Part III Listening and Thinking
A: Passage
Script:
Gaining a basic understanding of the US business culture from the entry-training is essential to your success in the company.
1) Decision making
Americans say exactly what they mean, words do not contain a hidden meaning. In American English “maybe” means “it might happen”, whereas in British English “maybe” often indicates a “no”.
When making decisions, American managers are categorized as having a high performance orientation. The American decision style reflects a high need for achievement.
2) Time perception
Punctuality is extremely important in the US. Being on time is essential for your success. Ten to fifteen minutes late requires a phone call to warn of the delay and apologize. Being late can be seen as a sign of disrespect.
Keep in mind that being on time in the US means being at the given spot at least 15 minutes before the actual meeting!
3) Appointments
With concern to planning, Americans plan ahead; but long-term strategies tend not to exceed three years. Keep appointments once they are made. Meeting may seem quite relaxing, but they are taken seriously. If there is an agenda, it will be followed.
4) Dress code
Most American companies expect their employees to maintain an official dress code. When going for a first business meeting or a job interview, start with professional. The main rules: Men should wear matching socks that do not show leg; Women should always wear stockings.
在入职培训中增加对美国商业文化的基本了解对你在公司取得成功至关重要。
1）决策
美国人直截了当地表达自己，词语没有言下之意。在美式英语中，“maybe”表示“它可能发生”，而在英式英语中，“maybe”通常表示“no”。
当美国经理人做决策时，他们被归类为具有高绩效导向。美国人的决策风格反映了对成就的高度需求。
2）时间知觉
在美国守时是非常重要的。做到准时对你的成功至关重要。如果你迟到10-15分钟就需要打电话告知你将迟到并且道歉。迟到可以被视为不尊重对方的表现。请牢记，在美国，准时意味着在会议实际开始前至少15分钟到达指定地点！
3）预约
关于计划制定，美国人会提前做规划；但长期战略往往不超过三年。一旦做了预约，就要守约。会议可能看来轻松，但需要严肃对待。如果制定了会议议程，会议就会遵循该议程。
4）着装要求
大多数美国公司都希望他们的员工能够遵循官方的着装规定。当参加第一次商务会面或者面试时，请着职业装。主要规则：男人应该穿不露腿的配套袜子；女人应该穿长袜。
I. Listen to the passage and write down the missing words.
1. essential 2. hidden 3. indicates 4. performance 5. achievement
6. perception 7. extremely 8. apologize 9. actual 10. exceed
II. Listen again and answer the following questions.
1. Gaining a basic understanding of the U.S. business culture including decision making, time perception, appointment and dress code from the entry-training is essential to your success in the company.
2. You will need to make a phone call to warn of the delay and apologize.
B: News Broadcast
Script:
In the past few months, with 62% of employed Americans working from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you’ve worked at home and tried to maintain calm in the face of uncertainty. Here are some ways that your job may change due to COVID-19 in the future:
Firstly, it turns out many people can actually work from home productively. Plus, the majority of employed Americans who have been working from home would prefer to continue a work-from-home policy. According to Gallup, approximately 60% of Americans workers prefer to work remotely as much as possible, even when public health restrictions are lifted.
Secondly, if more employees work from home, employers may increase monitoring of their employees. That means your productivity could be measured and tracked, even if you’re working outside a traditional office environment. For example, your employer could track your keystrokes on your computer to analyze your productivity.
Thirdly, video conference calls have become more popular than ever. If you work in any salesoriented job, in-person contact may be essential to your business. However, from a public health perspective, frequent business travels may be replaced by more video conference calls.
Fourthly, your happiness at work matters. As more people work from home, your work life and personal life will become more connected. No longer can you think of your “work life” and “personal life” as separate. Your happiness at home and at work both need to be present.
Business will go on. Life will continue. One thing is certain in this uncertain time: changes to the future of work are coming.
在过去的几个月里，由于新型冠状病毒的流行，你跟62%的美国雇员一样一边在家工作，一边试图在面对不确定时保持冷静。以下是由于新型冠状病毒，未来你的工作方式可能发生的一些变化：
首先，事实证明很多人在家里工作都很有成效。另外，大多数在家工作的美国雇员更愿意继续实行居家办公的政策。根据盖勒普的数据，大约60%的美国职员喜欢尽可能远程工作，即使是公共限令被取消亦是如此。
其次，如果更多的员工在家工作，雇主可能会加强对员工的监控。这意味着即使你在传统的办公环境之外工作，你的工作效率也将被测量和追踪。例如，你的雇主可以根据你的电脑按键来分析你的工作效率。
第三，视频会议比以往任何时候都更受欢迎。如果你从事的是销售型的工作，面对面的接触可能对你的工作更加重要。然而，从公共卫生的角度来看，频繁的商务旅行可能会被更多的视频会议所取代。
第四，你在工作中的快乐很重要。随着越来越多的人居家办公，你的工作生活和私人生活将变得更加紧密。你再也不能把你的“工作生活”和“私人生活”分开了，你在家里和工作上的快乐需要并存。
生意还会继续，生命也将继续。在这个充满不确定的时期，有一件事是肯定的：工作的未来正在发生变化。
Keys:
I. Listen and decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
1. F 2. F 3. T 4. T 5. F
II. Listen again and answer the following questions.
Reference：
1. The health habits will change. Whether willing or not, people will pay more and more attention to personal hygiene, especially the habit of hand washing and disinfection.
2. The eating habits will change. People will refuse to eat wild animals. There will be fewer large dinners.
3. People at all ages get used to online shopping.
4. Online learning will become a trend.
5. Working remotely may become the companies’ first choice.
6. Telemedicine technology will be more common.
7. Virtual reality technology is becoming more and more popular. People can travel around the world on the Internet through VR technology.
8. Driver-less technology will be popularized in a short time.
9. Artificial intelligence will completely change our way of life and work.
10. 5G technology will accelerate its popularization.
Enjoying Movie Clips
The Banker（银行家）
In the 1950s, black entrepreneurs Bernard Garrett (played by Mackay) and Joe Morris (played by Jackson) were subject to racial restrictions at that time, and their career development was affected.They had to come up with a trick to hire Matt Steiner (Holt) who is white to play the boss of their industrial empire, while Garrett pretended to be a porter and Morris pretended to be a driver.
Practice and Assessment
Unit Project
Try to make a presentation to your classmates according to the following situation to test your knowledge got in this unit.
Suppose you have been working in your company for three years. You would like to go to a professional training program, and you need to introduce your training plan to your manager to get his support. Please make a presentation to your leaders to introduce your training plan and explain why they should support you to go to the training program.
Checking points:
1. Complete content
2. Clear pronunciation
3. Correct expressions
4. Substantial content
5. Reasonable argument
6. Proper etiquette