یادگیری زبان انگلیسی با پادکست - سطح پیشرفته

[A.m.ir]

یادگیری زبان انگلیسی با پادکست های EnglishPod

سطح پیشرفته - Advanced


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[A.m.ir]

Investing in Emerging Markets

Global View - Investing in Emerging Markets
Advanced

A: Dad, I’d like to borrow some money.
B: Sure, Johnny, how much do you need? five bucks?
A: Come on, Dad, I need thirty thousand. I wanna get into the market. You know, I’m tired of hearing all this news about the economic downturn, the inevitable recession, people stuffing their money in their mattresses. I look at this as an opportunity. This is a chance for me to get a jump start on building my nest egg.
B: I don’t know about that; with all the uncertainty in the markets right now, it would be a very unwise decision to invest. I don’t know if you’re aware son, but there has been a lot of turmoil in the markets recently. There have already been half a million layoffs in the last few months, and we have no idea how the proposed stimulus package will impact the economy. There’s just too much instability. I wouldn’t feel comfortable investing in this climate.
A: But look at it this way, every challenge is an opportunity. And anyway, I’m not talking about investing in the domestic market. There are emerging markets that promise great returns. Look at China, for example; they have 1.4 billion people, half a billion of whom have recently entered the middle class. Here alone, the aggregate demand for consumer goods represents an amazing wealth generating opportunity.
B: Come on, son, you’re looking at this too naively, the Chinese market has exhibited a great deal of instability, and their currency has been devalued by almost a whole percentage point.
A: Fine, then! If that’s the way you feel, so be it. But you’re losing out on a great opportunity here. I’m going to go hit up Mum for the cash.

Key Vocabulary

inevitable: Adjective - unavoidable
nest egg: Noun (singular) - money that is saved to pay for something in the future, usually a house, or retirement
turmoil: Noun (non count) - a state of confusion, disorder, disturbance
stimulus package: Phrase - amount of money the government uses to improve the economy
emerging market: Noun (plural) - nations undergoing quick industrialization
devalue: Verb - reduced in value
hit up: Verb - ask for money

Supplementary Vocabulary

depreciation: Noun (non count) - an decrease in the value of something
appreciation: Noun (non count) - an increase in the value of something
inflation: Noun (non count) - an continual increase in price
developing economy: Noun (plural) - growing economy
rapidly developing country: Noun (plural) - countries undergoing quick industrialization
industrialized nation: Noun (plural) - nations that have developed factories and businesses

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[Angel]

The Office - Just in Time Strategy
Advanced

A: I called this meeting today in order to discuss our manufacturing plan. As I’m sure you’re all aware, with the credit crunch, and the global financial crisis, we’re obligated to look for more cost efficient ways of producing our goods. We don’t want to have to be looking at redundancies. So, we’ve outlined a brief plan to implement the just-in-time philosophy.
B: We have two basic points that we want to focus on. First of all, we want to reduce our lead time.
C: Why would want to do that? I think this is not an area that really needs to be worked on.
B: Well, we want to reduce production and delivery lead timesfor better overall efficiency.
A: Right, production lead times can be reduced by moving work stations closer together, reducing
queue length, like for example, reducing the number of jobs waiting to be processed at a given machine, and improving the coordination and cooperation between successive processes. Delivery lead times can be reduced through close cooperation with suppliers, possibly by inducing suppliers to locate closer to the factory or working with a faster shipping company.
C: I see... That makes sense.
B: The second point is that we want to require supplier quality assurance and implement a zero defects quality program. We currently have far too many errors that lead to defective items and therefore, they must be eliminated. A quality control at the source program must be implemented to give workers the personal responsibility for the quality of the work they do, and the authority to stop production when something goes wrong.
C: I’m with you on this one. It's essential that we reduce these errors; we’ve got to force our suppliers to reduce their mistakes.
A: Exactly. Well, let’s look at how we’re going to put this plan into action. First...(fade out)

Key Vocabulary

obligate: verb - make a person do something because it is the right thing to do
cost efficient: phrase - cheap, not expensive
redundancy: common noun, plural - layoff, the ending of workers' employment
implement: verb - put a plan into action
lead time: common noun, singular - the time between the beginning of a process and its end
efficiency: common noun, singular - the ability to produce something more quickly
work station: common noun, plural - an area where a person works and does his job
given: Adjective - used to refer to a specific time, place or thing
defective: Adjective - having a mistake or error that makes something not perfect
defect: common noun, plural - a mistake or error that makes something not perfect

Supplementary Vocabulary

inventory: common noun, nonvariable - supply of goods stored in a place
carrying cost: phrase - the cost of holding in ventory
warehouse: common noun, singular - large building where products or goods are stored
stock: common noun, nonvariable - the supply of goods for sale, or available
bottleneck: common noun, singular - something that slows a process down


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[Angel]

Advanced - Job Interview I
Advanced

A: Okay, so let’s go over everything one more time. I really want you to get this job!
B: I know! It’s an amazing growth opportunity! They’re true industry leaders, and it would be so interesting to be part of an organization that is the undisputed leader in business process platform development.
A: So, let’s see, you did your research on the company, right?
B: Well, I visited their website and read up on what they do. They’re an IT service company that offers comprehensive business solutions for large corporations. They provide services such as CRM development, and they also offer customdesigned applications.
A: So what would your role in the company?
B: Well, the position is for an account manager. That basically means that I would be the link between our and our development team.
A: Sounds good, and so, why do you want to work with them?
B: Well, as I said they’re the industry leaders, they have a really great growth strategy, amazing development opportunities for employees, and it seems like they have strong corporate governance. They’re all about helping companies grow and unleashing potential. I guess their core values and mission really resonated with me. Oh, and they offer six weeks’ vacation, stock options and bonuses... I’m totally going to cash in on that.
A: You idiot! Don’t say that! Do you want this job, or not?

Key Vocabulary

CRM: common noun, singular - processes, services, technology, and people used to attract and keep customers
custom: Adjective - specially made to fit the needs of a person or organization
core values: common noun, plural - most important beliefs
growth opportunity: phrase - chance to gain new skills
industry leader: phrase - being the best in that particular field or industry
undisputed: Adjective - definitely true, not doubted
read up: verb - read to gain the most recent information on a subject
unleash: verb - release; allow something to happen
resonate: verb - have a special meaning or importance for someone

Supplementary Vocabulary

integrated solutions: phrase - combine things to find a plan or a way
to deal with a problem (esp. in business): phrase - something that places a company above the competition
optimize: verb - make something as effective as possible
align: verb - join a group in supporting something
platform: common noun, singular - a program that tells a computer how to work

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