Making introductions

Lesson 2

Making a Self-Introduction at a Business Meeting

1. DIALOGUE Ω disk 1-05

Listen to the dialogue and note the numbered expressions.

(a new staff member introduces herself to the people in her office at the morning meeting)

Mr. Jones: Everyone, let's get started.¹¹ First, on the agenda¹² today, we will have self-introductions. It gives me great pleasure to introduce a new employee, Ms. Kanako Hayashi. She recently transferred¹³ here from our Tokyo subsidiary.¹⁴ We'll begin with her, and then the rest of you can briefly introduce yourselves. Ms. Hayashi, please tell us a little bit¹⁵ about yourself, your family, and hobbies... .

Ms. Hayashi: Thank you. As Mr. Jones told you, I'm Kanako Hayashi and I come from Tokyo, Japan. I've been with¹⁶ the company for fifteen years and am very excited about this opportunity to live and work in the United States. My position here will be "International Customer Representative," and I look forward¹⁷ to working with and getting to know all of you.

I'm joined¹⁸ here by my husband, Satoshi, and two children, Mariko and Yasuo, who are aged 12 and 14. The kids¹⁹ are looking forward to studying at an American school and making American friends. Although they've studied English for several years, they're a bit nervous about keeping up with the rest of the class in English. I'm sure they'll do just fine.

As a family, we enjoy playing board games. We're avid²⁰ skiers and can't wait to go skiing this winter. We also enjoy taking drives, hiking in the mountains, and camping. Well, I think that about does it²¹... .

Mr. Jones: Thank you, Ms. Hayashi. Next please...

¹¹ let's get started = let's begin. In the United States, the person leading a meeting will usually get everyone's attention by saying this or something similar, [e.g. If everyone is here, then let's get the meeting started.]

¹² agenda = a list of items to be discussed at a meeting, [e.g. On today's agenda, we will be discussing the proposal to rename the new product line.]

¹³ transferred = to be moved to a new location to work within the same company. [e.g. When I was young, we moved frequently because my father was transferred several times by his company.]

¹⁴ subsidiary = a company that is controlled by another company, [e.g. After working at the main company for many years, she was transferred to a subsidiary of the same company.]

¹⁵ a little bit = a small amount. Mr. Jones wants everyone briefly to introduce themselves by offering a small amount of information about their work and personal lives, [e.g. Tell me a little bit about yourself.]

¹⁶ have been with = have worked for or have been associated with. This can also be used when referring to relationships, [e.g. I have been with my partner for ten years.]

¹⁷ to look forward to = to be happy about. [e.g. My daughter always looks forward to summer so she can swim in the lake.]

¹⁸ to be joined by = to be brought together [from Japan]. Since Ms. Hayashi is the one who is relocating, it is her husband who is joining her in the United States. This suggests that Mr. Hayashi only came because of his wife's new position.

¹⁹ kids = a colloquial expression for children. [e.g. The kids love to go to the beach to look for shells.]

²⁰ avid = eager or serious about something. [e.g. I am an avid reader of mystery novels.]

²¹ that about does it = that is all I have to say (or do), [e.g. One more room to clean, and that about does it for cleaning today.]

2. COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

Answer the following questions with short answers from the dialogue.

1. What type of company did Ms. Hayashi transfer from?

2. How many years has she worked for the company?

3. Is Ms. Hayashi accompanied only by her children?

4. What are Mariko and Yasuo looking forward to?

5. What are some of the Hayashi family's pastimes?

3. MATCHING

Match the best combination of sentences from Column A and B.

COLUMN A	COLUMN B
• Did you join the company party? • Did you get married recently? • Did you come to New York alone?	- No, I am joined by my wife and kids.
- What's on the agenda today?	• Please discuss the agenda tomorrow. • We need to discuss new business first. • Discuss it with the person next to you.
• Have you been to a hot spring? • Have you met my husband, Hank? • Do you like to eat sushi?	- Yes, a little bit.
- Are you an avid baseball fan?	• Yes, I use a hand fan sometimes. •Yes, I play baseball occasionally. •Yes, I attend every home game.

4. MINI-DIALOGUES Ω disk 1-06

Listen and fill in the blanks and then role-play the dialogues with a partner.

