Ayuda listening 2

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TEST 1......................................................1TEST 2......................................................7TEST 3.....................................................14TEST 4.....................................................20TEST 5.....................................................26TEST 6.....................................................32TEST 7.....................................................38TEST 8.....................................................45

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TEST 1This is the Business English Certificate Preliminary 2, Listening Test 1.[pause]

Part One. Questions 1 to 8.For questions 1-8 you will hear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here is an example: When were the machine parts sent?[pause]Woman: Mr Hooper rang. He needs those parts for the packing

machine by the third.Man: Well, it's already the first today.., but wait ... no,

it's OK. They were sent out on the thirty-first.Woman: Good. He'll certainly get them by the third, then.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: Why does the woman want the job?[pause]Woman: I'm applying for that job in the Marketing Department,

I'm tired of going all the way to Head Office every day!The Marketing office is just down the road from myhouse.

Man: Mmm, you'd save money on train fares... But it's onlythe same salary!

Woman: I know, but I want to use my computer skills as well.[pause]Two: When is the trade fair?[pause]Next year's trade fair in Milan, usually the first week ofJune;, is now on June the twenty-sixth and twenty-seventh. Itsorganisers are not happy - they were hoping that the fair wouldbe on the twelfth and thirteenth. However, the situation in…[pause]Three: What is the purpose of today's meeting?

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[pause]Woman: When are you seeing Munro International about signing

the distribution contract?Man: Well, I'm meeting two of their directors today for lunch

so I'll make a date to do that then.Woman: Fine. Are you going to talk about the merger over lunch?Man: That's the aim. When I asked our MD for his advice on

the next step, he suggested this lunch meeting.[pause]Four: Which chart shows this year's sales?[pause]Man: Looking at our main markets, Asia now represents fifty

per cent of all sales. Europe and the USA are the othertwo main players, with sales in the USA at thirty-eightper cent, unlike last year when Europe had the biggershare.

[pause]Five: How much will Emma's hotel bill be?[pause]Woman(1): Hello, it's Emma MacDonald here from AB Electronics.

I'd like to book a single room for the twenty-fifthplease.

Woman(2): Certainly. Single rooms are seventy- two pounds fiftyper night, including breakfast.

Woman(1): Oh... I see but my company uses the hotel regularly.We normally get a discount.

Woman(2): Oh sorry. That'll be sixty pounds per night then,sixty-five pounds fifty with breakfast.

Woman(1): Oh, I won't want breakfast.[pause]Six: What will the finance company give advice about?[pause]... Call Walker's Finance Company now. We are specialists inadvising successful small businesses on aspects of businessfinance. So, if you want to attract investment or reduce yourcompany's tax bill, call us on 0207 765 5540...[pause]Seven: Which graph are they looking at?[pause]

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Man: Look at this graph. There's a real problem withproduction at this plant. Over the last two years we'veincreased our investment in it considerably - here, see?

Woman: Mm, that's true.Man: And yet production continues at the same level...Woman: You're right. There's been no fall in production, but

there should be a rise - and there isn't.[pause]Eight: What's the problem with the seminar?[pause]Woman: Dan.Man: Yes.Woman: Um, slight problem with the time management seminar next

week.Man: Don't tell me - Andy Norton can't give the introductory

talk.., and I've got to do it.Woman: It's not that. There's such a huge demand this time.

I've had over sixty bookings and the venue is only bigenough for forty. It's funny, last time we had so fewbookings.

[pause]That is the end of Part One.[pause]

Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the notes below.Some information is missing.You will bear a man telephoning a sports centre.For each question 9-15, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword, numbers or letters.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You now have ten seconds to look at the notes.[pause]Now listen, and fill in the missing information.Woman: Ace Sports Centre. Can I help you?Man: I hope so. We're supposed to be customers of yours, but

I've just seen your opening date's delayed again.Woman: Oh, er... could I take your name please?Man: Yes, Charles Baker.

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Woman: And are you an individual member, sir?Man: No - I'm the Human Resources manager at RKS Limited.Woman: That's the letters R-K-S?Man: Yes, that's right. We've got twenty members registered

with you.Woman: Were you given a membership number?Man: Yes, it's 5-double-4-5-3. But I need to know when we can

start using the facilities.Woman: Yes. We're so sorry about the delay. But we are

arranging special tours for corporate members inNovember, to introduce you to the facilities...

Man: When would that be?Woman: Thursdays... Could some of you make the next one, on the

seventh?Man: That'd be difficult but the thirteenth'd be...Woman: Er, the fourteenth...Man: OK...Woman: Starting at six?Man: Sure. I'll see who'd be free that evening.Woman: Because of the delay, we'd like to suggest a fee

reduction...Man: Yes, we'd expect at least ten per cent...Woman: Actually, we'd thought twelve...Man: That seems very reasonable.., thanks.Woman: Great. Can I just confirm your phone number... 01332

987987?Man: Use my direct line, 987413.Woman: Or email?Man: Yes... better.., info-at-cullers-dot-com.Woman: At?Man: C-U-double-L-E-R-S dot com.Woman: I'll be in touch tomorrow...[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now have ten seconds to check your answers.[pause]

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Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes below.Some information is missing.You will hear part of a report by the company's chairman.For each question 16--22, fill in the missing information in the numbered space usingone or two words.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You bare ten seconds to look at the notes.[pause]Now listen, and complete the notes.Man: ... and the other announcement about company personnel

concerns Managing Director, Bob Jones. Bob retires nextmonth after twelve years of service. He will, however,continue to act as part-time consultant. His replacementas MD is another Bob... Bob Winter, currently Head ofOperations. Now, I'd like to summarise our performance last year,

before moving on to plans for 2003. I've decided thatevery year we should introduce a competition to guessthe best-selling product throughout our stores. It'snever been the same for two years running. For example,in 2000 it was mobile phones. The following year recordsales of radios were achieved. I'm quite surprised,especially as we'd predicted it would be electronicorganisers. (Any feedback on this idea would bewelcome.) Recent investment in our furniture department has

resulted in great improvements in sales: this includeschildren's, garden and, most dramatically, officefurniture, which doubled its sales volume last year. Now to the announcement of the most successful branch.

Our Paris branch has held this position for two years,but now it's the turn of New York, with the Londonbranch in second place.Looking to the future, we're planning a number of

developments. Our Personal Loan Service received muchpraise from customers when it was brought in last year.In response to customer demand, we're now going to

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launch our own credit card next year, as well as "otherfinancial services in years to come.Moving on to new stores. As you will remember, twelve

months ago, we closed some of our unprofitable HighStreet stores. I still think we took the right decision- and next year, we've decided to locate six branches incommercial centres. That's the same number we've alreadyopened in new shopping centres - it'll be interesting tocompare their performance.Finally, as part of our continuous programme of staff

development, we plan to offer a wider variety of coursesnext year, including Account Management, as well ascontinuing with IT Skills and Customer Services.Now…

[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Three. You now have 20 seconds to check your answers.[pause]

Part Four Questions 23 to 30.You will hear a discussion between two managers, Matthew and Angela, about someproblems with staff.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have 45 seconds to read through the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Man: Hello Angela. What's wrong? You don't look very

cheerful!Woman: Hi Matthew. No, I'm not very pleased. I've just heard

Phil Jones, one of my junior managers, has handed in hisresignation!

Man: Hmm. One of the managers in my department resigned threedays ago - and then there were two who left in June.

Woman: What's wrong with them? Don't they like working here?Man: Oh, it's not that. We always have dozens of applicants

for junior management posts.

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Woman: Yes, because they know they can get good experience herethat'll be useful in the future.

Man: Right. And once they've gained some experience with us,they can get a better-paid job somewhere else.

Woman: You're right, I know, but why is it always about themoney?

Man: Lots of people are like that now. I suppose these juniormanagers are no different... But you know... I thinkthey shouldn't be in such a hurry to leave. They knowthe company likes to keep staff who are good at theirjobs, and there are plenty of opportunities forpromotion if they stay longer than two years.

Woman: Mmm. You know the most annoying thing?Man: All the hours we spend going through CVs and

interviewing for new staff... ?Woman: That's part of it. I admit I do get bored doing

interviews when you know the person's not right for thejob. No, what really annoys me most is the time I spendshowing new employees how to do the job. Really, ittakes hours, weeks.

Man: Maybe we need a review of our recruitment policy. Maybewe are taking on the wrong sort of people. At thatconference I went to last month, they said that it'soften harder work for a junior manager to join a team ofemployees if the team got on well with the old manager.The team may decide they don't like the way of workingand they may decide to resign too.

