SectionD

Evenifyougetworkdoneandgenerallygetalongwithco-workers,youcouldhavehabitsthatbugyourboss(nottomentionyourofficemates).Whilethesequirksmaynotnecessarilygetyoufired,theycertainlycankeepyoufromclimbingthecorporateladder.We’veuncoveredanumberofhabitsthatbugyourbossandoffertipsonhowtoavoidthem.

AccordingtoLaRhondaEdwards,ahumanresourcesmanagerwiththirteenyearsofHRexperience,tardinessisoneofthebiggestconcernsformanagers.“Ifthenormalworkdaystartsat8o’clock,thentheexpectationisthatyou’reintheofficereadytostartyourday,”sheexplains.Heradvicetothechronicallylate?“Planahead,”sheurges.“Ifyoulive50minutesaway,youdon’tleave50minutesearly.Tagonextratimeandanticipateroadblocks.”Somepeopleevensettheirclocksafewminutesearlytoensurethatthey’reontime.Differentbossespreferdifferentmodesofcommunication.LindseyPollak,aworkplaceexpertandauthorofGettingfromCollegetoCareer,saysifyoutextyourbossandsheprefersin-personmeetings,“eitheryourinformationwon’tgetacrossoryou’llirritate[her].”Fortunately,there’sasimplefix:askyourbosshowandwhentosendupdates.Ifyou’retooshytoaskoutright,thenPollaksuggestsobservinghowtheycommunicatewithyou.“Ifyouhaveabosswhocommunicatesonceadaybyemail,that’stheboss’preferredfrequencyandmethodofcommunication,”explainsPollak.

Acluttered,messyworkspacecangiveyourbosstheimpressionthatyou’relazyordisorganized,sotrytokeepyourdeskneat.“Neverputmoreonyourdeskthanyou’regoingtoworkonfortheday,”recommendsEdwards.“Attheendoftheday,makesureyousetupforthenextday.Imaybeworkingonfivethingsatonce,butattheendoftheday,they’regone,andIsetupforthenextday.”Mostmanagerswouldratheryouaskaquestionthanmakeamistake,butmanyquestionscanbeansweredonyourown.“IsthissomethingyoucouldGoogleoraskacolleague?”wondersPollak.“Theinternetissovastthatalotofinformationyoucangetyourself.”Ifyoumustapproachyourbosswithaquestionorissue,thenPollakrecommendsbrainstormingbeforehand.“Ratherthansaying‘Thisclientisterrible.WhatshouldIdo?’thinkaboutpotentialsolutions,”shesays.

Cellphonesarepracticallyubiquitousintheworkplacethesedays,butit’sstilldisruptiveanddisrespectfulwhentheygooffduringameeting.Edwardssaysthatyoushould,“putyourcellphoneonvibrateorleaveitinyourownofficesoit’snotadistraction.”Thatwayyouwon’tbetemptedtotexteither

()6.Accordingtothearticle,howmanypiecesofadviceareofferedhere?.

A.TwoB.ThreeC.FourD.Five(B)

()7.Whatisthisarticleabout?.

A.Howtobesuccessfulintheworkplace.

B.Howtocommunicatewithyourboss.

C.Howtoavoidquirksthatannoyyourboss.

D.Howtoutilizeyourmobilephonesatwork.

()8.Whatdoesthephrase“togetacross”inthesentence“…sheprefersin-personmeetings,“eitheryourinformationwon’tgetacrossoryou’llirritate…”ofthesecondparagraphmean?.

A.TobecommunicatedB.Tobepassed

C.TobepromotedD.Tobeanticipated(A)

()9.Accordingtothearticle,whichofthefollowingmodesofcommunicationisthebestwhencommunicatingwithyourboss?.

A.Anywaysyouthinkareappropriate.

B.In-personmeetings.

C.Correspondence.

D.Thewayyourbosscommunicateswithyou.(D)

()10.Whichofthefollowingstatementsisnotmentioned?

A.Employeesshouldpayrespecttotheirbossesanytime.

B.Employeesshouldplanbeforehandsoastoshowupatworkontime.

C.Employeesshouldnotlettheirmobilephonesgooffduringmeetings.

