剑桥商务英语高级-110及答案解析.doc

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1、剑桥商务英语高级-110 及答案解析(总分：96.00，做题时间：90 分钟)一、READING(总题数：0，分数：0.00)二、PART ONE(总题数：1，分数：8.00)ABenchmarking involves establishing minimum standards of performance and quality, based on identifying the best method and practice followed in other organisations. These standards can then be used as yardsticks

2、to measure the organisations current costs, production, management and customer focus, and identify areas where they fall short of norms. According to its supporters, benchmarking raises awareness of innovations and best practice, thus helping all companies taking part in benchmarking exercises to i

3、ncrease their competitiveness: by imitating best practice they may be able to reduce their costs or improve their customer service.BThere are a number of approaches to benchmarking. Typically, exercises are carried out by companies working within the same field or sector, as in the International Mot

4、or Vehicle Programme. Between 1985 and 1990 this brought together car manufacturers from Europe, the USA and Japan with the aim of introducing the western companies to Japanese production methods. As benchmarking by competitors can be very sensitive, in some cases data is mediated through a neutral

5、body, such as a business school, to protect confidentiality and make sure that no trade secrets are revealed.CThere are also instances of companies in widely different industries comparing their management practices, to see how others have dealt with difficulties in internal communications, supply c

6、hain management, and other areas where practice is transferable from company to company without affecting competition between rivals, in other words, topics where confidentiality is not at issue. To a certain degree this practice has been aided by the development of internet websites dedicated to th

7、e sharing of information, sites which, being in the public domain, are universally accessible. Of course, this means that only certain types of data are provided.DUnlike benchmarking exercises with competitors, which run the risk that participants may want to take what they can and give away as litt

8、le as possible, benchmarking between the divisions or business units of a single company is far less likely to lead to the withholding of information. As a by-product, co-operation among different sections of the company may well be enhanced, both through increased understanding of how others operat

9、e, and by simply being able to put a face to a name, and know who to talk to about a particular work-related problem.Elearning from the successes and failures of others can of course be very valuable. On the other hand, critics claim that by concentrating on existing best practice, companies simply

10、seek to emulate other businesses. Content to achieve the best of what is being done at the moment, they do not attempt to move beyond it to reach the best possible. However this ignores the creative aspect of the process: learning about other organisations operations may well spark off fresh ideas,

11、as in a brainstorming session, and lead into the realm of true innovation.（分数：8.00）(1).Ideas that emerge from a benchmarking exercise may be better than any current practice.（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(2).In some cases companies receive information without knowing which organisation produced it,（分数：1.00）填空项 1:

12、_(3).Certain methods of benchmarking generally do not impose restrictions on the kinds of knowledge that can be shared openly.（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(4).One goal of benchmarking is to solve problems common to companies in a variety of fields.（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(5).Benchmarking exercises can enable all partici

13、pants to make improvements in their operations.（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(6).Benchmarking exercises may lead to an improvement in contacts with other people.（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(7).It may be a weakness of benchmarking that organisations imitate others,（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_(8).Some forms of benchmarking do not restrict

14、 the availability of data to those organisations taking part.（分数：1.00）填空项 1:_三、PART TWO(总题数：1，分数：6.00)Route to big delivery savingsThere are few areas left within the worlds largest businesses where one close look can deliver instant savings of 1 per cent of sales. For Rhodia, the chemicals arm of F

15、rench conglomerate Rh6ne-Poulenc, scrutiny of the companys transport costs in the UK led to just such savings. Management consultants A.T. Kearney were commissioned to review the companys operations. They scoured order books, invoices and transport logs at the companys fourteen UK sites. some transp

16、ort they could not account for at all Surprising as it may seem, there were simply no records.A.T. Kearneys initial survey found that transport accounted for 10 per cent of the companys traceable spending in the UK, and that during a 12-month period, 235 different hauliers had moved products for the