Woman: Yeah, people sometimes forget how many problems it cancause by even employing one person who is wrong for thecompany. I don't just mean the cost of recruiting areplacement.

Man: Maybe Personnel would let us use an employment agency infuture.

Woman: I don't think they would, but I have heard they mightgive applicants who come for interview some sort ofpersonality test.

Man: Really! You know some companies employ people whoanalyse the handwriting of anyone applying for a job.

Woman: It's funny you mention that. I was reading an article

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yesterday about how companies in America do that.., tofind out how smart applicants are, how motivated theyare to succeed, how much self-confidence they have, andso on.

Man: How can the way you write prove how clever you are? Whatnonsense! Perhaps what we need to do here is look morecarefully at the CVs we receive - maybe we're not eveninterviewing the right kind of person. It could even bethat our job ads don't attract the right people.

Woman: I'm not sure about that. We're basically happy with ourjunior managers. It's just that some of them don't seemto stay as long as we'd like.

Man: Well, maybe we do need a different procedure when wemeet the applicants at interview.

Woman: Yes, I think you're right about that. Let's fix up ameeting with Personnel to...

[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet.Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one minute remaining. [pause]That is the end of the test.

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TEST 2This is the Business English Certificate Preliminary2, Listening Test 2.[pause]

Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will hear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here's an example: When were the machine parts sent?[pause]Woman: Mr Hooper rang. He needs those parts for the packing

machine by the third.Man: Well, it's already the first today.., but wait ... no,

it's OK. They were sent out on the thirty-first.Woman: Good. He'll certainly get them by the third, then.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: Why is the man late for the meeting?[pause]Woman: Sorry we had to start the meeting without you. What

happened - train late again?Man: It was, but only by a few minutes. According to my

diary, we're not starting till eleven.Woman: We were, but I've got to fly out to the Tokyo office on

urgent business this afternoon, so we had to bring themeeting forward.

Man: Well, no-one told me...[pause]Two: Why is Timtex performing badly?[pause]Woman: Timtex isn't doing too well, is it? I see profits are

right down again.Man: Mm. Well, at the moment the market's sharply divided

between those who want fashionable clothing, even thoughit costs a lot, and those who want to pay as little aspossible. So by aiming at the middle market, Timtex

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doesn't really please anyone very much.[pause]Three: Which graph shows the company's sales?[pause]Man: ... and despite a slight fall early in the year, WP

Engineering have in fact done well this year, with asteady rise in sales up to now, which their ManagingDirector, William Peters, hopes will continue into nextyear...

[pause]Four: Where do they decide to hold the seminar?[pause]Woman: Where are we holding the seminar this year?Man: How about that new hotel in town?Woman: It's too expensive for our budget... somewhere like the

conference centre is more suitable - it's fully bookedthough.

Man: And everyone complained about the Trade Club lastyear...

Woman: OK, well maybe we should spend more on the venue thisyear. Let's go with your idea.

[pause]Five: What does the successful business produce?[pause]Woman: These articles about new businesses are interesting.Man: Especially the one about the woman whose company sells a

game she invented herself.Woman: Mm. She's doing really well. The one that made soft

drinks failed within six months.Man: Yes. And the people publishing the magazine did well at

first, but then they couldn't find any more investors.Woman: Pity. Seemed a good idea.[pause]Six: In which department does Ben work now?[pause]Woman: Hello Karl! How are you?Man: I'm fine thanks. How are things at the company?Woman: Oh, there have been so many changes since you left!Man: I hear Ben's moved?

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Woman: Yes... they needed someone with an engineeringqualification in Marketing, so they transferred himthere.

Man: Who's replaced him in Sales then?Woman: No-one yet![pause]Seven: Which chart shows the bank's current network of branches?[pause]Man: ... at the moment a quarter of the bank's branches are

in Europe, and a third in Asia. The rest of theirbusiness is, of course, in the States. But today's newsis that they're planning to close some US branches...

[pause]Eight: What do they still need to put in the hall?[pause]Man: I've just been over to the hall to check the

arrangements for the shareholders' meetingWoman: Is everything set up OK?Man: Almost. They haven't got the microphone in yet.

Everything else was all right though.., the OHP wasthere...

Woman: What about the video player? "Man: Oh, we changed our minds about that, so I didn't book

one in the end.[pause]That is the end of Part One.[pause]

Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the form below.Some information is missing.You will hear a woman booking exhibition space on the phone.For each question 9-15, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword, numbers or letters.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to look at the form.[pause]Now listen, and write the missing information.Woman: Hello, yes, I'm phoning from Altrex. Could I book a

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space for next June's trade fair?Man: Certainly. The units are ten, twenty-eight or forty

square metres.Woman: Well, our stand is fifteen square metresMan: So you need twenty-eight. There're plenty that size in

Hall D - or one left in A.Woman: How much would that one be?Man: Six hundred and forty five pounds. Units in D are four

hundred and eighty.Woman: Make it the one in Hall A - the more expensive one! How

many people are you expecting? I heard this year was abit disappointing?

Man: Yes, it was - but we did have six thousand. Next yearwe're planning for seven and a half thousand.

Woman: Good. Now, we also need a conference room.Man: Fine, I could offer you the Gresham Room…Woman: Can you spell the name?Man: G-R-E-S-H-A-M. There's also the Ferris Room, that's

larger. It holds four hundred.Woman: How many seats are there in the Gresham Room?Man: It takes two hundred and fifty.Woman: That's plenty. Can we have the room from ten or ten-

thirty?Man: Let's make it half past. Would a twelve o'clock finish

be OK?Woman: Perfect.Man: Now, the room reference number is IMO5734 and the whole

booking is on TF62880. Use that if you contact us.[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now have ten seconds to check your answers.[pause]

Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes below.Some information is missing.You will hear part of a talk given to a group of new employees.

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For each question 16--22, fill in the missing information in the numbered space usingone or two words.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to look at the notes.[pause]Now listen, and complete the form.Woman: Welcome to NYP. You know already how valuable your

skills will be to us as we expand - I believe you havefifteen different languages between you.There are three of us in Personnel and I'm the one you

should come to for any help or information. The othertwo are Ben Gillick and Max Collins, and my name isSarah Cartwright that's C-A-R-T-W-R-I-G-H-T. I'd justlike to give you a few practical details now, before theMD comes to talk to you.Firstly, the canteen on the ground floor is open all

day for coffee, meals, etc, but there are also coffeemachines on the top floor, where we have all the companynoticeboards, so staff often meet there to talk.Urn, next, some of you have asked about your tax

position.., and for any tax questions, you need tocontact the Accounts Office. General salary enquiriescan be made to the Finance Office itself.Two events, now. Today, in the conference room, at

three-thirty, there'll be a presentation - it's not onnew developments as the notices say, it's actually onmarketing. You're welcome to attend to see how we'removing in that area. There'll also be a buffet lunch forall staff working on the new projects - that includesyou, that's on Wednesday - sorry, I mean Thursday -you'll get full details later.Finally, sometimes you'll need to use the machines in

the print room, The first time you go in there, registerfor a plastic card - you don't need it for ordinaryphotocopiers, but you do for the colour ones.The other thing to sign up for, if you want to, is the

sports club, just two minutes from here. If you'reinterested, see Max Collins, who'll give you anapplication form.

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Right, that's all for the moment. Here's coffee, andthe MD is just coming through now.


Part Four. Questions 23 to 30.You will bear a conversation between two senior managers of a large company basedin the UK.They are talking about a visit to the company by a group of foreign executives.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.After you have listened once, replay the recording. You have 45 seconds to read through the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Man: Come in, Diana. Coffee?Woman: Thank you, Michael.Man: Now, about this visit by the senior executives from

Poland...Woman: Mm. Do we know when they're coming?Man: We offered them three choices - the end of March, the

middle of April and the beginning of May.Woman: Yes...Man: And they chose the earliest one, which is good,

actually, with the review coming up in May.Woman: True. But we do need definite dates. And how many are

coming? There were six of them last time. Did you sayabout eight? My P.A. needs to make firm bookings fortheir accommodation now - otherwise it'll be verydifficult to find a hotel.

Man: You're right. They originally, but I've had said six toeight an email this morning saying it's going to beseven. Now we've got a definite number, we can make allthe other bookings for them.

Woman: Good, that gives us eight weeks until they come.Man: Right, well, here are my suggestions for their schedule.

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Mm... They'll be with the company for four days. On thefirst day I think they should visit one of our mainsites. So, it should be either the company headquarters,or the retail outlets in the area, or the factory inSwindon.

