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Hi, Dad is Harry. And welcome back to my podcast. As always, you can get me on www English lesson via skype dot com. While it's another Saturday and actually has been a beautiful day where I am, the sun has been shining and the temperature was well, I think around 20 degrees, which not so bad for the middle of October. I hope everything is well with you under me you're keeping welling up just about get over this flu that lasted over two weeks. But everything feeling good. The last podcast, the date was in relation to some business English, and I thought I would continue that theme with you today. So for those of you working in business, trying to get into business or just generally interested in the language of business, hopefully this will be of interest when we're talking to people about our jobs. It's a very common topic when we want to break the ice with somebody in the cafe, a restaurant, even in an elevator. So you never know when these sort of things come in handy. So we're talking about where we work. We can we might be asked what what we do or who we work for. What does the company do? So you have come across phrases like my company produces, or my company makes that means exactly the same. My company produces widgets or my company makes widgets. Whatever it is you produce tennis balls, golf balls, glasses, mobile phones you produce or you make something. Where are you located? Where's your your business? Our offices are based in or located in. So again, these words mean exactly the same based in Geneva or located in Milan. So this tells us where you are, where either your offices or perhaps it's your head, office or even a subsidiary. Yeah, a subsidiary is another company. You might not be working in the main company, which we often call the parent company. You may be working for a subsidiary, which is a smaller branch that might be located in a another company so often you will have a company that is located, perhaps head office in Chicago, one that has thes subsidiaries around the world. Different countries of Europe very popular with the pharmaceutical industry, where they'll have a subsidiary in Spain, Portugal. Franz, just individually licenced to sell the product into those particular markets, and it may well be that it's manufactured somewhere else and shipped, sent by plane or actual ship into those other European markets. So our officers are based in particular area, or they are located in a particular area or country, and we can talk about what are business does. We specialise in something so aswell as producing making, as I mentioned earlier on, we also specialising but say the healthcare sector we specialise in drugs relating to TB or we specialise in some treatment for special rare cancer. Yeah, so whatever it is, we specialise. We make something different, something difficult, something that nobody else does. If we're talking about where we're located, we can say we operate in approximately five or six countries or 10 countries or 20 countries around the world. So to operate in means we are based there. We are located there, and we work from those particular premises. We're a big company. We imply many thousands of people around the world or we have thousands of employees. The meaning is exactly the same we employ or we have a certain number of people employed. We have a set number of employees. So all of those air Just basic introductions to the type of business you have of the type of company that you work for. So questions that you might be asked is very simple questions in English. What do you do? OK, so and the exact same way. Way. Sorry. What do you do, ma'am? So, meaning? What is your job? What is your role? So a job or a roll or position? So their words That could all mean the same. Your job, Your roll. Your position? Yeah. Where do you work? Who do you work for? Where are you based? Okay, so they're old. Simple questions at getting to know you getting to understand exactly what you do. And then the answers to those. What do you do? Oh, I'm a research engineer. Where do you work? Well, I work in Geneva. Who do you work for? Oh, I work for a multinational or I work for a local company. I work for a Japanese company or work for American company based in Chicago. And I work in the subsidiary office in Geneva. So all these follow up answers that you can give to questions that you are asked, Where are you based while I'm usually based in the head office. But occasionally I work from home. Do you have any competitors? Oh, yes. We have a lot of competitors are business is very competitive. Yeah, we have a lot of competition. We have a lot of people trying to get into our space, our spaces, that market that you occupy or you think that you occupy on that you hope to occupy. But as always, competition is strong on. People are trying to, as we say in English to fish in your pond. Yeah, we talked about being a a small fish in a big pond or a big fish in a small pond. What you think is better. But I'm not so sure. It depends on the type of business you have. But when you're a small fish in a big pond, you tend to get eaten up by another big fish sooner or later on. If you're a big fish in a small pond, you always want to know what is going to be like to swim in that big pond. Massey always wanted test yourself against bigger and better competition. So I'm not too sure which wins out small pond big pond. But as long as you're happy and what you're doing and you're doing your best well, too, that's all that we want to achieve. So when we're talking about competitors, we are talking about the all the companies that are in the same space. They occupy the same space. They have similar products. They have me, too. Products? Yes, something that looks the same, smells the same, feels the same, but might be a little bit different. For example, Coca Cola would I would suggest that they are the lead provider off, you know, soft drinks in the world. But there are a lot of me to style Coke