17、 company. The company were also running a 30-strong fleet of their own. (9) In a more positive light, though, they meant that the opportunity to improve was huge.Transport buying was being dictated by the backgrounds of the buyers, rather than rational criteria. (10) Instead, they were typically for

18、mer drivers or site workers who bought transport from a network of contacts built up over many years.Even where buyers were seeking tile cheapest transport, their task was complicated by numerous different tariffs for different measures. For A.T. Kearney, the solution lay in a comprehensive, standar

19、dised tendering process. During the following weeks, all the companys existing suppliers, Rhodias own fleet, and others were invited to tender for business. (11) Modelling of these responses began: what if this part of the business was given to X, and this part to Y - what does it do to costs?Rhodia

20、 then went back to the most promising applicants and offered them deals for packages of business. (12) In this way the company ensured that they got the best possible arrangement. Inevitably, this process favoured large suppliers. (13) For example, a driver with his own lorry, who had been transport

21、ing goods for the company for years, submitted a tender. A sub- contracting arrangement was made for him with one of the final suppliers.Today, Rhodia have five main hauliers, who account for 90 per cent of the companys transport spending. All rates are standardised: the whole system is a very simpl

22、e one. But perhaps the most extraordinary outcome from this monumental number-crunching exercise was the bottom line impact. (14) The new set-up has delivered savings of more than 25 per cent. And the company is confident of achieving even more savings.A Before the review, transport was eating up 3

23、per cent of the companys UK sales revenue.B Nevertheless, the situation was not helped by the fragmented nature of the haulage industry.C More than 60 did so, and their quotes were then analysed.D Among the terms they included in these contracts were requirements for improvements in costs, flexibili

24、ty and reliability.E None had come into logistics as part of a management career.F But hauliers at the other end of the scale were not automatically excluded.G These results horrified the company, as they were far worse than had been anticipated.H Some transport they could not account for at all.（分数

25、：6.00）填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_填空项 1:_四、PART THREE(总题数：1，分数：6.00)John Tiernan has spent five years trouble-shooting as an interim manager, hired on short-term assignments by a variety of companies to sort out their problems. He has no desire to return to the certainties of a permanent posi

26、tion, because now, whichever company he is working for, he is perpetually involved in a meaningful task thats critical to the business at that time. Though he admits that sorting out the aftermath of other peoples misjudgments can be frustrating. At first he found the gaps between jobs traumatic, bu

27、t now he has got used to them, so when a job ends he simply books a holiday.Mr Tiernan is part of a relatively small pool of managers used by agency BIE. Whereas most suppliers of interim managers have large databases, which they tap into in order to match a managers qualifications and experience wi

28、th a client companys requirements, BIE tries to develop a good understanding of its managers personalities and of hew they are likely to fit into a company through interviews and from feedback on their previous assignments. He is very happy with the way the agency treats him, though he admits that h

29、e has no idea how this compares with other agencies. One advantage he finds of being one of a small number of managers is that they can get to know each other well, through the agencys social and professional development activities.Interim jobs are frequently highly pressured and can be uncomfortabl

30、e. John Tiernan was recently brought in to improve customer service at a division of Jarvis Porter Group, a printing and packaging company. Initial resistance from staff fairly soon melted away, but then Mr Tiernan realised that the divisions trading position was unsustainable, and it soon became cl

31、ear that what was needed was a shutdown, not a rescue. Mr Tiernan managed the closure, in which about 250 jobs were lost.The secret is always to keep channels of communication open. Making oneself known to the whole range of employees is useful, although it may net be enough to prove ones value to t

32、he company. Keeping the companys Chief Executive informed is essential for the interim managers actions to be understood and accepted. Agencies, too, often like to keep track of what their managers are doing for their clients, though few have gone as far as W in which case they might ask for recomme

33、ndations, or commission us to do the work for them.M Has the company evolved in its ten years of existence?F Oh yes. When we started, companies generally asked us to analyse a particular situation, and write a report. For instance, on what IT system they ought to install to meet their particular nee