Woman: I definitely think we should bring them here to theheadquarters on the second day. I don't think they needto see the shops at all.

Man: OK, we'll show them the production line then - hopefullythey'll be impressed.

Woman: Right, I'll arrange that.Man: What we've got to remember, of course, is that this

group have a particular interest in coming here.Woman: Mm... Isn't it to look at our new computer systems?Man: Well, in fact, on this trip they want to look at

workplace procedures, you know - health and safety,employer-employee relations, things like that. Not ourperformance figures - though they'll see those when theycome here to headquarters, of course.

Woman: And who will they meet while they're here?Man: Well, the Managing Director. And you and me,

obviously...Woman: And have they said who they're interested in seeing? The

Customer Relations staff, maybe?Man: Perhaps, but definitely the people responsible for

developing the company's Human Resources strategy.Woman: Right, we'll get the manager and his team to organise

something then.Man: Mm... Now - the presentation.Woman: Yes. The afternoon of the second day. The basic

organisation for that is already in place, in fact.Man: Good!Woman: Simon's going to do the presentation.Man: What's he going to talk about?Woman: Something on our various schemes for rewarding staff -

the new profit-sharing scheme, bonuses and so on.Man: Right. That'll fit in nicely. Simon's very competent, of

course - there's plenty of time to negotiate all that indetail. Now, for the third day, they've made their own

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arrangements in London. They're going to see some keyMembers of Parliament - they want to talk about tradeagreements.

Woman: That sounds interesting...Man: They wanted to see one of the new commercial

developments in the city but there wasn't time toarrange that.

Woman: Oh, I see. There isn't an official government receptionfor the group, is there?

Man: Not this time.Woman: OK... What about their last day? I understand they've

asked to go somewhere different.Man: Yes. I'd like to take them to Scotland. There're a lot

of developments there we could show them.Woman: Oh, isn't that too far for one day?Man: Unfortunately, it is. But they could fly up to the North

East to the factory there.Woman: Why not the exhibition centre in Birmingham? That's much

closer!Man: They went there last time, remember?Woman: Of course. I'm sure they'll like your idea. If you like,

I could find out about flights to the regional airportthere.

Man: Yes, thanks. Now, can we just...[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet.Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one minute remaining.[pause]That is the end of the test.

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TEST 3This is the Business English 2, Listening Test 3.[pause]

Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will hear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here is an example: Who is Emily going to write to?[pause]Man: Emily, that supplier we use has become very unreliable,

and we've decided to look for another one.Woman: Seems a good idea.Man: We don't need to inform our clients, but could you send

a note round to all our departments when we've decidedwho to replace the supplier with?

Woman: Yes, of course.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: Who does the man need to speak to?[pause]Man: Hello. John Vernon here. I had a meeting last Friday

with one of your production engineers, Peter Tribe. Hesaid the person who'd really be able to help me would beCharles Pearson. Could you ask him to ring me?

[pause]Two: Where is the man telephoning from?[pause]Man: Oh, Amy, I'm glad you haven't left the office yet! I

need the sales budget report urgently for tomorrow'smeeting.

Woman: OK... where shall I send it?Man: Can you email it to me here at home? My email address is

on my desk. It's next to the number of the hotel - youmay need to contact me there tomorrow.

[pause]Three: How many job applications have they received in total?

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[pause]Man: How was the jobs fair?Woman: Ah, it was really successful! Over five hundred people

an hour visited the show. I hope to be able to interviewabout a hundred of the three hundred people who'vewritten in about the posts, though it will take at leasttwo weeks to sort out all the applications.

[pause]Four: How will the company carry out their market research?[pause]Woman: What's happening with the market research survey?Man: Oh, there was some discussion about the best method to

use.Woman: Don't we always do telephone surveys?Man: Yes, though I prefer talking to people face to face, but

the MD says that's too expensive.Woman: You could post the surveys.Man: Well actually, we decided not to make any changes in the

end.[pause]Five: Which graph is correct?[pause]Man: Over the past twelve months, shares in the new

technology companies have risen, but not by as much asinvestors hoped. Their performance is disappointing aswe'd expected them to do much better.

[pause]Six: When is the woman going to take her holiday?[pause]Woman: We must sort out our holidays! I'd really like the first

half of September...Man: Er, I was thinking of going away during that time. We

can't both be away at the same time.Woman: I suppose I could go in July, or August, but...Man: Don't worry! I'll go in August. You take the weeks you

wanted - that's fine.[pause]Seven: What was the man's opinion of the presentation?[pause]

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Woman: Hi, Mike. What did you think of the presentation? Ithought it was really excellent.

Man: I just couldn't get interested in it and I didn't reallypay attention to what the speaker was saying.

Woman: Really? It was so clear, apart from anything else. Allthose figures can be really confusing.

[pause]Eight: Which chart shows the company's turnover?[pause]Man: Turnover improved in 2002, didn't it?Woman: Yes - though it was only slightly higher than 2001. The

launch of Arial's new car really affected us. If theirsales go on growing like that, it's going to be serious.Look at our drop in sales since 2000!

Man: So what are we going to do about it?[pause]That is the end of Part One.[pause]

Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the form below.Some information is missing.You will hear a man discussing an order for some factory equipment.For each question 9-15, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword, numbers or letters.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to look at the form.[pause]Now listen, and write the missing words, numbers or letters in the spaces.Woman: L-R-S. Can I help you?Man: Hello, I'm calling from Amstel Machine Tools. My

colleague called last week about some factory workshoptables. The order reference number is... oh, sorry, justa second... I'll find it in a minute.., ah, J-Y-8-3-6-X.

Woman: Ah... you didn't want the standard size, did you? Yourcolleague ordered ninety centimetres wide by two hundredand twelve centimetres long, didn't he?

Man: Well, I'm afraid we've had to change the layout of theworkshop slightly, so, in fact, we need ninety-five by

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two hundred and twelve.Woman: That's no problem.Man: And we also want the tables to be six centimetres lower

now.., um, one hundred and four centimetres.Woman: Is that for all fifteen tables? Sorry, you ordered

fourteen, didn't you?Man: We did. Can I just check the price with you?Woman: Fine. It'll be six hundred and eighty pounds per table.

The five hundred and twenty in the brochure is for thestandard size.

Man: And we will still get five per cent discount on ordersfrom you, won't we?

Woman: Actually, it went up to seven per cent in July. And isMr Brown the contact name for the order?

Man: I think you need to change it to my name. That's PaulDoughty. Spelled D-O-U-G-H-T-Y.

Woman: OK. I'll give you a call as soon as the order's ready.Man: Mm, thanks.[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now have ten seconds to check your answers.[pause]

Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes below about a chain of department stores.Some of the information is missing.You will hear part of a talk given by the company's Human Resources manager.For each question 16-22, fill in the missing information in the numbered spaces usingone or two words or a number.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to look at the notes.[pause]Now listen, and write the missing information in the spaces.Man: Good morning. Thank you for your interest in working at

Dennings Retail Group. Let me begin by telling you alittle about Dennings. Then I'll talk about careeropportunities with us. As you know, Dennings is one ofthe leading chains of department stores in the country,

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best known for its electrical goods, which areresponsible for roughly sixty per cent of our turnover.What you may not know is that the company began life asa furniture store, established in Birmingham in 1825.There are now twenty-five stores in cities across

Britain. The one we opened most recently is in Oxford,although the one everyone knows about - because of itsamazing modern building - is in London. They all carry awide range of goods.The Dennings name is also expanding abroad. At the

moment there are four stores outside the UK. The nextone to open - in Austria - will join those alreadytrading in Italy, Brazil, Malaysia and Canada.Hopefully, customers in these and other countries

will also begin to use Dennings Internet Shopping, whenit's launched in January next year by the group. We'reexpecting these sales to equal the turnover of one ofour smaller stores by December 2004.This means we will need new staff in all areas of the

company - and feel sure that the competitive salariesand the pension scheme we offer - open to all employees- will attract the best candidates.We always encourage people inside the company to apply

for internal promotion. In addition, we are looking forpeople for our management training course. This is foryoung people interested in a career with the company. Weare also running a special introduction week called'Getting to know Dennings' next month. This is somethingwe do every year for university graduates who would liketo find out about career opportunities at Dennings.


Part Four Questions 23 to 30You will hear a radio interview. The interviewer is talking to a young businessman called

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James Osmond, who publishes a successful magazine called Day by Day.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer After youhave listened once, replay the recording. You have 45 seconds to read through the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Woman: 'I publish my own magazine, and it's very successful'.

