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Option 1: Keep the call centres in-house
Keep the call centres in their present locations but try to reduce costs by:
• using more part-time employees
• reducing the hours of business of the centres
• increasing the targets for the number of calls handled per hour
Estimated cost of running the centres for the next five years: £16 million. Estimated savings by introducing changes above: £3 million.
Option 2: Outsource the call centres to a company based in South Africa
Use Resource Pic, a Cape Town firm. They can set up the call centres in Cape Town and run them.
• the firm has an excellent reputation for reliability and good service
• it has a lot of experience in running centres
Cost of the contract with Resource Pic to run the call centres for the next five years: £8 million.
Option 3: Outsource the call centres to a company based in Scotland
Use Orion Pic, a Scottish firm
• the firm is new; its managers are young
• it has several contracts with big companies
• it is experienced in running call centres
• some customers have complained in newspapers that the lines are always busy
Cost of the contract with Orion Pic to run the call centres for the next five years: £10 million.
Option 4: Outsource the call centres to a company based in India
Use X-source India, a company based in Bangalore.
• X-source India is expanding fast
• it has contracts with several large US companies
• it has no problems hiring staff and its costs are low
Cost of the contract with X-source India to run the call centres for the next five years: £5.5 million.
Writing
Write a short report to the Chief Executive giving both a summary of the four options and your recommendations.
^^ Writing file page 136
OVERVIEWT
| □ |
Reading
Change in retailing Listening Managing change j Vocabulary
Describing change t Language review — Past simple and present perfect I I Skills
Taking part in meetings 2 1 Case study
Acquiring Metrot
It's not the strongest species that survive, nor the mt^Untelligent, but the most responsive to change. J \
Charles Darwin (1809-1882]! British scientist
QWhich of these situations would you find the most difficult to deal with?
1Losing a lot of money 5 A new boss
2Moving house 6 New neighbours
3Moving to another country 7 Driving abroad
4Losing your job 8 Getting married
фWhat has been the most significant change in your life?
фWhich of these business situations would worry you most? Why?
1You read in the paper that your company will probably be merging with another company.
2You keep your job after a merger, but you are in a less powerful position.
3Your company has to relocate to the other side of the city.
4You are asked to relocate to a dangerous foreign country.
5You are promoted but are now in charge of a hostile workforce.
6You have to move from an open plan office to sharing your boss's office.
7You have to work with a completely new computer system.
| Starting up |
8You have to decide who to make redundant in your new department after a merger.
ОDiscuss these questions. Which department stores have you visited in your own country or abroad?
1What were your impressions?
2What in your view should a 21st century department store look like?
3What should it offer its customers?
tilNow read the article. What are the names of the two US department stores mentioned in the article?
| Change in retailing |
US department stores launch counter-attack
By Lauren Foster
As consumers demand better value and a more interesting and stimulating experience while shopping, 5 department stores face a clear choice-: adapt or die.
'My concern is that they will become retail museums,' says Britt Breemer, 10 chairman of America's Research Group. 'The bottom line is that they have to admit they are in trouble and figure out some way to 15 reinvent themselves.'
This may help to explain why four times as many households visit discount stores as department stores. 20 Department stores face mounting competition from speciality retailers and discounters, such as Wal- Mart and Target. Their 25 steady loss of market share may be partly because the concept was born in a different era, a time when, for families, a trip to the 30 stores combined shopping with entertainment.
What is needed, say retail experts, is a new approach. A typical example of this 35 approach working is seen at Selfridges. This UK group has recast itself from a 'sleepy 1970s-style department store' into a retailing 40 experience fit for the 21st century, says Wendy Liebmann, President of WSL Strategic Retail.
One of the main changes is 45 that more floor space is rented to vendors, in what is sometimes referred to as the showcase business model: vendors design their own 50 booths and are encouraged to be creative.
The Selfridges model, says Peter Williams, CEO of Selfridges, is about creating 55 an experience that is 'new, interesting and different' where it is not just the product that is different. He says the problem with US 60 department stores is that they all look the same.
