onyourAnswerSheet.·Donotuseany lettermorethanonce.HowtoSucceedatInterviewsTheaimofajobinterviewistoestablishwhetheryouarelikelytodowellinaparticularjobinaspecificorganisation.Thisisnotonlyamatterofhavingthenecessarytechnicalknowledgeandskills.Youmustalsohavethemotivation,abilitytoadapttonewwaysofworkingandtoanewworkenvironment,andthepersonalitytodothejobandfitintoanewteam.(example) .Theseincludegettingonwithpeople,oralandwrittencommunication,teamworking,problemsolvingandgoodtimemanagement.Mostpeoplethinkthatinterviewersknowwhattheyarelookingforandwillrecogniseitwhentheyseeit.(8) .Thisappliestorecruitersasmuchasanyoneelse.Infactaformerheadofselectionatonebigfirmusedtosaythat“someinterviewersaresopoortheywoulddobettertoonchance ”.Incompanieswhichrecognisethis,variousmethodsareusedtotrytofindtherightperson(9) .Researchhasshownthatthisapproachismorereliablethantheordinaryjobinterview,thoughnotaseffectiveasusingpersonalitytestsorassessmentcentres.Inastructuredinterviewtheinterviewergroupsthequalitieslistedinthejobspecificationundervariousheadings.Therearetwowell-establishedstructuresforthis ：theNationalInstituteofIndustrialPsychology ’sSeven-PointPlanandtheFive-FoldGradingSystem.Bothsystemscoverfactorssuchasphysicalappearance,qualifications,generalintelligence,motivationandpreviousexperience.(10) .However,theyshouldnotgiveequalweighttoeachone.Somefactorsaremoreimportantinonejobthananother.example,physicalappearanceandmannerwillbemoreimportantinasalespositionthaninaresearcherwhoworksbehindthescenes.Itisalsoafactthattheimpactthecandidatemakesinthefirstthreeoffourminutesofaninterviewisofmajorimportance.(11) .Adecisionnottohireisoftenmadeduringthosefirstfewminutes.Itisnotalwayspossibletotellwhetherstructuredinterviewtechniquesarebeingused.Ifinterviewersaskquestionssystematically,usingsomekindofchecklist,andoccasionallymakeabriefnote,theyprobablyare.Ontheotherhand,iftheinterviewergoesthroughyourapplicationformtoconfirmwhatyouhavealreadysaid,orasksirrelevantquestions,orjumpsfromonetopictoanothertheinterviewisunlikelytobestructured.Beforeyouattendanyinterview,lookagainatthejobdescriptionandthepersonalspecification.(12) .Ifyoualreadyhaveamentallistofthekeypointsthatyouneedtomention,youareunlikelytowastetimegivingirrelevantinformationortoomitimportantpointsinyourfavour.AStudythemcloselyandassesswhatyourinterviewerwillbelookingfor.BHowever,peopleareactuallynotverygoodatassessingoneanother.CAnumberofskillsarecommontomostoftheseinterviewingsituations.DAlthoughafavourableimpressionmaybereversedlaterintheinterview,anegativeimpressionisrarelychanged.EThemostcommonisthestructuredinterview.FTheeffectivenessoftheinterviewercanbeimprovedbytraining.GForeachoftheseareastheinterviewersscorecandidatesagainsthowwelltheyfitthejobspecification.HTheabilitytocopewithstressandgetonwithpeopleisessential.IButthereareotherpersonalskillsthataffectyoursuccessinajob.2、1.ProblemsatSouthfordPlantDearMRBallard,YouaskedforabriefreportconcerningtherecenteventsattheSouthfordPlant.Wehaveconsultedthefilesandspokentorelevantmembersofthehighermanagementandthusareabletoprovideanexplanationforthebreakdownreportedinthepresson17Mayofthisyear. 1

Thehandlingequipmentusedtodeliverthecomponentstotheassemblylinehasbeenknowntobeinneedofanoverhaulforthepastsixmonths.TheplanthasbeenworkingtofullcapacitytofinishtheAmericanordersaccordingtoschedule. Asyouknow,wehadcommissionedstudybyIndustrialResearchConsultants. 2

