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BEP 343 – Interview English: Second Round Behavioral Interview

Advanced, Business English, Job Interview in English / May 25, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on second round interviews in English.

You may know all about the basic English job interview questions. And you might be comfortable talking about your basic qualifications and experience. But most companies don’t stop the selection process after one round of interviews. They create a shortlist and invite a few outstanding candidates back for a second interview.

In many cases, that second interview is what we call a behavioral interview. Interviewers will ask questions about how you acted or reacted to challenges in past work, and how you dealt with or adapted to different situations. In this way, they can find out whether you have the right attitude, approach, and abilities for the job.

The behavioral interview is a special opportunity to demonstrate soft skills, such as leadership, or how you take a principled approach to problems. You might also want to show that you can remain calm in conflict. In many cases, the STAR approach can help shape your responses. This is when you describe four things: the situation, the task, the action, and the result. And in this kind of English interview, you have to be careful, because some interviewers will try to give you leading questions to get you to reveal mistakes or problems.

In today’s dialog, we’ll hear Kat, who is applying for a job with a private healthcare company. She is being interviewed by Denise. Denise is asking Kat some tough behavioral questions, and Kat is doing a good job of demonstrating some important soft skills.

Listening Questions

1. What example does Kat give of how she showed leadership and went above and beyond?
2. What situation does Kat describe in response to a question about an unpopular decision?
3. What attitude or attribute does Kat demonstrate when describing a situation of conflict?

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BEP 342 – Interview English: 2nd Round Technical Interview in English

Advanced, Business English, Job Interview in English / May 14, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on succeeding in a technical interview in English.

While we have lots of lessons on job interviews in English, nearly all of them are about the first round of an interview, or the initial screening interview. If you succeed at that, you’ll get called back for a second interview. And it’s the English interview skills for these 2nd round interviews we want to look at now. Today, we’ll focus on the technical interview. And in the next lesson, we’ll look at the behavioral interview.

Just like any interview, preparation for a technical interview is key. And you can think beforehand about how you might show things like innovative experience or a learning attitude. You might also decide to highlight certain attributes that you think are beneficial, like being a team player.

But what about the problem-solving part of the technical job interview? Can you actually prepare for every possible problem? No, you can’t. But remember that the purpose is not to trick you, or make you feel stupid. The interviewers just want to see how you approach problems. So it’s important for you to start by clarifying the question, and then clearly explaining your solution.

In today’s dialog, we’ll hear a software developer named Kevin, who’s doing a technical interview for a new job. Kevin not only has to face questions about his experience, but he also has to explain a solution to a technical problem. He’s being interviewed by Mick. We’ll hear how Kevin navigates the interview.

Listening Questions

1. What kind of experience does Kevin demonstrate when he talks about an exciting project he worked on?
2. Besides having a happy client, why was the project so successful?
3. When Mick gives Kevin a technical problem, what is the first thing Kevin does?

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925 English Lesson 27 – Using Questions to Ask for Details

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, ESL Podcast / May 5, 2019

In today’s 925 English video lesson, we’re going to learn how to use questions in English to ask for details.

It would be great if everyone always told us exactly what we need to know. But it doesn’t usually happen. When we want detailed information, we need to go out and get it. And that means asking people questions.

You can confirm information with simple yes / no questions, like “Do you sell printers?” or “Are you the manager?” But I want to start by looking at questions that get different kinds of information, not just a “yes” or “no” answer. And one of the best ways to get information is with WH questions. We have five WH words in English: who, what, where, when, and why. You might also use “how,” which has a “w” and an “h” but not in that order.

925 English is a course of business English video lessons for beginners (CEFR level A2) English learners. With 925 English lessons you can learn business English expressions to use in work and business.

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BEP 341 – Business English Idioms: Food Idioms (3)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, Business Idioms, ESL Podcast / April 24, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod for our final lesson on business English idioms related to food.