How many people, at just twenty-nine, can say that?Well, we have here a young businessman who can - he isJames Osmond, the man behind the magazine Day by Day.Welcome, James.

Man: Hello.Woman: James, did you think this magazine would be so

successful, so quickly? I mean, two years ago, it wasjust an idea. Eighteen months ago, you still hadn'tfound anyone to provide the finance, but this weekyou're celebrating its first anniversary.

Man: No-one is more surprised than me.Woman: Two years ago, you weren't even working in the media,

were you?Man: I had no experience of publishing or journalism at all.

I was actually an accountant, working for a largeholiday company. One day, I was reading a magazine aboutmodern life and stress and I just said to my friends,hey, I could do better than this!

Woman: So what did you do then?Man: Well, I spent eight months knocking on the doors of just

about every big London-based publishing company hopingto find one who would discuss the project. Finally, afriend, the managing director of a big insurancecompany, suggested I see Tom Smith, who's the editor ofthe magazine Nights Out. He liked my ideas for the newmagazine, said they were exciting, and we started tomeet regularly to develop and plan its publication.

Woman: He wasn't worried about the competition?Man: Oh no. My magazine has a completely different subject

from his - we do both. have the same sort of career-minded readers, but they buy our magazines forcompletely different reasons: mine gives readers advice

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and help on how to look after themselves, how to keepfit. Of course, this sometimes includes ideas about whatto do at the weekend, but his magazine is boughtspecifically by readers who want to know where to goand what to do in their free time - dates, places,costs, recommendations.

Woman: Mm. And who do you have working for you? Do you ask yourfriends to write for the magazine?

Man: Actually, I love my family and friends but the people Ineed, and any business needs - to be successful, arethose who really know what they're doing, with thequalifications, training, experience, the lot - notnecessarily well-known people, just the ones who aregood at the job.

Woman: Indeed. Does the magazine now make enough money fromadvertising to keep going without too much outsideinvestment?

Man: Of course not, though our advertising income isexcellent. Our first copy alone brought in over twentythousand pounds, but we're still considered a risk bythe banks so we're very lucky that we have severalpeople willing to invest in us on a personal basis.Shall I tell you how many copies of the magazine we soldlast month?

Woman: Forty, fifty thousand?Man: About seventy-five thousand. I'm really pleased sales

have increased so rapidly. Apart from one month whenthey dropped slightly, sales have grown until theyreached the seventy- five thousand mark three monthsago, where they've stayed.

Woman: And how do you see the magazine developing, James, sayover the next year?

Man: I'm keen to see it read by more people, of course, butthat doesn't mean I want to make any great changes. Itlooks good now, it feels right. I'm getting all thepublicity I need. All I've got to work on is getting itout to more places so that it is more widely available.At the moment, it's basically only available in London.I want to make sure everyone can buy it.

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Woman: Well, good luck with that, James.Man: Thank you.[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet. Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one minute remaining.[pause]That is the end of the test.

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TEST 4This is the Business English Certificate Preliminary 2, Listening Test 4.[pause]

Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will hear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here is an example: Who is Emily going to write to?[pause]Man: Emily, that supplier we use has become very unreliable,



Woman: Yes, of course.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: Which chart shows last week's production figures?[pause[Man: I understand there were some problems with the

production figures?Woman: Well, there was quite a dramatic drop on Wednesday...

because several machines broke down, and then anotherfall on Thursday, but after repairs, productionrecovered quickly and it got back to Monday's level bythe end of the week.

[pause]Two: Which floor is the Committee Room on?[pause]Man: Come in!Woman: Oh... I think I must have the wrong room.Man: Which room do you want?Woman: The Committee Room. I thought it was here on the second

floor.

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Man: It's on the third floor and, anyway, you are lost, thisis the first floor.

Woman: Oh dear, I'm sorry...[pause]Three: How many Exec jet flights are there to Ireland each day?[pause]Woman: Exec jet, the favourite airline for the business

traveller, now flies to seven destinations in Ireland.With twenty-five daily departures, you have more choice,wherever you want to do business. We now fly to morethan forty European destinations every day.

[pause]Four: Which radio report is on first?[pause]Woman: ... and welcome to Business Morning. At nine o'clock,

we'll have the first of our new reports on investments,called Money Savers. But before that, we have The BigInterview with the Executive Director of INK, MartinGalway, followed by Business News...

[pause]Five: Which is the new packaging?[pause]Man: I hear we've had some new packaging designed for next

year's chocolate range. What's it like, d'you know?Woman: Well, the shape of the box has changed - it's not round

any more. And it's completely plain now - no pattern atall.

Man: Oh - spots are out of fashion then?Woman: (laughs)[pause]Six: Which benefit will the client receive?[pause]Man: Well done, Karen, for winning us that contract!Woman: Thanks. The client wanted to negotiate on everything -

prices, delivery times, credit terms, and so on.Man: And did you reduce the prices for them?Woman: We can't affect our profit margins, so I offered them

better credit terms. There's nothing more we can do tospeed up delivery - it's already very fast!

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[pause]Seven: Which chart shows Freebird's market share for last year?[pause]Man: So how did everyone at Freebird feel about last year's

market share?Woman: Well, it's not very good news. Sales fell considerably,

causing us to lose twelve and a half per cent of ourmarket share. If we look at this chart of the fourbiggest producers, we can see we've lost our place asmarket leaders, and are now in joint second position.It's rather worrying...

[pause]Eight: When will Mr Richards receive the new photocopier?[pause]Woman: Mr Richards, this is Maynards Office Supplies speaking.

The photocopier you wanted has arrived today. We'restill waiting for the other goods you ordered. They'llbe here next week, but we'll deliver what we've gottomorrow. Please get back to me on...


Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the quotation below.Some information is missing.You will hear a sales manager giving a secretary information to include in thequotation.For each question 9-15, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword, numbers or letters.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to read through the quotation.[pause]Now listen, and fill in the missing information.Woman: Hello. Jill speaking.Man: Jill, it's Robert. I've just visited a company and I

need a quotation to go in the post to them tonight. Canyou do one?

Woman: Sure. If you give the details...

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Man: OK, I'll give you a reference first. X-B-2-8- double-3-6.

Woman: Right. And who's the quotation for?Man: Johnston Ltd. They're a new customer at Campfield Retail

Park.Woman: Is that J-O-H-N-S-T-O-N-E?Man: No E at the end.Woman: Right. And what is the quote for?Man: The white patterned cotton.Woman: We sell that in rolls of fifty metres.Man: Well, they want three thousand metres altogether.Woman: So I'll put down sixty then.Man: Fine. And you'll need the product name. It's Cascade, C-

A-S-C-A-D-E.Woman: Oh yes, I know. Should I put the normal thirty days

payment terms?Man: Well, they actually wanted sixty days credit, but as

they're new customers, I've insisted on twenty-one. Wecan review it later.

Woman: OK, fine. And, er, no discount to begin with?Man: They originally wanted thirty per cent but we

compromised on seventeen even though it's more than thefifteen we usually offer - I think they could be a goodaccount to win.

Woman: Yes.Man: So it should be five thousand, seven hundred and

fourteen pounds altogether to pay.Woman: Right, I've got all that. I'll make sure...[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now have ten seconds to check your answers.[pause]

Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes about changes in a company. Some information is missing.You will hear part of a talk by a manager to members of staff. For each question 16-22, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using

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one or two words.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to look at the notes.[pause]Now listen, and write the missing words in the spaces.Woman: Right - thanks for coming at short notice. There'll be

an announcement in the media tomorrow about our plannedmerger, and I wanted to inform you about it first.Now, as you all know, we've been in merger talks with

two American software manufacturers, ComputingInternational and M2C International. We nearly reachedan agreement with M2C, but it was decided to go withComputing in the end.If you're worried about job losses, I can guarantee

that won't happen here at the company administrationoffices. The Americans want to keep our Head Office, andthe production site too. The only change is to sell ourresearch site and relocate those staff.In fact, there are plans for all of us here at Head

Office to move to a new development near the harbour,which will be ready in March next year. The actualmerger takes place in May.The major change to the new-look company is that we'll

be called Open Network - er, I don't think it'll be toodifficult to go from Alpha Networking to the new name.There'll also be a new logo, and company colours will

change. There was a lot of discussion about whether tokeep the key as the logo, but it was decided thatsomething different was needed, so instead it'll be aflag. Now, what about advantages for the staff? Afterthe merger there'll still be opportunities to travel -conferences in Europe, exhibitions in Tokyo, Frankfurt,and so on, but there'll also be a staff exchangeprogramme with the Boston office. Another thing, of course, is that we'll have to get

used to our new identity. To help us do this, startingnext June, there'll be training courses. We'll beoffered product training first, then the following monththere'll be corporate training, and after that seminars

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on work skills. I'm sure these will all be very useful.Now, before I go on, does anyone have any questions...