D.Employeesshouldkeeptheirdesksneatandorganized.

Investingthousandsofpoundsintherecruitmentandtrainingofeachnewgraduaterecruitmaybejustthebeginning.Choosingthewrongcandidatemayleaveanorganisationpayingforyearstocome.

Fewcompanieswillhaveescapedallofthefollowingfailures:peoplewhopanicatthefirstsightofstress;thosewithlongimpressivequalificationswhoseemincapableoflearning;hypochondriacswhoseabsenteerecordbecomesastonishing;andtheunstablepersonlaterdiscoveredtobeathieforworse.

Lessdramatic,butjustasmuchaproblem,isthepersonwhosimplydoesnotcomeuptoexpectations,whodoesnotquitedeliver;whoneverbecomesahigh-flierorevenasteadyperformer;theemployeewithafinefuturebehindthem.

Thefirstpointtobearinmindattherecruitmentstageisthatpeopledon’tchange.Intelligencelevelsdeclinemodestly,butchangelittleovertheirworkinglife.Thesameistrueofabilities,suchaslearninglanguagesandhandlingnumbers.

Mostpeopleliketothinkthatpersonalitycanchange,particularlythemorenegativefeaturessuchasanxiety,lowesteem,impulsivenessoralackofemotionalwarmth.Butdatacollectedover50yearsgivesaclearmessage:stillstableafteralltheseyears.Extrovertsbecomeslightlylessextroverted;theacutelyshyappearalittlelessso,butthefundamentalsremainmuchthesame.Personalcrisescanaffectthewaywecopewiththings:wemighttakeupordropdrink,drugs,religionorrelaxationtechniques,whichcanbehaveprettydramaticeffects.Skillscanbeimproved,andnewonesintroduced,butatratherdifferentrates.Peoplecanbegroomedforajob.Justaspoliticiansarecarefullyrepackagedthroughdress,hairstyleandspeechspecialists,sopeoplecanbesentontrainingcourses,diplomasorexperimentalweekends.Butthereisacosttoallthiswhichmaybemorethanthepriceofthecourse.Bettertoselectforwhatyouactuallyseeratherthanattempttochangeit.

()1.Thepurposeofthispassageistogivemanagerstheadvicethat.

A.Employersshouldselectcandidatesfortheirpotential.

B.Employersshouldselectcandidatesforwhattheyareratherthanfortheirpotential.

C.Employersshouldselectthenewlygraduatedandsendthemontrainingcourses,diplomasorexperimentalweekends.

D.Employersshouldselectexperiencedcandidatestoavoidspendingthousandsofpoundsintraining.

()2.Accordingtothepassage,whichofthefollowingstatementsistrue?.

A.Absolutely,Peopledon’tchangeduringtheirworkinglives.

B.Generally,peoplechangetoalargeextentduringtheirworkinglives.

C.Fundamentally,peoplestaythesameduringtheirworkinglives.

D.Normally,peopledon’tchangeatallduringtheirworkinglives.

()3.Whatdoesafinefuturebehindthem(line3ofparagraph3)means?.

A.Somepeoplewillcertainlyhaveapromisingfuturethoughtheyarenotverycompetentintheirpresentwork.

B.Somepeopledon’thaveanypotentialfortheirworkthoughtheyareemployed.

C.Somepeoplecanhaveabrightfuturethoughtheycan’tdotheirworkwell.

D.Somepeoplehavepotentialwhentheyareemployed,butneverrealizethatpotential.

()4.Accordingtothepassage,people’sbasicabilitieslikelanguagelearningandnumeracy.

A.changelittleovertheirworkinglife.

B.neverchangeovertheirworkinglife.

C.changefundamentallyovertheirworkinglife.

D.changeprofoundlyovertheirworkinglife.

()5.Theworddeliver(line2ofparagraph3)means.

A.totakegoodstotheplacesorpeopletheyareaddressedto

B.togiveaspeech

C.todowhatyoupromisedtodo

D.tohelpawomantogivebirthtoababy.