Inittheywarnedthattherewasnotenoughspaceavailabletostoresufficientcomponents 3

Wehaddecidedtoinstallfullyautomatedrobotsystem.However,atthesametimeitwascleartoourproductiondirectorthatgiventhepresentmaintenancestaff,wewouldnothavesufficientstaffavailableifbigproblemsweretoarise 4 Butwewerestillonlyworkingatwo-shiftsystemsothemachineswerenotgettingthenecessarycover. Weallagreethatbreakdownwasextremelyunfortunateandyetwemustadmitthat,underthecircumstance,itwasnotentirelyunexpected.Wenowbelievethatwehavemanagedtosortoutthemajorproblemswhichwehadbeenhavingwiththeconveyorequipment 5

Addedtothisisthefactthatpersonneldepartmenthasbeensuccessfulinrecruitingsomehighlyqualifiedmaintenancestaffwhomakesusconfidentthatarepetitionofthe16Maynowseemsentirelyunlikely.A.Theyalsorecommendedexpandingthepresenttwo-shiftsystemtoathree-shiftone.B.AndalsowhenthenewrobotsareinstalledinSeptember,wefeelcertainthatsuchproblemswillbecomeathingofthepast.C.Unfortunately,asyouknow,therehasbeenamajorproblemwithrecognizingthemaintenanceschedule.D.Thewiderangeofmachineweoperateisnotsupervisedatalltimes.E.Thecauseofthebreakdownwasverysimple.F.TheysubmittedtheirreportonApril5.G.Therehavebeenanumberofdelaysandbreakdownsinproductionrecentlywhichhavebeenreportedinthepress.H.Thefirmhasbeenadvertisingformaintenanceengineersforsomeweeks.I.Allthefacilitiesintheplantwillbecoordinatedtoenabletheworkerstostepupproductionofthenewrangeofmachines.3 、Questions8-12·Readthetext belowaboutcareerplanning.·Choosethebestsentencefromthelistontheoppositepagetofilleachofthegaps.·Foreachgap8-12,markoneletter(A-I)onyourAnswersheet.·Donotuseanylettermorethanonce.CareerPlanningFormanyemployees,automaticpromotionuptheranksofacompanyisbecomingincreasinglyrare.Anewstudysuggeststhat,inresponse,employersneedtoconsiderhowtheycanhelpstaffdeveloptheircareers.Employersneedtorethinktheirapproachtocareermanagementcompletely,accordingtothelatestresearchbytheInstituteofEmploymentStudies.Thenewstudyfindsthatinfactthereislittleopportunityforindividualcareerdevelopmentinmanylargeorganisations.(example) InstituteofEmploymentStudiesmakesitclearthatitisnotgoodpracticeforcompaniestohandovercareerdevelopmenttoindividualemployeesandthensimplyleavethemtogetonwithit.(8) .Sohowshouldemployershelptheirstaffdevelopacareer?Mostemployeeshavecometoacceptthatcareerdevelopmentisnotalwaysthesamethingasupwardpromotionandahighersalary.(9) .Theymustalsoensurethattheseopportunitiesareextendedtoalltheirstaffandnotjusttoselectedindividuals.NickBridges,whoisDirectorofHumanResourcesPolicyattheBankofEasternEngland,believesthereismoretalkthanactioninthisarea.(10) .Oneway,hebelieves,forcompaniestoshowhowserioustheyareaboutindividuallearningistomakeitanofficialpartofcompanypractice,astheBankofEasternEnglandhasdone.(11) .Thisdocument,hepointsout,hasmadetheroleofmanagersandthecompanyhasalsoinvestedhugeamountsofmoneyeducatingmanagerssothattheycanthentraintheirstaff.Anothercompany,BritishChemicals,hascontractedanindependentorganisationtohelpstaffwithconfidentialcareeradvice.AccordingtoJohnYates,theheadofIndividualLearningandDevelopmentatBritishChemicals,thereisanimportantroleforoutsideagenciestoplayinthecareermanagementprocess.Headdsthatitiscompanypolicyformanagerstogiveallstaff ‘roadmaps’whichpossiblecareerrouteswithinthecompanystructure.