Business EnglishBusiness

Words That Reset a Company

Grammar: BE-3

A Business English English lesson exploring business.

businessbe-3

What's in this lesson

A Business English ESL lesson on business, practising be-3. The worksheet has a reading, target vocabulary, a grammar reference with practice and discussion questions.

From the reading: Words That Reset a Company

"Our industry does not respect tradition. It only respects innovation." Satya Nadella wrote those words to every Microsoft employee in February 2014, on the day he became CEO. The company he inherited was powerful, profitable and, by many accounts, exhausted. Internal rivalries were famous, and engineers admitted they spent more energy defending their teams than building products.

Vocabulary

  • describe
  • drop
  • observed
  • worn out
  • buy-in
  • cascade
  • kick things off
  • roll out
  • take on board

Grammar

Signposting
To kick things off, let me explain why we are here. — opens and structures talk
Interrupting politely
Could I just add one point before we move on? — enters without being rude

Discussion questions

  1. Tell me about a time a speaker's words changed how you felt about a company.
  2. When did you last sit through a presentation that lost you in the first minute?
  3. Tell me about a manager whose way of talking made your team work better.

Words That Reset a Company

Grammar: BE-3

What's in this lesson:

Full lesson plan with reading, grammar, vocabulary, and discussion.

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