Man: hm, well I was feeling stuck. It’s not that I’m hugely ambitious, I guess I’d be looking at re-training myself it that was the case- but certainly my interpersonal skills weren’t being used to their full extent. All I ‘d eve done was deal with one or two suppliers occasionally, whereas now I am meeting clients and other contacts on a daily basis, which is what I was hoping for. The downside is that my lack of knowledge about computers is beginning to show. This place is so well equipped with all the latest software that I am a bit out of my depth. In my defence, I’d say it would not matter so much if they had more than one poor overworked guy that you could contact to ask for help when something goes wrong.

Q 23 to 30

Woman:Whew, what a meeting! Were you as surprised as I was , Jerry?

Man: you bet,when the Chairman called us to it, I thought it might be about the takeover that there have been rumours about, but I didn’t expect anything like the Chief Executive being forced out.

Woman: NO, It doesn’t seem fair to blame him for the American project not making much money, when it hasn’t had long to establish itself, and I can’t see why the Board have decided to end it now. after all, they didn’t seem worried earlier this years, when the markets panicked about it and our share price dropped..

Man: And fancy Keith Barnes becoming Chief Exectutive! Did you know he joined as a trainee, thirty years ago ?

Woman: yes, he certainly knows the company, but he’s had very little time in positions that ‘ll help him as  Chief Executive. I doubt if he’s got what it takes to run a big company like this. If you ask me, the Chairman wanted to make an internal appointment, and Keith was in the right palace at the right time. Well we’ll see how he turns out, but I reckon he’ll only keep the job for as long as the Chairman’s behind him.

Man: yeah, you are probably right, and what about these new plans Keith talked about? It seems pretty risky to expand into areas where we have got no experience or expertise .this company has been making furniture for years, and we ought to stick to what we’re good at, and maybe expand through acquisitions.

Woman: Well, it might be a good idea.

Man: I know our market share’s growing, but the strategy still relies too much on low prices to attract customers. What we really need to do more is to do more is to make people want our beds and more is to make people want our beds and furniture because they’ re special, not because they’re cheap.

Woman: You mean moving into niche markets?

Man:I’d describe it as staying in the mass market, but standing out from the rest.

Woman: Right. Consumers are becoming more demanding these days, after all.

Man: Exactly. What about you , Tania? How do you feel about your new responsibility?

Woman: it’s going to be quite a challenge, I reckon. I mean, sorting out the reorganization of the business into divisions sounds simple enough, but I suspect it’ll produce plenty of headaches. And with several brands to deal with, some of which cut across the divisions, it’s going to be pretty complicated. I suspect it’ll be tough to finish it in the time I ‘ve been given. And of course, congratulations on becoming Export Sales Manager, Jerry.