drinks, Yes, Pepsi, for obvious reasons. But in other countries you come across all sorts of other drinks, and now these supermarket chains sell their own branded product that looks like Coca Cola smells. I cook cola, but I've tried them on as a fish siendo off the coke. They don't always taste the same, so I try them, but I always go back to the Coca Cola. I think I'd be a good ad for Coca Cola because I really like it. I prefer a Coke zero at the moment. But that's only me trying to fool myself that it's it's really better for me than some of the others. Okay, So when we're talking about business and we're talking about the question that we might ask, we might get asked, we might ask. You might be looking for information about your working schedule. Yeah. Oh, what time you start? S o. We can ask. Just simply what time do you usually start? So meaning? What time do you start in the mornings? Do you work flexi time? Do you work remotely? Do you have the option toe work remotely? Do you work in serviced offices or do you work in your own premises? So these are all questions relating to location and how you carry out your work. So when we're talking about a start, it means When do you commence? In? The morning is at 77 30. Is it eight? Is a 32 start to commence or even to begin and more simple English. I start at eight and I finish at six. I commence any time between eight and nine. I begin at 8 30 and I leave it 5 30 Whatever your working day starts in whatever time you're working, day finishes hope. Hopefully not too late. So if you're looking for actual specifics and your role in the company so what are you involved in exactly? So that could be a question. Well, I'm involved in the production end or I'm involved in management or involved in, um, checking. I'm involved in the procedures around technical support or support or some other function that we have in the business. My job consists off. So what does it consist of? Well, it might consist of running a team of 10 or 20 software engineers, or my consist of running a team of manufacturers, people working on the assembly floor. Or you could just be in charge of the sales function, the marketing function, hey, char function, whatever it might be. And in most companies, the the company's heir divided based on function. So you have a manufacturing operation. You have, they marketing department, you have sales that could be sales and marketing. You could have a customer service department. You will have a huge art department on, depending on how big the company is. Also obviously going to have things like finance on DH. You might out. So some services like it can be outsourced. Finance can even be outs. Also even Hey char. But again, it depends on size. So we're giving you details somebody that might be interested in keeping in touch with you. We have met them at some sort of conference. So all this is my number. So you give them a business card or modern day. You might just send a ransom by What's up? Just a click and a press of a button. Oh, these are my contact details. So you give them what's up? He made a mobile phone all the details so that somebody is able to contact you if they wish on somebody's asking a bit more details. And here's where we have to be careful with the grammar we use. How long have you been working there? How long have you been working there? So you can see here. How long have you being working here? So we're using the present. Perfect continues. How long have you been working there? On your answer? Could be two different answers. I have worked there for three or four years, and that would be present perfect. And it's it's absolutely acceptable, or you can do it in the present. Perfect continues. I have been working there, so you just repeat the grammar phrase that they used in the question. I have been working there for almost three years or five years. What ever the period might be? If you want to talk about some company where you were previously, where then you could say I used to work in another company. I used to work actually in a company that you work for now. But it was many years ago. I used to work, so when we use used to, it's an indication that we did something. But it it's It has since stopped. Okay, I used to smoke and I don't smoke now. I used to drink, but I don't drink now, so it's something a little bit more permanent. You know, something you stopped two or three years ago, so if you say I used to work for that company, it means in the past you worked for the company. But then you left and joined either the company you work for now or another company and then your career progressed to where you are today. So I used to and it's always about the past tense. Used to. I used to do this. I used to swim when I was young. I used to play football until I was 40. I used to have ah, hobby to take photographs, but now I don't have time. Always about the past. I used to. I used to. I used to on when you're using used to just be careful because you can say to get used to something that's still about the present. It's something yet you had difficulty with. So perhaps some technique on DH. Now you do it better. So I got used to doing something. For example, if you used to work from home and now you have to work in the office, you it might have taken a little bit of time. So I have got used to or I got used to working in an office again. Okay, so just be careful with those and when we're again talking about tenses, if we're talking about things that we're actually doing at the moment, we're then we usually use that present continuous for example, I'm preparing a business presentation for next week. I'm giving the presentation tomorrow. I am presenting our products to the board of directors. I am opening on exhibition next week in Leo. Yeah, Okay, So all of those expressions all using that present continues because it's now it's happening around now, so you can feel free to use the continues tense. So when somebody asks you for specifics about your job, they might want to know exactly