Part Four. Questions 23 to 30.You will hear a discussion between James Pierce and Susanna White, talking about theircompany's current advertising campaign for a new range of convenience foods.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have 45 seconds to read through the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Woman: I've had some very positive feedback on the ad campaign,

James.Man: Great!Woman: I thought you'd be interested to hear the results of a

telephone survey the advertising agency carried out.Man: Yes, very much so.Woman: Firstly, it seems we were right to take the advice of

the advertising agency and not to employ actors, as wenormally do in our ads. It seems people have reallyresponded to well- known personalities dressed asfactory workers on our production line.

Man: So, did the people in the telephone survey say they feltpersuaded to buy the products?

Woman: Nobody actually said that, but they definitely thoughtit was something different from the style of ads that'sin fashion at the moment. The response that came backagain and again was they hadn't seen anything Like itbefore - they thought the ads were great.

Man: Hmm, that should really give the MD something to smileabout! But what about the real question? How are salesperforming?

Woman: Well, I was a little worried, because we'd set such very

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high targets. And sales of new products don't alwaysperform well straight away. Also, it's such acompetitive market. In fact, though, we've met all ourtargets so far.

Man: And maybe when more people see the ads, sales will beabove target. It's only three weeks since the campaignstarted.

Woman: Mm, now, another interesting point is the type ofconsumers buying these products.

Man: We're aiming at men and women in the twenty to thirtyage group, rather than teenagers.

Woman: Well, the survey showed that actually it's thirteen tonineteen year olds who buy the products more thanwomen, and men are in third place.

Man: I wonder if that's because of the style of our ads.Woman: Possibly. We should see whether this pattern changes as

the campaign goes on.Man: Has there been any feedback on which magazines most

consumers see these ads in?Woman: Well, Healthy Eating magazine has the largest number of

readers, but that's not the same thing, of course.According to the survey results, Food Ideas was themagazine mentioned more often than any other. Easy Mealshas been fairly successful, too, which is surprising,though that was the one the agency recommended us toadvertise in.

Man: Yes, that's right. I think the agency has given us somereally good advice. I'm impressed. I know it might seemthat we're paying them a lot of money, but if you thinkof the sales we're achieving.., after this experience, Iwould always use the agency - even if it costs us more.

Woman: Well, as you say, things are going very well so far.Man: And has the agency said how long the campaign should

continue for?Woman: Yes. We've already had just about two months and the

agency thinks it should go on for another month. Theysay we should run some new ads again later in the year,for the same length of time.

Man: OK. And are they advising us to advertise in the same

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publications?Woman: The same magazines, yes. They also said we should

advertise in cinema guides.Man: Perhaps we could consider some of the popular sports

magazines - convenience foods certainly suit people withbusy life-styles. Anyway, advertising in some of thecinema guides is just as expensive as the nationalnewspapers.

Woman: Well, I can go back to the agency to discuss that if youlike.

Man: OK, I think that's something...[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet.Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one minute remaining.[pause]That is the end of the test.

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TEST 5This is the Business English Certificate Preliminary 3, Listening Test 1.

Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will bear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here is an example: Who is Emily going to write to? [pause]Man: Emily, that supplier we use has become very unreliable,



Woman: Yes, of course.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: When will the meeting be?[pause]Man: Sarah, can you fix a date for us to discuss the new

advertising campaign with Nick Bradshaw? It'll have tobe next week. I can manage the twelfth, fourteenth orfifteenth, as long as it's after three-thirty.

Woman: Right, but Nick said he'd be away until the fourteenth,so it'll have to be the following day.

Man: That'll be fine.[pause]Two: Which office suppliers are they going to use?[pause]Woman: This latest order from Office Network is very expensive.

Have you thought about changing suppliers?Man: Well, I did think about it. But Excel Products wouldn't

give us any discount and A-Grade Service want cash ondelivery, so let's just leave things as they are.

[pause]Three: Which line shows productivity correctly?

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[pause]Man: These figures are interesting, aren't they? I expected

to see the highest productivity in the earliest part ofthe day, and the lowest at the end.

Woman: But... in fact, the peak time's just before midday,isn't it?

Man: And performance is better at the end of the day than itis after lunch. I imagined it'd be the other way round.

[pause]Four: What is the correct length?[pause]Man: Hello, I'm calling from Brent Hardware. There's an error

in our catalogue, and we missed it when we wereproofreading. It's on page twenty-six.

Woman: Oh?Man: It says the length is five forty but it should be four

twenty millimetres.Woman: Right. Oh yes, I see. The height is still four hundred

and fifty-two, isn't it?Man: That's right.Woman: OK, we'll re-do that page.[pause]Five: What does the woman want to do about the meeting?[pause]Woman: Ben... hello, Emily Jones here. I’m calling about the

project meeting...Man: ... on the fifteenth of May?Woman: Yes... I think that date's going to be too soon - I

still haven't got the figures I need from thecontractor.

Man: Do you want to put it off then?Woman: Please. I'll get back to you about alternative dates.[pause]Six: What time will Mr Johnstone arrive?[pause]Man: It's Peter here from Executive Cars. I'm collecting a Mr

Johnstone from the States. His flight arrived atfourteen forty-five, but he still hasn't come throughcustoms.

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Woman: Sorry... yes. We've had a message to say he took adifferent flight. He gets in at sixteen fifty. Can youwait?

Man: OK. The next flight I'm meeting isn't until twenty-oneten. I'll get something to eat...

[pause]Seven: Which chart shows where the company's goods are made.[pause].. and the majority of our parts are made outside the US withsixty per cent manufactured in Asia, a smaller amount, just tenper cent, made in Eastern Europe and a further five per cent inScandinavia; the remaining quarter are produced here in theUS...[pause]Eight: Which task is urgent?[pause]Man: Sarah, are you busy?Woman: Not very. Have you signed the letters I put on your

desk?Man: They're in the post. The thing is, there's a problem at

the Barcelona office. We've got several faxes from themthat need answering at once. Could you do that?

Woman: No problem! After that, shall we check our diaries forthis week?

Man: Good idea.[pause]That is the end of Part One.[pause]

Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the notes below.Some information is missing.You will bear an engineering manager giving a secretary some information about aquotation.For each question 9-1S, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword,After you have listened once, replay the recording. You have ten seconds to readthrough the notes.[pause]

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Now listen, and fill in the missing information.Woman: Jim Morgan's office.Man: Sally, Jim here.Woman: Hello. How was the visit to that company interested in a

service contract?Man: Good. Could you do a quote to send them today?Woman: Sure.Man: It's to go to Alfords International.Woman: Is that double L?Man: …. one. A-L-F-O-R-D-S. Their address is on my desk.Woman: Right, thanks. Have you got a reference number?Man: G-E-two-four-six-O-one.Woman: What equipment do they have for servicing? Does it

include their office machines?Man: Well, they've got nearly five hundred, so another

company is looking after those. They want us to servicethe thirty-seven machines in the packing department.

Woman: OK.Man: Now, I've worked out an annual charge... cheaper than

their current supplier. We're quoting one thousand ninehundred and seventy-eight pounds, that's including tax.Then there's charges for emergency work.

Woman: Is that the usual forty-five pounds call-out charge?Man: Mmm... I didn't reduce the price on that - it's

standard.Woman: Fine.Man: Also, I gave them a guaranteed response time - at the

moment they have to wait up to twenty-four hours for anengineer to visit. I promised they wouldn't have to waitmore than eight hours if they chose us.

Woman: OK. Is that everything?Man: Almost. Payment terms - I didn't negotiate on these.

Their current supplier only gives twenty days, so ourusual twenty-nine is already much better.

Woman: Right, I'll get...[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now bare ten seconds to check your answers.

