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[阅读小分队] 【Native Speaker每日综合训练—35系列】【35-01】经管

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发表于 2014-4-10 23:05:20 | 显示全部楼层 |阅读模式
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我们始终坚信,每一次阅读,都应是一次美妙的旅程
而工作组的使命就是带领大家领略阅读中的极致美景


全新的35系列 @@

Part I: Speaker


Playing fair in business

Marcel:  Hey, why do you  have the file for the Donovan  account on your  desk?  I thought  that was Evan’s account.
Amanda:  It is, but I’m about  to snatch it from him.   He won’t know what hit  him.
Marcel:  You’re stealing his  account?  If you do that, you’d  better watch your  back.
Amanda:  You’ve got it all  wrong.  This is  payback.  Three  months ago, when I was  on the verge of getting the Moralez account,  Evan swooped in and  snagged  it.  He doesn’t play  fair and now neither do I.
Marcel:  This sounds like the  beginning of a feud.
Amanda:  Evan started it.  If  he wants to play  hardball then what’s  good for the goose  is good for the gander.
Marcel:  You’re not worried  that he’ll up the ante  and try to do something  even more  underhanded?   
Amanda:  Evan doesn’t scare  me.   
Marcel:  This could easily  escalate.
Amanda:  Like I said, I’m not  afraid of Evan.  This is  business.  If you can’t take  the heat, get  out of the kitchen.   



Source: ESLPOD
http://www.eslpod.com/website/show_podcast.php?issue_id=14974360

[Rephrase 1, 15:54]



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 楼主| 发表于 2014-4-10 23:05:21 | 显示全部楼层
Part II: Speed


Employment engagement
BY Andy Parsley | December 06, 2005

[Time2]
Why the change of heart? Because the body of evidence that employee engagement is a key driver of organizational performance grows almost daily. But with recent research by Towers Perrin highlighting the fact that employee disengagement is a global epidemic, organizations still clearly have much work to do to ensure that their workforce can be properly inspired and motivated.

For many, the employee engagement story begins in 1994 when James Heskett and his colleagues at the Harvard Business School published their seminal paper putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work.

The Service-Profit Chain model they had created could hardly be more intuitive: Employee Satisfaction drives Employee Retention drives Employee Productivity drives Service Value drives Customer Satisfaction drives Customer Loyalty drives Profitability and Growth.

In short: Engaged Employees create Loyal Customers who in turn create Bigger Profits.
[135 words]

[Time3]
For a few, including Richard Branson at Virgin, this simple premise was the basis upon which they had already begun to build their businesses. As Branson says:

"We embarked on consciously building Virgin into a brand which stood for quality, value, fun and a sense of challenge. We also developed these ideas in the belief that our first priority should be the people who work for the companies, then the customers, then the shareholders. Because if the staff are motivated then the customers will be happy, and the shareholders will then benefit through the company's success."

Others, however, would need a more rigorous analysis if they were going to commit their organisations to this somewhat radical vision of "the shareholders come last". Yet the Service-Profit Chain model's greatest problem was that it was only supported by data collected by different companies at different points on the chain.

For example, in the banking sector it was known that a 5 per cent increase in Customer Loyalty could produce Profitability increases from 25 per cent to 85 per cent. Meanwhile, an insurance company had shown that when an experienced employee left the business Customer Satisfaction levels dropped from 75 per cent to 55 per cent.

In fact only quick-service restaurant chain Taco Bell had begun to do anything like an end-to-end analysis of the chain, observing that the 20 per cent of stores with the highest Employee Retention rates enjoyed double the sales and 55 per cent higher profits than the 20 per cent of stores with the lowest Employee Retention rates.

As a result, although the Service-Profit Chain model seemed logical and sensible, the potential return on investment was unknown. This made it difficult for business leaders to assess how much effort they should be making to embed it within their organizations.
[301 words]

Source: Management issues
http://www.management-issues.com/opinion/2830/employee-engagement-the-what-why-and-how/


The Art World Tells Us Much About the Value of Wealth
BY RYAN SHEA | April 10, 2014

[Time 4]
What if I told you that $63 billion was in the hands of just 50 to 100 people?