Arnold Aronson, a management consultant, believes Selfridges could be a 65 prototype for failing US department stores: 'It has brought back excitement and novelty and is really seducing customers by developing the 70 right merchandise, in the right quantities at the right time.'
| . Selfridges, Oxford Street, London |
| ▲ Selfridges, Birmingham |
Federated, which owns Macy's and Bloomingdale's, 75 appears to be moving in the right direction. Forty-two stores are being upgraded with the latest components of its 'reinvent' strategy, 80 including enhanced fitting rooms, convenient price-check devices, comfortable lounge
areas, computer kiosks and shopping carts. 85 The challenge department stores face is how to develop in a sector that is, essentially, not growing. But if they adapt, many industry observers 90 believe they will survive. 'The department store is not dead, it will live on,' said Robert Tamilia, Professor of Marketing at the University of 95 Quebec. 'But it will not be the same animal it was before.'
From The Financial Times
FINANCIAL TIMES
World business newspaper.
QMatch these people to their views.
a)This is not the end of department stores but in the future they will be different.
b)American department stores are not different enough from each other.
c)Selfridges has changed into an up-to-date store.
d)Department stores need to recognise their problems and have to change.
| 1Britt Breemer 2Wendy Liebmann 3Peter Williams 4Arnold Aronson 5Robert Tamilia |
e)Selfridge's new approach works.
0What changes have taken place at:
a) Selfridges? b) Macy's? c) Bloomingdale's?
QWhich of these groups of people are mentioned in the article?
1agents 5 discounters 9 vendors
2clients 6 manufacturers 10 wholesalers
3consumers 7 retailers
4customers 8 shoppers
QWhich of the groups of people in Exercise E:
1are buyers?.........................................
2are sellers?.........................................
3are intermediaries?.........................................
4offer goods at reduced prices?..........................................
5sell directly to the public?..........................................
0What are the differences between the types of retail outlet in the box? Consider the following factors: size, prices, product range, length and frequency of shopping visits, customer service level.
supermarket department store kiosk convenience store discount store
ф (r 4.1 Maggie Miller is the Business Transformation Director of
Sainsbury's, one of the largest supermarket groups in the UK. She is talking about the programme of change at Sainsbury's. Listen to the first part of the interview. Match these phrases to their meaning.
1'supply chain'means:
a) warehousing and delivery systems b) customers and clients c) supermarket stores and retail outlets
2'a third party'here means:
a) in-house staff b) an external company c) another company in the group
3'people see the barriers eliminated' means:
a) that it is easier for people to do things than it was before
b) that it is harder for people to do things than it was before
c) that there is no difference in the way people do things
ф -) 4.1 Now listen to the first part again and answer these questions.
Why did the new Chief Executive want to change things at Sainsbury's?
In which three areas was new investment necessary?
What changes have there been in people's attitudes?
What evidence of benefits has there been so far?
Q 4 i4.2 Listen to the second part of the interview. What do the following numbers refer to?
a) 14,000 b) 50 c) 22 d) 100,000
| Listening Managing change |
▲ Maggie Miller
|
фWhich three areas does Maggie say are important to focus on when planning change?
| Vocabulary Describing change |
QWrite the verbs from the box under the correct prefix to make words connected with change. Use a good dictionary to help you. Some of the words can be used with more than one prefix.
centralise organise train grade regulate size develop launch locate structure
de-
| down- |
| up- |
| re- |
ce-ntralise-
фComplete these sentences with the correct form of the verbs from the box in
Exercise A. Use a good dictionary to help you.
1It is now so expensive to rent offices in the city centre that many companies are .S^tm.... to the suburbs.
2The company has recently had to down.............................. its workforce.
Reducing the number of employees is the best way to stay profitable in the current economic climate.
3Excellent customer service is vital to keep up with the competition. The
company has introduced new working practices and is re................................ all
part-time staff.
4The seating plan in our office has been re............................... to accommodate
new staff.
5Our product hasn't been selling well recently. The marketing team has decided to re the product with a more up-to-date image.
6The company has noticed that too many decisions are made at Head Office.
It is de.......................... the decision-making process so that branch managers
are more involved at an earlier stage.
7The company has finalised the plans to re............................... the disused car
park site. It is going to become a modern three-storey office block.
8The most successful change in our company was the decision to
re......................... the company hierarchy. Now there is more opportunity for
promotion.