SectionC

WhatalovelyplaceXeroxistoworkKimMoloney,aclientservicesexecutive,can’tsayenoughnicethingsaboutheremployer.‘It’saveryspecialenvironment,’shesays.‘PeopledescribeXeroxasafamilyandIwasamazedatthenumberofpeoplewhohaveworkedhereforsolong.’It’stemptingtotakeMoloney’scommentswithapinchofsalt,especiallyconsideringthatwhenyou’vebeenworkingsomewhereforonlytwoyears,asshehasatXerox,everyoneseemsoldandestablished.Butthere’struthbehindherenthusiasm.

TakeCarolePalmer,thegroupresourcesdirector.ShejoinedXeroxin1978asatempandhasbeeninherpresentroleforsevenyears.‘Xeroxhasbeengoodtomeovertheyears,’shesays.‘Ithassupportedmethroughqualifications…andlastyearItookpartinthevice-presidentincumbentprogram.’HumanresourcesistakenseriouslyatXerox,Palmersays,andthecompanyhasapolicyofpromotingfromwithin(whichwouldexplainMoloney’samazementathercolleagues’longevity).ThecompanytakesononlyfifteentotwentygraduateseachyearandMoloneywaspartofanintakewhojoinedhavingalreadyacquiredacoupleofyears’workexperience.ShestartedasaprojectmanagerforXeroxGlobalServicesbeforemovingintosales.Nowherresponsibilityisto‘growandmaintaincustomerrelationships’.

MoloneyisbasedattheheadofficeinUxbridge.‘It’sgreatintermsofworkingenvironment,’shesays.‘We’vejustgotanewproviderinthecanteenand…wehavebrainstormingroomsandbreakoutareas.’MuchofMoloney’sroleisvisitingclients,soshedoesn’thaveapermanentdeskatheadoffice.‘I’mahot-desker,whichisgoodbecauseyougettositwithdifferentpeopleinthehot-deskareas.Andyou’regivenaplacetostoreyourthings.’Headofficestaffnumbersbetween1,200and1,500people,Palmersays.ThecompanyhasfourothermainofficesintheUK.Thenatureoftheorganization,whichencompassessalesandmarketing,globalservices(thebiggestdivision),developingmarkets,researchanddevelopmentandmanufacturing,meansthattheopportunitiesatthecompanyvaryfromserviceengineerstosalesrolesandconsultants.

Perksincludeafinal-salarypensionschemeandvariousdiscountschemes.Therewardandrecognitionschemeisalittledifferent,andrathernice:‘Eachmanagerhasabudgeteveryyeartorecognizeandrewardstaff,’Palmersays.‘Itcanbeintheformofamealfortwo,orabottleofwine.Itcanbeupto£1,000.There’stherecognition,andthenthere’sputtingmoneybehindit.’Moloney,however,likesthenon-cashrewards.‘Xeroxtakescareofallitsstaffbutitalsorecognizesthepeoplewhoputintheaddedeffort,’shesays.‘Itoffersonce-in-a-lifetimeincentivetrips,andrecentlyIorganizedasailingtripformyteam.’

Theideaofworkingabroadwiththecompanyappealstoher,andshesaysthathercareergoalistobepartoftheseniormanagementteam.Here’sanotheremployee,itwouldseem,whoisinitforthelonghaul.

()1.Thejournalistofthisarticlethinksthat.

A.staffatXeroxarenottellingthetruthabutthecompany.

B.Xeroxoffersgreatbenefitstostaff.

C.Xeroxisthebestcompanyintheworld.

D.Xeroxhasthebestworkingenvironment.

()2.Thecompanytendstofinditsnewmanager.

A.onlyformgraduatesB.ontrainingcourses

C.fromexistingstaffD.fromjobmarkets

()3.Whatdoesthephrase“totakeon”inthesentence“Thecompanytakesononlyfifteentotwentygraduateseachyearand…”ofthesecondparagraphmean?.

A.TotrainB.Toemploy

C.TointerviewD.Tomaintain(A)

()4.Aswellasrecognizingitsstaffthroughpromotion,Xerox.

A.givescashbonuses

B.givesunpaidleavetotaketripsofalifetime.

C.providesanumberofperks.

D.provideshugeend-of-yearbonuses.

()5.OnecommonfeatureofXeroxstaffisthattheytend.

