V. Speech practice exercises

1. Answer the questions.

1. How do you understand the word “business”? Comment on different

aspects of this term.

2. Which factors of production do you consider the most important ones for

business? Give your reasons.

3. Discuss the factors of production Russia possesses. Which of the four do

you think are its strongest and weakest sides?

4. Do you know any world-famous entrepreneurs who made a fortune? Say a

few words about one of them.

5. More and more people are choosing to be entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs

are driving a revolution that is transforming and renewing economies

worldwide. Do you agree with this statement? What qualities are necessary

to be an entrepreneur? Put the following entrepreneurial qualities into what

you consider to be their order of importance. Explain your choice.

To be an entrepreneur you need:

1. drive (you need to have energy and motivation)

2. guts (мужество: выдержка) (you need to have courage)

3. initiative (you need to come up with ideas and make decisions on your own)

4. faith (you need to believe in yourself)

5. the killer instinct (you need to be prepared to destroy your competitors if necessary)

6. intuition (you need to have a keen and quick insight (проницательность).

7. determination ( you need to have strong will)

8. ingenuity (мастерство; изобретательность) ( you need skill and cleverness in making or arranging things)

9. dynamism (you need to be forceful and energetic)

10. dedication (преданность) (you need to be very interested in your ideas and work hard for your purpose)

6. Name five items which can be classified as goods.

7. Give five examples of activities which can be classified as services.

8. What goods-producing businesses and service businesses of your city do

you know?

9. Explain why profits are so important for businesses.

10. Imagine you are thinking of starting up a business. Would it be a goods-

producing business or a service one? What would be a primary goal of

your business activity? Explain your choice.

2. Translate the following sentences into Russian:

1. Существуют различные определения слова «бизнес», но все они включают такие понятия, как производство, распределение и продажа товаров и услуг с целью получения прибыли.

2. Природные богатства, человеческие ресурсы, капитал и предпри­ни­ма­тельство являются четырьмя базовыми факторами, необходимыми для производства товаров и услуг.

3. Россия чрезвычайно богата природными и людскими ресурсами. В стра­не также много предприимчивых людей, желающих заняться биз­несом.

4. Знаменитый американский предприниматель Генри Форд организовал массовое производство дешёвых и удобных автомобилей.

5. Одним из примеров производства является превращение фруктов и ягод в соки и джемы.

6. Движение товара от производителя к потребителю известно как распре­деление или дистрибьюция.

7. Комплекс мероприятий по сбыту и стратегия распределения играют важную роль для успешного бизнеса.

8. Водитель автобуса, перевозящий пассажиров, занимается обслу­жи­ва­нием.

9. Компания Rank Xerox, выпускающая офисное оборудование, является товаропроизводящим предприятием.

10. Мой старший брат управляет авторемонтной мастерской; это предп­рия­­тие сферы обслуживания.

11. Прибыли служат «топливом» мировой экономики; без прибылей предп­ри­я­тия не могут закупать больше сырья, нанимать больше работников, привлекать больше денежных средств и создавать дополнительную продукцию.

12. Вы хотите приобрести знания и навыки, необходимые для вашей будущей карьеры? Вы хотите стать хорошо информированным потребителем и членом общества? Изучайте бизнес.

3. Read the following quotations of famous people, translate them, and

give your comments. How do you understand these quotations and how

can you interpret them?

1.”Always give the customer quality, value, selection, and service.” – Fred G.

Meyer (1886-1978), American merchant

2.”Consumers are statistics. Customers are people.” – Stanley Marcus (1905-

2002), American merchant

3.”People compete until their last breath.” – Michael Eisner (b. 1942), Chairman and

CEO, Walt Disney Co.

4.”A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat (пот),

determination, and hard work.” – Gen. Colin Powell (b. 1937), U.S. Secretary of

State

5.”You know it’s going to be hell when the best rapper out there is a white guy

and the best golfer is a black guy.” – Charles Barkley (b. 1963), American

basketball star

6.”When I walk into a grocery store and look at all the products you can

choose, I say,”My God!” No king ever had anything like I have in my

grocery store today.” - Bill Gates (b. 1955), founder, Microsoft Corp.

7.”Successful people have control over the time in their life. A shoemaker

who owns his own shop gets up one morning and says,”I’m not opening.”

