BEC中级真题第三辑阅读及答案解析版

TEST1

PART ONE

B 1 It would be advisable for Flacks to consult customers before developing a new product. D 2 Producing goods for specialist markets might increase Flacks' profits. C 3 Flacks may need to change the function of one of its facilities.

A 4 Flacks should utilise its current expertise to enter a different market. B 5 Flacks may need to consider closing its current production facility.

C 6 Flacks should develop the connections it has established with leading retailers. A 7 Expanding the product range would not be a problem for the workforce.

Flacks is a UK-based company that produces fashion accessories for women. How can it continue to grow its business? A Susan Falmer

Faced with a shrinking market, cheap imports and competitive pricing, Flacks will have to work hard to increase its margins. They need to move into a more promising market, one where demand is growing and where the company can exploit existing skills and contacts. They could think about brand extension - this would not be a giant leap and the sales force would take it in its stride. Also, they wouldn't need to re-equip their factory and could use non-UK sourcing if facilities here are in short supply. B Mesut Guzel

They have the fundamentals of a survival strategy in a market where outsourced manufacture and brand differentiation hold the key to success. I think they should initially locate some of their production in another country, where manufacturing quality tends to be better and it is easier to meet changing customer demands. But they should also regularly monitor production in Britain and think about outsourcing all this work abroad at some point if they need it done faster. The company should continue to work on innovative products, and thorough market research will help to ensure any new ideas are well received. C Gary Wilmot

In order to beat their rivals in a highly competitive market, Flacks should ensure their products are attractive and build on their relationships with the big stores rather than trying to go it alone and market directly. They should also consider refocusing production by using their UK factory for high-specification products. They could eventually build more production overseas in a cycle of continuous development. D Michal Kaminski

The demand for fashion accessories is relatively flat and the company should consider exploiting niche markets to improve its margins. But even within these, Flacks must distinguish its goods from those of its rivals in terms of quality, performance and design. Innovative sales, marketing and PR are vital to exploit these niche products. One competitive advantage that Flacks does have is production times. Many retail chains now have two-tier supply chains and Flacks could focus on top-up orders. They might also investigate other sales channels such as mail order.

这篇文章是关于一个女性时尚饰品公司——Flacks的发展战略问题，四个专家给出了自 己的建议。这套题目的答案稍微有些隐晦。

第一题，说在开发新产品前咨询客户的意见对于Flacks来讲是很明智的。答案是B段 的最后一句：thorough market research will help to ensure any new ideas are well received.彻底 的市场调查能够确保新的思想很好的被接受。Market research，市场调查，在很大程度上就

是咨询客户的意见（consult customers），any new ideas可以对应于developing a new product, 能够well received，那么对于公司来讲当然就是advisable了。选B。

第二题，说为专业市场生产产品可以增加利润。答案是D段的这么一句：the company should consider exploiting niche markets to improve its margins这题关键是要理解一个市场的 含义：niche market。看英英解释：a small area of trade within the economy, often involving specialized products。improve its margins也就是increase profits，选D。

第三题，说Flacks可能需要改变它的一个设备的功能。这里答案不是太明显，是C段 的这么一句：They should also consider refocusing production by using their UK factory for high-specification products。他们也需要考虑通过利用英国工厂生产高规格产品来调整生产焦 点。也就是说，英国工厂原来不是生产高规格产品的，即题目说的改变它的一个设备的功能。 第四题，说Flacks可以利用现有的技能来进入一个新的市场。答案是A段的这么一句： They need to move into a more promising market, one where demand is growing and where the company can exploit existing skills and contacts。他们需要进入一个更有发展前景的市场，一 个需求增长并且公司可以利用现有技能和合同的市场。exploit existing skills也就是utilise its current expertise。

第五题，说Flacks可以考虑关闭现有的生产设备。这题也有些隐晦，答案是这么一句： think about outsourcing all this work abroad。关键就在于outsource这个词的意思：turn to outside suppliers or manufacturers外购。既然是要考虑outsource——turn to outside manufactures，那么也就是可以考虑关闭自己的生产设备了。选B。

第六题，说Flacks应该考虑发展同领先的连锁商已经建立起来的关系。答案在C段： build on their relationships with the big stores发展他们同大商店的关系。

第七题，说扩展产品范围对劳动力来讲不是问题。答案在A段：They could think about brand extension - this would not be a giant leap and the sales force would take it in its stride.他们 可以考虑品牌扩张——这不是一个巨大的跳跃，在销售力量的步调范围之内。言下之意，不 是问题。选A。

PART TWO

Evaluating the performance of the board

Few employees escape the annual or twice-yearly performance review. (0) .....G......The answer is not a great number. And the smaller the company, the fewer checks there are on how well the

directors are doing. Some of the largest companies formally assess the performance of their board, but very few new or growing companies have managed to get round to establishing any such procedure.

Many business experts believe, however, that it is important for all companies to review the

performance of the board. (8) .............Another reason is that the board itself needs information on how well it is doing, just as much as other employees do. For the chief executive, appraisal of some sort is absolutely essential for his or her own sake and for the good of the company. Indeed, many of those who have reached this level remark on how lonely the job of chief executive is and how few opportunities they get to discuss issues relating to it.

There is some evidence to show that once smaller companies put a board appraisal process in place, they find this process relatively easy to operate. (9) .............Their counterparts in larger organisations, however, are often afraid that appraisals could be a challenge to their status.

