剑桥BEC高级真题第三辑TEST1

Test 1

READING 1 hour

PART ONE

Questions 1-8

●Look at the statements below and at the five extracts on the opposite page from an article

giving advice to people setting up a business.

●Which extract (A, B, C, D or E) does each statement (1-8) refer to?

●For each statement (1-8), mark one letter (A, B, C, D or E) on your Answer Sheet.

●You will need to use some of these letters more than once.

●There is an example at the begining, (0).

1

2 A company which is expanding today may not always continue to do so.

3 The distribution of equity among the founders can affect the smooth runhing of the business.

4 Your function in the organisation is different from that of the other managers.

5 Your method of running the business will have to be modified as your company develops.

6 Your business may evolve into a form that you are not satisfied with.

7 Delay offering employees a financial stake in the company.

8 You need to identify your personal strengths and weaknesses.

A

So you think you’re an entrepreneur, and you want to start up a company. First, be sure you’re really an entrepreneur, and not an inventor. Inventors come up with ideas, entrepreneurs make a business out of them: it’s important to know where your abilities lie, as inventors can fail miserably at running a business. Also, you need to be confident that you can adapt your management style to meet new demands if your company is a success. Leading the management team of a growing business is very different from leading a newly founded company.

B

E

As your business grows, you need to keep the right balance between management control and entrepre-neurial spirit. Too much control, and the business will ultimately cease to grow. Too little, and growth could be unsustainable. Y ou’ll need to employ managers, but remember that their job is to build the infrastructure to underpin a business that until now may have run on the basis of your salesmanship and excitement. The risk is to bring in managers who are too much like you, without the necessary experience of nursing a newly founded business through its evolution.

PART TWO

Questions 9-14

●Read this text taken from an article about marketing.

●Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps.

●For each gap (9-14), mark one letter (A—H) on your Answer Sheet.

●Do not use any letter more than once.

●There is an example at the beginning, (0).

Businesses are starting to recognise the key marketing questions. Are we providing the right products

Example:

Questions 15-20

●Read the following article about recruitment in the UK and the questions on the opposite

page.

●For each question (15-20), mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your Answer Sheet.

Graduate recruitment has a growing role. But companies need to know whether their recruitment staff who interview candidates for jobs really know what they’re

doing.

Carl Gilleard, chief executive of the Association of Graduate Recruiters (AGR), acknowledges that in a perfect world. the people who recruit graduates would have been in the role for some time building up workplace knowledge. He says the reality is that the high turnover of graduate recruitment managers in most blue chips means there is little continuity in how companies operate. ‘There’s the difficulty in maintaining important contact with university careers departments, for example,’he explains. ‘You need a depth of understanding to appreciate where the company is coming from and how it‘s progressing.’

We can identify two specialisms within the recruiter's role.Those that work on the recruitment and selection side need traditional human resources (HR) skills such as good interviewing technique, observation, common sense, objectivity patience and listening skills. But increasingly there are those who take a strategic view and look more widely at how their company is represented in the marketplace. lt's a clear advantage if you can identify with your target audience.

Many young members of middle management are seconded into HR for a year because their firms feel they can identify with job—seeking graduates.Yet in an industry that has been revolutionised by the internet, privatised career services and rocketing numbers in higher education, it is questionable how relevant these managers` experiences are. Some high—fliers see a secondment to HR as a sideways move; a firm’s HR func- tion might not carry the same kudos as, say the finance department, although obviously the recruitment and retention of staff is of crucial importance.

Georgia de Saram, specialising in graduate recruitment at a law Erm, is one of a new breed of young dynamic recruiters who see HR as their vocation ratherthan a transitory career move. ‘I was attracted to the profession because I enjoy working with people and it's an obvious follow-on from my anthropology degree.’ she says. ‘I n this capacity you get to know people and they know you even though they might not know other people in the firm.’ As a recruiter, she sees herself as the interface between graduates and the firm that’s looking to attract them.‘It's such a tug of war between law firms for the best trainees - often they’ll turn you down in favour of an offerthey’ve received from elsewhere.You need to be good at marketing your firm, to know what interests graduates and how you can reach potential employees, whether that`s through virtual law fairs or magazines.’

A recent AGR survey suggests that the sectors in which there is less turnover of graduate recruitment managers are more successful in recruiting the graduates they want. The legal sector’s sophisticated understanding of the market, for example, means they manage to recruit exactly the right number of trainees despite intense competition and thousands of applications. The people recruiting seem to build up a specialism and then pass on their knowledge and expertise to those new to the graduate recruitment sector

Jackie Alexander: an HR partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers, feels that HR professionals are finally reaching board level and receiving the sort of acknowledgement they deserve. ‘They are judged by the value they add to the business,' she says,'and, as a professional services firm, the right people are our biggest asset.’ As Georgia de Saram points out: ‘F rom our company’s point of view, if I can’t establish a rapport with a candidate and bring out their best, it might not be just their future but also ours that is at stake.’