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[pause]

Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes about the launch of a new clothing company. Some information ismissing.You will bear part of a welcoming talk by the company's Managing Director.For each question 16-22, fill in the missing information in the numbered space usingone or two words.After you bare listened once, replay the recording.You bare ten seconds to read through the notes.[pause]Now listen, and fill in the missing information.[pause]Man: Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the launch of our

new company. This is a special day for us, now we havemerged with Sinclairs to become Riverside ClothingLimited, and we are confident that our success atselling our own brand of clothing will continue.There have been some important staff changes. Our

previous Chief Executive, Simon Marsh, has moved on tobecome MD of another company, so congratulations to ourSales Manager, David Shaw, who will become ChiefExecutive. We wish him every success in his new role.The position of the new premises here was carefully

chosen so that we would be near the airport, instead ofbeing in a city centre, like a lot of other factories.These premises are far bigger. Although our sales area

has remained about the same and we have slightly moreroom for design workshops, it is the manufacturing areathat we have expanded the most.As you can see, this is a very exciting time for us

and we will continue to improve our facilities forstaff. There will now be plenty of space to build a newstaff car park, as parking has always been a problem.That'll be completed in the spring. However, the staffcanteen is now open and I hope you will be joining usfor lunch there later.Now that we've moved, we intend to expand into two new

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areas of the clothing industry. In addition to ourexisting adults' range, we are ready to start on a rangeof children's clothes. These will be in production bynext month, followed later in the year by a new range ofsportswear.We already have a strong market for the range - in

America and Japan, but will be targeting Australia next,which is an unknown export market for us.Now…

[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Three. You now have twenty seconds to check your answers.[pause]

Part Four. Questions 23 to 30.You will hear a radio interview with George Johnson, Managing Director of Media-X, anorganisation which invests in internet companies.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.After you have listened once, replay the recording. You have forty-five seconds to readthrough the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Woman: Good afternoon, and welcome to Working Day. Today we're

going to meet George Johnson, Managing Director ofMedia-X, an investment company always in the news thesedays. Hello, George, welcome to the programme.

Man: Hello, Sarah.Woman: First of all, a question I'm sure you're often asked.

Why is the company called Media-X? Has it got anythingto do with film or television?

Man: Not really. But we wanted to get away from the seriousimage of money and banking, and wanted something thatpeople wouldn't forget. We also considered namesconnected with e-commerce and the internet, but in theend we decided we wanted something more general. AndMedia-X seemed a good choice.

Woman: Interesting. Now let's get on to what Media-X actually

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does. You were one of the first in the business toprovide financial as well as technical advice, weren'tyou, for new internet and software companies?

Man: Well, I wasn't as far-sighted as a lot of people,especially in America. When I first heard about theinternet in nineteen ninety-one, I thought it would beonly used for education. But I actually decided to setup Media-X the following year, when I realised that newsoftware was already making it easier to use. So Isuppose that was quite early on - compared to most otherEuropeans, that is.

Woman: But what about before that? Tell us something about yourearly career.

Man: I studied economics at university and then joined alarge international bank as a trainee manager,eventually becoming a vice-president. Towards the end ofthat period, I also became a director of a smallsoftware company my brother was setting up.

Woman: So business runs in the family, then?Man: That's right. My father has a well- established office

supplies company, so, apart from the financial side, healso knows a lot about warehouses, storage and deliverysystems, which are very important in the e-commercebusiness. I rely on his opinion a lot when I'm trying todecide whether or not to invest in new ventures.

Woman: So, tell us about the companies you help. I'm sure youget lots of requests for funding sent to you.

Man: Yes, we receive about three hundred proposals a year. Weexamine them all, discuss them, then decide which to gowith. About two hundred are worth considering in detail,with maybe a hundred being finally selected.

Woman: What would you say makes a successful proposal?Man: Well, we look for a number of things. But, before

anything else, we have to be sure there's a clear demandfor what the company intends to provide. Of course, thenwe have to consider other things like a strong businessplan behind the proposal and, of course, the people atthe top - they've got to be worth investing in.

Woman: You mentioned before that you don't only provide the

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money for starting new businesses. What other servicesdo you provide?

Man: We're not in a position to provide software programmes,technical details, things like that, or informationabout possible markets. Where we can help is by makingsure that companies know what to charge for their goodsand services so that everything is on a healthy basis.

Woman: And you've certainly enjoyed some recent successes,haven't you?

Man: Well, yes, some of the British companies we've supportedhave been doing rather well - TravelDeals-dot-com is nowone of the leading travel companies here in Britain.

Woman: And OrderFree-dot-com is also doing well. It's gone intothe American market, hasn't it?

Man: That's right. It's very promising.Woman: And then there's NetTrade-dot-com, another of the UK

companies you funded. Do you think they'll followOrderFree's example and set up abroad?

Man: I doubt that very much. Only time will tell, ofcourse...

Woman: That seems a good point on which to end. Thank you verymuch, George Johnson, for a very interesting...

[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet.[pause]Note: Teacher; stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one

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Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will bear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here is an example: Who is Emily going to write to? [pause]Man: Emily, that supplier we use has become very unreliable,



Woman: Yes, of course.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.Alter you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: What interest rate did the man's investment receive this year?[pause]Man: I'd like some advice about my investment in Lawsons. I

was hoping for five per cent but it didn't even repeatlast year's four point five per cent.

Woman: Well, four per cent's not all that bad the way thingsare at the moment. A lot of companies are giving farless.

[pause]Two: Which aspect o[ company policy are staff unhappy about?[pause]Woman: Staff are very unhappy about our changes in policy on

this.Man: Well, things aren't all bad. They've just had a pay

rise.Woman: But they always saw staff development as essential for

their jobs, especially those who're applying for higherpositions in the company.

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Man: We're starting various courses as soon as the budgetallows. Don't they know that?

[pause]Three: How does the man feel about moving offices?[pause]Man: We're relocating during the week starting July the

twelfth.Woman: That's going to be a bit tight, isn't it, Paul?Man: We'll all just have to make sure we've got a good plan

and inform everyone well in advance.Woman: That's easier said than done.Man: It'll be fine - don't worry.[pause]Four: Which graph shows profits at AJB?[pause]Man: The profits for AJB look rather disappointing, don't

they?Woman: You're right. The problems really started when Baileys

opened up in the UK earlier this year. What do you thinkwill happen next year?

Man: Well, the forecast was good until these figures wereannounced. But predictions are much less positive now.

[pause]Five: What percentage of the woman's MBA fees will the company pay?[pause]Woman: I'd like to know about the company's educational awards

for MBA courses. I have heard you usually pay fifty percent.

Man: That is for staff with over five years' service. Staffwho have been with us for two to five years, as in yourcase, get thirty-five per cent, while those with lessthan two years' service get twenty-five per cent.

Woman: I see. Thank you.[pause]Six: Where is the GNZ Communications stand?[pause]Woman: I wonder if you could help me. I'm looking for the GNZ

Communications stand. Is it on this floor?Man: Yes. Go left here, past the Homes Two Thousand and

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Twenty exhibition. Turn right after the cafe, walkstraight ahead and you'll see GNZ on your left, oppositeSmart Systems - near the lifts.

Woman: Thank you.[pause]Seven: What time does the man expect to arrive at the meeting?[pause]Man: Hello Liz. It's Mark. I'm still at the airport. The

plane's delayed. I was supposed to be at the meeting attwelve thirty but I'm probably not going to make ituntil thirteen thirty. We are not scheduled to take offfor another hour yet, so won't land till eleven forty-five at the earliest.

Woman: Don't worry. I'll send your apologies.[pause]Eight: Which chart shows the company's current income by country?[pause]Man: The sales figures look very good.Woman: Yes, Germany has done very well again with sales up to

eleven million pounds. But the overall increase waslargely due to excellent sales in Italy and Greece. We'dforecast eleven million for Italy but, in fact, theyovertook Germany, almost reaching thirteen million,while Greek sales were up by over three million to eightmillion.

Man: That's interesting.[pause]That is the end of Part One.[pause]

Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the notes below.Some information is missing.You will bear a man giving some information about a conference.For each question 9-15, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword, numbers or letters.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to read through the notes.[pause]

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Now listen, and fill in the missing information.Woman: SmartTarget Marketing Division. Sarah Marks speaking.Man: Hello, my name's Tim Adams. I'm calling to let you know

about this year's GlobalNet Conference next month fromthe twenty-fifth to the twenty-seventh of November.

Woman: Oh yes. It was at the University Conference Centre lastyear, wasn't it?

Man: That's right. This year it's on at the InternationalConference Centre. It's much bigger this year, you see.

Woman: Will there be more seminars, then?Man: More of everything. Five hundred and thirty-five

exhibitors and over one hundred and fifty free seminars.We have some really exciting guest speakers this time.

Woman: Oh yes. Such as?Man: Well, Mike Daughton, Director of InfoSoft UK, will give

the opening presentation.Woman: Mike Dalton?Man: No, Daughton, D-A-U-G-H-T-O-N.Woman: Oh, of course. That should be interesting. Xgrhat time

are the seminars on?Man: The conference centre is open from nine thirty to six

thirty and the seminars run from ten thirty to fivethirty. All the seminars are listed in the programme.