Shock! Horror! Income inequality!

No, it's just the state of play of the art world. And it is a good sign for global wealth.

For all the banter over income inequality, one of the most unequal distributions lives in art market, where an army of MFA grads who aren't taking babysitting jobs compete for the attention of roughly 600,000 of the world's mega-rich to sell their work.

It turns out that, in the art world, there are very few people buying a lot of work from a precious few artists. According to a report from the European Fine Art Foundation , cited by the Los Angeles Times, a whopping 82 percent of the $63 billion spent on art last year was from just 8 percent of the art sold. Stateside, that disparity was even greater, with 7.5 percent of auctions accounting for 91.2 percent of total sales.

Why? Well, it is simple math. There are only so many people out there willing to pay top coin for art, and only a handful of artists deserving of that scratch.
[196 words]

[Time 5]
What is interesting is that there isn't a hue and cry about how “unfair” this is. Art, after all, is an egalitarian pursuit. There is no barrier to entry for an artist. Sure, some spend a load of money on tuition to go to art school, but many of the best artists are self-taught. Anyone who applies his creativity to the craft can be an artist, whether painting Dogs Playing Poker or welding together steel beams in a way no one has thought of before.

But not every artist is successful. Some just aren't good enough, and should probably go find another job (perhaps teaching art somewhere). Mostly, though, they are in the wrong place at the wrong time. Art, you see, goes in phases. What is popular today on the auction market will likely not be at another place in time. And vice versa. Smart buyers purchase low to try to catch a trend in its infancy. As with all things, it never pays to buy artwork at the top.

That means very few artists – say, 50 to 100 now – command big money for their work. Though one would think $63 billion is a lot to go around, it ends up in the pocket of the very few. Let's call them the 1 percent.

But is that fair? Shouldn't everyone get the same amount if they put in the same amount of work?

Hardly. In art, no one would expect that. So why is it so easy to expect equal outcomes in the rest of our daily work? Why should there be demands that one person who built a business and made millions throw in more to support the work of someone who built something similar, but failed? At the heart of the debate over income inequality is a feeling that everyone should get the same, regardless of experience or effort.
[312 words]

[Time 6]
Entrepreneurs know differently. In fact, the art world is analogous to their own business environments. Some companies succeed. Most don't. One social-media company can get billions of dollars in funding from the private and public markets, while hundreds of others don't ever get beyond renting a shared space from Regus. Success comes from making a product people want to buy. It takes creativity, skill, determination and a bit of luck to sell a widget or a sculpture. Some will win. Most will lose.

That's the way it should be in all worlds, but the move to level the playing field for all, or guarantee some measure of success for everyone – almost always at the expense of those who built wealth – continues.

And, yet, the flip side of the art market can be instructive as well. Art is supported by the world's wealthiest people. We often hear how they hoard their money, or deny entry into this elite club by keeping down the little guy. Except the trends in the art market show how silly that thinking is. Rich people are making creative people rich, as well. They are, in the current parlance, redistributing their wealth, based on the subtleties of their palates rather than the demands of the state. That's how commerce works. That is capitalism.

And many of these same wealthy buyers won't hoard their art, but rather share it. Stroll through any museum and you will see hundreds of works on loan from private collections. Responsibly, these collectors see art as benefiting the public at large.

So celebrate this wealth next time you see a painting you enjoy. Remember, in addition to oil and canvas, it took capitalism to put that picture on the wall.
[287 words]

Source: Entrepreneur
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232955
 楼主| 发表于 2014-4-10 23:05:22 | 显示全部楼层
Part III: Obstacle



Paying for the grey
As a pensions crisis looms, China looks at raising the retirement age.
April 5th, 2014

[Paraphrase 7]
IN THE 1950s, when China’s civil war was only just over and life expectancy still below 45, setting a relatively young retirement age seemed sensible to China’s new Communist Party rulers. But 60 years on, a recent study showed the nationwide average age of retirement is still 53 even though the economy is transformed and the average life expectancy is now 75. With the number of pensioners set to soar, and the number of young workers able to support them unable to keep up, China has been making long-overdue changes at both ends of the demographic spectrum. Late last year it started to ease its restrictive one-child policy. Now it is planning an adjustment to the retirement age.

