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Mr. Dawson is an effective and reliable professional with an open communication style. I found him to be a good team player. Moreover, his efforts to enhance the reputation of C & D, Inc. among the California business community have been both successful and much appreciated.

C & D, Inc. has recently gone through a major restructuring process. As a result, the General Manager position was eliminated and supervision of the department was split between two other positions, whose job specifications (education, experience, salary grade) were below those possessed by Mr. Dawson. As organization’s requirements and his career objectives were no longer parallel, Mr. Dawson was released by mutual consent so that his goals could be better achieved in another organization that would more fully utilize his expertise.

I can strongly recommend Mr. Dawson to you with no reservation whatsoever and am confident that he will be a real asset to your business. I think you will soon see the benefits he will bring you.

Sincerely,

38.Analyze the use of the Present Perfect and the Past (Simple and Progressive) in the text of the recommendation letter above. Which tense is used to give new information? To continue talking about it? Should a piece of news always open a paragraph? Should the announcement of a piece of news and further details be located within the same sentence? Within the same paragraph?

39.Study the following ways to RECOMMEND A PERSON.

1)You can start your letter of recommendation with the expression of your strong support of a person:

–I am pleased to give my evaluation of the work of Mr. / Ms. … whose work I followed since his / her graduate student years.

–I am delighted to write in support of Mr. / Ms. … in his / her search for employment .

–I am willing to support very strongly Mr. / Ms. N’s candidacy for employment as …

(position) with … (company).

–I find it a welcome task to write in support of Mr. / Ms. … .

–I am pleased to recommend Mr. / Ms. … in the highest terms as … .

–I strongly recommend Mr. / Ms. … to you in his / her search for employment.

–I can recommend Mr. / Ms. … with no reservation of any kind.

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–It would be my strong recommendation that Mr. / Ms. … be hired (employed) as … with … .

–It gives me pleasure to recommend Mr. / Ms. … for employment with … as … .

–It is with great pleasure that I recommend Mr. / Ms. … to you in his / her search for employment (that I submit my recommendation that Mr. / Ms. ... be hired / employed) as … with … .

2)and finish your letter expressing support:

–I have been pleased to write in support of Mr. / Ms. … I feel strongly that s/he fully deserves to be hired (employed) as … with … .

–I highly recommend Mr. / Ms. … for employment with you and am confident that s/he will be an asset to your business (company) from the first day s/he is employed (hired).

–I see no question that Mr. / Ms. Merits to be hired as … My recommendation follows the unanimous support of the team s/he has been working with for … (company).

–I certainly think hiring him / her is the best way to ensure a long and beneficial cooperation.

–… clearly deserves being hired as … S/He has truly earned it.

40.Choose from the phrases below to characterize a person’s STRENGTHS AS AN EMPLOYEE. Speak about:

1)good personal habits:

–… is a good professional;

–… is a hard worker;

–… is self-directed; … is an ambitious self-starter; … works very well independently;

–… completes tasks quickly and accurately; … meets deadlines;

–… gets things done effectively; … handles a variety of tasks effectively;

–… likes to learn; … loves to be busy;

–… is adaptable; … is cooperative; … is focused;

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2)the ability to work well with people:

–… is a good team player; … enjoys team problem solving;

–… enjoys promoting a good oriented environment;

–… establishes a good rapport with his / her subordinates (peers, supervisors);

–… displays leadership to his / her associates (staff);

3)being an excellent analyst:

–… brings extraordinary insight into projects;

–… considers problems in a logical manner;

–… is good at manipulating data;

–… shows painstaking attention to detail;

–… reveals good business sense developed through broad experience in …;

4)organizational skills:

–… does not make hasty decisions;

–… thinks through a task;

–… has a valuable ability to organize;

–… enjoys coordinating and instructing;

–… is a good judge of people;

–… is willing to present people with new challenges;

–… is truly inspirational;

5)being innovative:

–… is most creative (productive / innovative) specialist in his / her field;

–… likes challenges;

–… enjoys improving techniques;

–… is a person who always had new and novel ideas to advance (pursue);

6)having positive attitude to technology:

–… is particularly strong in working with computerized systems;

–… tries to maximize use of different office automation equipment;

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7)being a good communicator:

–… expresses thoughts clearly;

–… is comfortable preparing written or oral material;

–… uses superior verbal and written communication skills;

–… his / her contacts and associations throughout … industry (business) are strong assets;

8)professional standing among specialists:

–… is a highly regarded professional considered to be among the leaders in his / her area of specialization (in professional community);

–… has established himself / herself as a leading specialist in …;

–… is a reliable professional (… is one of the key people in his / her area);

–… has become well established in this new area;

9)personal characteristics:

–… is highly dedicated to his / her work;

–… is super conscientious; … has strong personal values of honesty and integrity;

–… has professional appearance (good manners); … is well-groomed;

–… is even-tempered; … handles stress well.