15 According to Carl Gilleard, many recruiters lack

A detailed knowledge of their sector.

B appropriate academic qualifications.

C understanding of graduate s’ expectations.

D experience of the companies they work for.

16 What change in the recruitment process is mentioned in the third paragraph?

A Recruitment staff are re-training.

B Broader approaches are being adopted.

C Traditional abilities are being given less value.

D Different interview processes are being— used.

17 On what grounds are certain managers seconded to HR departments?

A It is believed that they will relate to potential recruits.

B It is thought that they will benefit most from new developments.

C It is assumed that they will be able to apply specialised knowledge.

D lt is expected that they will take advantage of new promotion opportunities.

18 Which of the following areas does Georgia de Saram mention as an aspect of her work?

A representing her company effectively to its recruits

B increasing recruitment numbers at her company

C encouraging a wide range of company recruits

D influencing her company's recruitment policy

19 What was revealed about law firms in a survey?

A They are competing more effectively than before against other sectors.

B They prefer to retain trainees for extended periods wherever possible.

C They have managed to employ particularly knowledgeable HR staff.

D They appeal to those HR managers who are keen for promotion.

20 What point is made about recruitment in the final paragraph?

A New levels of qualification are being developed for it.

B lt is now being perceived as key to increased profitability. ,

C Higher numbers of managers are being attracted to it.

D It is becoming central to a business’s survival.

PART FOUR

Questions 21-30

●Read the article below about job satisfaction.

●Choose the correct word to fill each gap from A, B, C or D on the opposite page.

●For each question (21-30), mark one letter (A, B, C or D) on your Answer Sheet.

●There is an example at the beginning, (0).

So, how important is an employee’s enjoyment of his or her individual (27) ........ of

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21 A highly 22 A devoted 23 A customary 24 A pieces

25 A connected 26 A result

27 A set

28 A insist B largely B intended B habitual B roles B relevant B effect B order B accentuate B demonstrate B ensure C extensively

C identified C usual

C factors C appropriate

C issue C rank C reiterate

C unmask ww C c on vince

bec D widely D

allocated D routine D

parts D related D

outcome D line D assent D

manifest D

assure

29 A uncover

30 A confirm

PART FIVE

Ouestions 31-40

●Read the text below from a brochure.

●For each question (31-40), write one word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet.

●There is an example at the beginning, (0).

Paragon: great business space

A new concept for the twenty-first century, Paragon is (0) ....... totally unique showpiece development of high-quality office and call centre buildings, hotel and leisure facilities. Many cities find (31) ........ increasingly difficult to allocate office space, but the city of Wakefield is already ahead (32) ....... the game with Paragon.

Paragon offers an extensive parkland setting with low-density buildings, and room to expand in the future. Yet, (33) ....... the vast majority of business parks, Paragon has not been exiled to the distant edges of the city. Instead, this large site is only I km from the centre of Wakefield. This offers massive advantages: employees can easily walk or cycle to work, saving stress and pollution, and significantly cutting (34) ....... on commuting time. There is (35) ....... more driving along the motorway to distant outposts of business empires for the Paragon worker But Paragon's location sacrifices nothing (36) ....... terms of communications. It is perfectly placed for road and rail networks.

A further attraction of Wakefield for Paragon is the ready availability of a skilled workforce.

(37) ....... are more than 233,000 people available for work within an hour's journey, and an enormous catchment population of 20 million within two hours' travel. The city has a long history (38) ....... an administrative centre, and its recent success in attracting top-name companies is evidence of its solid business credentials. Figures from the developers suggest that up (39) ....... 5,000 jobs could be available in the initial phase of its development, with more to follow, making it (40) ....... of the most significant areas of employment in the region.

PARTSIX

Questions 41-52

●Read the text below about IT training.

●In most of the lines (41-52) there is one extra word. It is either grammatically incorrect or

does not fit in with the sense of the text. Some lines, however, are correct.

●lf a line is correct, write CORRECT on your Answer Sheet.

●lf there is an extra word in the line, write the extra word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer

The exercise begins with two examples, (0) and (00).

WRITING 1 hour 10 minutes

PART ONE

Question 1

●The graph below shows the turnover for three kinds of retail outlet, all owned by the same

company, during a three-year period.

●Using the information from the graph, write a short report comparing the changes in

turnover in the company’s three types of outlet.