Allowing people to choose if they want more than one child may prove more popular, but raising the retirement age is likely to bring more economic benefits. Officials at China’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MHRSS) have solicited advice from Chinese and foreign experts, including the World Bank and the International Labour Organisation. Many have advised raising standard retirement ages—currently 50 or 55 for women and 60 for men—by five years each.

The government has clearly signalled its intention to follow this advice. In October an MHRSS official openly supported the idea, and in November, an important meeting of senior party leaders included three “gradual” adjustments in retirement age in its official policy document. State media recently quoted a World Bank official saying the current arrangement is “not sustainable” and an MHRSS official has told Hong Kong media that adjustments are “inevitable”. As always, caution is the watchword. Yin Weimin, the MHRSS minister, said last month that officials mean to raise the retirement age and “will definitely introduce the plan before 2020”.

It is not hard to see why China feels the need to act. The proportion of China’s population over 65 is currently 9%, but is projected to grow to 24% by 2050 (see chart). A report published in December by the Chinese Academy of Social Studies (CASS) said that without adjustments, pension deficits would appear in 2030, and that by 2050 the accumulated shortfall would amount to 90% of China’s GDP.

Officials claim that earlier predictions of pension deficits were “groundless”. They acknowledge that as many as 14 provinces suffer deficits, but insist that, on a nationwide basis, the pension surplus at the end of 2013 stood at 3.1 trillion yuan ($500 billion), including 400 billion yuan in the pension fund for urban workers.

One important landmark on China’s drift towards demographic peril came in 2012, when the proportion of working-age people first started falling. Officials announced a decline of 3.5m in the net number of working-age citizens that year. In 2013 there was a further decline of 2.4m. Official projections suggest that trend will continue until the mid-2020s.

Pension penchant

Du Peng of Renmin University in Beijing, says the number of pensioners in China will rise from about 200m to 300m in the next ten years, although the size of the active labour force will stay fixed, at 700m. But before adjusting the defined retirement age, he says China must first reform the pension system. Convincing people to work longer, says Mr Du, will require better management of state pension schemes for a population largely sceptical about the fairness, reliability and flexibility of pensions. If people work and contribute for 30 years, “they need a clear idea of what they will get”, he says.

Experts also point to the need to deal with the imbalance between rural and urban pension schemes. CASS recently reported that for 2012, annual pension benefits for retired urban workers stood at 20,900 yuan, compared with just 859 yuan for retired agricultural workers. The government has also announced plans to “unify” urban and rural schemes but here, too, they have provided little detail. Mr Du says that, at a minimum, annual rural pensions must be brought up to the official poverty threshold of 2,300 yuan. A budget report presented to China’s legislature last month trumpeted a 10% rise in urban pensions, to 22,800 yuan annually, but made no mention of increases for pensioners in the countryside.

Raising the age of retirement may be necessary but it will surely be unpopular. One survey, conducted in 11 Chinese cities and published in November, found that nearly 70% were opposed to an increase. It is to muffle such unease that the government is discussing only vague plans for change, to be brought in gradually over the next two decades. But if they don’t stop dithering and get on with it, demography will catch up with them.
[772 words]

Source: Economists
http://www.economist.com/news/china/21600160-pensions-crisis-looms-china-looks-raising-retirement-age-paying-grey

