Just Business Unit 8 Innovation

Grammar

Make and Do

There is a guide to the basic use of these two words in English. You do an activity, but you make a product. Look at these two examples:

Have you done the copying?

Have you made the copies?

Exercise 1 Make business phrases using make and do with the words below. A few of them can be used with both, but the meaning sometimes changes:

business	an effort	a decision	a profit
research	a loss	money	a report
progress	a phone call	a project	a rush job
tests	a proposal	a survey	arrangements
a breakthrough	recommendations	a mistake	an excuse
an impact	a presentation	a deal	an improvement
a discovery	an appointment	a contribution	a change
a comment	a feasibility study	an offer	a course
an exception	a complaint	damage	a bid

Exercise 2 Translate the sentences into English. Use MAKE or DO

1.Надеюсь, вы сделаете все приготовления вовремя.

2.Мы должны провести исследование рынка, чтобы определить своего целевого потребителя.

3.Мы внесли свои рекомендации, но они были отвергнуты.

4.Какую прибыль вы получили в этом году? – Никакой. Мы понесли одни убытки.

5.Чтобы выполнить это задание, вам придется предпринять усилие.

6.В прошлом веке было сделано много открытий в области естественных наук.

7.Кем было сделано это предложение?

8.Если вы не подадите жалобу, вы не получите компенсацию.

9.Это гениальная идея. Она совершит прорыв в науке.

10.Какой вклад вы внесли в развитие компании?

11.Мы хорошо поработали и теперь можем отдохнуть.

12.В какое время вы договорились встретиться?

13.Проходите в конференц-зал. Наш представитель там делает презентацию.

14.Сколько изменений вы внесли в проект?

15.Мы уже провели технико-экономическое обоснование и можем запускать проект.

16.Ураган нанес городу большой ущерб.

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Exercise 3 The verbs force, make, have or get are synonyms and are often interchangeable. However, their meanings are not quite identical.

Note the difference in using the verbs.

We made them refund our money. (They had no choice.) They were made to refund the money.

I had my colleague substitute for me. (I asked him to.)

They forced us to take legal action. (We had to though we didn’t want to.) We couldn’t get him to sign the agreement. (We couldn’t persuade him.)

Now complete the sentences putting the right verb in the correct form.

1.Bad health ……………… (him) take early retirement.

2.I …………….. (my secretary) print out the report.

3.They ……………………… (us) work longer hours to achieve the sales target.

4.The driver was reluctant, but we finally …………….. (him) take us to the airport.

5.My boss ………………… (me) redo the task because he wasn’t satisfied with the way I did it.

6.The customs officer …………………….. (the tourist) open his bag.

7.Falling sales eventually ………………………. (them) go out of business.

8.I suggest we …………………… (a professional photographer) take pictures of the conference participants.

9.I was …………………….to wait two hours before I was interviewed.

10.I’ll ……………………….. (the porter) bring your luggage up right away.

11.Don’t …………………….. (me) take a decision when I’m not ready to do it yet.

12.We …………………..to accept their terms. There was no alternative.

Reading and Discussing

Do you like brainstorming or do you prefer to work things out alone? Read the article about electronic brainstorming. What are its pluses and minuses? What type of companies is it most appropriate for?

Electronic brainstorming outperforms both regular brainstorming (in groups that brainstormed together) and nominal group brainstorming (when individuals provide ideas independently of one another and the group exists only insofar as their work is considered as a whole). It is a computerized version of the manual brainstorming technique typically supported by an electronic meeting system (EMS) but simpler forms can also be done via email and may be browser based, or use peer-to-peer software.

With an electronic meeting system, participants share a list of ideas over the Internet. Ideas are entered independently. Contributions become immediately visible to all and are typically anonymized to encourage openness and reduce personal prejudice. Modern EMS also support asynchronous brainstorming sessions over extended periods of time as well as typical follow-up activities in the creative-problem-solving process such as categorization of ideas, elimination of duplicates, assessment and discussion of prioritized or controversial ideas.

Proponents argue that electronic brainstorming eliminates many of the problems of standard brainstorming, including production blocking and evaluation apprehension. A perceived advantage of this format is that all ideas can be archived electronically in their

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original form, and then retrieved later for further thought and discussion. Electronic brainstorming also enables much larger groups to brainstorm on a topic than would normally be productive in a traditional brainstorming session.