Woman: And how much are the tickets?Man: If you book now it'll be three hundred and twenty-five

pounds. Otherwise, it'll be one hundred and twenty-fivepounds per day on the door.

Woman: How can I register?Man: You can either register online or call the booking

office on 0-1-double-4-3-double-7.Woman: Great. Thanks for your call.[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now have ten seconds to check your answers.[pause]

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Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes about the career of Steven Jackson. Some information is missing.You will hear part of a presentation given by Steven Jackson at an interview.For each question 16-22, fill in the missing information in the numbered space usingone or two words.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have ten seconds to read through the notes.[pause]Now listen, and fill in the missing information.[pause]Man: I have always enjoyed working in marketing and research,

and I think I have gained a very good knowledge of theskills necessary to do a job effectively. At the moment,I'm working as a Research Manager. Energy and ideas arevery important, and in my present employment I've shownthat I have these qualities. The company deals in theproduction of building equipment and I've been with themfor five years now. I'm sure you have heard of mypresent company, Standard Construction. My positioninvolves finding out about the latest scientificdevelopments. I have a good academic background in thisfield and graduated in Chemistry from London Universityfourteen years ago.One thing I particularly enjoy about my present job is

travelling, mainly in Europe and the United States. Imeet representatives of other companies and discuss newideas for the use of new materials in construction. It'svery important to know what is happening in othercountries like Germany and France.Before this, I was Marketing Assistant for a Spanish

plastics company for four years. My knowledge ofdifferent languages and cultures has been a greatadvantage, and I plan to learn German as well. At themoment, I regularly do business in French and Spanish,and travel widely in Europe including frequent visits toSweden and Holland, where my business is all done inEnglish.I plan to leave my present job before the end of the

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year. There are several projects I have to finish inOctober and November. If I were offered a post here Iwould be available to begin in December.I want to work for a company that has ambitions to be

a world leader in its field, which is why I'm applyingfor this position.


Part Four. Questions 23 to 30.You will hear a discussion between fames, the General Manager, and Sarah, the OfficeManager, of a company.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.After you have listened once, replay the recording.You have forty-five seconds to read through the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Man: Come in, Sarah.Woman: Thanks.Man: Right. We need to discuss some of the issues raised at

the last meeting with your department.Woman: Yes, there were a lot of questions about computer

systems and flexible working hours.Man: We'll talk about computer systems in a minute, but I

think we can leave flexible working hours for the timebeing. What I'm really very concerned about at themoment, though, is how some staff are working. I'm notat all happy with how long it's taking for some reportson visits to come in. Peter Jones, for instance, hasn'tproduced a single report on time. The last, on his visitto Berlin was two weeks late. It's not as though they'relong reports - they should only take a short time towrite.

Woman: I'll certainly warn Peter about getting reports in morequickly but it really comes down to a question of staff

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training. I think we need to do some workshops on timemanagement.

Man: I agree, but getting consultants in to do the trainingcosts money. It'd be cheaper to use one of our ownstaff. Have we got anyone who could do it?

Woman: Laura Williams has some management training experience.Man: She's away on a team building course at the moment,

though, isn't she?Woman: Only 'till next week. I'll speak to her when she gets

back. I'm sure she'll be interested.Man: Now, I'd like to move on to computer systems. As you

know, we're going to upgrade our software. The plan wasto install it in January but that's proved difficult soit's going in during February because we certainly wantit to be ready and running for March.

Woman: Good. I'm worried about the computer skills of some ofthe staff, though. A few could do with some extratraining.

Man: I'm sure you're right. Could we organise that on thepremises, do you think?

Woman: Possibly, but it'd be expensive. I know the businesscollege in Park Street has a really good computersection. I've compared their prices with those of thecomputer training centre at Blackstone and the collegeprices are far more reasonable.

Man: Let's go for that, then. Will you see to it?Woman: Certainly. Now, I think this would be a good time to

make some office changes before the new software comesin. The Accounts team need a bigger office. At themoment, we've only got five people using the Marketingoffice on the second floor, so Accounts could take overthat office if we moved Marketing to the first floor.

Man: And Human Resources up to the third floor? Yes, thatsounds a good idea.

Woman: Great. It'll mean moving a lot of equipment. Accountskeep complaining about some of their equipment. It'd benice if we could replace it.

Man: We certainly can't replace all of it. What's causingmost problems?

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Woman: Well, we've had to call technical support in at leastonce every week for the past two months to deal with thefax machine. The printers were causing trouble butthey're working well enough now and everyone complainsthat the photocopier is slow but it's alright, really.

Man: Right, I'll see what we can do. Now, I have to go in aminute. What do we need to discuss when we meet nextweek?

Woman: There's the Health and Safety report.Man: Oh, John Wilkins has already done that.Woman: Good. What about the programme for the French clients?

They're coming at the beginning of next month.Man: TLrne is getting short. We'd better deal with that.Woman: And then what about getting a new PA to replace Louise?Man: Oh, we can leave that, I think. She isn't going till the

end of April now.Woman: That's good. I thought she was leaving sooner.[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet.[pause]Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one minute remainingThat is the end of the test.

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Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will bear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.Here is an example: Who is Emily going to write to.[pause]Man: Emily, that supplier we use has become very unreliable,



Woman: Yes, of course.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: What does George think about the new company magazine?[pause]Woman: What do you think about the new company magazine,

George?Man: It looks very professional, but I think they could have

done it more cheaply.Woman: But don't you think people will find it useful?Man: Well, they might find it interesting but that's not the

same thing, is it?[pause]Two: In which product range are sales growing most quickly? [pause]Man: The sales figures for this year are excellent, aren't

they?Woman: Yes. All the new lines are performing very well indeed.Man: I didn't think things like video recorders would sell so

well.Woman: No, but in fact sales of home entertainment products are

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rising the fastest.Man: Faster than kitchen goods?Woman: Faster than everything, even stationery.[pause]Three: Which set of information is unavailable?[pause]Woman: Have you finished getting the information about best

performance yet? I'd like to use it at tomorrow'smeeting if possible.

Man: Nearly. The data on individual sales personnel isn't allin yet.

Woman: What about product categories? That's more important.Man: No problem with that, or with the highest performing

stores. I've put the figures on your desk.Woman: Thanks.[pause]Four: Where is the Human Resources department?[pause]Man: Excuse me, is Human Resources on this floor?Woman: No, you're on the wrong floor - it's on the next one up.

You can take the lift or use the stairs at the end ofthe corridor. It's just past the Marketing offices,which are on the left when you come out of the lift.

[pause]Five: Which hotel are they going to book for Mr Sands?[pause]Woman: Which hotel shall we book Mr Sands into?Man: Well, the Westgate's close to us but it doesn't offer

value for money compared to the Laurel or the Crown.Woman: But the Laurel's farther away from the office than the

Crown. And we stopped using the Crown because there weretoo many problems.

Man: OK. Since it's a short visit, let's choose the nearestone.

[pause]Six: Why is the man phoning?[pause]Woman: Good morning, Swiftcom.Man: Hello, this is Martin Smithers. I'm ringing about an

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appointment with Peter Field.Woman: Oh yes, Peter's sorry he couldn't make a definite

arrangement yesterday. He had to check his diary aboutthe fourth.

Man: Is it OK?Woman: Well, that or the ninth.Man: The fourth suits me better.Woman: Fine, I'll tell him.[pause]Seven: How much does the man earn in total at the moment?[pause]Woman: You obviously want to know about the salary we'd pay.

You'd earn forty thousand pounds a year. How does thatcompare with your present salary?

Man: Well, with commission I make forty-six thousand poundsbut the basic salary is thirty-five thousand pounds.

Woman: I see. Well, if you decide to take the post we canreview your salary after a six-month trial period.

[pause]Eight: Which graph shows the company's future sales targets?[pause]Woman: So, what are your targets for the next three years?Man: Well, we think the huge investment in the advertising

campaign this autumn will take sales to one point fivemillion dollars in Year One - in other words, next year.That level should then hold steady, with a slight droppredicted in Year Three.


Part Two. Questions 9 to 15.Look at the form below.Some information is missing.You will hear a man phoning the HumanResources department of the company where he works.For each question 9-15, fill in the missing information in the numbered space using aword, numbers or letters.After you have listened once, replay the recording.