QUnderline the nouns in Exercise В that make partnerships with the verbs.
фWork in pairs. Describe the changes that have happened in a workplace you
know well.
Vocabulary file page 172
We use the past simple for actions at a particular point in the past.
Last year only 18% of US consumers visited a leading department store.
We use the present perfect for actions linking the present to a point in the past.
| Language review Past simple and present perfect |
We have made a lot of changes since 2003. ^^ page 151
фWhich of the following expressions are used with the past simple and which are used with the present perfect? Which are used with both?
in 2003 since 2003 yet
this week yesterday ever
recently last year six months ago
фComplete this report about the history of Joie de Vivre. Use the past simple or the present perfect forms of the verbs in brackets.
I 1 (receive) the year's results yesterday and I am delighted to
announce that our company......................... 2 (have) another fantastic year. We
..................... 3 (start) in 1970 in a small factory in Shatin, Hong Kong, and we
only...................... 4 (employ) four people. That number.......................... 5 (grow) to
around 2,000 today.
In the early years we....................... 6 (face) strong competition from our
competitors and in 1982 we nearly......................... 7 (go) bankrupt. But from that
difficult period until now, we........................ 8 (hold) out and we......................... 9 (not
make) the mistake of becoming typecast as a label for the changeable junior market.
Things....................... 10 (improve) considerably since we.......................... 11 (move)
from Shatin to China. In 2000 we......................... 12 (buy) the international
operations of our partner company Joie de Vivre Holdings and we now do business in more than 30 countries.
In recent years we...................... 13 (expand) our product range and we have
carved out a sizeable niche in the same market as Benetton and Zara.
Last year we....................... 14 (have) our fifth consecutive year of growth with $98
million in net profit and in January of this year we.......................... 15 (deliver) the
first retail stock to be included in Hong Kong's Hang Seng index.
A lot of change....................... 16 (take) place recently. This is because last year
most of our sales........................ 17 (come) from the Asian market. So, in January
this year, we...................... 18 (decide) to try and break into the US market. Just
recently, we...................... 19 (enter) into negotiations with Macy's department
stores.
In conclusion, our company so far this year........................... 20 (prosper) and that is
down to all your hard work. Congratulations to you all.
QTalk about recent changes that have happened in your life.
л r' 4,3 Four executives are discussing changes to company working practices. Listen to the meeting and answer these questions.
1Why does Nancy think the open-plan office is a good idea?
2Why are two of the people against introducing an open-plan office?
3What proposal does Carl make to deal with the problem mentioned?
4Why is Max against hot-desking?
5What change in working practices does Nancy want?
| Taking part in meetings 2 |
О 4.3 Listen again and tick the expressions in the Useful language box that you hear.
Useful languageJ
Interrupting
Could I just say something? Excuse me, but could I just say ..
Asking for clarification
How do you mean,...? What exactly are you saying? What exactly do you mean? Are you saying we need to ... ? Sorry, I don't follow you. Can you explain in more detail?
Clarifying
|
What I mean is ... What I'm saying is ... No, I was thinking of ... To be more specific ... To clarify...
Dealing with interruptions
Hold on. Can I finish the point? Let Stefan finish, please. I'd like to finish if I may. Just a moment...
Making proposals
I suggest... I propose that... How about... We could...
Rejecting proposals
Sorry, I don't think it's / that's a good idea.
I'm not sure I agree with you there.
It / That just won't work.
Well, I'm not happy about it/that.
0Role play this situation. You are managers of a television production company, Zoom International. You are discussing these two proposals for changes to company policy.
1Zoom International (Zl) could reduce costs by offering staff a 10% increase in salary instead of a company car. If Zl makes the change, staff will have to provide their own car for business use, using their own money.
2Zl could increase security at their head office. At present, a security guard checks staff who enter the building. In future, staff will have to go through a barrier where they insert an identity card. If they do not have an identity card, they cannot enter the building. In addition, they must, at all times, wear an identity card with their photograph on it. There will be two female receptionists behind the barrier.
Student A: Turn to page 146.
| 'There are three things you can predict in life: tax, death and more meetings.' Mike Moore, Sydney Morning Herald |
Student B: Turn to page 144.
Background