(12) .Thishasworkedespeciallywell,hesays,forstaffwhoareusedtodependingontheirlinemanagersforguidance.Manylargeorganisationsnowrecognisethatcareerdevelopmentcannotberegardedinisolation,andmustbepartofanoverallbusinessstrategy.HumanResourceshasarealroletoplayinbuildingastrongworkforcewhichmeetscompany’slong-termbusinessneedsandmakesitmorecompetitive.AItspolicystatementsaysthatby2006,eightypercentofitsstaffwillhaveaprofessionalqualification.BHisrecommendationsgoevenfurtherthanthat,andhehascalledforanationaldebateontheissueofwhatshouldberegardedasacareerinthefuture.CThischangeofattitudemeansemployersneedtoplacemoreemphasisongivingstaffthechancetodeveloparangeofskillsthroughhorizontaljobmoves.DItpointsoutthatemployeesneedtoknowwhattheoverallcompanyvisionisinordertoachievemanyofthese.ETheproblemthatoftenarisesisthat,whiletheyareincreasinglyencouragedtomanagetheirowncareers,theyarenotprovidedwiththeknowledgeandtrainingtodoFTheyareabletoseethat,contrarytoexpectations,jobsindifferentfieldsaresimilar,andtheycanalsoseehowitispossibletocrossovertootherareas.GItsemployeesarenolongermotivatedbythesefactorsalone,andtheproblemtodayismatchingaperson motivationwiththerightjob.HHearguesthatwhileHumanResourcesmanagersaresayingthewayforwardisthroughself-managedlearningandself-development,theyarestillfailingtoprovideadequatelearningresources.IThemainreasonsforthis,itconcludes,aretherecentcutsinthenumberofmiddle-managementposts,andthechangesthathavetakenplaceintheresponsibilitiesofpersonneldepartments.4、PARTFOURQuestions21-35ReadthetextbelowaboutjobprospectsattheProvincialBank.ChoosethecorrectwordA,B,C,or,Dontheoppositepagetofilleachgap.Foreachquestion21-35,markoneletter(A,B,C,orD)onyourAnswerSheet.EmploymentOpportunitiesforGraduateswiththeProvincialBankTheProvincialBankisoneofthebiggest(example) institutionsintheU.K.Withits1,900branchesand58,000employees,ithas(21) ahouseholdname.Almost4,000oftheseemployees(22) managerialorexecutivepositions.Thebankhasanoutstanding(23) ofprofitability,whichhasbeenachievedbyintroducinginnovationsatthesametimeasmaintainingleadershipofthe(24) .Thecomprehensivetrainingprogrammeconcentrateson(25) themostimportantskillsthatgraduatesneedinorderto(26) earlymanagementresponsibility.Traineestakeresponsibilityfortheirowncontinuousself-developmentthroughvisitingotherbranchesanddepartments,andby(27) coursesinmanagementskills.Theyalsoreceivetraininginordertoincreasetheirknowledgeofthebank's(28) .Thebanksupports ofstaffwhowishtotakeprofessionalexaminations,anditsGraduateTrainingSchemeis tothenationallyrecognizedDiplomaManagement.Obviouslythequalityofitsmangersisof importancetothebank'sperformance.Itwelcomesgoodgraduatesinanysubjectarea,(32) theycandemonstratetheabilitytoinfluenceevents,andhavethepotentialto(33) bothasleadersandpartofateam.MostgraduatetraineesjointheRetailBankingdivisioninitially.Thosestartingonthisprogrammewillsoonhavethe(34) toworkinotherpartsofthebankandcan(35) avariedandflexibleworkinglife.Example：AbudgetaryBfiscalCfinancialDeconomic21AopenedBenteredCturnedDbecomeAholdBdoCkeepDownAcareerBcatalogueCrecordDexperience24AareaBtradeCrecordDmarket25AmakingBreachingCdevelopingDheightening26ApresentBtreatCdealDhandleAobservingBattendingCinvolvingDstayingAservicesBgoodsCcreationsDabilities29AcolleagueBmembersCpeopleDpersons30AqualifiedBcombinedCfastenedD31AmainBvitalCnecessaryDsuperior32AthereforeBthusCprovidedDonly33AsucceedBrealizeCgainDovercome34AchoiceBchanceClikelihoodDprobability35AforecastBbelieveCsupposeDexpect5、PARTTWOQuestions8-12Readtheextractbelowfromanarticleaboutthecoffeeindustry.Choosethebestsentencefromthelistontheoppositepagetofilleachofthegaps.Foreachgap8-12,markoneletter(A-I)onyourAnswerSheet.Donotuseanylettermorethanonce.Coffeeisworthapproximately$50-60bnperannumintermsofworldsales.Itisatrulyinternationalcommodity,andmorethan50countriesintheworldgrowcoffeebeans.(example) I .ICOorganizationhelpscoffeeproducersandpromotescoffeeconumptionworldwide.ICOestimatesthatworldproductionnextyearwillreach97.5millionbags.11.3millionbagshigherthanthecurrentyear.(8) .Asthelargestproducingcountry,Brazilisparticularlyimportantinthecoffeeworld.In1994Brazilwasresponsiblefor25%ofworldproduction,Colombiawasnextwith13.4%,Indonesiahad7.5%,Mexico4.7%,Guatemala3.8%andEthiopiaandVietnamwereequalwith3.4%.Coffeeatoughcrop,andcanbegrowninareaswhereitisdifficultorimpossibletogrowothercrops.(9)However,diseaseisalwaysproblemforcoffeeproduction,aswecanseeinsomepartsofSouthAmericaatthemoment.ICOisactiveeducatingfarmersaboutavoidingdiseaseanddealingwithproblemswhentheyoccur.Thedistributionchainvariesfromcountrytocountry,explainsPabloDubois.Inmostcountriesthesmallerfarmersselltheircroptoalocaltrader,whothensellsitontoexporters.Thereare,however,otherdistributionsystems.(10) .Somecountries,likeVietnam,havespecialgovernmentmarketingorganizationsforcoffee.Coffeepricesoftenvarygreatlyfromoneyeartonext.In1997,forexample,therewasalargeriseintheworldprice,whichwasimmediatelyfeltbytheconsumer.Risingpricesalwaysresultinadropinsales,whichwillhaveabadeffectonthosedevelopingcountries,whicharehighlydependentonforeignexchangefromcoffeeexports.(11) .IntheopinionofPabloDubois,thebiggestproblemforhisorganisationistocreategreaterconsumerawarenessofthedifferentvarietiesofcoffeeanddifferentwaysofpreparingit.(12) .ICOisthereforeconcentratingitspromotionalactivitiesonRussiaandItisalsoencouragingenvironmentallyfriendlycoffeeproduction,andlastyear'sseminaroncoffeeandtheenvironmentcreatedalotofinterest.Thefuturelooksbrightforthecoffeeindustry.Itisestimatedthatconsumptionoverthenextfewyearswillcontinuetorisesteadily.NewmarketslikeEasternEuropeandChinaareexpectedtodevelopfast.Asaresult,themembershipnowrepresents94%ofexportersand60%ofallimporters.Insomeofthesecountries,thiscanamounttoasas50%ofallexportearning.InNorthAmerica,mostconsumersalreadyaboveaverageknowledgeoftherangeavailable.Forexample,frostandwindareparticularlydamagingcoffeecrops.Largercoffeegrowers,forexample,frequentlyexportdirectly.ThemainreasonforthisishigherBrazilianoutputproductionrecoversfromweatherdamagetocrops.Itiscultivatedinmountainregionswhichcanonlybereachedbyanimaltransport,andinotherdifficultareaswheremodernagriculturalequipmentcannotbeused.ThisisbecausethereisademandforcoffeeinGermany,anditisalsosoldintheUKandintheUS.Thismakethecoffeeindustryfairlyuniversal,accordingtoPabloDubois,HeadoftheInternationalCoffeeOrganisation(ICO),basedinLondon.6、PARTTHREEQuestions13-20Readthearticlebelowaboutstressmanagement,andanswerquestions13-20ontheoppositepage.ALessonInStressManagementDemandsplacedonusatworkcanoftenleadtoconsiderableworryanddiscomfort.Thereare,however,waysofprotectingourselvesfromthestresswefaceatwork.WeinterviewedJaneCollard,aconsultantinstressmanagement.InJaneCollard'sopinion,stressisbecominganincreasinglycommonfeatureoftheworkplace.Stressisahighlyindividualreaction,whichvariesconsiderablypersontoperson,anditisdifficultforsomeemployeestoavoidit.Indeed,stressisregardedbymanyaspartoftheorganizationalcultureofourinstitutions ：itcomeswiththejob.Recentfiguresindicatethattimetakenoffworkbecauseofstresshasincreasedby500percentsincethe1950s.Undoubtedly,changesinworkingconditionshaveledtogreaterpressureatworkatalllevels.Withreductionsinstaffing,workloadsforindividualemployeeshaveincreased.Inaddition,manyemployeesareleftworryingaboutthesecurityoftheirjobs.Onthestressmanagementcoursesthatsheruns,JaneCollardtriestomakethetraineesrealisethatstressinitselfnotharmful.Everyoneneedsacertainlevelofstresstoenablethemtofeelmotivatedandtoperformeffectively.Acompleteabsenceofstresscanbeasdamagingasoverstress,sinceitcanmakepeopleloseinterestintheirwork,andevenleadtodepression.Thedifficultiesoccurwhentheamountofstressrisesabovealevelwhichishealthyforaparticularindividual.Ifthishappens,theeffectsareveryobviousandthetraineesaretaughttorecognizethesigns.Stressmaybeexpressedphysically,forexamplethroughheadachesandtiredness,orthroughemotionalproblemssuchasdepression.Apersonsufferingfromstressmayalsostarttobehavedifferently,andcanbedifficulttodealwith.Whileitmaynotalwaysbepossibletopreventstress,thereareanumberofwaysinwhichitcanbecontrolled.Thefirstthingthatthetraineeslearnishowtomanagetimeeffectively.Thisinvolves,firstofall,settingrealisticgoalsforboththeshortandlongterm.Oncethisframeworkhasbeenestablished,tasksarethenprioritisedonadailybasis.Thetraineesarealsoremindedthatwhentheyareunderpressurethelessimportantitemsshouldbeleft,andtheyshouldneverhesitatetodelegate.Everyoneisencouragedtolookatwaysofreducing'wastedtime',forexamplebygroupingsimilartaskstogetherordealingwithitemsimmedkiately.Janefeelsthatoneofthemostusefulfeaturesofthecourseisthatitenablestraineestodealwiththosedemandsordeadlinesthattheyregardasunreasonable.Theyareencouragedtoavoidbeingdefensive,butatthesametimetheyareadvisednottobeafraidofsaying'no'.Theyareaskedtogivereasonsonlyifnecessary.Thetraininghelpsthemtoforeseedifficultsituationsorunwanteddemands,andtheylearnhowtopreparethemselvesmentally.Everyoneisencouragednottogetstuckinnegativethoughtpatterns,wherestresscanfeedacircularsenseofhelplessness.Onesolutiontheydiscussistothinkofamoreencouragingalternativeforeachnegativemessage.Theylearn,forexample,toremindthemselvesthatnothingterriblehappenswhenademandisrefusedoradeadlinemissed.Lifegoeson.Questions13-16Forquestions13-16,choosethebesttitleforeachnumberedparagraphfromthelistbelow.Foreachnumberedparagraph1-4,markoneletter(A-G)onyourAnswerSheet.Donotuseanylettermorethanonce.13Paragraph1 14Paragraph2 15Paragraph3 16Paragraph4 AHigherstresslevelsamongtopmanagersBCopingwithstressthroughapositiveattitudeCTimelostatworkthroughsicknessDCausesofincreasedstressintheworkenvironmentEExplanationsformisseddeadlinesFstressreductionthroughbetterorganisationGTypicalproblemsassociatedwithstress7、PartOneYouareHeadofResearchforinternationalcarmanufacturer.YouhavetomakeanurgenttriptomorrowtovisitPierreBlanco,acolleaguewhoworksforasubsidiary.Writeamemoof30-40wordstoyoursecretary.Tellingherwhoyouaregoingtoseeandwhen;Asking