A: Next, we'll have ( ) by the entire staff. Let's start with you… B: O.K...uh, let's see, I'm Steve Black and I ( ) here from the ( ) office in Minneapolis. I ( ) ( ) ( ) the company for six years. I was mostly in charge of sales, but am ( ) ( ) ( ) working with all of you in the marketing department. Uhh, I guess ( ) ( ) ( ) ( )... . A: Thank you, Steve. We're certainly happy to have you with us. Next, we'll hear from... .

A: Let's see, next on the ( ) are self-introductions. Shall we begin with you, Junji? Go ahead, tell us ( ) ( ) ( ) about yourself... . B: All right. I'm Junji Shimura and I come from a small town in the ( ) ( ) of Japan's main island of Honshu. But, for the past ten years I lived in Osaka before being transferred to here. I'm very much looking forward to ( ) and ( ) in the United States. I'm ( ) ( ) my wife Kathy, and two sons, Joji and Hiro. My wife and I enjoy all types of sports and our ( ) love to go fishing and snorkeling. I think that about does it... . A: ( ) ( ), Junji, for your self-introduction.

A: O.K. ( ), let's get started with the ( ). But, before we begin let's introduce ourselves. Can we start with the ( ) in the back? How about you...Clare? B: All right. I am Clare Tingley and I ( ) in the human resources department. I've been in this ( ) of the company for two years now. ( ) transferring to my ( ) position, I worked for a subsidiary of this ( ) company in Nebraska. That's about it... . A: Great. Thank you, Clare. ( )...

5. PAIRWORK-PRACTICE

Rearrange the sentences to make a conversation, then practice the dialogue with a partner.

Conversation A

– I'm currently working in a subsidiary division of our company in the sales department. – Hello, everyone. – Allow me to introduce myself. – Also, I worked at the headquarters of the parent company for ten years before coming here. – My Name is Sonya Swan. – I'm sure I'm going to enjoy working here with all of you. Thank you.

Conversation B

– That about does it. – I'm currently in sales and hope to retire next year. – But please call me Jamie... all of my friends do. – OK. Hello, everybody. I'm Jamie Sands. – Who would like to begin? Mr. Sands? – On the agenda first are self-introductions. – Everyone, let's get started.

6. READING. AMERICAN BUSINESS CULTURE

Addressing People with Titles in Business Situations Ω disk 1-07

In the main dialogue, Mr. Jones addresses Kanako Hayashi as "Ms. Hayashi" when referring to her and when addressing her directly. This is the proper term that should be used to address women in business situations. For men, the term "Mr." is appropriate.

The reason why it is important to use "Ms.", rather than "Mrs." or "Miss" with women in business situations, is that it is rude to assume that a woman is married or single when first meeting her. Even if it is clear that a woman is married, it is still safer to go by "Ms." to avoid any misunderstandings. The title "Mr." has no added nuance to it, which means that people have no idea of the marital status of men when being introduced to them. The term "Ms." was coined to complement the similar term used for men, "Mr." This makes the situation of introducing and addressing both men and women more equal and fair.

Previous to this, women were either called "Miss" if they were unmarried, or "Mrs." if they were married. The women's movement felt that a woman's marital status should not be an issue in business situations and it certainly should not define who she is. In order to be accepted equally in the business world, women decided they needed a neutral sounding title. Today, the term "Ms." is widely accepted as being the proper title for women in the business world.

American businesspeople are often much more casual when addressing colleagues than their Japanese counterparts are. Many companies have a very friendly atmosphere and the staff will often be called by their first names – even superiors, like managers and bosses. Americans tend to be more comfortable using a person's given name rather than addressing the person with a title and his/her family name.

Depending upon the atmosphere and tradition of the company, you should follow the lead of the other people around you. It is always proper to begin by using a title, and if the person wishes to be addressed more casually, he/she will often say so (i.e. "You don't have to call me Mr. Johnson. Please call me Rob."). It is best never to begin addressing someone that is positioned higher than you casually until invited to do so. Chances are they will tell you how they want to be addressed.

Answer the following questions using information found in the essay.

1. Why was the term "Ms." coined?

2. What name (first, middle, or last) do Americans usually use with office staff?

3. When is it proper to address a superior casually?

UNIT 1