●Write 120-140 words.

PART TWO

Write an answer to one of the questions 2-4 in this part. Write your answer in

200-250 words.

Question 2

●Your company would like to break into a new overseas market with your new

range of sports goods. You have been asked by the Marketing Director to

investigate ways of doing this.

●Write a report for the Marketing Director, including the following information:

●how you carried out your research into the market

●the existing competition

●your target customers

●ways of promoting the products in the new market.

Question 3

●Recently you have become unhappy with a service that has been provided to

your company for a number of years. You have decided to write a letter of

complaint to the service provider.

●Write your letter to the company that provides the service, including the following

information:

●which service you are complaining about

●why you are dissatisfied with the service

●what action you want the service provider to take

●what you will do if there is no improvement in the service.

Question 4

●Your Managing Director is considering how to improve the company's internal

communications, and has asked you to write a short proposal giving your views on communication within your department.

●Write the proposal for the Managing Director:

●describing how communication currently takes place within your department

●pointing out the weaknesses of the present situation

●recommending one or two improvements that should be made.

LISTENING Approximately 40 minutes (including

10 minute s’ t ransfer time)

PART ONE

Questions 1-12

●You will hear the founder of a company called Manshee talking to business students about its

development.

●As you listen, for questions 1-12, complete the notes, using up to three words or a number.

●After you have listened once, replay the recording.

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PART TWO

Questions 13-22

● You will hear five different people talking about problems and responses to them in the companies where they work.

● For each extract there are two tasks. For Task One, decide which problem each speaker mentions from the list A-H . For Task Two, decide which response the company made to the problem from the list A-H .

● After you have listened once, replay the recording.

Task One - Problems ● For questions 13-17, match the extracts with the problems, listed A-H . ● For each extract, decide which problem for the company is mentioned. , ● Write one letter (A-H ) next to the number of the extract.

13 .................................

14 .................................

15 .................................

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A The director s’ experience was narrow.

B Certain products went out of fashion.

C There was a reliance on poor-quality supplies.

D There were conflicts between directors.

E Too many new products were launched at the same time

Task Two - Responses

●For questions 18-22, match the extracts with the responses, listed A-H.

●For each extract, decide which response the company made to the problem.

●Write one letter (A-H) next to the number of the extract.

18 .................................

19 .................................

20.................................

21 .................................

22 ................................. A Large severance payments were made.

B New shares were issued.

C A takeover bid was accepted.

D Low-cost products were introduced.

E A partnership abroad was formed.

F One division was sold off.

G Some products were rebranded.

H A cost reduction programme was introduced.

PART THREE

Questions 23-30

●You will hear a discussion between two senior managers, John and Deborah, about an

assistant manager, Colin, who has applied for a new post.

●For each question (23-30), mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.

●After you have listened once, replay the recording.

23 The new post is being created as a result of

A plans to change corporate culture. _

B criticisms of management practice.

C changes to overall company structure.

24 What reason has Colin given for applying?

A to have a more challenging role

B to make full use of his qualifications

C to raise his profile within the company

25 John was particularly impressed by the way Colin

A treated a dissatisfied client.

B responded to an unreliable supplier.

C dealt with an inefficient member of staff.

26 What current strength of Co|in’s does Deborah commend?

A his analytical skills

B his product knowledge

C his flexible approach

27 On a recent sales trip, Colin succeeded in

A improving the terms of a contract.

B identifying a new method of selling.

C making a number of new contacts.

28 In what area did Colin excel during recent training?

A teamworking

B report writing

C prioritising

29 What does Co|in's reference say?

A He expects too much of others.

B His confidence will grow in time.

C He sometimes lacks objectivity.

30 What support will the successful candidate receive?

A contact with an in—house advisory body

B performance appraisal meetings

C coaching from a consultant

SPEAKING 16 minutes

SAMPLE SPEAKING T ASKS

PART ONE

In this part, the interlocutor asks questions to each of the candidates in turn. You have to give information about yourself and express personal opinions.

PART TWO

In this part of the test, you are asked to give a short talk on a business topic.

You have to choose one of the topics from the three below and then talk for about one minute. You have one minute to prepare your ideas.

A Customer relations: the importance to a company of reliable customer opinions of products ·

B Staff development: the importance to a company of developing effective career plans for staff

C Business strategy: how to maintain the confidence of company shareholders

PART THREE

In this part of the test, you are given a discussion topic. You have 30 seconds to look at the task prompt, an example of which is below, and then about three minutes to discuss the topic with your partner. After that, the examiner will ask you more questions related to the topic.

For two candidates

For three candidates

Follow-on questions

and where they work? (Why?)