English for Business Studies

I''m studying this book, in fact, I''ve just finished today but it''s really difficult to get.... I wanna open this topic to share with everybody about everything related to English for Business. However, I don''t know it''s suitable to post here or I should move to Business box...

Wait for ur permission

Hi FJX,
We are more than happy to study from you and share with you English for Business. In ad***ion, we are also planning to open more topics related to Business, Marketing, Sales, Customer Services, Human Resource, etc. So please feel free to post anything about those here.
Thanks for your ideas. We found them all interesting. So õ?Ưcontinueõ?ƯFJXõ?Ư

Thank you very much!
Here''s da link I found from google. When I saw it, I was very happy, then I ...cried, yeah, like that emoticon.
http://www-e.uni-magdeburg.de/mfett/Unit%201.pdf
You know why? Hix, 30 units with 10 pages, how unusual! Sure, just the introduction and unit 1 there, and nothing else.
I have that book, so I will type to post here. Not by each unit (some of them are very...silly in Vietnamese market), I will try to post all, most in the vocabulary and the reading, yeah, some main paragraphs. Actually, I need everybody''s help in understanding this book. Thanks again, sis D!

I try to study English for Business by reading a lot of economics books. It helps my vocabulary improving. But speaking and listening is still little hard for me ...

whoo whoo I can help you with the listening and speaking Business English.
I major in Comerce I may also be able to help you guys get familiar with the terminology

FJX,
Sure, we will all try to help you to understand that book. Don''t worry. Let''s study together. This is really a good idea. I think Letmebe also read quite many business books.
Vi_Cam,
It is great to have your support in business terminology. Thanks in advance.

Production - Products

1. Production decisions
a. Discussion
- What particular skills do you think production and operations managers require?
- What do you think the objective of a production department usually are?
b. Vocabulary
- capacity: the (maximum) rate of output that can be achieved from a production process
- components: any of the pieces or parts that make up a product, machine, etc
- inventory: the stock of any item or resource used in an organization (including raw materials, parts, supplies, work in process and finished products)
- lead time: the time needed to perform an activity (i.e. to manufacture or deliver something)
- location: the geographical situation of a factory or other facility
- outsourcing or contracting out: buying products or processed materials from other companies rather than manufacturing them
- plant: the buildings machines, equipment and other facilities used in the production process
- subcontractor: any company that provides goods or services for another one

c. Vocabulary
After it has been decided what to manufacture, operations managers have to decide where to manufacture the different products, how much productive capacity their factories and plants should have, and how much inventory to maintain.Read the 15 sentences beloew, and classify them under the following six headings. Some sentences may fall under 2 headings.
A : The consequences of insufficient capacity
B : The consequences of excess capacity
C : The advantages of large facilities
D: The disadvantages of large facilities
E : The advantages of having a large inventory
F: The disadvantages of having a large inventory
1. A long lead time may allow competitiors to enter the market.
2. Average fixed cost per unit drops as volume increases because each succeeding unit absorts part of the fixed costs, giving economies of scale (economies of scale: the reductions in unit cost and increase in profit obtained when goods and produced in large quatities).
3. Finding staff and coordinating material flow become expensive and difficult.
4. If lead time increases, some customers may go to other suppliers.
5. Lost sales and market share are usually permanent.
6. The working environment might worsen and industrial relations deteriorate.
7. There are costs of storage, handling, insurance, depreciation, and opportunity cost of capital, and so on. (opportunity cost: the cost arisen from the passed opportunities as the companyõ?Ts resources are not used with the highest efficiency)
8. You can be more flexible in product scheduling, and have longer lead times and lower cost operation through larger production runs with fewer set-ups.
9. There is always a risk of obsolescence, theft, breakage, and so on
10. You can meet variation in product demand.
11. You may be under-utilizing (under-utilizing: the way of using something is not proper) your work force.
12. You have protection against variation in raw material delivery time (due to shortages, strikes, lost orders, incorrect or defective shipments, etc.)
13. You may be forced to produce ad***ional less profitable products.
14. You can take advantage of quantity discounts in purchasing.
15. You may have to reduce prices to stimulate demand.
(Notes: The explaination in italics by FJX)
Suggested answer:

(I really donõ?Tt understand why 1, 4, and 5 can get the answer of E!)
d. Reading
JUST-IN_TIME PRODUCTION
Manufacturing companies are faced with a õ?omarket-or-buy-decisionõ? for every item or component they use (as well as for every process and service). Do they make it themselves or do they outsource, and buy from a subcontractor? If a company assembles products supplied by a large number of subcontractors, they face the problem of how much inventory they require.
In Just-In-Time (JIT) production õ?" also called lean production, stockless production, and continuous flow manufacture õ?" nothing is bought or produced until it is needed. Each section of the production process makes the necessary quantity of the necessary units at the necessary time õ?" which is when it is required by the next stage of the manufacturing process, or by distributors or customers. The JIT system is usually cre***ed to Taiichi Ohno, who was vice-president for manufacturing with Toyota in Japan in the early 1950s õ?" although he stated that he got the idea from American supermarkets! JIT is wholly contrary to the European and American logic of encouraging greater productivity, and welcoming production that exceeds the agreed schedule or quota, and stocking extras in case of future problems.
JIT minimizes the cost of holding inventories, which are regarded negatively, as avoidable costs, rather than as assets. The large Japanese manufacturing companies have long practised outsourcing, and generally use extensive networks of small subcontractors. Of course, if a single subcontractor fails to deliver a component on time, the whole production process is sabotaged, but the Japanese industrial system relies on mutual trust and long-term relationships. Small suppliers often attempt to situate their facilities close to the location of a larger company with which they work.
The Japanese also prefer small, specialized production plants with a limited capacity, in which, wherever possible, all the machines required for a certain job are grouped together. This avoids all the waiting and moving time involved in sending half-finished items from one department to another, although it often requires flexible, multi-skilled employees.
JIT thus greatly reduces transportation and inventory costs, and should ensure that there is no waste from overproduction, or from idle workers waiting for parts. It allows increased productivity because of shortened throughput time. If factories are equipped so that set-up times are short, very small production runs are possible. Any quality problems or product defects shoule be noticed more quickly, production lead times are reduced, and the firm can react more rapidly to demand changes.
e. Comprehension
According to the text, are the following sentences TRUE or FALSE? If they are FALSE, say why.
1. In JIT, products are õ?opulledõ? through the manufacturing process from the end, rather than õ?opushedõ? through from the beginning.
2. JIT originated in American manufacturing.
3. JIT encourages production workers to exceed their production targets.
4. Companies using the JIT system and outsourcing many of their components are highly dependent on their subcontractors.
5. In a JIT system, a delivery of defective components can be replaced from the reserve inventory.
6. JIT depends on harmonious partnerships between a company cand its suppliers.
7. Japanese production systems generally speed up the entire manufacturing process.
8. JIT leads to economies of scale.
(PM me if you need the answer! )
2. Quality (Discussion only)
When customers talk about quality, what different aspects or criteria do they have in mind? How would you define quality in relation to the following?
õ? A fast-food snack
õ? A restaurant meal
õ? A tennis club
õ? A small car
õ? A raincoat
õ? Hi-fi equipment
(Hey, the list above is a little bit not suitable with Vietnamese, right?In ur opinion, what should we replace by?)
Suggested words for the answers:
- speed of service (slow, fast,õ?Ư)
- relatively low/reasonable prices
- reasonable/good food
- consistency (chainõ?Ts outlets)
- own style
- dâcor and atmosphere
- good facilities
- opportunities
- amount of members (small, large,õ?Ư)
- durable, reliable
- features, appearance
- lasting for a certain length of time
- sound, speaker
- õ?Ư
3. Product policy
a. Discussion
- Give 3 examples of brands to which you are loyal )i.i. which you buy without giving it a momentõ?Ts thought). Why are you loyal to them?
- Are they any products for which you have no brand preference or loyalty but are what marketers call a õ?obrand-switcherõ??
- Can you think of any products for which the name of the brand is totally unimportant, so that you do not even notice it? (There may be some in your bag or briefcase.)