A.toworkhardB.togetpromoted

C.worklongerhourseachdayD.nottochangeemployer

TroublewithTeamwork

MaryOwenexaminestheroleandefficiencyofteams

Recruiterssaythatcandidateswhocangiveexamplesofworktheyhavedoneasmembersofasuccessfulteamareinasstrongapositionasthosewhocanpointtosignificantindividualachievement.Indeed,toomuchofthelattermaysuggestthatthepersonconcernedisnota'teamplayer'-oneofthemoreseriousfailingsinthebookofmanagement.

Theimportanceofbeingateamplayerisasideeffectoftheincreasinginteractionacrossdepartmentsandfunctionaldivides.Insteadofpushingreports,paperworkanddecisionsaroundtheorganisation,'teamsprovideadynamicmeetingplacewhereideascanbesharedandexpertisemorecarefullytargetedatimportantbusinessissues,'saysSteveGardner,inhisbookKeyManagementConcepts.Headds,'Globalisationhasaddedafurtherdimensiontoteamwork.Multinationalteamsnowstudypolicydecisionsinthelightoftheirimpactonthelocalmarket.'

Butisteamworkingbeingoverdone?'Somemanagersareonasmanyassevenoreightdifferentteams',saysDrCathyBandy,apsychologistwhorecentlyranaconferenceonthesubject.'Theytakeupsomuchtimethatmanagerscan'tgetonwithcoretasks.'Formingteamsandhavingmeetingshas,shesays,becomeanendinitself,almostregardlessofpurpose.Thereisalsothedangerofanunhealthydesiretokeeptheteamgoingaftertheworkhasbeendone.'Peoplefeeltheneedtobelong,andteammembershipcanprovideakindofpsychologicalsupport.'

Theideabehindteamworkingisthat,whentherightgroupofpeopleisbroughttogether,a'force'developswhichisgreaterthanthesumoftheirindividualtalents.Thisisoftentrueinsport,wheregoodplayerscanreachunexpectedheightsasmembersofaninternationalteam.However,fewbusinesssituationshaveasclearasetofobjectives,orasclearcriteriaofsuccessorfailure,aswinningamatch.

'Inbusiness,everyoneneedstobeclearaboutwhatthechallengeisandwhetherateamistherightwayofapproachingit',saysSteveGardner.'Unfortunately,peoplefocusinsteadonwhothemembersoftheteamshouldbeandwhatrolestheyaretoplay'DrBandyagrees.'Thereisalwaysadangerthatteamscanturnintocommittees,'shesays.'Inalotofsituations,oneortwoindividualswouldbemuchmoreeffective.'

Sowhatmakesasuccessfulteam?Therearesomegeneralqualitiesthathavebeenidentified.SteveGardnerrecommendsthatineveryteamthereshouldbesomeonewhoisgoodatresearchingideasandanotherwhoisgoodatshootingdownimpracticalones.Thereshouldbethosewhocanresolvethetensionsthatnaturallyoccurinateamandotherswhoarefocusedongettingthejobdone.Also,providingaclearandachievabletargetattheoutsetisthebestwayofensuringthattheteamwillmoveontogreaterthings.

13、Whatpointdoesthewritermakeaboutteamworkingatthebeginningofthearticle?

AItisthemostsuccessfulformofmanagement.

BIthaschangedtherecruitmentprocedureincompanies.

CWell-runteamsstillallowindividualstodemonstratetheirtalents.

DBeingateamplayerisnowconsideredanessentialmanagementskill.

14、Accordingtothearticle,teamworkdevelopedwithincompaniesasaresponseto

Amodernofficedesign.

Bchangingworkpractices.

Careductioninadministrativetasks.

Dtheexpansionofinternationalbusiness.

15、Inthethirdparagraph,DrBandysuggeststhat

Amanyemployeesdonotenjoyworkinginteams.

Bsomemanagersarenotveryeffectiveteamleaders.

Csometeamsarecreatedunnecessarily.

Dfewteamsarewellorganised.

16、Accordingtothewriter,teamworkismoreeffectiveinthefieldofsportbecausetheplayers

Aknowwhattheywanttoachieve.

Baremorecompetitivebynature.

Chavemoreindividualtalent.

