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BEP 150 – Working in Multicultural Teams (Part 2)

BEP — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 06:02:41 +0000

https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/bizpod/BEP150ADV-Multicultural2.mp3

This is the the second of a two-part Business English Pod series on working in multicultural teams.

These days, working with people from different cultures is quite common. You might be meeting with colleagues in another country or on another continent. Business practices vary all over the world. Some cultures are more formal than others. Some have distinct customs regarding greetings, gender roles, and food. So it’s helpful to know as much as possible about other business cultures before you meet your team.

But even if you’ve done your research carefully, problems can still arise, especially in face-to-face meetings. There can be miscommunications, points that need clarification, and different ideas of what’s acceptable in a business environment.

Today, we’ll look at issues like slang and idioms, concepts of time, forms of address, and misunderstandings due to culture. We’ll also discuss opening interactions and explaining different business customs.

In the last episode, we met Cao Ming a U.S.-based manager at a multinational company. Originally from China, Ming has worked in New York for many years and is now headed to Brazil where he’ll lead a research team. He did some background reading and discussed Brazilian culture with a colleague before he left. Now, he’s heading his first meeting with his new Brazilian team.

Listening Questions

1. What are two idioms Ming needs to explain?
2. What suggestion does Carla make at the beginning of the meeting?
3. Why does Felipe mispronounce Ming’s name?

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BEP 149 – Working in Multicultural Teams (Part 1)

BEP — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 08:50:06 +0000

https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/bizpod/BEP149ADV-Multicultral1.mp3

This is the first in a two-part Business English Pod series on working in multicultural teams.

In today’s world, it’s common to work with people from different cultures. And since effective business depends on clear communication, it’s important to consider different aspects of culture. Your colleagues may do business differently than you do. So, knowing more about intercultural communication can help your work go more smoothly and avoid any misunderstandings.

In this episode, we’ll go over some points to consider for working in a multicultural team. We’ll look at general business culture, specific business customs, levels of formality, and local cultural awareness. And since food is often served in business settings, we’ll talk about that, too.

We’ll be listening to, a manager at a biotechnology company based in the United States. Although Ming is originally from China, he has worked for many years at the head office in New York and is now heading to Brazil to manage a team of international researchers. In this episode, Ming is preparing for his trip by talking to a colleague, Tanya, who lived and worked in Brazil for 3 years.

Listening Questions:

1. What has Ming heard about Curitiba?
2. What does Tanya say about relationships in Brazil?
3. What honorary title does Ming ask about?

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BEP 61 – American Sports Idioms in a Business Meeting

BEP — Sun, 12 Aug 2007 09:23:01 +0000

https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/bizpod/360.91-Career-1.mp3

This is the first in a series of Business English Practice Pods that review and extend the language that is covered in the regular podcast. Practice pod dialogs will revise key language but in different situations. Also, they give you more opportunities to practice what you’ve learned.

We’ll hear several idioms from Sports Idioms 1 (BEP 57) and 2 (BEP 58) being used in a new context in today’s dialog:

– to play ball
– to stall for time
– to keep/have one’s eye on the ball
– to step up to the plate

We’ll see how these idioms are useful in a different context, a business meeting. After the dialog, we’ll hear some further example phrases and then have a chance to practice using these idioms. Jen, Ken and Ryan of Ambient are in a marketing meeting discussing Accent’s recent buyout of Telstar.

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BEP 58 – Water Cooler Chitchat: Sports Idioms (2)

BEP — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 11:51:01 +0000

https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/bizpod/BEP058-Sports_Idioms2.mp3

Sports Idioms 2, is part of a series that focuses on informal conversation or small talk – water cooler chitchat. We’re continuing where we left off last time in BEP 57. Jan and Jen, employees of major American telecommunications company Ambient, are chatting about a recent event in the industry: Accent, a European telecom company, has taken over TelStar, one of Ambient’s American competitors.

Last time, Jen had just discussed how she was surprised that TelStar decided to play ball, that is cooperate, with Accent because the shareholders had been “stalling for time,” or delaying, for months. How does Jan respond?

Listening Questions

1) Who is McConnel and what do Jan and Jen think of him?
2) What do Jen and Jan say about Accent’s future in American market?

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BEP 57 – Water Cooler Chitchat: Sports Idioms (1)

BEP — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 12:17:56 +0000

https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/bizpod/BEP057-Sports_Idioms1.mp3

This Business English Podcast lesson is the first in an ongoing series where we’ll listen in on some typical chitchat around the office water cooler. You’ll find a water cooler in offices around the world – usually in the break room where employees gather to drink a cup of coffee or tea and take a rest from work.

And during these breaks, you might meet with a colleague and exchange words about life, your jobs, your company, sports, politics or whatever. So “water cooler chichat” has come to refer to all types of informal communication that take place at the office.

We’ll be listening in on Jan and Jen, who work in the same office of Ambient, an American telecoms company, gossiping around the water cooler. They are discussing the latest industry news: Accent, a major European player in the market, has just announced the takeover or buy out of Ambient’s main competitor,TelStar.

Listening Questions

1) Do Jan and Jen think Accent’s takeover of TelStar was a good idea?
2) Why was there a delay in the takeover?

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