- Give an example of a product line (a group of related products made by the same company). Think of clothes, cosmetics, food, and so on.
b. Reading
PRODUCTS AND BRANDS
1. The definition of a product
Marketing theorists tend to give the word product a very broad meaning, using it to refer to anything capable of satisfying a need or want. Thus services, activities, people (politicians, athletes, film stars), places (holiday resorts), organisations (hospitals, colleges, political parties), and ideas, as well as physical objects offered for sale by retailers, can be considered as products. Physical products can usually be augmented by benefits such as customer advice, delivery, cre*** facilities, a warranty or guarantee, maintenance, after-sales service, and so on.
2. Brand names
Some manufacturers use their name (the õ?ofamily nameõ?) for all their products, e.g. Philips, Colgate, Yamaha. Others, including Unilever and Procter & Gamble, market various products under individual brand names, with the result that many customers are unfarmiliar with the name of the manufacturing company. The major producers of soap powders, for example, are famous for their multi-brand strategy which allows them to compete in various market segments, and to fill shelf space in shops, thereby leaving less room for competitors. It also gives them a greater chance of getting some of the custom of brand-switchers.
3. Product lines and product mixes
Most manufacturers produce a large number of products, often divided into product lines. Most product lines consist of several products, often distinguished by brand names, e.g. a range of soap powders, or of toothpastes. Several different items (different sizes or models) may share the same brand name. Together, a companyõ?Ts items, brands and products consitute its product mix. Since different products are always at different stages of their life cycles, with growing, stable or declining sales and profitability, and because markets, opportunities and resources are in constant evolution, companies are always looking to the future, and re-evaluating their product mix.
4. Line-streching and line-filling
Companies whose objectives include high market share and market growth generally have long product lines, i.e. a large number of items. Companies whose objective is high profitability will have shorter lines, including only profitable items. Yet most product lines have a tendency to lengthen over time, as companies produce variations on existing items, or add ad***ional items to cover further market segments. Ad***ions to product lines can be the result of either line-stretching or line-filling. Line-stretching means lengthening a product line by moving either up-market or down-market, i.e. making items of higher or lower quality. This can be carried out in order to reach new customers, to enter growing or more profitable market segments, to react to competitorsõ?T initiatives, and so on. Yet such moves may cause image problems: moving to the lower end of a market dilutes a companyõ?Ts image for quality, while a company at the bottom of a range may not convince dealers and customers that it can produce quality products for the high end. Line-filling õ?" adding further items in that part of a product range which a line already covers õ?" might be done n order to compete in competitorsõ?T niches, or simply to utilize excess production capacity.
c. Comprehension
1. Why do the big soap powder producers have a multi-brand strategy?
2. Why do companiesõ?T product mixes regularly change?
3. What factors influence the length of companiesõ?T product lines?
4. What are the potential dangers of line-stretching?
5. Why might companies undertake line-filling?
d. Vocabulary (from the text)
- cre*** facilities: the possibility of paying for a product over an extended period
- warranty or guarantee: a promise by a manufacturer or seller to repair or replace defective goods during a certain period of time
- shelf: a surface in a store on which goods are displayed
- brand-switchers: consumers who buy various competing products rather than being loyal to a particular brand
- (product) life cycle: the standard pattern of sales of a product over the period that it is marketed
- profitability: the extent to which an activity provides financial gain
- opportunities: possibilities of filling unsatisfied needs in sectors in which the company can produce goods or services effectively
- market share: the sales of a company expressed as a percentage of total sales in a given market
- image: the set of beliefs that the public at large holds of an organization
- niche: a small, specialized, but profitable segment of a market