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve looked at a lot of different English idioms connected to food. It should be no surprise that so many expressions are related to eating and drinking. After all, we do it three times a day, or more. Food is not just a necessity, it’s a big part of life and culture.

When you’re looking at idioms, it’s important to remember that they are fixed expressions where the words don’t have a literal meaning. So when you hear that someone is “in a pickle,” you have to understand that there’s no actual pickle. It just means that someone’s in a difficult situation. You have to figure it out from the context, because there’s not really an obvious connection between pickles and difficult situations.

In the lesson, we’ll rejoin a conversation between three colleagues. Jessie has been trying to convince Luke and Ben to join her in starting a business together. Today, we’ll hear them talking about the possible challenges of running their own business.

Listening Questions

1. What example does Ben give of a possibly difficult business situation?
2. What does Jessie say is one important benefit of running your own business?
3. According to Jessie, what is necessary for people to have a good business partnership?

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BEP 340 – Business English Idioms: Food Idioms (2)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, Business Idioms, ESL Podcast / April 13, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod! In today’s lesson we’re going to take another look at English idioms related to food.

What do you think when someone says that another person is “out to lunch?” Of course, it might mean that the person is actually out of the office, at a restaurant, eating a nice sandwich. But it might have nothing to do with actually eating. “Out to lunch” can mean acting crazy, not paying attention, or not understanding reality. In other words, “out to lunch” is an English idiom.

An idiom is any expression where one thing actually means something else, like when “out to lunch” means crazy. English has a huge variety of idioms for every situation. And many of those idioms are related to food. Some are related to meals, like “to put food on the table” and “to sing for your supper.” And others are related to specific foods, like “cool as a cucumber” and “small potatoes.” Learning idioms like these is a great way to improve your English.

In today’s lesson, we’ll continue listening to a conversation among three colleagues. Jessie has just told Luke and Ben about her idea to start a business. She wants them to consider joining her in the new venture. During their discussion, they use many English idioms related to food.

Listening Questions

1. After saying he likes Jessie’s idea, what does Ben say he’s concerned about?
2. How does Luke feel about managing people?
3. What does Jessie think about the fact that they are always talking about how bad their workplace is?

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BEP 339 – Business English Idioms: Food Idioms (1)

Business English, Business English Vocabulary, Business Idioms, ESL Podcast / April 2, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on business English idioms related to food.

Food is an important part of life and culture. And even when we’re not eating, or talking about food, it slips into our conversation in the form of idioms. What do I mean when I say “idiom?” I mean special expressions where one thing actually means another. For example, we have the idiom “to go bananas,” which has nothing at all to do with bananas. It means “to go crazy.”

English has idioms that come from specific foods, like bananas, butter, bacon, and bread. We also have English idioms that come from meals or use the word “food” itself. Some of these idioms describe people and activities, while others describe situations, relationships, and ideas. Learning how to use these idioms can really help “spice up” your conversation in English.

In today’s lesson, we’ll hear a conversation among three coworkers: Jessie, Luke, and Ben. They are discussing their general work situation and Jessie’s idea to start her own company. During their discussion, they use many useful idioms related to food.

Listening Questions

1. How did Ben feel about working with Ian?
2. Why does Luke say he is not willing to complain to Ian about his approach to work?
3. What does Luke say Jessie is always stressed out about?

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925 English Lesson 26 – Making and Responding to Suggestions

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, ESL Podcast / March 24, 2019

In today’s 925 English video lesson, we’re going to learn how to make and respond to suggestions in English.

In work situations, people are continually making suggestions. It could be about something simple, like where to go for lunch. Or it could be about a complex problem, like how to increase sales. You might make a suggestion in English to one person, or to a whole group of people in a meeting.

