2001
Company structure and personnel
Edward Thomas
Nahoru1. COMPANY STRUCTURE
Look at the table below. It describes the meaning of basic words used to describe different structures of businesses. Unfortunately they are mixed up, and need to be correctly linked. Can you manage it?
Correct answers are here
Look at the table below. There you can see two very important words for businesses that are basic opposites (antonyms). Can you add the missing forms of the words? Some of the forms may be frequently used, others more unusual.
Can you find another antonym of the personal noun „loser”?
What common verb do we use with the two abstract nouns from the table?
Correct answers are here
Nahoru2. BRANCHING OUT
Look at the text below which shows the progress of a company. Can you put the paragraphs into the correct order?
„So, this is how it was...
1) Because I had a lot of contacts I didn't have any problems in finding customers for my services- I went into companies and gave courses to the staff there. I also began to look for people to do jobs for some of these companies- that's how I started with recruitment, and that's when I met David and we formed a partnership to share the profits and the liabilities. David was a specialist in recruitment, while I was able to advise and train the people we recruited.
2) It began way back in the early 90's with just myself. I had worked for a big multinational and now I was ready to do something on my own. I became a sole proprietor of a small business training people in sales techniques. It was great fun organising my own schedule, my own offices, and so on- not so much fun organising my own tax forms and thinking about the liabilities I had if the business failed and I was left with a lot of debts.
3) By this time, the mid-2000s, we were employing 35 people in total. It was then that we were approached by- remarkably- the same multinational that I had originally worked for! They wanted to take over the company and invest a lot of money, and David and I would be the managers of this new company, which would be their subsidiary.
4) So here I am again, working for a public limited company which is listed on the London Stock Exchange. The great thing is I don't have to worry personally about the company's possible losses- the bad part is I only get a small part of the profits.
5) The company we had founded grew very quickly. We even began selling some specialised products direct to purchasing departments. After a while we needed to get some extra capital to develop the business- that's when we re-formed the company as a limited company. We got new investors, some of whom became members of a board of directors which met regularly to discuss the progress the company was making- suggesting ways to increase our profits, for example. Of course, for their investments they got a part of the profits, so they were very interested in our success!
Correct answers are here
Nahoru3. SHOOTING UP
Read through the following history of Man Group plc. Can you fill the gaps with the right vocabulary from the box below.
The Rise of Man
Man Group plc is one of Britain´s most successful and oldest companies. It was 1. …………………………… by James Man in 1783 and recently celebrated its 225th anniversary. But it has changed a lot over the years. It began as a trading company of rum and sugar, and later expanded into coffee and cocoa through a process of diversification. As 2. …………………………… …………………………… grew Man added to its commodity 3. …………………………… as it became a financial 4. …………………………… as well- a broker acting…