34、ds. These days were far more likely to select the system, install it and train their staff. Weve gone from an intellectual, analytical business doing small pieces of work to big, complex teams solving big, complex problems.M Presumably the same people dont always work togetherF No, it depends on the

35、 particular jobs were dealing with at the time. All our consultants come in as and when we need them. That gives me great flexibility in forming teams, so I can make sure that all the expertise required for a particular job is covered. And of course, it helps if there are no interpersonal issues sto

36、pping people from co-operating productively.M The solutions that your teams come up with, do they generally have a long life cycle?F Everythings changing so fast nowadays, that if you make three- or five-year plans theyre really not much use. Any business without momentum fails, and that generally a

37、pplies to our solutions too. Its OK to say theres something thatll work for you now, but you cant assume itll work for another company, or even for the same company in a few years time.M Could you give us some examples of your work?F Well theres a supermarket chain which had problems with stock mana

38、gement because sales of lots of items vary enormously, depending on the weather We set up a system for them to use 14-day weather forecasts, covering all regions of the country, and compare them with weather patterns and sales figures for the same period the previous year, which helps the retailer t

39、o judge how consumers will react in different regions. A software system then sorts out orders, deliveries, storage space, shelf space, and so on.M So consumers arent faced with empty shelves.F Exactly, And were currently working with a utility company in the north of England. It already sells gas a

40、nd electricity, and wants to build on its existing customer base by adding insurance and other financial services. Of course the company. knows all its customers names and addresses, so it can easily contact them. Our role is to advise both on software they need and on the design of e-mails and othe

41、r communications which the company will send to its customers.M Do you have only domestic clients?F Mainly, though were currently expanding abroad. We considered transferring staff from this country to foreign outposts, but realised wed have difficulty finding out about local markets, not to mention

42、 laws and regulations. So instead were looking for organisations similar to us in certain other countries, and aiming to share our resources. We can send consultants to them if theyre needed for a particular job, and vice versa. Itll increase our pool of experts.M And finally, what made you decide t

43、o start up a consultancy in the first place?F I was employed by a business consultancy myself, and enjoyed the variety. One week you were designing a staff satisfaction survey, and the next streamlining financial systems. But my employers missed a lot of opportunities, because they werent as flexibl

44、e as they could be. That was where I felt I scored, and the only way I could make use of that was to start my own business. I was scared of losing the security of full-time employment, but it certainly paid off in the long run.M Carolyn Whitcombe, thank you very much.F Thank you.A.B. C.解析：A. B.C.解析：

45、A.B.C. 解析：A.B. C.解析：A.B.C. 解析：A. B.C.解析：A.B.C. 解析：十五、SPEAKING(总题数：0，分数：0.00)十六、PART TWO(总题数：1，分数：5.00)3.Choose one of these three topics and prepare a short (about one minute) talk about it.Candidate 1A Staff management: the importance of training and development for staff retentionB Customer Servic

46、es: how to meet and exceed customers expectations of serviceC Finance: how to identify potential areas for reductions in costsCandidate 2A Public Relations: the importance to a company of having a clear ethical policyB Purchasing: the factors involved in selecting a supplier of goods or servicesC Re

47、cruitment: how to ensure the interviewing of job applicants is effective（分数：5.00）_正确答案：()解析：十七、PART THREE(总题数：1，分数：5.00)4.Practise discussing this task, and the questions which follow it, with a partner:OPENING A NEW BRANCH ABROADThe company you work for wants to enter new markets by opening a new b

48、ranch abroad. You have been asked to make suggestions concerning this.Discuss, and decide together: how the company could find out information about the new markets what training the staff for the new branch would need how the new branch could be promotedFollow-up questions: What is the most important factor when considering opening a branch abroad? In what other ways can companies build up business abroad? What kinds of companies benefit most from trading with different countries? Would you like to work abr