Passive Voice — Professional

Article excerpt · target grammar marked

In 2018, Amazon scrapped a recruiting tool it had been developing for four years after engineers discovered it was consistently downgrading applications from women. The system had been trained on a decade of historical hiring data.

Grammar Reference · Passive Voice — Professional

Present simple passive

Thousands of CVs are screened each week. — subject receives the action; agent often omitted

Past simple passive

The tool was scrapped after the bias was discovered. — completed past event, agent optional

Past continuous

The system was being developed for four years. — ongoing past process, no named agent needed

Common error

The data was collected carefully. ✓ — not was collect ✗ — always past participle after was/were

01Exercise 1 — Form · Write the Correct Form

Passive Voice — Professional

1.The new software across all offices last quarter.

2.Candidate profiles by the algorithm before any recruiter sees them.

3.The bias only after the system had been running for two years.

4.When the audit began, a new shortlisting model across the firm.

5.Accountability frameworks now ... by regulators in several jurisdictions.

6.The vendor confirmed that data from unsuccessful candidates for two years.

02Exercise 2 — Transform

rewrite with the new structure

1.The HR team reviews every application manually.

2.Engineers were building the new model when the audit began.

3.The committee rejected three vendor proposals last month.

4.Regulators are now developing new accountability rules.

5.The algorithm flagged 200 applications as high-risk.

6.Goldman Sachs uses this software to screen graduate CVs.

03Exercise 3 — About You

in your notebook

Personalise: complete five sentences about yourself using the target grammar.

Passive Voice — Professional01EnglishPlans.com