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发表于 2014-4-10 23:08:18 | 显示全部楼层
哈哈,我来也
发表于 2014-4-10 23:10:36 | 显示全部楼层
我来了~
发表于 2014-4-10 23:12:39 | 显示全部楼层
全新的啦~~
-----------
谢谢楼主!~全新的系列争取满勤!~

time2:0:42
it is a global question about how to deal with employment disengagement
the topic has been studied by some professors

time3:1:40
all the work the researchers can do is to analyze the data collected by different companies at different points on the chain
5 per cent increase in customer loyalty could produce profitability increase from 25 per cent to 85 per cent, however the result is unclear
the result of the service-profit chain model seems logical and sensible,but the potential return is also unknown.this make it difficult for business leaders to decide how much effort they could make

time4:1:12
in the last year,82 percent of spending on art market was from just 8 percent of the art sold
many people want to invest art however only a little part of the art deserve the investment

time5:1:26
it is not unfair that only little people could get big payment because art is an area where have many inestimable factors
some people may pay money to study art but others just do some art by themselves
no one could know what is popular in the following years or even just nowadays
in other field, commanding everyone who do the same job get the same money back is unrealistic

time6:1:32
some business man see the art market the same to the business environments
all the success are the result of how creative you are and how can you beat other competitors
people buy art pieces just see the art as a type of investment
next time you see a painting on the wall ,remember it also takes capitalism to put the picture on the wall

time7:3:20
decades ago, because of the large amount of population, the retirement age is young
some population changes happen and the changes cause more people need to prolong the age they retire
aging problem is becoming serious in China and the government has eased the restrictive one-child policy
it is possible that the retirement ages- currently 50 or 55 for women and 60 for men-will be raised by 5 years each
the pension system need some change because the urbane citizens will get more pension than agriculture citizens
the pressure for government to undertake to deal with the pension in the following several years is huge because almost 14 provinces suffer deficits now
发表于 2014-4-10 23:16:53 | 显示全部楼层
speake
snatch: steal      
to watch your back:take care of yourself   
on the verge to do:just about to do   
swooped in:join in
what’s  good for the goose  is good for the gander:if it good for one person it will good for others,treating man and woman equally.
up the ante:increase the bat
underhanded:dishonest
escalate:find a way out
If you can’t take  the heat, get  out of the kitchen:if you can not take the stress get out form the situation.
发表于 2014-4-10 23:16:55 | 显示全部楼层
新的系列~~~~

Speaker:
account: some sort of business relationship between two companies
snatch: to take something quickly without permission, to steal
won't know what hit him: be completely surprise about something, usually something bad
watch your back: to be very careful
payback: revenge, something mean you do to someone because they do something mean to you
on the verge of: is just about to do something, ready to do something
swooped in: to become involved in something quickly
snagged it: to get something by doing something tricky
play fair: to be honest in dealing with other people
feud: a long argument
to play hardball: to do everything possible in order to win
what's good for the goose is good for the gander: if something is good or acceptable for one person, then it's good or acceptable for everyone else
up the ante: to increase your bet, to make something more serious
underhanded: dishonest
escalate: to become bigger or more serious
If you can't take the heat, get out of the chicken: tell someone if they are unable to take the stress or the difficulty in certain situation, then they shouldn't be in the situation, they should leave.

Time2: 1'04"
Time3: 1'48"
Employee engagement is a key driver of organizational performance grows almost daily. Engaged Employees create Loyal Customers who in turn create Bigger Profits.
Although the Service-Profit Chain model seemed logical and sensible, the potential return on investment was unknown. This made it difficult for business leaders to assess how much effort they should be making to embed it within their organizations.

Time4: 1'22"
Time5: 1'52"
Time6: 1'58"
The state of play of the art world is a good sign for global wealth. In the art world, there are very few people buying a lot of work from a precious few artists.
At the heart of the debate over income inequality is a feeling that everyone should get the same, regardless of experience or effort. But in fact, success comes from making a product people want to buy. It takes creativity, skill, determination and a bit of luck to sell a widget or a sculpture. Some will win. Most will lose.