Do hope that this topic may help you in learning Eng 4 Biz. I know that I may make a lot of mistake in posting the lessons (''cos I typed it myself, no website to copy ), but I will try to keep it minimum, it''s also to help me too. So everybody, plz don''t chat or spam here, thank you.
Next: Marketing - Advertising

Thanks . I read it fast and.. cannot understand, but I will study it tomorrow. You give us some clearly defines about marketing - product and branding in the topic, and the vocabulary. I think that we have to discuss it on one offline day ! We prepare for it now , do you agree with me ?

Marketing
1. Defining marketing
a. Definition
Here is a modern definition of marketing (as opposed to selling):
- There will always, one can assume, be a need for some selling. But the aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous. The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well that the product or service fits him and sells itself. Ideally, marketing should result in a customer who is ready to buy. (Peter Drucker: Management: Tasks, Responsibilities, Practices)
Here is another, more poetic definition:
(A crop in an agricultural products, especially cereals and fruit)
- Marketing is the creation of long-term demand, while sales is the execution of marketing strategies. Marketing is buying the land, choosing what crop to grow, planting the crop, fertilizing it, and then deciding when to harvest. Sales is harvesting the crop. Salespeople in general donõ?Tt think strategically about the business. (Robert X. Cringely: Accidenal Empire)
Now complete the following definition of marketing, by inserting these verbs in the gaps below:
design develop identify influence modify persuade
Marketers have to: (1) õ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ư... or anticipate a consumer need; (2)õ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ư... a product or service that meets that need better than any competing products or services: (3)õ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ư... target customers to try the product or service; and, in the long term, (4)õ?Ư.õ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ư it to satisfy changes in customer needs or market con***ions. Marketers can (5)õ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ư.. particular features, attractive packaging, and effective advertising, that will (6)õ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ưõ?Ư... consumersõ?T wants. Marketing thus combines market search, new product development, distribution, advertising, promotion, product improvement, and so on.
Which of the activities listed in the last sentence of the 3rd definition would you say most closely correspond to Cringelyõ?Ts metaphorical concepts of the following?
1.Choosing what crop to grow
2.Planting the crop
3.Fertilizing it
4.Deciding when to harvest
(PM me if u need the answer to check)
b. Vocabulary
- distribution channel: all the companies or individuals involved in moving a particular good or service from the producer to the consumer
- to launch a product: to introduce a new product onto the market
- market opportunities: possibilities of filling unsatisfied needs in sectors in which a company can profitably produce goods or services
- market research: collecting, analysing and reporting data relevant to a specific marketing situation (such as a proosed new product)
- market segmentation: dividing a market into distinct groups of buyers who have different requirements or buying habits
- packaging: wrappers and containers in which products are sold
- points of sales: places where goods are sold to the public õ?" shops, stores, kiosks, market stalls, etc.
- product concept: an idea for a new product, which is tested with target consumers before the actual products is developed
- product features: attributes or characteristics of a product: quality, price, reliability, etc.
- sales representative: someone who contacts existing and potential customers, and tries to persuade them to buy goods or services
c. Reading
THE CENTRALITY OF MARKETING
The selling and marketing concepts
Most management and marketing writers now distinguish between selling and marketing. The õ?oselling conceptõ? assumes that resisting consumers have to be persuaded by vigorous hard-selling techniques to buy non-essential goods or services. Products are sold rather than bought. The õ?omarketing conceptõ?, on the contrary, assumes that the producerõ?Ts task is to find wants and fill them. In other words, you donõ?Tt sell what you make, you make what will be bought. As well as satisfying existing needs, marketers can also anticipate and create new ones.The markets for the Walkman, video games, personal computers, and genetic engineering, to choose some recent examples, were largely created rather than identified.
Identifying market opportunities
Marketers are consequently always looking for market opportunities õ?" profitable possibilities of filling unsatisfied needs or creating new ones in areas in which the company is likely to enjoy a different advantage, due to its distintive competencies (the things it does particularly well). Market opportunities are generally isolated by market segmentation. Once a target market has been identified, a company has to decide what goods or service to offer. This means that much of the work of marketing has been done before the final productor service comes to existence. It also means that the marketing concept has to be understood throughout the company, e.g. in the production department of a manufacturing company as much as in the marketing department itself. The company must also take account of the existence of competitors, who always have to be identified, monitored and defeated in the search for loyal customers.
The importance of market research
Rather than risk launching a product or service solely on the basis of intuition or guess-work, most companies undertake market research (GB) or marketing research (US). They collect and analyse information about the size of a potential market , about consumersõ?Treactions to particular product or service features, and so on. Sales representatives, who also talk to customers, and another important source of information.
The marketing mix
Once the basic offer, e.g. a product concept, has been established, the company has to think about the marketing mix, i.e. all the various elements of a marketing programme, their integration, and the amount of effort that a company can expend on them in order to influence the target market. The best-known classification of these elements is the õ?o4 Psõ?: product, place, promotion and price. Aspects to be considered in marketing products include quality, features (standard and optional), style, brand name, size, packaging, services and guarantees. Place in a marketing mix includes such factors as distribution channels, locations of points of sale, transport, inventory size, etc. Promotion groups together advertising, publicity, sales promotion, and personal selling, while price includes the basic list price, discounts, the length of the payment period, possible cre*** terms, and so on. It is the job of a product manager or a brand manager to look for ways to increase sales by changing the marketing mix.
Company-to-company marketing
It must be remembered that quite apart from consumer markets (in which people buy products for direct consumption) there exists an enormous producer or industrial or business market, consisting of all the individuals and organizations that acquire goods and services that are used in the production of other goods, or in the supply of services to others. Few consumers realize that the producer market is actually larger than the consumer market, since it contains all the raw materials, manufactured parts and components that go into consumer goods, plus capital equipment such as buildings and machines, supplies such as energy and pens and paper, and services ranging from cleaning to management consulting, all of which have to be marketed. There is consequently more industrial than consumer marketing, even though ordinary consumers are seldom exposed to it.
Finish? Understand?
Ok, do you know which of these diagrams best illustrates a company that has adopted the marketing concept?