So, how should companies assess their board? (10) .............At a very basic level,this could simply mean getting all the directors to write down what they have achieved and how they can improve on it. At the other end of the scale is the full '360-degree' appraisal. Here, each director is appraised in a systematic manner by a combination of the chairman and fellow directors. In the largest companies there are many methods for assessing the board. A number of such companies have self-assessment schemes. The chairman may meet each board member

individually to ask how things are going, in a fairly informal way. The whole board might also meet to talk about its progress in open session. (11).............These might ask for people's opinions on the board's main tasks or on how well the committees are working.

Research indicates there has been some improvement in the way the appraisal of board members is conducted. (12) .............The chairman will have been involved directly or indirectly in the appraisal of all members of the board. Whose job is it, then, to appraise the chairman?

A It is often the case that the directors of such companies are even happy to receive criticism, as this can prevent them from making basic mistakes.

B The rest of the workforce sees it as unfair if the directors are the only members of the company to escape appraisal.

C These are encouraging as they put a limit on the power of the chairman to assess fellow directors.

D Alternatively, questionnaires might be distributed to directors, forming the basis for future discussion.

E One issue remains, however, when all the others have been dealt with.

F It is generally agreed that it is the chairman's responsibility to ensure the regular appraisal of each member of the board.

G However, one wonders how many companies have in place a formal appraisal process for their board of directors.

《Evaluating the performance of the board》，评估董事局的表现。众所周知一个公司里面 是经常对员工的表现进行评估的，那么谁又来评估董事局的表现呢？这篇文章讲了对董事局 表现进行评估的重要性和一些方法。

第八题，前面说对董事局的表现进行评估是很重要的。空格后面的句子中有another

reason，可见这个第八空应该填入对董事局表现进行评估原因的句子。B符合这一特点，为 什么要进行评估，因为“如果决策层是公司唯一逃避评估的成员的话，其他的员工会视之为 不公平。”

第九题，前面说小公司会发现这种评估过程更容易操作。空格后面一个however，说大 公司的决策层会认为评估是对他们地位的一种挑战。可见这个空格应该填入表示小公司愿意 接受评估的句子。A符合这一特点：通常这些公司的决策层会很乐意接受批评，因为这可以 防止他们犯错误。这里的such companies是个暗示，可以和前面的smaller companies对应上。 第十题，前面问怎样对公司的董事局进行评估。那么很明显，后面跟的句子应该和评估 的方式方法有关。符合这一标准的只有F：一般认为确保对董事局里每个成员的定期评估是 主席的责任。也就是说是依赖于主席进行评估。responsibility是个关键词。

第十一题。第五段依然是讲评估的方法，具体的过程。空格的前面说主席可以单独会见 董事局的每一个成员，或者是集体在一起谈话。空格后面说这些可以询问人们关于董事局主 要任务以及委员会的工作进展情况的意见。ask for people’s opinion是个关键点，什么可以询

问人们的观点？调查。选D，questionnaires是个关键的暗示：或者，也许可以给经理们分发 调查问卷，形成未来讨论的基础。

第十二题，这一空前面说有调查显示对董事局成员进行评估的方法有所改善。空格后面 来了一个疑问，提出没有人评估主席。可见第十二题有转折的意思，选E，有关键的连词 however,而且E的one issue remains，正好对应最后一段最后一句话的一个问题。内容上也 吻合。

PART three

Evaluating the performance of the board

Few employees escape the annual or twice-yearly performance review. (0) .....G......The answer is not a great number. And the smaller the company, the fewer checks there are on how well the

directors are doing. Some of the largest companies formally assess the performance of their board, but very few new or growing companies have managed to get round to establishing any such procedure.

Many business experts believe, however, that it is important for all companies to review the

performance of the board. (8) .............Another reason is that the board itself needs information on how well it is doing, just as much as other employees do. For the chief executive, appraisal of some sort is absolutely essential for his or her own sake and for the good of the company. Indeed, many of those who have reached this level remark on how lonely the job of chief executive is and how few opportunities they get to discuss issues relating to it.

There is some evidence to show that once smaller companies put a board appraisal process in place, they find this process relatively easy to operate. (9) .............Their counterparts in larger organisations, however, are often afraid that appraisals could be a challenge to their status.

So, how should companies assess their board? (10) .............At a very basic level,this could simply mean getting all the directors to write down what they have achieved and how they can improve on it. At the other end of the scale is the full '360-degree' appraisal. Here, each director is appraised in a systematic manner by a combination of the chairman and fellow directors. In the largest companies there are many methods for assessing the board. A number of such companies have self-assessment schemes. The chairman may meet each board member

individually to ask how things are going, in a fairly informal way. The whole board might also meet to talk about its progress in open session. (11).............These might ask for people's opinions on the board's main tasks or on how well the committees are working.

Research indicates there has been some improvement in the way the appraisal of board members is conducted. (12) .............The chairman will have been involved directly or indirectly in the appraisal of all members of the board. Whose job is it, then, to appraise the chairman?

A It is often the case that the directors of such companies are even happy to receive criticism, as this can prevent them from making basic mistakes.

B The rest of the workforce sees it as unfair if the directors are the only members of the company to escape appraisal.

C These are encouraging as they put a limit on the power of the chairman to assess fellow directors.

D Alternatively, questionnaires might be distributed to directors, forming the basis for future discussion.

E One issue remains, however, when all the others have been dealt with.

F It is generally agreed that it is the chairman's responsibility to ensure the regular appraisal of each member of the board.

G However, one wonders how many companies have in place a formal appraisal process for their board of directors.

《Evaluating the performance of the board》，评估董事局的表现。众所周知一个公司里面 是经常对员工的表现进行评估的，那么谁又来评估董事局的表现呢？这篇文章讲了对董事局 表现进行评估的重要性和一些方法。