发表于 2014-4-10 23:20:23 | 显示全部楼层
全新的一期~~~加油练那~~
------------------------------------------
Speaker: playing fair in business
         account: business relationship between your company and another company or person
         to snatch: take something quickly and unexpectedly from someone else; steal
         not know what hit him: completely surprised
         watch your back: be very careful; stabbing your back
         payback: revenge; something mean anc cruel you do to someone because they did that to you
         on the verge of: be about to do/ready to do
         swoop in: become involved in something quickly; have affect on people who are already involved in something
         snag: to get something by doing something tricky/dishonest but is not always a bad thing
         snag a good table at restaurant
         play fair: be honest; not do anything mean
         feud: a long argument which takes months or even years
         play hardball: everything possible in order to win
         What's good for the goose is good for the gander: if something is good for one person, it is benefit for everyone
         up the ante: increase your bet; increase the risk associate with something
         underhanded: dishonest; deceitful
         to escalate: to increase; become bigger
         If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen: if someone are unable to take the stress or difficulty in some
         situation, then they should leave the situation
time2: 56"
       Experts at the Harvard Business School have found that engaged employees create loyal costomers who in turn create
       bigger profits.
time3: 1min 40"
       The writer uses examples of employee retention rate and related customer loyalty and profit of different sectors to
       illustrate that although the Service-Profit Chain model seemed logical and sensible, the potential return on investment
       was unknow. This made it difficult for business leaders to assess how much effort they should be making to embed it
       within their organizations.
time4: 1min 13"
       The writer explained the inequality in the world of art. There are very few people buying a lot of work from a precious
       few artists.
time5: 1min 55"
       Art is an egalitarian pursuit. Although there no barrier to entry for an artist, not every artist is successful. Artists
       usually don't expect to get the same amount back as they put in during working. The writer thinks that over the heart of
       the debate over income inequality is a feeling that everyone should get the same, regardless of experience or effort.
time6: 1min 46"
       The writer made an analogy between the art world and the business world. Rich people are making creative people rich, as
       well. And rich people usually don't hoard the art but share it with the public. The writer thinks that when you see a
       painting you enjoy, you should celebrate the wealth because in addition to oil and canvas, it took capitalism to put that
       picture on the wall.
Obstacle: 5min 35"
       With the number of pensioners set to soar, China plans to adjust the retirement age. Officials at MHRSS have received adcice
       from many experts that raising the retirement age is likely to bring more economic benefits. The government has recently
       signalled its intention to follow this advice. The writer cited the reason why China feels the need to act. Du Peng of  Renmin
       University feels that convincing people to work longer will require better management of state pension schemes for a population
       largely sceptical about the fairness. Experts also points to the need to deal with the imbalance between rural and urban pension
       schemes. Raising the age of retirement may be necessary but it will surely be unpopular.
发表于 2014-4-10 23:21:22 | 显示全部楼层
Speaker:
to play hardball=do everything possible in order to win
what’s  good for the goose  is good for the gander=treat men and women equally;or what is good for one person is good for every one
underhanded=dishonest
If you can’t take  the heat, get  out of the kitchen=they should't be in that situation
watch your  back= be careful
payback=revenge  swoop in= to become envolved in sth. very quickly/suddenlly be envolved in some situation
snag=get
up the ante(the money that you are betting):increase the risk associated with doing/make sth. more serious

Time2 1:01
Engaged Employees create Loyal Customers who in turn create Bigger Profits.

Time3 2:06
B said that he actually has done what the Service-Profit model supposed to do. And his company got success. But we need more data to analyse the model.Because the result is not exactually what the model supposes, the potential return on investment was unknown.

Time4 1:44
there are so few people who has 63billion and want to buy art made by top artists.

Time5 2:25
it is unfair in the art sector,for instance,many top artists are self-taught,but not every artist is successful. Smart buyer would not buy artwork at top. So few artists are rich.

Time6 2:43
most entreprises will lose but some will win in the art market.Art is supposed by world's wealthiest people. this is commerce......(后面没读懂 = = )

Obstacle 6:39
because China has been making long-overdue changes,raising the retirement is likely to  bring more economic benefits,China government will make a plan to adjust the retirement age and ease restrictive one-child policy. of cause before the adjustment of retirement age, pension is going to increase.....

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