Business English Classes

Course Overview - English for Meetings

Unit 1: Arranging Meetings

Goal: Develop the language and strategies to arrange, confirm, or reschedule meetings with confidence.

Focus: Learn to suggest times, accept or decline invitations politely, and confirm meeting details. Special attention is given to email style—formal vs. informal—and to understanding cultural differences in using first names.

Unit 2: Starting the Meeting

Goal: Gain the skills to open meetings smoothly, make introductions, and build rapport through small talk.

Focus: Practice setting objectives clearly, understanding the chairperson’s role, and preparing effective agendas. Learn techniques for small talk to create a welcoming atmosphere and establish positive connections.

Unit 3: Sharing Ideas and Managing the Discussion

Goal: Develop language for reporting progress, making points clearly, and handling interruptions politely.
Focus: Practice interrupting and responding to interruptions, asking for clarification, and explaining cause and effect. Includes strategies for participating effectively in video conferences.

Unit 4: Expressing Opinions and Handling Disagreement

Goal: Build confidence in contributing ideas, agreeing and disagreeing diplomatically, and resolving differences.
Focus: Learn to ask for input, express opinions with the right level of strength, and use polite language for disagreement and criticism. Explore strategies for conflict resolution and cultural differences in expressing disagreement.

Unit 5: Negotiating and Reaching Agreement

Goal: Strengthen your ability to negotiate, respond to offers, and guide a group toward decisions.
Focus: Practice responding to proposals, buying time, voting, and summarizing outcomes. Learn useful conditional structures for discussing possibilities. The unit also highlights intercultural approaches to negotiation and decision-making.

Unit 6: Closing Meetings and Following Up

Goal: Learn to conclude meetings clearly and professionally, while ensuring next steps are understood.Focus: Practice confirming action points, writing effective follow-up emails, and closing conversations appropriately. Explore cultural norms in mixing business with social activities, with examples from China, Japan, Britain, and the US.

Goal: Learn to conclude meetings clearly and professionally, while ensuring next steps are understood.Focus: Practice confirming action points, writing effective follow-up emails, and closing conversations appropriately. Explore cultural norms in mixing business with social activities, with examples from China, Japan, Britain, and the US.