Dcanbedrivenbynationalpride.

17、SteveGardnerandDrBandyagreethatwhenabusinessteamiscreatedpeopledonotpayenoughattentionto

Athestructureoftheteam.

Balternativestotheteam.

Cselectingtheteammembers.

Ddirectingtheteam'sactivities.

18、WhatisSteveGardner'sadviceonoperatingasuccessfulteam?

AMaintainaflexibleapproachtomembership.

BAllowpersonalitiestodevelopwithintheteam.

CSelectpeoplewhofitnaturallyintocertainroles.

DMakeeveryefforttoavoidconflictbetweenmembers.

Readthetextaboutcareer-planningservices.

Choosethebestsentencefromtheoppositepagetofilleachofthegaps.

Foreachgap9–14,markoneletter(A-H)onyourAnswerSheet.

Donotuseanylettermorethanonce.

Thereisanexampleatthebeginning.(0)

YourCareerPathCanLeadYouAnywhere

Weusedtobeadvisedtoplanourcareers.Weweretoldtomakeaplanduringthelaterstagesofoureducationandcontinuewithitthroughourworkinglives.(0)_____somepeoplestillseecareersinthisway.However,topursueasingleoptionforlifehasalwaysbeenunrealistic.

Planningforasinglecareerassumesthatwesetoutwithafullunderstandingofourlikesanddislikesandtheemploymentopportunitiesopentous.(9)____Formostpeoplethisdegreeofcertaintyaboutthefuturedoesnotexist.

Ourinitialchoiceofcareerpathandemployerisoftenbasedoninadequateknowledgeandfalseperceptions.Butwithageandexperience,wedevelopnewinterestsandaptitudesandourprioritiesalter.Thestructureoftheemploymentmarketand,indeedofemploymentitself,issubjecttochangeasbothnewtechnologiesandnewworksystemsareintroduced(10)_____Wemustfacetheuncertaintiesofaportfoliocareer.

Itisclearfromtherecentpastthatwecannotforeseethechangeswhichwillaffectourworkinglives.Thepaceofchangeisaccelerating,asaresultofwhichtraditionalcareerplanswillbeofverylimiteduse.(11)_____Theywillneedupdatingtoreflectchangesinourowninterestsaswellasintheexternalworkenvironment.Flexibleworkersalreadyaccountforabouthalftheworkforce.(12)______Wearelikelytofaceperiodsascontractworkers,self-employedfreelances,consultants,tempsorpart-timers.

Manyemployersencouragestafftowriteapersonaldevelopmentdevelopment(PDP)(13)_____Althoughsomepeopleuseitonlytoreviewtheskillsneededfortheirjob,aPDPcouldbethenucleusofwidercareerplan–settingoutalternativelong-termlearningneedsandaplanofself-development.

AreportissuedbytheInstituteofEmploymentStudiesadvisespeopletoenhancetheiremployabilitybymovingfromtraditionaltechnicalskillstowardstheattainmentofarangeoftransferableskills.(14)_____Instead,specialschemesshouldbeestablishedtoencouragepeopletoexaminetheireffectivenessandtoconsiderawiderrangeofneeds.

0ABCDEFGH

AThisdualeffectmeansthattherelationshipbetweenemployersandworkershasevolvedtosuchandextentthatwecannolongerexpectalong-termrelationshipwithoneemployer.

B.Itcarriesanimplicitassumptionthatweourselves,andthejobsweenter,willchangelittleduringourworkinglives.

C.Thisgrowthsuggeststhatacareerplanshouldnotbeexpressedonlyintermsoffull-timeemploymentbutshouldmakeprovisionforthepossibilityofbecomingoneofthe.

Dthisisasummaryofone’spersonallearningneedsandanactionplantomeetthem.

EConsequently,theymustnowaccommodateanumberofobjectivesandenableustoprepareforeachonacontingencybasis.

FHowever,itwarnsthatemployersoftenidentifytrainingneedsthroughformalappraisals,whichtaketoonarrowaviewofdevelopment.

G.Suchafreelanceofconsultantwouldbeconstantlyindemand.

HWewereexpectedtoworktowardsthatonecleargoalandtoconsideracareerchangeasabadthing.