PART ONE Complete the dialogue between a bank manager and a customer applying for a loan by writing one word in each gap. Bank Manager So, how can I help you? Customer rd like to 1 out a loan to purchase a business premises. BM I see. I'll just need to take some details. Is your business a limited company? C Yes. We've been 2 business for five years and we're hoping to expand. BM How 3 are you looking to borrow? C I've found a suitable property which is 4 the market for £350000. BM And what is the annual 5 of your business? C Our revenue last year was £294000. From that we 6 a £80000 profit. BM That sounds healthy. And what can you offer the bank as 7 against the loan? C I own a house myself which is 8 about £400000. BM And do you 9 any money on that? C I have about £35000 left to pay. BM Well, I don't see any problem. I will need you to fill in this form and also to send me your company 10 for the last three years.
1.
take
2.
in
3.
much
4.
on
5.
turnover
6.
made
7.
security
8.
worth
9.
owe
10.
accounts
PART TWO
Management buy-outs
Involving staff in management buy-out (MBO) negotiations can help smooth the path for the future Employees are becoming increasingly familiar with the fluctuations and instability that their working environments can present. It's not just mergers and acquisitions that can upset the situation. Internal MBOs can also be particularly unsettling for employees In some cases, the MBO takes place to save an ailing company. In others, it is the result of senior management and board disagreements, or is to prevent a hostile takeover bid. 1 This insecurity can be very damaging. One of the most important factors, often not considered during the process of an MBO, is the reaction of the workforce, yet it is those employees who more often than not can make or break the future success of any new management team. 2 By maintaining channels of communication across the floor, new management teams could find the rank and file a useful ally in the bid to take over. Showing those employees that a buy-out could be to their advantage, creating new opportunities for promotion or career development, will in the long-term be advantageous to the entire company. The challenge for new management teams should be to reinspire employees. 3 If the new team doesn't engage old employees in future plans or consider the contribution they can make, the idea that the MBO was meant to save everyone is lost. In this situation, long-term employees begin to see the new management team and shareholders as the only beneficiaries in the buy-out and feel in the end that the only people saved are those at the top of the corporate ladder. 4 This will mean that the rescue will fail before it has really started. It is depressingly common for new MBO teams not to learn from the past. 5 If the new team can find innovative ways to involve staff actively in various aspects of the buy-out process, the benefits are manifold, 6 A package with such components can gain their support and be invaluable in building success for the venture, and is one that enlightened MBO teams tend to adopt. A Including them in any buy-out discussions can improve the new company's future prospects. B In such circumstances it is easy for the new board to make the same mistakes as the old. C Possibilities for realising these include decision-making, setting goals, and offering the chance of a future stake in the new company. D Whatever its origins, those lower down the corporate ranks can often be left out of the equation, wondering what is to become of them. E Nobody benefits if the company fails to meet its objectives. F Yet the new start represents a golden opportunity. G This requirement is particularly relevant when a company has failed or when staff have lost faith in the previous management. H Internal MBOs can also be particularly unsettling for employees.
1.
D
2.
A
3.
G
4.
B
5.
F
6.