what it is you do. So you could say, Oh, I'm responsible for the I t department. I'm responsible for the sales and marketing department. You could also say I'm in charge ofthe because that means exactly the same. I'm in charge of sales and marketing. I am in charge of I t. I'm in charge of new technology. I'm in charge of new product development. Or if there's some particular project that you're currently working on some software development, but always responsible for in charge ofthe okay on the lead manager for on the director off a certain department, I'm work in a team off five or six people or work with a team of five or six people. So you can use different expressions, different propositions, but they all eventually have the same meaning. So we're talking about meetings because unfortunately, in business, no matter what you're in, whether you're in the pharmaceutical business, sales and marketing, manufacturing widgets and gadgets and bicycles, whatever it might be, a lot of our time is taken up by those wonderful in house meetings. Okay, so you might ask, When is the meeting being held? Meaning when is it Ju? What time is the meeting due to start? What time is the meeting at? Are you going to attend the meeting or will you be there? Have you seen the agenda? Have they issued the agenda? Have they sent the agenda around meaning? Have the centre to those people who are going to participate in the meeting? What are the key issues on the agenda case? All questions that are the legitimate questions to ask around that issue off those business meetings. Maybe you are organising the meeting so you'll be able to give the information. I usually have a meeting with my team on a Monday morning or a debrief meeting at the end of the week to say what progress have we have we made What obstacles have we met? And what problems do we face? One of the solutions for those particular problems. So we have these sort of meetings and in the I t field, some people refer to the most scrum of meetings like scream in a game of ropey. So they they stand up or they meet into a online. But they have It is a very quick meeting, which I think is a great idea. You don't they limit the time too. 15 20 minutes. Whatever. Go around you tell the storey you don't waste time with small talk. You get thie clear picture you update the months to what you're doing and then then you move on. So all these type of questions relating to those meetings and then you might say, Well, the meeting has been postponed for two weeks. The meeting has been cancelled completely because their issue has been resolved. So the difference between postponed and cancelled is postponed. Means it will be held again at another time in the future. Cancelled means it's unlikely to be held again. You can say the meeting has been rescheduled. OK, so it was scheduled for six o'clock on Monday has been rescheduled for the same time on Tuesday or Wednesday. The meeting has been put back by a week and put back means again delayed. So instead of Tuesday, the 16th of or 15th of October, it's going to be held on Tuesday or Wednesday the 22nd 23rd of October. So it's been put back by a week or a couple of hours because of some delay or instead of saying postponed, WHO said all the meetings being called off Somebody's ill on DH. He's really important to the meeting, so we have to wait until he returns. So all of those words would have the same sort of meaning postponed, cancelled, put back, called off on reach schedules or reschedule depending on how you want to pronounce that. And it's really up to you that because some people say scheduled, some people say schedule on DH that the there's no right and wrong. It's whatever you're comfortable with on what you are told about meetings. We can bring our meeting forward or we can put a meeting back so very careful here because this can be a little confusing when I asked for a meeting to be brought forward. It means I wanted earlier. Okay, so let's say the meeting is scheduled for 2 p.m. Today. McKay on. I'm asking for the meeting to be brought forward to 12 o'clock or 10 o'clock or whatever time, but it has to be earlier than the original original schedules are to be brought forward and then the opposite. If I want to put the meeting back, it means I want to push it out by a couple of hours because I've got some problems. So instead of two o'clock, I want to push it back to 33 34 for 30 whatever the time might be, So just be very careful when somebody asked you to bring the meeting forward. It means they wanted earlier to push it back or put back the meeting. They want to delay that. They want to have it a little later on Beacon sending emails, you can say, Oh, the date off. Our meeting has been changed. The time and location on the same. It'll be held now a week later, but in the same place at the same time. So you reiterate when that will be okay. All right. So there are lots of them words and expressions connected with the business English specifically connected with questions you might be asked about what you do, how you do it on DH questions about when meetings have been held or will be held on also the functions that you might have in your particular company. Okay, so listen out for my next podcast, where continue with some business English and there's always a said beginning. You can get me on www dot English Lesson via Skype that common. When you get onto the website, you'll see a link to the easy peasy English club. This is a really great a little club that we have there for people who can't. I have to get the time or don't seem to find the time to have face to face lessons. You will get a pre recorded lesson with me every week. There already, I think, 14 lessons that have bean recorded, so there's a lot of material there, a lot of other information, So get on that website on DH, join up with that easy peasy club, help you to improve your English. That's what you want to do, and that's what I want to help you to do. Okay, well, thanks for listening on John again soon.