2018年BEC剑桥商务英语中级试题（9）

2018年BEC剑桥商务英语中级试题（9）

　　1 This businessman has successfully targeted a different group of consumers.

　　2 With careful forward planning, this businessman is helping the company survive a difficult period.

　　3 The company is now more open to change because of this businessman's way of thinking.

　　4 This businessman has made and implemented certain decisions despite opposition to them.

　　5 This businessman has achieved some success by misleading people about his intentions.

　　6 The abilities of this businessman were previously doubted by the company that employs him.

　　7 This businessman is admired for his ability to manage a number of business interests.

　　'Businessman of the Year' Award

　　A James King: Chief Executive of Fentons Finance

　　King was nominated for the quality of his leadership, with the judges claiming that the Fentons Finance boss is almost revered by his team. He is credited with reinventing Fentons Finance - revitalising its culture of inflexibility, removing outdated pre-merger barriers and playing a brilliant tactical game. He led everyone to believe he was opposed to large mergers and then jumped on the Westcombe Bank opportunity at just the right moment. History will be the judge, but for now the markets consider King to be a star.

　　B Keith Nash: Chief Executive of Hamley's Supermarkets

　　Nash took over as CEO when Hamley's systems and distribution were out of date and the brand badly needed freshening up. He began refocusing the brand at the higher quality end of the food market and launched several own-brand initiatives for the health conscious. As a result, the share price has gone up nearly 80 per cent. This should be extremely satisfying for Nash, who had left the retailer in 1986, disappointed after failing to secure the top job.

　　C Jorge Marquez: Chairman of the Kenwick Group

　　Marquez was a popular choice for his achievements at Kenwick. The judges say he has been courageous in pushing through the appointment of controversial or inexperienced chief executives to companies within the group, and then sponsoring them as they transformed their businesses. He operates as a 'virtual' chairman, without a permanent office in any one company. He phones his CEOs regularly, and several of them have acknowledged the vital contribution he makes to their effectiveness. Everyone is impressed at how he also finds the time to be chairman of two other large companies.

　　D Richard Jenkins: Finance Director of Centron Advertising

　　Labouring in the shadow of a high-profile boss can sometimes draw attention away from the finance director, and the judges considered it was high time Jenkins got that attention. The CEO may be the public face of Centron, but Jenkins is the one who makes it run smoothly. Behind the scenes, he is constantly demonstrating that budgets and forecasts are what is needed to make a company successful, particularly now that the advertising market has been hit by recession. It is largely thanks to him that Centron is in much better shape than its rivals.

　　《‘Businessman of the Year' Award》年度企业家奖。分别介绍了这个奖项的四个候选人的英雄事迹。

　　第一题，这个企业家成功的定位了不同的消费群体。答案在B段：He began refocusing the brand at the higher quality end of the food market and launched several own-brand initiatives for the health conscious。他开始将品牌定位在高质量的食品市场并且发起了几项注重健康的自主品牌的运动。Health conscious是指注重健康的。一个是高质量的食品市场，一个是注重健康的，联合起来，就是瞄准了不同的消费市场，即不同的消费群体。

　　第二题，通过小心的前进计划，这个企业家帮助公司度过了一个困难时期。答案是D段的这么一句：budgets and forecasts are what is needed to make a company successful, particularly now that the advertising market has been hit by recession.。预算和预告正是使得公司可以成功的，尤其当现在整个广告市场被衰退袭击的时候。Budgets and forecast就是题干中说的careful forward planning，successful对应于survive，a different period对应于the market has been hit by recession。

　　第三题，因为这个企业家的思维方式，公司对待变化更加开明了。答案是A段的这么一句：He is credited with reinventing Fentons Finance - revitalising its culture of inflexibility。他以重塑了Fentons Finance而受到嘉奖——给了固定守旧的文化以新的生命。more open to change就可以对应于revitalising its culture of inflexibility。revitalising是give new life to的意思。

　　第四题，尽管有反对意见，这个企业家还是制定并执行了某些决定。答案是C段的这么一句：he has been courageous in pushing through the appointment of controversial or inexperienced chief executives to companies within the group在推动某些争议性的或者是经验不足的执行官的任命时他很有勇气。从controversial和courageous可以看出来，这些任命时不完全被接受的，有反对意见(opposition)，但他还是坚持了。

　　第五题，这个企业家通过让人们误会自己的意图而取得某些成功。答案是A段的这么一句：He led everyone to believe he was opposed to large mergers and then jumped on the Westcombe Bank opportunity at just the right moment他让所有人相信他是反对大的并购的，然后在最佳时期跳上Westcombe银行的机会(即收购了这个银行)。let everyone believe，也就是misleading people about his intentions。

　　第六题，这个企业家的能力最初在雇佣他的公司里受到了怀疑。答案是B段最后一句，稍微隐晦点：This should be extremely satisfying for Nash, who had left the retailer in 1986, disappointed after failing to secure the top job.因为无法得到高层的职位而失望离开，结果因为他的决策，公司股价上升了，让他很满足。意思就是本来以这个人的能力是可以胜任高层的工作的，但是他却没有得到。

　　第七题，这个企业家因为处理一些商业利益的能力而受到仰慕。答案在C段。C段最后说这个人在不同的公司担任要职(be chairman)，不同的公司会有商业利益的冲突，而他却能好好处理(manage)，所以答案选C。