C
PART THREE First it revolutionised everything, then it changed nothing and now no one knows what to think. Predictions about how the communications revolution would transform management have followed a trajectory just as wild and erratic as high-technology stock prices. It is timely, then, to read a calm, temperate analysis arguing that we have underestimated the capacity of the internet to transform companies and businesses. Despite the high expectations of the time, the dotcom business model was never likely to bequeath an enduring legacy of lightning growth and quick cash. Frances Cairncross's contention is that now the frantic energy has been dissipated, the real revolutionary effect of that model on the structures, functions and activities of established businesses and markets can start to become clear, Discerning it can be a subtle affair: 'The most widespread revolution in the workplace will come from the rise in collaboration and the decline of hierarchy,' she writes. Both of these, of course, were trends-in-progress before the widespread adoption of internet technology. But they are the areas where the change can now be perceived as most profound, precisely because developments in communications technology have worked with the grain of pre-existing movements, accelerating what was already happening. In previous generations, communications flowed from the top of companies downwards. But as more firms began to strip out layers of hierarchy, the internet allowed the flatter corporate architecture and web-like structures of modern organisations to function efficiently. Multifunctional teams, the much-pampered child of 1990s management theory, would be so much trickier to run without the internet. In addition, the internet enables efficient outsourcing and management of external suppliers. Highly marketable workers now have a choice. They can work flexibly if they want to auction their skills to well-paying clients, and move on when they get restless. From a company perspective, the transformed feelings about work among desirable external personnel carry their own difficulties. Many companies are finding that squads of free agents can be difficult to manage and reward. Human resources directors in some sectors are having to behave like theatrical casting agents: they staff work, not jobs. As Ms Cairncross suggests, new information technology leads to organisational change. Every aspect of running a company, whether building a brand (down to five years from 50), managing an 'ecosystem' of suppliers, innovation, or leading and motivating senior executives, has undergone-and continues to undergo-a transformation. This is not always in predictable ways, though. Who would have guessed that the widespread adoption of email would mean that turning up in person would actually carry greater weight than before? Predicting the managerial consequences of the communications revolution inevitably risks being a hostage to fortune, especially as the revolution is still in its infancy. The speed of innovation is enough to make most of us feel bewildered. The telephone was invented in the 1870s but it was not until the 1980s that the telephone banking industry took off. Dotcom companies went from boom to bust in just seven years, fragmenting old markets and creating new ones as they went. In such an atmosphere, fortune reading needs to be tempered by prudent vigilance.
1. In the first paragraph, Overell notes that views regarding the impact of the internet on business have
A.adversely affected the stock market.
B.ignored certain important facts.
C.at last been proved wrong.
D.fluctuated over time.
A B C D
D
2. What point does Frances Cairncross make about dotcom business?
A.Its real long-term effects were not immediately apparent.
B.It was considered irrelevant by established companies.
C.Its arrival had not been anticipated.
D.It delayed other developments that proved more beneficial.
A B C D
A
3. Overell refers to multifunctional teams because they
A.blossomed despite an internet-led corporate culture.
B.triggered the breakdown of organisational hierarchies.
C.exemplify an internal system that operates better with the internet.
D.contradict a widely held theory about the internet.
A B C D
C
4. Overell compares human resources directors to casting agents to illustrate his point that
A.companies are struggling to keep their labour costs down.
B.the concept of employment has changed significantly.
C.too many external personnel apply for each available job.
D.the fees demanded for outsourced work are constantly changing.
A B C D
B
5. According to the fifth paragraph, what unexpected effect has the internet had?
A.It has raised the profile of poor communicators.
B.It has changed the function of business meetings.
C.It has increased the value placed on face-to-face interaction.
D.It has enabled companies to use a larger number of suppliers.
A B C D
C
6. How does Overell end his review?
A.by taking a positive view of the future
B.by recommending caution in predicting the future
C.by showing how luck influences future success
D.by drawing parallels between the past and the future
A B C D
B
PART FOUR In recent years many countries of the world 1 with the problem of how to make their workers more productive. Some experts claim the answer is to make jobs more 2 . But do more varied jobs lead to greater productivity? There is evidence to suggest that while variety certainly makes the workers' life more enjoyable, it does not actually make him work harder. As far as increasing productivity is 3 , the variety is no an important factor. Other experts feel that giving the worker freedom to do his job in his own way is important and there is no doubt that this is true. The problem is that this kind of freedom cannot easily be given in the modern factory with its complicated 4 which must be used in a fixed way, Thus while freedom of choice may be important, there is usually very little that 5 to create it. Another important 6 is how much each worker contributes to the product be is making. In most factories the worker sees only one small part of the product. Some car factories are now experimenting with having many small production lines rather than one large one, so that each worker contributes more to the production of the cars on his line It would seam that not only is the 7 of workers' contribution an important factor, 8 , but it is also one we can do something about. To what extent does more money lead to greater productivity? The workers themselves certainly think this is important. But perhaps they want more money only because the work they do is so boring. Money just lets them enjoy their spare time more. A similar argument may explain 9 for shorter working hours. Perhaps if we succeed in making their jobs more interesting, they will neither want more money, nor will shorter 10 hours be so important to them.
1.
A.have been faced
B.have been facing
C.were faced
D.had faced
A B C D
A
2.