Some web based brainstorming techniques allow contributors to post their comments anonymously through the use of avatars. This technique also allows users to log on over an extended time period, typically one or two weeks, to allow participants some "soak time" before posting their ideas and feedback. This technique has been used particularly in the field of new product development, but can be applied in any number of areas requiring collection and evaluation of ideas.

Speaking 1

Read the situation below and as the directors of the company meet to solve the problem.

Your company produces a revolutionary new dishwasher that cleans dishes twice as well as other dishwashers but uses only half as much water. Your technical director (the dishwasher’s inventor) has recently seen dishwashers from other companies that use the same ideas, which are patented. The company is only very small and may not be able to afford the legal fees involved in suing your competitors, especially if you lose.

Speaking 2

Turning Ideas into Reality

Brief

The National Endowment for Science and Technology (NESTA) was set up to maximise creativity and innovative potential. They give financial backing in the form of grants and loans as well as advice on production and marketing strategies to organisations with new technological inventions. They are less interested in short-term results than other providers of capital and they consider the social and cultural value of products to be as important as the long-term commercial value.

Task1

Work in small groups. Read the descriptions of the applicants for a NESTA grant below. Discuss the merits of each product in terms of: innovative potential, long-term returns and the social and cultural impact of the technology.

Task 2

As members of the NESTA committee that awards grants, decide which product your group would choose to back, and develop your own arguments as to why this technology is of particular importance. Prepare to present your views to the committee.

Task3

Each group should present their chosen product and say why it is the most worthy. As a class, decide on the winning product.

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Point and click for learning on the move

Hypertag Ltd wants to produce interactive mobile multimedia technology. Their technology uses hand-held computers which, when pointed at an electronic device near an exhibit at a museum or art gallery, can offer lots of relevant information including text, video, pictures and sound.

Just Business Unit 8 Innovation

Vision of the future

Camfed have come up with a revolutionary invention in optics which will lead to the production of energy-efficient, low-cost, high-performance displays and ultimately home cinema and TV. To date, displays have been either thin and expensive or spaceconsuming and cheap.

Working tirelessly for the environment Nanotechnology to fight bioterrorism

UTDR research has developed a machine which can recycle tyres in an environmentally-friendly fashion. It also converts the waste into marketable byproducts, which can produce revenue for the business. At present, 190,000 tonnes of waste tyres in landfill sites or official dumping grounds are, among other disadvantages, under constant threat of unmanageable fires.

Speaking 3

Nanosight has developed a way of synthetically reproducing a version of what happens when the body first detects a virus, using computer and microelectronic technology. This technique is not limited to detecting biowarfare viruses but can speed up drug development and dramatically reduce costs for pharmaceutical companies.

Read the information below, then do the exercise. You should respond to the following statements using one of the ways given in the table to express your opinion.

Business people are always involved in negotiations and discussions and have a constant need not only to express their own opinions, but also to discover how their colleagues and customers feel about certain issues. Closed questions, that elicit a yes or no response are best avoided as they are too direct, a little undiplomatic, and do not lead to further discussion. Polite, open-ended question phrases, such as What do you think about ...? are often much more useful.

Here are several ways to ask for and express opinions. These phrases get more specific or personal as you progress down the lists. The expressions of disagreement also get stronger as you progress down the list.

How to ask for an opinion			How to give an opinion	How to agree strongly
What do you think of/about ...?			I think that ...	So do I.
What's your opinion of...		?	In my opinion ...	I quite agree.
How do you find ...	?		As I see it ...	I entirely agree with you.
How do you feel about ...		?	Speaking personally, I	They certainly should.
Do you agree that	...?		think that ...
			My view is that ...

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How to disagree strongly

I disagree.

I disagree with you entirely. I'm afraid I don't agree.

I don't agree with you at all.

How to half agree

Well, yes. Yes, perhaps. Yes, in a way.

Yes, I agree up to a point. Yes, I suppose so.

Yes, I dare say you're right.

	Just Business Unit 8 Innovation
Yes, ...	No, ...
you're quite right.	I really can't agree.
that's just how I see it.	I wouldn't accept that.
that's exactly my opinion.
that's how I feel, exactly.

How to disagree strongly/impolitely

Oh! Come on! That's rubbish!

You must be joking! What nonsense! You can't be serious!

You're not serious, surely? You can't really mean that!

1.Genetic engineering is a disaster for mankind and experiments should be banned.

____________________________________________________________________

2.English is an easy language to learn.

____________________________________________________________________

3.We need more nuclear power stations.

____________________________________________________________________

4.Now that we have the Internet, we should allow more people to work at home.