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You have ten seconds to read through the notes.[pause]Now listen, and fill in the missing information.[pause]Woman: Human Resources.Man: Hello, Neil Andrews here. I understand you've managed to

recruit a new assistant for my office?Woman: Oh yes, Neil - would you like to take down the details?Man: Please. Can I have her surname?Woman: Well, it's Shappen, S-H-A-double-P-E-N, and it's Ms.Man: That's an unusual name. OK. Now, can she begin on the

fourth of July, as I requested?Woman: Ah, good news there. We've actually been able to bring

that forward to the twenty-eighth of this month.Man: June? Oh, that's great. We're so busy, it'll make a real

difference.Woman: I've got everything set up for her.Man: A phone line?Woman: Yes, and she'll be on extension five-four- five-o. We've

used all the five-four-fours.Man: Oh right. And what about email?Woman: Easy. Her address'll be Rachel - that's R-A-C-H-E-L...Man: ... and then at horsham-dot-com.Woman: Yeah, as normal. We haven't got any other Rachels. And

then there's her password...Man: Oh, for the network?Woman: Uh-huh, it's F-T-Z-O-seven-nine.Man: Oh, mine's just numbers.Woman: We've got a new system now.Man: I see. And her pay?Woman: Yes, she'll be on grade C, to begin with, that's

seventeen to nineteen and a half thousand - she'll begetting seventeen thousand, two hundred and fifty.

Man: Fine. Well, I'd like to send her a letter to welcomeher.

Woman: Good idea. She lives at a hundred and sixty-three-B,West Street. That's in Kenford.

Man: OK, thanks a lot.Woman: No problem.

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[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Two. You now have ten seconds to check

your answers.[pause]

Part Three. Questions 16 to 22.Look at the notes about a designer.Some information is missing.You will hear part of a speech by a designer who is accepting an award.For each question 16-22, fill in the missing information in the numbered space usingone or two words.After you bare listened once, replay the recording.You bare ten seconds to read through the notes.[pause]Now listen, and fill in the missing information.[pause]Man: Ladies and gentlemen, I’m delighted to receive this

award from the UK design industry and am grateful toeveryone involved.My career has come a long way since I started my first

job as a junior employee in a finance company. I workedin that field for fifteen years, changing companiesseveral times. However, in nineteen eighty-nine arecruitment consultancy contacted me with an invitationto join a retail chain.., as a senior manager, and Iaccepted.It was the right choice - within two years I'd moved

into fashion design. My early creations were mostlyunsuccessful and when the company attended the LondonDesign Exhibition, none of my work was included.However, the following year my designs were shown atanother trade fair in Germany; they received a lot ofattention and sales increased. There were manyopportunities open to me, especially in the US, so Idecided to set up my own business.I always try to have original ideas, to be ahead of

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the field. Last year, of course, I received the ConradPrize for the graduate training scheme we introduced,but until this award I had never previously won anythingfor my fashion designs.I'd like to thank someone who's been very important to

me since I started the company... that's my assistant,who plays a part not just in the design department, butalso in planning, marketing and recruitment.I certainly hope this award will help us to grow.

We're planning expansion into areas other than clothingdesign, including textiles and kitchen equipment. We'vealso just started working on a contract we have with aSwedish manufacturer for a new furniture range, andwe've recently acquired a partner company - our Eye forDesign name won't change - but we're working closelywith the Powerhouse Group on a range of lightingequipment, something which hopefully will bring us...


Part Four. Questions 23 to 30.You will hear Janet Willis, a management consultant, advising David Smith, a managingdirector, about using a marketing services agency.For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.After you have listened once, replay the recording. You have forty-five seconds to read through the questions.[pause]Now listen, and mark A, B or C.Woman: In our last meeting, David, we talked about the need for

bringing in agency staff to take over the marketingstrategy.

Man: Yes. I've talked it over with my senior management team.It's not something we'd considered before and we're notsure this is the right moment for a commitment likethat.

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Woman: I would say this is the perfect moment. The business isdoing really well and you are ahead of the competitionbut this means there are new challenges ahead. Yourmanagers are already so busy due to the recent expansionthat I think your day-to-day business could suffer ifyou don't get outside help.

Man: I see. How would an agency be able to help us developour business?

Woman: Well, when I discussed with the marketing team theirplans for a new marketing strategy, I felt their ideaslacked imagination and creativity. I'm not sure thatthey have the resources or the experience to take thebusiness forward. And besides, I don't think recruitingnew people to the team is the answer at this stage asthis would be expensive and time-consuming. Consultants,though, are experts at providing solutions quickly,which is what you need most of all.

Man: And what type of agency do you have in mind for this?Woman: You can go for the safe option and choose a well-known

agency such as Walker Taylor, but they would be veryexpensive. An agency like Duffy and Partners on theother hand is smaller but has the relevant experienceand employs some of the best consultants.

Man: I have heard that Red Ribbon is very good.Woman: That's true, but they're not really specialists in your

field.Man: Anyway, before we decide which agency to use, we need to

decide what we'd want them to do.Woman: There are two ways to use an agency: to do a specific

job, like an audit or product launch, or to involve themin the long-term development of your business, which iswhat I would do in your situation.

Man: It sounds like an expensive long-term commitment to me.Woman: It needn't be. There are ways to limit the costs. Before

you draw up the contract you must decide what your aimsare and only agree to pay according to how well theagency achieves these aims. Most agencies will agree toterms like this these days.

Man: I like the sound of that. I'd feel I was really getting

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value for money.Woman: Remember though, David, it's up to you as well to make

it work. Successful relationships depend on sharinginformation about the business freely and being totallyopen with the agency. Then let them get on with theirjob without trying to take control and don't waste timeon unnecessary meetings.

Man: Mm.Woman: Things can go wrong, of course, even when your whole

team's involved in the process. Agencies frequentlycomplain that a key reason for failure is that middlemanagers are sometimes too afraid to say yes to newideas because saying no is less risky.

Man: I can see that. So, you're saying that we have to begood clients if we want to achieve good results?

Woman: Exactly. In my experience, great clients get greatagencies. They understand that, if the business issuccessful, then the agency is successful.

Man: Well. It's something I need to think about. I agree weshould certainly meet some of these agencies and seewhat they have to offer. But I know the marketing teamwon't like it.

[pause]Now listen to the recording again.[pause]That is the end of Part Four. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to yourAnswer Sheet.[pause]Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students whenthere is one minute remaining.That is the end of the test.

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Part One Questions 1 to 8For questions 1-8, you will bear eight short recordings. For each question, mark oneletter (A, B or C) for the correct answer. Here is an example: Who is Emily going to writetoe[pause]Man: Emily, that supplier we use has become very unreliable,



Woman: Yes, of course.[pause]The answer is A.Now we are ready to start.After you have listened once, replay each recording.[pause]One: When will the meeting take place?[pause]Man: I'm afraid we have to change the date of the next

marketing meeting. Unfortunately, the US manager can'tmake June the fifteenth now.

Woman: So when are you suggesting?Man: Well, could you do either June the twelfth or the

twenty-third instead?Woman: I suppose so, though neither is terribly convenient.Man: Let's go with the earlier date then - don't want to

leave it too long.[pause]Two: Which part of the woman's computer is causing a problem?[pause]Woman: Hi, it's Jane. I'm having a bit of trouble with my

computer again.Man: Right. Is it the same problem?Woman: No, the screen's fine now, but nothing happens when I

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press the keys on my keyboard.Man: What about the mouse?Woman: It reacts OK to the mouse.Man: Fine, I'll come and have a look.[pause]Three: Which chart shows last year's sales figures?[pause]Woman: The first quarter was disappointing, but thanks to an

excellent advertising campaign, sales recovered in thesecond quarter and reached over seventy million by theend of the year. The drop in the third quarter was dueto seasonal factors.

[pause]Four: What is the lowest price the man can buy the machine for?[pause]Woman: ... and this machine is fifteen thousand dollars.Man: What does that include?Woman: Free servicing for a year. Free training. Plus you can

exchange it for a newer model after two years, for justten thousand dollars.

Man: Would you give us a discount?Woman: I could say fourteen five hundred.Man: I was hoping to pay less. Thirteen thousand?Woman: Sorry. That's our best price.[pause]Five: What will help the company to increase production? [pause]Man: I expect you're all celebrating, aren't you? I hear

you've had a huge new order?Woman: Well, yes ... but resources are a problem. We've got to

increase production, and staff are already doingovertime. So, we're cutting down on the packaging topush things through faster.

Man: Couldn't you take on temporary staff?Woman: We considered that, but decided against it in the end.[pause]

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