Business English Pod / Intermediate English

Intermediate English

Our intermediate business English lessons are suitable for learners with an English level of CEFR B1 and above. Develop your language skills for Intermediate English at CEFR level B1 and B2.

BEP 81c – Meeting English: Action Points and Wrapping Up

Business English, English for Meetings, Intermediate English /

BEP 81c - Meeting English: Action Points and Wrapping Up

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on finishing a meeting in English. We’ll learn how to summarize action points and wrap up the meeting.

A well-run meeting can be productive and useful. But a poorly run meeting can leave everyone feeling like their time has been wasted. And one of the big differences between good and bad meetings is how they end.

A good meeting doesn’t slowly run out of energy. Instead, there’s a clear ending to it. And people come out of the meeting with a strong sense of purpose and a clear idea of what they need to do. Without a sense of purpose, people might feel like the meeting generated a lot of discussion but nothing more.

Giving a strong finish to a meeting isn’t actually that hard to do. First off, you need to be clear that the meeting is about to end. That gives people a chance to collect their thoughts. Next, you can summarize the action points and assign tasks. You may also want to emphasize how important they are to give some extra motivation. Then you can wrap up the meeting with some closing thoughts.

In today’s dialog, we’ll join a meeting at a bank. The team has been discussing some recent issues and future plans. You will hear Lisa provide a strong finish to the meeting with James, Bryan, Charles, and Cecilia.

Listening Questions

1. What question does Lisa ask the group before stating the action items?
2. What does Lisa emphasize about James planned action?
3. What does Lisa say to officially end the meeting?

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BEP 68c – English for Meetings: Dealing with Interruptions

Business English, English for Meetings, Human Resources, Intermediate English /

BEP 68c - English Meetings: Dealing with Interruptions

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s English for meetings lesson on how to deal with interruptions during a meeting.

Meetings are a very important part of work life. They are where decisions are made, relationships are built, and work is coordinated. When meetings go smoothly, they can feel very productive. But meetings can easily become messy and unfocused.

In many cases, people compete for time and attention during meetings. They interrupt each other to give new ideas, disagree, or try to get their way. Knowing how to deal with interruptions is a critical skill if you want to participate fully in a meeting.

Interrupting people is easier if you learn some useful phrases. You can also learn language to help you stop an interruption and finish what you were saying. In some cases, you might need to concede someone else’s point, either partly or fully. When we concede a point, we are saying “okay, you’re right.” Sometimes that’s the key to moving on after an interruption.

In today’s dialog, we’ll join a meeting at a manufacturing company. Bill is the production manager and Mei Lin and Sam work in HR. They are discussing staffing and recruiting for a new production line. Bill is keen to hire new staff, but Sam and Mei Lin want to explore alternative approaches so there’s a lot of disagreement and interrupting during the meeting.

Listening Questions

1. What does Bill say is the purpose of the meeting?
2. What is one of the expressions Mei Lin uses to interrupt Bill when he’s speaking?
3. What does Bill say to get back to what he was trying to say after being interrupted?

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BEP 45c – Socializing: Keeping a Conversation Going

Business English, Intermediate English, Socializing /

BEP 45c - English for Socializing: Keeping a Conversation Going

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to keep a conversation going while socializing at work.

Some people are natural talkers. They seem to be able to start conversations, and maintain conversations, so easily. You might think this is an ability people are born with. Either you have it or you don’t. Either you have a social personality, or you don’t. But conversation is actually a skill.

And if conversation is a skill, then you can develop it through practice. In our last lesson, we practiced starting a conversation with someone. Once you’ve got the conversation started, it sure is uncomfortable if you don’t know how to keep it going. So we need a different set of skills and language to maintain the flow of conversation.

One thing you might do in this situation is direct the conversation or change the topic. And to keep the other person engaged, you’ll want to show interest and comment on what they’re saying. That makes them feel good and want to keep the conversation going. Showing interest often means asking follow-up questions and showing empathy or personal care or attention.

In this lesson, we’re going to go back to the first dialog we heard in the previous lesson, which featured Penny and George. Penny and George work for an international company called Multi-Fresh, which is hosting a conference for its employees. We’ll hear how Penny develops her conversation with George.

Listening Questions

1. What is the word or topic that Penny uses to change the topic of conversation?
2. What experience of George’s does Penny show interest in?
3. How does Penny react when George tells her about how difficult his experience was?

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BEP 44c – Socializing: Starting a Conversation in English

Business English, Intermediate English, Socializing /

BEP 44c - English for Socializing: Starting a Conversation

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to start a conversation while socializing at work.

For many people, starting a conversation with someone can be a huge challenge. And it doesn’t get any easier when you’re doing this in another language! But it is one of the most important skills for building professional connections. A simple chat at a conference or event can lead to new opportunities, ideas, or contacts helpful for your career.

Learning to network confidently will help you feel more comfortable and prepared in professional and social situations. So what are some of the things you should think about? Well, you might start by introducing yourself, especially to someone you recognize but haven’t met in person before. You might also use questions to break the ice and start a conversation on a simple and safe topic.

Informal conversations can be tricky. For one thing, you need to know how to handle a situation where you forget someone’s name. You also need to be able to find ways to keep a conversation going and, when the situation calls for it, end it politely.

In this lesson, we’ll hear two dialogs that take place at an HR conference for an international company called Multi-Fresh. In the first dialog, we’ll hear Penny strike up a conversation with George. In the second dialog, Pat tries to strike up a conversation with George.

Listening Questions

1. What information does Penny give when she introduces herself to George?
2. What topic does Penny mention to get the conversation started?
3. What excuse does George give for finishing his conversation with Pat?

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BEP 43c – Meeting English: Managing the Discussion

Business English, English for Meetings, Intermediate English /

BEP 43c - Meeting English: Managing a Meeting

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on how to manage the discussion during a meeting in English.

Bad meetings can waste time and leave everyone confused. But a well-run meeting can help create new ideas, solve problems, and move a project forward. Running a great meeting is about more than just following an agenda. It means guiding the conversation effectively.

If you’re running formal meetings as a manager or team leader, this skill is essential. But even if just you’re a team member who wants to make sure your team has good discussions, it’s good to understand what’s behind running a meeting. And you never know when it might be your job to facilitate.

Good meeting management often means keeping the discussion focused and inviting different viewpoints or opinions. It also means widening the discussion, moving to a new agenda item, and checking for agreement.

In this lesson, we’ll rejoin a meeting about budget cuts at an international shipping company. Martin, the General Manager, is facilitating the meeting. We’ll also hear Sandra, Sam, and David, three employees in the meeting.

Listening Questions

1. How does Martin respond to Sam’s comment about pizza?
2. What does Martin say once they have finished talking about the outsourcing issue?
3. At the end of the conversation, what question does Martin ask everyone if they agree on?

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