Questions 23 to 30.
You will hear an insurance salesman, Dan, talking to a friend, Helen, about the appraisal interview be has just had.
For each question 23-30, mark one letter (A, B or C) for the correct answer.
After you have listened once, replay the recording.
You have forty-five seconds to read through the questions.
[pause]
Now listen, and mark A, B or C.
[pause]
Woman: Hey Dan. How did the appraisal go?
Man: Oh, it was pretty good thanks. Carol - she's my line manager - seemed to know me better than I knew myself, and she really helped me to identify strengths and weaknesses I didn't know I had. I'd thought we were just going to talk about practical things, like what my prospects are for promotion, rather than my psychology!
Woman: Do you want a promotion? I thought you'd chosen to go down a grade when you took this job.
Man: That's right. I used to manage a sales team. It meant working long hours, and it could be pretty difficult at times, though on the whole I enjoyed the challenge. But it kept me at a distance from customers and I wanted to go back to that. So here I am, a sales rep again. I'd be interested in promotion if it didn't stop me doing the fun parts of the job.
Woman: How have people reacted to your taking a step down?
Man: Most of the people in my last company found it strange, but in fact a couple of them thought about changing to this company too, though it didn't come to anything. There seems to be a rumour going around that I'll be looking for something better soon, but actually I'm pretty happy here.
Woman: You certainly seem to be good at the job.
Man: To be honest, with all the new insurance products coming out it isn't easy to keep up with them all. I have to struggle to remember everything that's available. At least working with a computer comes fairly natural to me, so that saves time.
Woman: I'm glad I don't have to deal with customers the way you do. I haven't got the patience.
Man: You certainly need that sometimes, when someone spends ages making up their mind, but I don't find it a problem. And I don't mind explaining complicated policies in simple language: it's quite a challenge. But there are some people I'd much rather avoid. Unfortunately in this job, you've got to make everyone feel you really enjoy their company.
Woman: Quite frankly, the less I have to do with them the better!
Man: I tell you what though - in my appraisal I suggested some changes to the way I work. I couldn't persuade Carol to let me work fewer evenings and more on Saturdays, but at least I won't have to come into the office every day: she's letting me work from home instead. And that'll mean I'll waste less time travelling, so I should be able to make more commission, which will be a relief, as the basic salary's so low.
Woman: Good for you.
Man: We also talked about an idea I have for increasing sales, which she'll put to the senior managers. The company's spending much more on advertising now, so the name's more recognisable, but I suspect it doesn't lead directly to more business. Now that sales reps are allowed to travel anywhere in the country, incentives should be ~offered to existing customers to introduce new ones. It's the personal contact that counts.
Woman: So with your management experience, you must be in good position to judge your own line manager. What do you think of her skills?
Man: She'll always make time to listen to anyone in the team who wants to talk to her, and that's a plus. On the other hand, I've never known her to be ready for a meeting, even when she's called it herself, which isn't a very good model for the department. And it's really left up to us to motivate ourselves.
Woman: Well, I'm pleased your interview seems to have gone well.
[pause]
Now listen to the recording again.
[pause]
That is the end of Part Three. You now have ten minutes to transfer your answers to your Answer Sheet.
[pause]
Note: Teacher, stop the recording here and time ten minutes. Remind students when there is one minute remaining.
That is the end of the test.