A.variable
B.varified
C.varied
D.variety
A B C D
C
3.
A.concerning
B.concern
C.concerns
D.concerned
A B C D
D
4.
A.machinery
B.machine
C.mechanical
D.machines
A B C D
A
5.
A.must be done
B.will be done
C.may be done
D.can be done
A B C D
D
6.
A.consideration
B.considerable
C.considerateness
D.considering
A B C D
A
7.
A.level
B.step
C.part
D.degree
A B C D
D
8.
A.however
B.therefore
C.furthermore
D.contrarily
A B C D
B
9.
A.demands
B.commands
C.recommends
D.remands
A B C D
A
10.
A.worked
B.work
C.working
D.works
A B C D
C
PART FIVE Younger people are more likely to talk about their money issues than their elder counterparts,it has been revealed.Saga Personal Finance has found that 14 percent of over-50s are happy to talk about their finances ln 1 ,compared to 21 percent of under.50s.People 2 .claimed they are unwilling to discuss money openly said they believe those matters should stay private(50 percent)and a tenth explained it was 3 they were embarrassed about their financial situation.Around half of the under-50s said they were happy to 4 .money with their friends,whereas this fell to 30 percent among the older group.It was also revealed that 71 percent of Brits in a relationship have a separate current 5 ,explaining that they want to keep their money apart as the main 6 .Nearly a fifth claimed it was because they did not want to take responsibility 7 ,someone else's spending and 12 percent explained this was a good way to avoid arguments regarding finances.However,15 percent of couples said they argue about money more than any 8 .issue,with one in four having a row about it several 9 a month.It was also interesting to find out that arguments regarding money appear to occur more between couples who have been together a while, 10 may be because they feel more comfortable bringing up the‘sticky’issue.
[解析] 此空格缺失的是修饰people这一先行词的关系代词,以便引导其后的谓语部分“claimed they are unwilling to discuss money openly”构成定语从句,因此答案为who。
3.
BECAUSE
[解析] 本空格前面的“a tenth explained”(有10%的人则解释)表示这里要解释他们的理由,而it指代的是前面提到的“they are unwilling to discuss money openly”,也就是说此处解释的是另有10%的人不愿意公开讨论金钱问题的理由。此外空格后面的“they were embarrased a-bout their financial situation”(他们对自己的经济状况感到很尴尬)正是他们持上述态度的原因,因此可以判断空格处需要的是表原因的连接词。因而此处填入because。
[解析] 其中“It was also revealed that 71 percent of Brits in a relationship have a separate current account”是主句,其句意为“调查还发现,71%的英国情侣都各自拥有活期账户”,而后面explaining thatt引出的是他们对上述做法的解释,即他们解释说这么做的主要原因是他们想各自管理自己的金钱,因此不难确定本空格需要填人的是reason。
7.
FOR
[解析] take resoonsibility for是一个固定搭配,表示“为……负责”,所以答案非常明确应该是for。
8.
OTHER
[解析] 本题答案很明确,应该填入other,more than any other issue表示“多于其他任何事情”。
9.
TIMES
[解析] 首先,本题的答案一目了然,此处填入times,构成several times a moBth这一表达法。另外,句意为“然而,15%的英国夫妇提到他们发生争吵大多都是因为金钱问题,其中四分之一的人经常每月为此争吵好几次”。
From If you are currently employed and want a raise, start from by being prepared. 41.Gather up your salary survey information, recent performance appraisals that document the 42.job you're doing, and any other relevant information. Be aware of company policy 43.regarding of compensation. Some employers are limited by budget constraints and 44.can only give the raises at certain times of the year, regardless of the circumstances 45.Have a clear idea of what you want. Determine on the salary range you're looking for and 46.justification for the increase and have both ready to review with your supervisor. Be flexible. 47.Would you consider for an extra couple of weeks vacation instead of a raise? I know someone 48.who's regularly taken time-off instead of money and now has six vacation weeks a year. 49.Then, ask your supervisor for a meeting to discuss about salary. 50.Present him your request, supported by documentation, calmly and rationally. 51.Don't ask for an immediate answer. Your boss is mostly be likely going to 52.have to discuss it with Human Resources and/or other company managers.