That’s a successful guy.”- Rod Steiger (1925-2002), American actor

8. “Size certainly matters, and not always in a positive way.” – Michael Powell

(b. 1941), founder and owner, Powell’s Books

9. “My doctor gave me six months to live, but when I couldn’t pay the bill he

gave me six months more.”- Walter Mattau (1922-2000), American actor

10.”The best career advice given to the young is,”Find out what you like doing

best and get someone to pay you for doing it.” – Katharine Whitehorne

(b. 1928), British columnist

11. “U.S. entrepreneurs have even managed to sell snowplows

(снегоочистители) to the desert dwellers (жители пустынь) of Saudi Arabia.

The machines are used to remove sand from driveways.”- Dave Kurtz,

Professor of Management, University of Arkansas

4. Read the dialogue, reproduce it, and make up your own one.

We are in the Seattle business school for foreign students. Donald Richey, Professor of Management, is having a lesson with his students – David, Rolf, Nina, Rita, Omar, Eric, and Numico.

Professor - I’m glad you attend my classes and I hope this practical course

in business will help you in your future careers. The theme for discussion today is small business. Let’s review your understanding of the material I explained to you at the last lesson. Who can tell me what a small business is? How do you distinguish a small business from a larger one?

Eric - A small business is a firm that is independently owned and operated, not dominant in its field, and does not employ more than 500 people. Simply put, a small business is a business that does not employ many people and earns relatively little money.

Prof. Nevertheless, small businesses form the core of the U.S. economy. There are almost 25 million small businesses operating in the United States today and more than a thousand new businesses are born every hour of every working day. How do small businesses contribute to a nation’s economy?

Nina - Small businesses make great contributions to the economy and to society as a whole. One impressive contribution is the number of new jobs created each year by small businesses. For instance, three of every four new jobs created over the last ten years were at companies with fewer than 500 workers.

Prof. - You are quite right, Nina. Small business is the best employer. Rolf, you want to add something, don’t you?

Rolf - I’d like to say that small businesses are found in nearly every industry, but retailing and wholesaling, services, construction, manufacturing, and high technology are especially attractive to entrepreneurs. Besides, small firms operate with greater flexibility than larger corporations can achieve. This flexibility allows smaller businesses to provide superior customer service.

Prof - I see David is raising his hand so impatiently. Well, David?

David - A typical feature of small firms are low costs. Small businesses often require less money to start and operate than do large ones. Small firms may be able to provide goods and services at prices that large firms cannot match. Small businesses usually minimize their overhead costs – costs not directly related to providing specific goods and services – which allows them to earn profits on lower prices.

Numico - I’d like to add that small firms can focus their efforts on a few key customers or on some special market niche – that is, a specific group of customers. Many large corporations must compete in the mass market or for large market segments. Smaller firms can develop products for particular groups of customers or to satisfy a need that large companies cannot. As a result, small companies have a chance to develop a reputation for quality and service.

Prof - Well, you have named five important features of small businesses. These are job creation, flexibility, superior customer service, lower costs, and opportunities to fill small market niches. That’s right! But there is one more advantage which is perhaps one of the most significant strengths of small businesses. What is this?

Omar - Let me answer your question, Professor. This is innovation.

Prof. - That’s it! Small firms produce 55 percent of innovations, whereas 39 percent of high-tech jobs are in small businesses. Can you illustrate this statement with some facts?

Omar - Among the important 20^th-century innovations by U.S. small firms are the airplane, the audio tape recorder, double-knit fabric, fiber-optic examining equipment, the heart valve, the optical scanner, the pacemaker, the personal computer, soft contact lenses, and the zipper. Paul Moller, an entrepreneur and inventor, may be working on one of the most important 21^st century innovations: a flying car. The car is currently being tested at Stanford University. One area of innovation that is likely to occupy small businesses during the early years of the 21^st century is security – whether it’s the protection of information or the protection of people.

Prof. - In fact, small businesses are the heart of the U.S. economic and social system because they offer opportunities and express the freedom of people to make their own destinies. People who have been able to innovate in the fields of computers, biotechnology, genetic engineering, robotics, and other markets have become today’s high-tech giants. Many great businessmen started their companies in barns, garages, warehouses, and attics. Apple Computers, for instance, began in a garage. In a typical year, small firms develop twice as many product innovations per worker as larger firms.

Rita - All these facts we’re discussing now sound very impressive! Who knows, perhaps one day some of us will take a risk to create and operate a business. What do you think about it, Professor?

Prof. - I always believe in my students. And I’m sure of your future success. To be successful in business, you need knowledge, skills, experience, and good judgment. The only thing certain anymore is that the world is constantly changing. Think about it – business is everywhere and it is also constantly changing. Perhaps that’s why so many students like you choose to study busi.