41.Practice writing complete sentences based on the phrases above.

Model:

Mr. N works very well independently, handling effectively a variety of tasks.

42.Using the phrases suggested, write a reference letter 1) for one of your fellow students; or 2) a former business associate.

43.Study the THANK-YOU NOTE to your REFERENCE after receiving a letter of recommendation: 1) thank your reference for the letter of recommendation; 2) express appreciation for the time taken; 3) promise to keep in touch with your reference during your job search. Identify the functions. Write your own letter thanking your references. Follow the model.

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Dear Mr. Martin:

Thank you very much for writing a strong letter of recommendation. I believe it is important for me to be able to provide a reference from my last job. I really appreciate your taking time to do this, and I am especially grateful for the kind words you said you had included in your letter. Your high praise of my work for your company will certainly help me in finding a job in this field.

Once again, thank you for your support during my job search. I will let you know how my search goes.

With many thanks,

Resignation Letter

44.Study the sample of LETTER OF RESIGNATION below. Note how to 1) state your decision to leave, 2) give the last day on the job, and 3) express appreciation for the job.

Dear Mr. Nelson:

With this letter I inform you of my resignation an the end of the term. I appreciate the opportunities I have had while employed here.

Sincerely yours,

45.Write your own letter of resignation using the phrases suggested below. Follow the functions typical for such letters. Here are some more ways

1)to make a statement of your decision to leave:

–This will confirm my resignation as … at … .

–With this letter I inform you of my resignation as … .

2)to give the last day on the job:

–My last day of work will be April 17, 200X.

–My employment will terminate on January 21, 200X.

–I will continue as …(position) through July 31, 200X.

3)to express appreciation:

–The past 17 years with R & B, Inc. have been rewarding.

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–These past years have been a very positive experience for me, and I truly miss all of you.

–Over these last 17 years I have really grown very fond of R & B, Inc.

–I appreciate your confidence in my abilities and your support.

–I am grateful for the opportunities and experience afforded me.

–I am thankful for the many friends I have met here (I have made along the way).

–In our day-to-day operations, I have become proud of being a part of this company.

4)to demonstrate good will:

–I wish you and the company continued success.

–I do hope, however, that we can continue our professional relationships in the future.

–Moreover, I hope that I can be of assistance to you and R & B, Inc. in the future.

46.To save your current employer from being embarrassed by your resignation at an inconvenient time, the company can make you an appeal to stay (a counter-offer). This will typically include a number of tactics: flattery, scare tactics, offers of promotion, offers to pay increase, guilt strip, delaying tactics, etc. See if you can recognize which of these tactics underlie the statements below. Can you extract any concessions from your present employer in exchange for staying? Will most of the reasons why you choose to seek another opportunity remain?

SWhat did they offer you? What do you need to stay?

SWe were just about to promote you, and it was kept confidential until now.

SYou won’t last a month in that new job.

SYou are too valuable, we need you so much.

SYou can’t desert your team and leave them hanging. You’ve got to finish that important project.

SYour boss wants to speak to you before you make your final decision.

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LISTENING AND SPEAKING

Dialog

47.Listen to your teacher reading the dialog. Could Mr. Roberts be reached right away?

48.Listen to the dialog again and repeat after each speaker. Trade roles. Follow the script if necessary.

49.Role play the dialog. Trade roles.

50.In the dialog you have seen some ways to say that the person you are calling cannot be reached at the moment. Here some more ways

1)to explain that someone is not available at the moment:

–I’m afraid, but …

a) holding the line:

–Do you want to hold?

–Hold on a minute, please. I’ll connect you.

b) calling back:

– Could you call / ring / phone back later / in some minutes / tomorrow morning?

– Shall I phone / ring / call you back later?

c) leaving a message:

– Would you like to leave a message?

– Can I take a message?

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