Episode 01

Philip is the CEO of WebWare, an IT company. He needs to hire a new sales director as soon as possible.

Do the preparation task first. Then watch the video and do the exercises. You can also read the transcript.

Preparation

Transcript

Philip: You what? What do you mean? You've lost the DollarMart contract? Oh, Brian, tell me you're joking! That's our biggest contract and you've lost it! OK ... OK ... yes, I know you've had some personal problems recently. Yes, sure ... yes, I know our competitors have improved their offer, but really, Brian, these are just excuses. Oh, Brian, come on – you failed to meet agreed targets for the entire last quarter. We talked about this in your last performance review and I told you then it had to improve, and to be quite honest – it hasn't. Losing the DollarMart contract is the last straw. No, I'm sorry, Brian, that's it. That's your last chance. I'm going to have to let you go. Let you go. Yes, that's what it means, Brian. You're fired.

Hi, Jess. Can you put me through to Marcia in HR, please? Thank you.

Hi, Marcia. It's Philip here. Listen, I've had to let Brian go. He lost us the DollarMart account. Yeah, but it had been going on for a while, and he just wasn't pulling his weight any more. He'd been warned. His last performance review was really bad. He knew it was coming. So, we'll be looking for someone new and we'll need to decide on who that is.

Who are we looking for? Good question. I was hoping you might be able to help me with that! Here's what I'm thinking and let me know if you agree. Well, obviously, they'll need to have a first degree. Doesn't matter what subject. And then a master's or an MBA, I'd say.

Experience? At least five years' relevant experience in an international company. I want somebody with a proven track record. Oh, they have to be a team player – Brian never was – so strong interpersonal skills. Oh, and I want someone with vision ... yes, 'vision'! Well, I know it’s difficult to define. What I mean is, someone who knows we're in a rapidly changing market, and they can use it to our advantage.

Experience with online sales, perhaps but ... yes, I'd be interested in that. Oh, language skills. I can't emphasise that enough. Not necessarily a native speaker, but they must be very good at English. And another language as well – Spanish, or Mandarin is best.

Does that sound OK to you? Great. OK, can you get an ad out on the website as soon as possible? Oh, and the trade press as well. OK, great. Thanks, Marcia. I want a new sales director by the end of the month. Bye!

Task 1

Exercise

Task 2

Exercise

Discussion

When was the last time you applied for a job? What skills do you have?

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Worksheet90.3 KB

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Language level

B1 Intermediate

B2 Upper intermediate

hi, can we use, I told you should to improve instead of I told you then it had to improve

Hi Anwr,

The sentence should not have 'should to':

I told you to improve.

I told you that you should improve.

This would mean that the person has to get better - in other words, they have to improve themselves (their performance, their work etc).

If you want the person to make something better then you would have an object:

I told you to improve it.

I think this is probably the sentence you are looking for, but it is hard to be sure without knowing exactly what you are trying to say and in what context.

Best wishes,

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

thanks for explanation

Thanks ..it was useful informations

Hi I have a question.. according to my informations that we cannot use( it ) for people we can say it is a desk so why Philip said when he called Marcia : Hi Marcia .It,s Philip here Why he didn,t say : Hi Marcia. I am Philip. Regards

Hi Khaled v,

Generally you are correct that we do not use 'it' to refer to people. However, there are some exceptions to this rule and introducing yourself on the telephone is one of these. You can read more about this on this page.