(Hix, too lazy to out for scanning, I drew those diagrams myself ,hope you get it)
2. The importance of market research (read only)
(Actually, this is an interview to Mr. Steve Moody, the manager of the Marks & Spencer store in Cambridge, giving a hypothetical example of a marketing failure õ?" a product that reaches the shops but fails to sell. In the book, itõ?Ts the listening, I just post the script here. I think itõ?Ts important to anyone who is in marketing.)
INTERVIEWER:
Youõ?Tre responsible for operational management, the management of people, but not product develpoment. Could you say something about the role of head office?
STEVE MOODY:
Obviously, head office, well, the nature of what head office does in terms of selecting the products and then deciding on the quantities they buy. Obviously when they do that we have great success stories, that we develop a new product, say itõ?Ts a new food recipe dishes that we introduce, it might be a new tie range, or foods from the Far East, and we introduce that it sells very well and obviously thatõ?Ts fine, and usually head office donõ?Tt require a lot of feedback on that. However, they could buy a particular new type of fabric, say itõ?Ts a lycra (?) fabric which weõ?Tve not used before and we develop a range of ladiesõ?T underwear, for example, with that, we buy a large quantities of it, we display it we think itõ?Ts the right price, we think weõ?Tve chosen the right colour, everybody in head office actually thinks itõ?Ts going to sell really well. It then goes out to 50 stores and for some unknown reason the customer donõ?Tt want to buy it. So in those case obviously we have a commitment there to stock din (?) weõ?Tve bought, we need to do some investigation as to find out why itõ?Ts not selling and therefore head office would then come and talk to us and not simply to me but my sales staff to say, well, you know?What have we got wrong here, is it the make-up of the fabric, is it the colour of the fabric, is it the texture, is it the price, and obviously try and take some remedial action, in terms of is it price, then maybe we would reduce the price, If itõ?Ts colour we would go and see what we could do. So we have large input into head office on a daily basis in terms of feeding back communication and obviously sales figures and very much itõ?Ts partnership between ourselves and head office.
(After finishing, I just recognised that this man has entangled me with what he said. I listened to this record many times and õ?Ư. just got the main ideas. About the way of his English speaking, Iõ?Tm so confusedõ?Ư.Anyway, itõ?Ts such an experience for marketers, right?)