English – the international language of business

English is the third most spoken language worldwide and also the international language of business. Chinese is the most spoken language in the world, due to the significant number of speakers who use it. Consequently, it has become vital for people working on an international level to master not only general linguistic skills, but also professional language skills specific to the workplace, such as formal or informal letter and e-mail writing, and the drafting of other standard forms and documents.

Here at Gateway School of English we offer a variety of courses adapted to each and every student’s needs. The group courses are ideal for students who wish to practise their conversational skills with other students, whilst one-to-one lessons are best suited to students who want to work on specific skills, language areas or topics.

At GSE we have a selection of different courses for Business English; you can either:

1. Join a group course – you will be placed in a class with other students who are at the same level. This will give you the opportunity to make conversation with other students, get to know each other and learn from each other’s strong and weak points. Group Courses are available from Pre-Intermediate to Advanced.
2. Take a one-to-one course – this is ideal for students who wish to meet their desired level over a short period of time, or for beginners. You and your teacher can work on specific areas of improvement and tackle the subjects and topics which you require for your line of work.
3. Join a combination course – The best of both worlds! You can have group lessons in the morning and one-to-one lessons in the afternoon. In the morning you will be focussing on general business or general English topics, whilst in the afternoon you can focus on your most desired area. You can choose to have either a Business English or General English group course in the morning. This is an ideal solution for students who wish to improve their conversational skills and advance their level over a short period of time.

We also provide Professional English courses focusing on specific industry-related English, such as Medical English and English for Engineering.

Business Terms:

1. Entrepreneur:   A person who sets up a business, taking personal financial risks with the hopes of making profit.
2. Start-up: Associated with an entrepreneurial or corporate venture of a new business.
3. Business plan: A formal report detailing the goals set for a new business venture, how profitable it will be, how it can be made profitable, feasibility of the business, description of the product or service being provided, etc.…
4. Forecast: Predictions of the future of a business taking into account all aspects of business that may influence change. Most common is the sales forecast, where businesses calculate an estimation prediction of how much sales they can generate over a period of time taking into consideration seasonal highs and lows.
5. Budget: An estimate of the expenditure and income a business will have over a set period of time. The difference to a forecast is that the budget is set after the forecast, as businesses need to determine how much income they will generate into the business and then set a target in their budget.
6. Leverage: Used in business terminology, such as using an asset to the company’s advantage. For example; We leverage our ideal location to attract more students as they will be very close to the town center whilst residing in a safe and quiet residential area.
7. Blue sky thinking: Terminology used at the place of work. It’s a synonym for the phrase “think outside the box” which means “to come up with something unique”.
8. Elevator pitch: This term is mostly used in sales, advertising, public relations, marketing and for start-ups. It is a brief, persuasive and memorable speech one gives when proposing a new business idea or trying to sell a product, idea or a service.
9. Cold Call: When a salesperson calls potential clients without them expecting the call. The main reason for the call is to try and sell a product or service.
10. USP: Unique Selling Proposition: These are aspects of a company which make the business unique and different from other companies, i.e. it distinguishes the company. For example: GSE’s USP is that all our teachers are native and they provide individual attention to each and every student.