Episode 155 B

EPISODE 155
LEVEL B1-B2

READING COMPREHENSION

 

Boosting Motivation

Irrespective of the size of your company, having a team of motivated, hard-working employees is essential to your success. When motivation sags, however, their job performance suffers — they become less productive, less creative, less of an asset to the company. The bottom line is that your employees’ motivation issues cost you an arm and a leg. Here’s how to prevent that from happening.

1. Build a Foundation
It’s important to build a solid foundation for your staff so they feel invested in the company. Tell them the story of the business and your vision for the future. Enquire about their expectations and career goals, as well as the way you can help them feel like part of the team. When any new employee starts, make sure they are warmly onboarded.

2. Create a Positive Environment
Promote an office atmosphere that makes all employees feel valuable and important. Don’t play favorites with your staff. Ensure that your office door stays open and let folks know they can always approach you with questions or concerns. After all, a happy office is a productive office.

3. Put People on the Right Path
Most employees want advancement opportunities within their own company. Work with each of them to develop a career growth plan that takes into account both their current skills and their future goals. If employees grow excited about what’s down the road, they will become more committed to their present work.

4. Educate the Masses
Help employees improve their professional skills by providing on-the-job training or inhouse career development. Let them attend industry workshops and seminars. Encourage them to go to adult education classes paid for by the company as part of the perks program. Employees will feel you are investing in them, and this will translate into improved job performance.

5. Don’t Forget the Fun
Every once in a while, you have put work on the back burner and do something nice for the people who work for you. Treat the office to a pizza lunch or take everyone to the movies. Reward employees with an unexpected day off or by calling it a day early on a random Friday afternoon. These little diversions can go a long way toward improving productivity.

Adapted from www.allbusiness.com

 

Exercise 1

Find the words or expressions in the text which mean the following:

1) important: __________
2) to decrease: __________
3) employees: __________
4) to ask about sth: __________
5) to be officially introduced to the team and shown around: __________
6) to make sure something will happen: __________
7) a worry / a problem: __________
8) dedicated to sth: __________
9) employed by the company: ___________
10)for instance, a company phone, car, apartment: __________
11)not in any particular order: __________
12)a training session that involves some practical work: _________

 

Exercise 2

Match the expressions from the two columns into logical collocations:

1) an asset                            sth into account
2) to prevent sth                on the back burner
3) to play                             into improved performance
4) advancement                 workshops
5) to take                             to a company
6) on-the-job                      favorites with staff
7) industry                          a day
8) sth will translate          opportunities
9) to put sth                       training
10)to call it                         from happening

 

Exercise 3

Provide English equivalents of these expressions:

1) niezależnie od czegoś
2) zaangażowany w coś
3) ludzie
4) plan rozwoju kariery
5) podekscytować się czymś
6) w przyszłości
7) postawić coś komuś
8) nagrodzić kogoś czymś
9) solidne podstawy
10)koniec końców
11)wartościowy
12)powstrzymywać coś

 

Grammar corner…

Collocations and fixed phrases are very important in English, as it’s a much more idiomatic language than Polish. There are several words in the English language
that form collocations quite easily and they are of great use in business communication. Today you will learn about collocations with hold, grow, and pay. Hold usually means to organize, carry out. You can hold a meeting, a negotiation, talks with sb, sb hostage (to keep somebody against their will and demand money for their release), a press conference, or a speech. Grow is generally used to replace become, so it shows some kind of a process. You can grow tired of sth, bored with
sth, impatient with sb/sth, dissatisfied with sth, fond of sth (you actually start liking it). Finally, pay, is oftentimes used in such random collocations as to pay attention to sth (it means to actually be attentive), sb a visit (to visit), sb a compliment (in other words to compliment sb on sth).

 

Exercise 4

Complete the sentences with hold, grow, or pay in the correct form.

1) I’m really ____________________ impatient with your incompetence.
2) In some companies if you ____________________ a woman a compliment, she may sue you for sexual harassment.
3) We’ll be ____________________ a press conference later today, so I won’t be answering any questions now.
4) The use of tablet computers by little children decreases their ability to ____________________ attention for a prolonged period of time.
5) I’ve ____________________ fond of this car, even though I didn’t like it at first.
6) If your branch continues to perform so badly, I’ll be forced to ____________________ you a visit and see what happens there.
7) Several terrorists have been ____________________ 20 civilians hostage since early morning.
8) I’ve ____________________ tired of your constant excuses – just get to work.
9) The management will ____________________ dissatisfied with the latest sales results.
10)Steve Jobs ____________________ a very inspiring speech during Stanford commencement ceremony.

 

GLOSSARY
essential – istotny
to sag – zmniejszać się
staff – pracownicy
to enquire about sth – dowiadywać się o coś
to be onboarded – zostać wdrożonym
to ensure sth – upewnić się, że …
a concern – problem, zmartwienie
committed to sth – zaangażowany w coś
in-house – zatrudniony na stałe
perks – pozapłacowe składniki wynagrodzenia
random – losowy
a workshop – warsztat
an asset to a company – osoba wnosząca wkład w dobro firmy
to prevent sth from happening – powstrzymać coś
to play favorites – mieć pupila
advancement opportunities – możliwości rozwoju
on-the-job training – szkolenie praktyczne w miejscu pracy
to take sth into account – wziąć coś pod uwagę
industry workshops – warsztaty branżowe
sth will translate into improved performance – coś przełoży się na poprawę wyników
to put sth on the back burner – odłożyć coś na potem
to call it a day – zakończyć na dziś
irrespective of sth – niezależnie od czegoś
invested in sth – zaangażowany w coś
folks – ludzie
down the road – w przyszłości
to grow excited – uchodźca
solid foundations – solidne podstawy
after all – koniec końców
to treat sb to sth – postawić komuś coś
valuable – wartościowy
to reward sb with sth – nagrodzić kogoś czymś
a commencement – rozpoczęcie
a branch – oddział
to be shown around – zostać oprowadzonym

 

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