Short annotation
This course is designed for foreign citizens as a series of elective classes aimed at reducing language barriers when presenting a graduation project and carrying out professional activities as an enterprise manager.
The objective of the course is to develop the students' sustainable language skills in business communication situations.
Subsequent to this goal, the program pursues the following objectives:
- Mastering by the student of the vocabulary and expressions used in the most typical situations of business communication in the context of company management;
- Developing the students’ basic skills of working with written and spoken texts, including summarising and paraphrasing;
- Develoing the students’ skills of speech etiquette in situations of business communication.
The programme covers a sufficiently wide range of topics and is built around the use of authentic sources when studying them: business press publications, public speeches of current business leaders, experts, business consultants. Authentic materials serve as examples of the correct use of language material, as well as a source of information on current practices of international companies.
Key requirements for the learning outcomes.
By the end of the course students will know:
- The vocabulary within the scope defined by the topic of the programme;
- Standard speech patterns used for different communication tasks;
- Speech etiquette rules in business communication situations.
Students will be able to:
- Correctly use the lexical material studied while presenting the results of the graduation project and during the study of other disciplines;
- Correctly use learned speech patterns in the performance of communicative functions;
- Avoid gross violations of speech etiquette in business communication situations.
In order to achieve these aims and objectives the following methods are emphasised in the professional development programme: active and problem-based exercises, interactive learning technologies and case studies.
Various educational tools are used during the study programme: a textbook, multimedia tools and Internet resources.
64 hours are devoted to the professional development programme, including 48 hours of practical training and 16 hours of business games.
Programme Content
Topic 1: Globalisation and business:
Globalisation of markets - opportunities and risks: handling of articles from the business press. Learn and practise vocabulary to discuss risks and opportunities of globalised markets. Mergers and acquisitions - work with vocabulary.
Developing language skills: contrast and comparison. Practising the use of comparative adjectives and adverbs in speech.
Etiquette: Telephone conversation. Studying and practising speech turns (starting a conversation, clarifying information, indicating the purpose of the conversation, etc.).
Business game: Expansion of a company to international markets.
Topic 2: International branding
Introduction to the subject: concept of brand, components of brand, local and international brands, importance of branding in company activities.
Expansion of the active vocabulary: terms and concepts from the field of brand management. Counterfeiting and international anti-counterfeiting practices: study of terms and phrases from business media.
Business correspondence skills: correct use of past tenses in business letters (with the example of a business memorandum).
Reinforcement of vocabulary and grammar skills: role-play "resolving a dispute over intellectual property rights".
Analysis of business information: work with fragments of reports on failed attempts by international companies to promote their brands in foreign markets and identify the main reasons for the failures. Repetition and consolidation of language turns expressing cause-and-effect relations.
To practise the language and skills to conduct and participate in a business meeting to analyse the branding problem and to develop solutions.
Asking for participants' opinions, agreeing, summarising, rephrasing, challenging, accepting and rejecting proposals.
Business game: Reinventing the brand
Topic 3: Customer relations
Introduction to the topic: discussion of the importance of customer relations, methods of communication, and the practice of interaction between companies and customers.
Expansion of active vocabulary: marketing letter and commercial proposal.
Development of written literacy: correct use of nouns and nonnouns. Proper use of future tenses to express guarantees and promises.
Developing the skills of expressing and responding to claims correctly. Highlighting and consolidation of vocabulary and terminology (work with business press materials). Role-playing the settlement of claims.
Developing the skills of outlining while listening to and narrating what has been heard with the aid of an outline.
Business game. Organization of a retreat
Topic 4: Advertising
Introduction to the topic: What is to like and dislike in advertising? Perception of advertising. Effectiveness of advertising.
Expansion of the active vocabulary: adjectives for perception of advertising. Names of the means and channels of advertising.
Working with the text: identification and consolidation of terminology relating to outdoor advertising (using business print media).
Developing listening skills: using guiding questions. Narrating what is being heard based on the supporting questions.
Business communication skills: structure and language of business presentation. Features of the language of formal and informal presentation.
Business game. Planning an advertising campaign
Topic 5: Recruitment
Introductory discussion: the most important success factors in getting a job. Personal experience of job search and interviewing.
Expansion of active vocabulary: adjectives describing qualities of an employee. Ways of independent vocabulary work: word grouping; memorising strong word combinations.
Developing oral comprehension skills: predicting text content from the title and the questions posed.
Listening skills: interviewing techniques for questions.
Examination of the recruitment practices of major companies from the business press. Discussion: appearance and dress code - how does the rigour and necessity of the job depend on the content?
Business communication: attending a meeting to negotiate a long-term contract with a candidate. Reinforcing skills: making a proposal, responding to judgement, summarising, opening and closing a meeting.
Business game. How to choose a candidate for an executive position in a company (case study)
Topic 6: International trade
Introductory discussion: impact of foreign trade on everyday life. Countries of origin of goods. Benefits and risks of free trade.
Expansion of the active vocabulary: terms and concepts of free trade and characterising trade barriers. Terms and concepts describing the competitiveness of economies. Verbs related to penetrating and expanding into foreign markets.
Developing written outlining skills: completing a credit line application based on information from a business letter.
Business communication skills: negotiating the terms of opening a credit line. Working with audio material on negotiation strategies. Examination of the negotiation transcript to identify the negotiation strategy used. Training in the correct use of conditional clauses in the context of negotiations. Learning and reinforcing the language used in business negotiations.
Role-play: employer-employee negotiation of an increase in salary.
Business game. Negotiation of terms of production and delivery of a new batch of goods to a distributor.
Topic 7: Business ethics
Introductory discussion: how important are ethics in the business? Rating of unethical practices. Ethics and company mission. Professions and areas of activity with the most pronounced ethical problems.
Expansion of active vocabulary: adjectives describing ethical and unethical behaviour of companies. Their use when discussing situations of ethical choice.
Generalisation of foreign companies' practice: prevention of corrupt behaviour in business - based on the materials of business press publications and experts' public speeches
Development of business communication skills: posing, analysing and solving problems. Practice proper use of tenses in a narrative (introduction of a problem).
Typical turns of phrase used for posing a problem, indicating options for solutions, identifying and overcoming controversies, presenting solutions and an action plan for their implementation.
Business game: responding to an employee complaint
Topic 8: Change management
Introductory discussion: changes in life and work, their importance and impact. Fear of change and its possible causes. Ranking of the most feared changes from the listeners' point of view.
Expansion of active vocabulary: nouns and adjectives related to the planning of changes, their inevitability, efficiency, collegial decision-making procedures and their protocols.
Study of international companies' practices: analysis of stakeholder positions, overcoming resistance to change (based on business press materials). Practice the correct use of indirect speech in the context of presenting stakeholder positions.
Development of business communication skills: running a meeting. Development of speech patterns used to indicate the agenda, invitation to speak, clarification, expression of opinion.
Business game. Preparing for a takeover.