___________________________________________________________________

5.Communism is the best system of government because it distributes wealth fairly.

____________________________________________________________________

6.Cosmetic surgery is unnatural and symbolises our obsession with our bodies.

____________________________________________________________________

7.Although computers are a wonderful invention, they have created unemployment.

___________________________________________________________________

8.Capital punishment should be compulsory for murder.

____________________________________________________________________

9.Smoking should not be allowed in bars or restaurants.

______________________________________________________________________________

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Just Business Unit 8 Innovation

Writing

Exercise 1 Read the letter which offers exclusive rights for a new invention. Using your boss's notes in the boxes, write a letter of 100 words, politely declining the offer.

Upside Down Product Ltd.

Railway Arches Back Street

Birmingham BZ4 2R

21st September 20__

Dear Sir or Madam

I am writing to offer you exclusive manufacturing rights of my new mini-underwater TV set. A partnership link-up which will make your company a great deal of money.

We don’t manufacture electrical items.

Just think of it. Demand will be huge from deep-sea divers and other people who have to work under water.

I can't see a huge demand at the moment.

No longer will they have to look at the fish for entertainment when they can carry one of our minimarvels with them. We have already patented this device, but we could allow you to manufacture under licence.

Exclusive rights only, no licences!

Perhaps we could meet to discuss the royalty fee, say next month.

Diary booted up for foreseeable future.

I do hope you see the huge potential for this product and I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours faithfully

A. Loony (inventor)

Vocabulary: Translate into English.

1	Идею, которую вы предложили, нелегко осуществить. Мы не готовы ее одобрить и
	переносим решение до следующего совещания.
2	Никто не высказал возражений, и план был одобрен.
3	Я уверен, что все попытки, которые вы предпринимаете для того, чтобы навредить
	нам, обернутся против вас.

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4Мы приветствуем неординарные решения, и мы поощряем работников, которые

способны выдвигать новые идеи. Мы делаем все возможное, чтобы создать благоприятную атмосферу для творчества.

5Вовсе не случайно, что отрасли, ориентированные на исследовательскую

деятельность, могут рассчитывать на завоевание устойчивых позиций на рынке.

6Наши конкуренты претендуют на завоевание 50% рынка. Если им удастся

реализовать свои планы, мы столкнемся с жесточайшей конкуренции.

7Так как об установке нового оборудования не могло быть и речи, было решено

модернизировать систему.

8Согласно предварительной смете стоимость проекта составит около 200 000

фунтов.

9Мы регулярно проводим «мозговые атаки», так как считаем, что новые идеи легче

генерировать, когда высказываются разные точки зрения.

10Если у вас нет желания рисковать, вряд ли вы добьетесь больших успехов в

бизнесе.

11Строители значительно превысили первоначальную смету на реконструкцию

склада.

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12Если бы мы тогда не воспользовались неожиданно подвернувшейся возможностью,

нам не удалось бы реализовать наши идеи.

13Мы понимаем, что ваша идея – это настоящий инновационный прорыв. Но нам

нужно время, чтобы превратить ее в коммерческое предложение, если мы не хотим, чтобы наш проект провалился, а вашей идеей воспользовались наши конкуренты.

14Творчество, как порождение новых идей, абсолютно необходимо компаниям для

выживания в условиях жесточайшей конкуренции.

15Инновация не есть творчество. Нельзя путать эти термины.