Making a suggestion means stating one possible option. And that’s why we often use a question to make a suggestion, such as “What about” or “Have you tried.” And with these expressions, you have to use the -ing form of the verb, such as “What about asking our manager?” But there are other expressions that just use the base form of the verb, without adding -ing. The expressions “Why don’t we” and “Let’s” both work in this way. For example, we might say “Why don’t we go to Spain?”

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BEP 338 – Teleconference English: Participating in Online Meetings

Advanced, Business English, English for Meetings, Popular Lessons, Teleconference English / March 12, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on participating in online meetings and teleconference calls in English.

It’s hard to overstate just how important the phone and laptop are to 21st century business. Can you imagine your work life without these tools? Probably not. If you’re like most people, the majority of your English work conversations happen with the help of technology. And this includes meetings. More often than not, people don’t get together in person, but virtually.

But when you can’t see the people in a meeting, it’s suddenly more difficult to get your voice heard. You can’t lean forward or raise your hand to show you want to speak. Instead, you need to find verbal ways of jumping into the conversation. In many cases, this also means identifying yourself so others know who is talking.

In an online meeting in English, you have to be very clear about what you’re talking about. That might mean skipping back to a comment from earlier in the conversation. And you have to be clear who you’re talking to, by directing a comment at a specific individual. And finally, because technology never seems to be perfectly reliable, you might find yourself apologizing for technical difficulties.

In today’s dialog, we’ll hear a manager named Gabi leading a teleconference with salespeople from across the U.S. They’re having an online meeting to plan a sales conference. The participants will use different strategies to participate effectively.

Listening Questions

1. Why does Heather apologize during the meeting?
2. Why does Manuel say “Manuel here in KC” at the start of a comment?
3. When Heather rejoins the conversation, what earlier topic does she want to talk about again?

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BEP 337 – Teleconference English: Running Online Meetings

Advanced, Business English, English for Meetings, Teleconference English / March 2, 2019

Welcome back to Business English Pod for today’s lesson on teleconferences and running online meetings and conference calls in English.

With today’s technology, people don’t have to be in the same room to have a meeting. We can connect with people around the world by phone or video chat apps like Skype. Amazing, isn’t it? Until it suddenly isn’t amazing, because people don’t know who’s saying what, others are having technical difficulties, and people are leaving and joining the meeting without anyone knowing.

A good conference call requires a good facilitator. Someone to make sure everyone knows who’s in the meeting and gives everyone the chance to speak. That means facilitating introductions at the start of the meeting and encouraging quiet people to share their ideas. After all, it’s pretty easy to hide or be ignored during an online meeting.

Sometimes there are technical problems that can get the meeting off track. At those times, it’s best to ask someone else to try to solve the problem so you can continue running the meeting. And just like any meeting, the facilitator should be encouraging input from everyone, including those who join late. It’s your job to integrate those latecomers into the meeting so they can participate too.

In today’s dialog, we’ll hear an English teleconference led by Gabi. People from across the U.S. are joining the call to plan their company’s upcoming sales conference.

Listening Questions

1. What does Gabi ask people to include in their short self-introduction?
2. What problem does Gabi ask someone to help solve?
3. What does Gabi do when someone joins the meeting late?

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925 English Lesson 25 – Asking for and Giving Directions

925 English, A2, Business English, English Video, Functions / February 20, 2019

In today’s 925 English video lesson, we’re going to learn how to ask for and give directions in English.

It would be great if the map apps on our phones were perfect. But even with the help of technology, we can get confused in a new city, a new neighborhood, or a new office building. And when we do, we need to be able to ask for help.

One simple way to ask for directions in English is to ask if someone “knows where something is.” Or you can just say that you’re looking for a certain place, whether it’s a building, or a room inside a building. One other polite way to ask for directions is with the expression “could you tell me how to get to” a place.

925 English is a course of video English lessons for beginner level (CEFR A2) English learners. With 925 English lessons you can learn business English expressions to use in work and business.

Members: PDF Transcript | Lesson Module | Quiz | MP3 Audio

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