Английский для экономистов (учебник английского языка). Денис Шевчук
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or written communication; rigidity or flexibility in using established channels, use of meetings; who is invited to what meeting; established behaviour in the conduct of meeting);
• ways of handling the conflicts (desire to avoid conflict; preference for informal or formal ways; involvement of higher management);
• performance evaluation (confidential or public; by whom carried out; how results are used);
• socialization patterns (who socializes with whom during and after work; facilities such as separate dining rooms or reserved clubs);
• management and leadership style (paternalism; authoritative, consultative or participative style; flexibility and adaptability);
• identification with the organization (manager and stuff adherence to company objectives and policies; enjoying working with organization).
TEXT 5
Read the text and be ready to define: 1. what a business entity is and 2. three main types and forms of business organizations.
TYPES AND FORMS OF BUSINESS ORGANIZATION
A business organization is frequently referred to as a business entity. A business entity is any business organization that exists as an economic unit. Business entities can be grouped according to the type of business activity they perform.
1. Service companies perform services for a fee. This group includes companies such as accounting firms, law firms, repair shops, and many others.
2. Merchandising companies purchase goods that are ready for sale and sell them to customers. They include such companies as auto dealerships, clothing stores, and supermarkets.
3. Manufacturing companies buy materials, convert them into products, and then sell the products to the companies or to the final customer. Examples are steel miles, auto manufacturers, and so on.
The business entity concept applies to all forms of businesses – single proprietorship, a partnership, and a corporation.
A single (sole) proprietorship is business owned by an individual and often managed by that same individual. Single proprietors include physicians, lawyers, electricians, and other people who are ‘in business for themselves’. In a single proprietorship, the owner is responsible for all debts of the business. Operating as a proprietorship is the easiest way to get started in a business activity. Other than the possibility of needing a local license, there are not any prerequisites to beginning operations.
A partnership is a business owned by two or more persons associated as partners. Partnerships are created by an agreement. Included in the agreement are such terms as the initial investment of each partner, the duties of each partner, the means of dividing profits or losses between the partners each year, and the settlement to be made upon the death or withdrawal of a partner. Accountants, attorneys, and other professionals frequently operate their firms as partnerships.
A corporation is a business owned by a few persons or by thousands of persons. The owners of the corporation are called shareholders or stockholders. They buy shares of stock. If the corporation fails, the owners lose only the amount they paid for their stock. The personal assets of the owner are protected from the creditors of the corporation. The stockholders do not directly manage the corporation; they elect a board of directors to represent their interests. The board of directors select the president and vice president, who manage the corporation for the stockholders.
TEXT 6
WHY ARE COMPANIES REFERRED TO AS LTD., INC., GMBH, OR S.A.?
An individual, like Henry Ford, might want to begin a small enterprise and personally retain total responsibility and liability, but once it starts to grow, a partnership or a «company» – such as Ford Motor Company – would need to be formed. The key factor in owning any company is the guarantee called limited liability: the owners of a company never have to pay more than they have invested in the company. Their liabilities are limited. When a company goes bank–rupt, the owners can never be required to pay its unpaid bills.
The worst that can happen to investors in a limited liability com–pany is losing their initial investment if the company fails. By limiting the downside risk for shareholders, companies are able to attract equity investors and raise large amounts of funds called equity capital through sales of shares rather than by borrowing money at potentially high interest rates.
The names of companies around the world reflect this guarantee of limited liability. The abbreviations «GmbH» in Germany, «Inc.» in the United States, or «Ltd.» in most other English-speaking coun–tries indicate that the firm is a limited liability company and investors have nothing more to lose than the money invested in their shares. The «S.A.» in French – and Spanish-speaking countries also refers to limited liability by defining shareholders as «anonymous». Since the identity of shareholders can be kept secret, the creditors of a bankrupt company have no right to pursue them for the company's unpaid debts.
Many countries make a clear distinction between public and pri–vate companies, with separate designations, such as AG and GmbH in Germany, or Plc and Ltd. in Britain. Generally, «public» companies are those large enough to have their shares traded on stock exchanges, while smaller unquoted companies are said to be «private,» even though their shares can be held by the public at large. In some coun–tries, a large company is said to be privately owned if its shares are not available to the general public. In the United States, where little distinction is made between public and private companies, most com–panies simply bear the title «Incorporated».
1. What do the names of companies around the world reflect?
TEXT 7
JOB SPECIFICATION
An interesting feature of the labour markets is that many organizations do not specify the type of person they require instead they will give the details of a job in a job specification. The Department of Employment has given the following definitions of a job description and job specification:
Job description: a broad statement of the purpose, scope, duties and responsibilities of a particular job.
Job specification: a detailed statement of the physical and mental activities involved in the job. The specification is usually expressed in terms of behaviour: what the worker does, what knowledge he uses in doing it, the judgments he makes and the factors he takes into account when making them.
The great variety of job specifications which exists in business illustrates the range of specification in occupation. The five categories given below do not cover this wide range, but can become a guide to the role of manpower in organization.
1.Unskilled. Many jobs do not require any training or previous experience, for example manual labour or assembly work. These occupations are often highly repetitive and boring, as well as being poorly paid.
2.Mechanical or motor skills. There are some tasks in business which are performed by machines which require an operator. The more complicated the machine, then generally the more the operator must be.
3.Intelligence and knowledge. Occupations which require a high level of motor skill sometimes also demand a high level of intelligence and aptitude. But there are jobs which do not need mechanical skills but make demand on people’s knowledge.
4.Administrative or managerial skills. The ability to organize other people is a rare skill. It not only requires knowledge and understanding of the functions within an organization, but also the ability to motivate people. In addition managers must be able to organize nonhuman resources using techniques of forecasting, planning, coordinating and controlling. These are techniques which require judgment as well as knowledge.
5.Decision-making skills and initiative. Decision-making is an everyday occurrence for everyone. We decide what to eat, what to wear, where to go, and so on. Similarly, decisions are part of an organization’s everyday activities. The higher one goes up the hierarchy, the more necessary is the skill of decision. The risks which all organizations face mean that that organizations