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MB: Hi Sarah! I’m Marcia Boardman – we spoke on the phone...

ST: Oh yes, I remember – I was having a bad day!

MB: ...and this is Philip Hart, our CEO.

PH: Hello! ST: Hello, it’s very nice to meet you both.

PH: It says on your CV that you do voluntary work...

ST: Well, when I have time, yes! I do work at a centre for children with difficulties, yes...

PH: That must be very interesting...

ST: It’s rewarding and challenging.

MB: Sarah, can you tell us a little bit about your current position?

ST: I’m assistant sales director for a chain of language schools.

PH: So this post would be quite a change then...

ST: I don’t think so honestly because the skills are the same, despite the product.

MB: Why are you thinking of moving on?

ST: Well I’ve come as far as I can in my current position, I feel and I’m 28 now and would love to take on some more responsibility.

MB: Ok, let’s move on to managing people. Can you give us an example of when you had to deal with a particularly difficult managee?

ST: Well, yes, I had two people working for me who didn’t get along at all – they had no shared values, different temperaments – and they used to argue a lot, it looked like it was impossible for them to work together. So, I sat down with them, and we talked about their differences and their problems and after that, things went much more smoothly!

PH: How would you deal with a rapidly changing and uncertain global market?

ST: Ok, that’s actually something I wanted to talk about in my presentation...but I’d say to stay flexible and to diversify markets and sales strategies..

MB: It says on your CV you speak French and Spanish.

ST: Yes, I do. I lived in both France and Spain for a while.

PH: Any plans to learn other languages?

ST: I’d love to try!

MB: Ok, can you tell us about a time you closed a particularly challenging deal?

ST: Well, the biggest contract I won - and the thing I’m most proud of professionally - was with a large university in India, to provide language training . The contract was full of technicalities and the client was very picky! – but I still pulled it off.

MB: Ok – do you have any questions for us?

ST: Yes - about your ethical policy, and your carbon footprint...I was wondering whether you are planning to reduce your carbon footprint and whether all your products are ethically sourced?

PH: That’s a very good question...and that’s something we’re moving towards at the moment...

MB: Ok, well, let’s move on to the presentation...

重点词汇
voluntary work – work that is done without being paid, often for charity organisations

children with difficulties – children who may be physical, mental or socail problems

rewarding - providing somebody with personal satisfaction or great pleasure

challenging - demanding physical or psychological effort of a stimulating kind

current position – one’s current job

a chain - a number of stores, hotels, restaurants, or other businesses that are owned by the same company and offer similar goods or services but are found in different locations

post - a position of employment

move on – leave a job of your own choice

temperament - a prevailing or dominant quality of mind that characterizes somebody

diversify - to become more varied, or make something more varied Strategies - a carefully devised plan of action to achieve a goal

technicalities – details in a contract which are of a technical nature Picky - having inflexible likes and dislikes and, therefore, being hard to please or satisfy

Pull something off - to achieve something impressive, particularly through a combination of skill and luck

Carbon footprint - a measure of the amount of carbon dioxide produced by a person, organisation or state in a given time

Ethically sourced – products which are from companies with socially desirable characteristics such as fair employment practices or environmentally sound operational policies

商务笔记
In the interview Sarah Timms is asked some difficult questions, but these are quite typical, standard interview questions. Here are a few more:

Why do you want to work for us?

Give us an example of a time when you did not meet your goals or objectives?

Give us an example of a situation where you faced conflict or difficult communication problems and how did you deal with it?

Where do you see yourself in 5 years time?

What would your current manager say are your strengths?

What do you think are your weaknesses?

Why should we give you the job?

Do you prefer working in a team or on your own?

What is the first thing you would change, if you were to start working here?