BEP 174 – Meetings: Considering a Proposal (Part 2)

This is the second in a two-part Business English Pod series about an internal meeting to consider a proposal.

As we saw in the last episode, this type of meeting can be similar to a negotiation¹. People with different opinions sit around the table and try to convince each other that their idea is the best. So in this situation, you need to be very persuasive² and provide good reasons for your recommendations.

In this lesson, we’ll look at how to express doubt, admit risk, confirm support, and speculate about possible future situations or scenarios³. We’ll also cover language that you can use to highlight any concessions⁴ you might have won in a previous negotiation.
In today’s dialog, we’ll rejoin Steve and his managers as they discuss a proposal for language training. Steve is recommending a blended training model that would combine classroom sessions with online training.

Listening Questions

1. Which advantage of online training does Steve focus on?
2. What is the main concern of the two female managers?
3. If the blended approach doesn’t work, what do they have the option of doing?

1 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

2 persuasive   

adj.有说服力的，能说得使人相信的

参考例句：

• His arguments in favour of a new school are very persuasive.他赞成办一座新学校的理由很有说服力。
• The evidence was not really persuasive enough.证据并不是太有说服力。

3 scenarios   

n.[意]情节；剧本；事态；脚本

参考例句：

• Further, graphite cores may be safer than non-graphite cores under some accident scenarios. 再者，根据一些事故解说，石墨堆芯可比非石墨堆芯更安全一些。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Again, scenarios should make it clear which modes are acceptable to users in various contexts. 同样，我们可以运用场景剧本来搞清楚在不同情境下哪些模式可被用户接受。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

4 concessions   

n.（尤指由政府或雇主给予的）特许权( concession的名词复数 )；承认；减价；（在某地的）特许经营权

参考例句：

• The firm will be forced to make concessions if it wants to avoid a strike. 要想避免罢工，公司将不得不作出一些让步。
• The concessions did little to placate the students. 让步根本未能平息学生的愤怒。