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		Just Business Unit 8 Innovation
Useful words and word partnerships
1	be littered with screwed up papers	быть замусоренным свернутыми бумажками
2	financial controller	финансовый директор; главный бухгалтер
3	be no longer on speaking terms	прекратить/больше не разговаривать c
	with sb.
4	backfire	неожиданно привести к обратным результатам
5	defer a decision until	откладывать, отсрочивать решение до …
6	cut in	вмешаться (в разговор)
7	guarantee to double sales	гарантировать увеличение продаж вдвое
8	raise objections	возражать
9	blueprint for smth.	«рецепт», наметка, калька ч–л.
10	be reluctant to take risks	не хотеть (сопротивляться) рисковать
11	over-reliance on logic	чрезмерная надежда на логику
12	lucky break	неожиданно представившаяся возможность
13	ignore an opportunity	игнорировать, пренебрегать возможностью
14	flop	потерпеть неудачу, фиаско
15	claim 85% of the market	претендовать на …
16	take advantage of the existing	использовать существующие технологии в своих
	technology	интересах, с выгодой для себя
17	innovate	вводить новшества; производить перемены
	masterly innovation	гениальное изобретение
18	seek to merge multinationally	стремиться к глобальному объединению
19	combine both creative and	объединить творческие и новаторские усилия
	innovative strength
20	exploit an idea	использовать идею в своих интересах
21	lateral thinking	неординарный подход к вопросу
22	face problems	столкнуться с проблемами
23	flood of complaints	поток жалоб
24	rule smth. out	исключить (возможность)
25	estimate for reconstruction	смета на ремонт
26	coincidence	совпадение
	It’s no coincidence that …	(зд.)Неудивительно. что …
27	research-driven industries	отрасли, основанные на использовании высоких
		технологий
28	run creativity courses	проводить курсы по развитию креативности
29	generate ideas	порождать, генерировать идеи
30	judge ideas	судить; оценивать идеи
31	successful implementation of ideas	успешное применение идей на коммерческой
	on a commercial basis	основе
32	brainstorming session	мозговой штурм
	(in) a brainstorming session
33	counter-productive	приводящий к обратным результатам
34	evaluate	оценивать; устанавливать стоимость;
	evaluation	оценка
35	(at the) innovation stage	на инновационной стадии
36	turn a good idea into a commercial	превратить хорошую идею в коммерческое
	proposition	предложение
37	innovative breakthrough	инновационный прорыв
38	foresight	предвидение; дальновидность
39	conceal one’s source	скрывать; утаивать источник
40	cease (to do/doing smth.)	переставать (делать что-л.), прекращать

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Tapescript

Unit 6 Prices and Commodities

Page 44

Sumitomo Bank

Of all the markets in which goods are traded, the most volatile and unpredictable are the commodities markets. In theory, international commodity exchanges exist to set the standards and fix the prices of primary products such as gold, silver, copper, tin, coffee, sugar and crude oil. In practice, the prices of some of these commodities fluctuate wildly, earning and losing speculators' fortunes overnight.

So it's not surprising that even at the Sumitomo Bank, one of Japan's biggest financial powerhouses and for a while the company with the highest turnover in Japan, there could be errors of judgement. But nothing had prepared the bank for the scandal caused by just one of its employees—Yasuo Hamanaka. Hamanaka was Sumitomo's chief copper trader. Known as Mr 5% because of his success in cornering a twentieth of the world copper market, he was a legend in metals trading.

But in 1997 it suddenly became known that during his 10-year career Hamanaka had lost $2.6 billion in unauthorised deals. As scandalous as the enormous loss itself; was the fact that it had gone undetected for so long. At his trial, Hamanaka naturally made excuses, claiming that changes in the rules of trading at the London Metal Exchange, or LME, had forced him to liquidate a million metric tons of copper at the wrong time. But the court wasn't sympathetic and Mr 5% was eventually sentenced to eight years in prison.

Unit 6 Page 44

The commodities Game: Updates

Update I

Current Prices:	Gold 400	Silver 5	Copper 2,500
Tin 5,000	Coffee 3,500	Sugar 300	Oil 20

Forecast: In the short term, a rising price index is likely to push up the price of gold as a hedge against inflation, but long-term prospects are much less attractive. Copper looks promising. We're not predicting much movement in tin, coffee, sugar or oil. Risk-takers should take a chance on silver.

Update 2

Current Prices:	Gold up at 450	Silver down at 4.5	Copper down at 2,000
Tin stable at 5,000	Coffee stable at 3,500	Sugar down at 275	Oil down at 19

Forecast: Gold is still very much in demand and the price will probably continue to climb. Copper looks disappointing. Tin looks set to remain firm at 5,000 but rumours of crop damage may boost the price of coffee and sugar. Oil prices should recover in the short term. Our advice is to go long on silver.

Update 3

Current Prices:	Gold up at 525	Silver stable at 4.5	Copper up at 3,000
Tin stable at 5,000	Coffee up at 4,000	Sugar down at 250	Oil up at 20

Forecast: The bubble must burst soon for gold as inflation rates start to come down. Copper is again a good investment. The tin market is still showing no movement at all and long-term prospects are poor. We remain confident that a reduced world supply of coffee and sugar will escalate prices. Brave speculators will hang on to silver which will eventually come good. Buy oil.

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Update 4

Current Prices:	Gold down at 450	Silver down at 3.25	Copper down at 2,500
Tin stable at 5,000	Coffee up at 4,500	Sugar down at 200	Oil down at 18

Forecast: As predicted, the price of gold has slipped back and the indications are that it will continue to slide. Although we've not had much success forecasting the price of copper, we now firmly expect it to fall. Hold coffee and sugar. Oil should bounce back to somewhere in the region of $21 a barrel. Silver must soon turn the corner as industrial demand begins to exceed supply. Sell tin.

Update 5

Current Prices:	Gold down at 225	Silver up at 3.5	Copper up at 3,500
Tin down at 2,000	Coffee stable at 4,500	Sugar down at 150	Oil up at 22

Forecast: If you've been taking our advice you will by now have sold all your gold. Buy it back - it's about to stage a recovery. Also buy tin. Silver has picked up only slightly but get ready for a price explosion here. Copper too will perform well. Coffee may have reached a ceiling at 4,500 but our advice is to hold. Sugar is proving to be a poor investment. Sell oil.

Update 6

Current Prices:	Gold up at 300	Silver up at 5.5	Copper down at 2,000
Tin stable at 2,000	Coffee up at 6,000	Sugar up at 200	Oil up at 26

Forecast: Go short on gold - there's still room for further improvement. Buy silver - it's about to go through the roof! The bottom really has dropped out of the copper market, so get rid of holdings in copper. The clever money's on tin which looks set to double in price. Coffee surely cannot exceed an all-time high of 6,000. Sell sugar. Problems in the Middle East may trigger a rise in the price of oil.

Update 7

Current Prices:	Gold up at 350	Silver up at 10	Copper up at 3,500
Tin up at 4,000	Coffee stable at 6,000	Sugar up at 250	Oil up at 38

Forecast: The trend for gold prices is now downward. Sell all holdings in gold. Take a chance on copper. Sell coffee. Sell sugar. Buy oil - even at this high price, the worsening situation in the Middle East should push it higher. Buy tin -it's about to go sky high. The silver market's going crazy! Buy as much silver as you can afford before it takes off.

Update 8

Current Prices:	Gold down at 300	Silver up at 25	Copper down at 2,500
Tin up at 7,000	Coffee stable at 6,000	Sugar up at 300	Oil down at 22

Forecast: If you have any gold left, sell it. It's going to fall through the floor. Those who like to live dangerously should take a risk on silver. It's ridiculously high now but it could go even higher. Sell copper. Sell tin. Sell sugar. Sell coffee - it's reached its peak and must now fall. Apologies for our previous misinterpretation of the oil market. A surprise peace deal in the Middle East means that oil prices will continue to drop back and may even hit an all-time low. It's time to sell.

Final Update

Current Prices:	Gold down at 200	Silver up at 50	Copper up at 3,000
Tin down at 3,500	Coffee up at 8,500	Sugar up at 400	Oil down at 17

Now calculate your total assets by adding your remaining capital to the current value of your holdings. Have you made a profit or a loss? Who made the most money? Did you notice any clear trends in commodity prices? Did they help you to make your investment decisions?

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Resource Bank

Unit 5 Brand Management

Case Study

Study the situation below.

The Company: Burger Baron

Company profile:

Over 600 restaurants worldwide, including Asia, all of Europe and most of the Americas. Burger Baron specialises in fast food, mostly hamburgers, French fries, milkshakes, etc., operating almost exclusively in shopping malls.

The problem:

Over the last 3 years, Burger Baron has seen its market share declining rapidly and has had to shut 42 restaurants during the same period. The head office blames the main competitors, McDougal's and Winnie's, who have been increasing meal sizes and decreasing prices.

The competition have also added 'fat-free' and 'reduced fat' options to their menus, responding to growing consumer concern over weight problems. To make matters even worse, there has recently been a global disease-related meat scare, and Burger Baron is one of several fast-food chains that have been targeted in a media-hyped class-action lawsuit, claiming that the restaurant is responsible for increasing rates of serious health problems like diabetes and heart failure.

Hold a meeting to develop a plan of action on all fronts to protect Burger Baron's image and regain losses in market share.

Divide the class into the following departments to prepare for today's meeting.

Management

Shareholders want to see quick action or you know some heads are going to roll. Your job will be to make changes while still keeping costs down.

Marketing

You are being accused of a terrible job of brand management. Put together a plan to rebuild the company's image.

Product Development

The pressure is on you to come up with solutions on the product level. Can changes be made to the menu?

After preparing, sequence the meeting like this:

I A representative from each department summarises its view on the problem and possible solutions.

Other departments take notes.

II	Each department responds to the other departments' proposals.

Work out a plan of action.

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