1、BEC商务英语（中级）阅读模拟试卷 120及答案与解析 一、 PART ONE 0 Look at the statements below and the article about pricing on the opposite page. Which section(A, B, C or D)does each statement(1-7)refer to? For each statement(1-7), mark one letter(A, B, C or D)on your Answer Sheet. You will need to use some of these lette
2、rs more than once. Getting the price right A Chief executives need to pay more attention to pricing, according to Roberto Lippi of the Apex Group, a consultancy that offers advice on pricing strategy. He accepts that low inflation figures in many industrialised countries makes raising prices tough,
3、but argues that this should not necessarily deter companies. He gives the example of the airlines, which, with their minimum stay requirements and massive premiums for flexibility, led the way in sorting customers into categories, based on their willingness to pay. B The key to pricing is to avoid a
4、lienating customers. As Lippi points out, once a bad price has been established, it can be very difficult to turn the situation around. He gives the example of a consumer goods company that went bankrupt largely because it did not price its digital cameras properly. In contrast, he cites the case of
5、 a Swiss drug company that introduced software for every sales representatives laptop, enabling them to provide consistent and accurate price quotes. To help staff with this innovation, the company also created a new post of director of pricing strategy. C Many of todays managers have the benefit of
6、 modern technology to help them with pricing. Supermarket chains, for example, can easily track customers elasticity - how their buying habits change in response to a price rise or a discount. But although a company can now measure this sort of thing in a more sophisticated way, following basic rule
7、s is still the most common way of setting prices. Most bosses still worry more about their costs than the prices they charge; one recent survey found that they spend as little as 2% of their time on pricing. D One popular approach to pricing is illustrated by the car companies that charge extra for
8、product add-ons such as electric windows, instead of offering them as part of the standard price. Although many customers are prepared to pay extra, Lippi recommends that companies make sure that price differences reflect real differences in the product, either in quality or in the extra service on
9、offer. The worst approach is to try to keep the pricing structure secret from customers. Nowadays, that is more likely to lead to lost contracts than large profits. 1 the failure of a company to set its prices appropriately 2 a context that makes it difficult to increase prices 3 the consequences of
10、 companies trying to conceal their approach to pricing 4 the means by which a company ensured precision in the prices it offered 5 the fact that companies can learn about the effects of a price reduction 6 the first sector to price products according to how much customers were prepared to spend 7 th
11、e widespread use of rough guidelines to determine prices 二、 PART TWO 7 Read the article below about the changing role of human resources departments. Choose the best sentence from the opposite page to fill each of the gaps. For each gap(8-12), mark one letter(A-G)on your Answer Sheet. Do not use any
12、 letter more than once. There is an example at the beginning(0). The best person for the job Employees can make a business succeed or fail, so the people who choose them have a vital role to play Employees are a companys new ideas, its public face and its main asset. Hiring the right people is there
13、fore a significant factor in a companys success. (0)_G_ If the human resources department makes mistakes with hiring, keeping and dismissing staff, a business can disappear overnight. Many companies now realise that recruiting the best recruiters is the key to success. Sarah Choi, Head of HR at Enco
14、 plc, believes that thinking commercially is a key quality in HR. Every decision an HR manager makes needs to be relevant to advancing the business.(8)_ Thats no longer the case. HR managers have to think more strategically these days. They continually need to think about the impact of their decisio
15、ns on the bottom line.(9)_ For example, a chief executive will expect the HR department to advise on everything from the headcount to whether to proceed with an acquisition. Why do people go into HR in the first place? Choi has a ready answer. I think most people in the profession are attracted by a
16、 long-term goal. (10)_ Nothing happens in the company which isnt affected by or doesnt impact on its employees, so the HR department is a crucial part of any business. Not all operational managers agree. An informal survey of attitudes to HR departments that was carried out last year by a leading bu
17、siness journal received comments such as What do they actually contribute?(11)_ As Choi points out, salaries have never been higher and, in addition, HR managers often receive substantial annual bonuses. Despite the financial rewards, HR managers often feel undervalued, and this is a major reason fo
18、r many leaving their jobs.(12)_However, a lack of training and development is a more significant factor. These days, good professional development opportunities are considered an essential part of an attractive package, Choi explains. A But rising levels of remuneration demonstrate that the professi
19、ons growing importance is widely recognised. B At one time, a professional qualification was required in order to progress to the top of HR. C Other departments and senior executives used to see HR managers as having a purely administrative role. D Since its one of the few areas where you can see th
20、e whole operation, it can lead to an influential role on the board. E Being seen as someone who just ticks off other peoples leave and sick days does not help build a sense of loyalty. F They therefore need to be competent in many aspects of a companys operations. G On the other hand, recruiting the
21、 wrong staff can lead to disaster. 三、 PART THREE 12 Read the article below about changing attitudes to creativity in the workplace, and the questions on the opposite page. For each question(13-18), mark one letter(A, B, C or D)on your Answer Sheet. CREATIVITY IN THE WORKPLACE Nowadays, many UK compa
22、nies are striving to be more creative. But according to a recent survey of senior managers, the lack of a can-do mentality amongst employees and an aversion to risk is hindering British business. Many think there is too much focus on delivering results quickly, which leaves insufficient time to thin
23、k creatively. Some complain that a lack of coherent vision on creativity prevents their organisation from being more innovative. Yet while senior managers may regret the lack of creativity, they must take much of the blame for creating the situation. Until recently, successive generations of managem
24、ent ignored innovative ideas from employees. Indeed, new ways of thinking were often regarded as an unwanted distraction, and original thinkers received little support. Despite the fact that many organisations are now taking steps to reorient the business culture to promote creativity, it is not sur
25、prising, given this background, that a creative environment is hard to establish. Another related issue is raised by Katrina Murray, a partner in a management consultancy: While many senior managers still complain about the lack of support for creativity in their organisations, they also fail to app
26、reciate the contribution that they themselves can make. In some companies, there is a perception that only managers at board level can influence the company culture. Murray feels that such organisations are unlikely to change. For her, creative organisations are made up of individuals who believe th
27、ey can dictate their own future. Companies need to be able to spot these individuals and gently encourage them to lead the way It is also necessary for senior managers to reexamine their role. According to Alex Sadowski, an American professor of management science, promoting creativity means re-eval
28、uating most of what we know about management. It means organisations must be prepared to invest in ideas without being sure of the return on that investment. Katrina Murray agrees with this view. Businesses are expert at the measured approach, which involves analysis and risk avoidance. But there is
29、 another approach, which involves intuition and not always looking at the bottom line. What is hard is establishing a working environment in which both these approaches can function simultaneously. Nevertheless, there are some pleasing indicators of progress in this area. Many of the senior managers
30、 interviewed in the survey say their organisations have adopted a number of strategies to encourage individuals to channel their creativity. Among these are giving open and honest feedback, allowing employees the freedom to measure their performance against more flexible goals, and higher toleration
31、 levels of failure. Senior managers also recognise that the way an organisation is led and managed is critical to building a creative environment and that they themselves have an important role to play. But there are some experts who believe an even more fundamental change is needed. Tom Robertson,
32、a professor of creative education, believes that the lack of creativity in companies is a problem that originated in schools and universities. The solution, he says, lies in more enlightened educational policies. There are already signs of this, but creativity is still concentrated in certain sector
33、s, such as pharmaceuticals, advertising and the media. These sectors have always valued creativity, but the real challenge will be to shift some of these sectors practices into more traditional manufacturing and service companies. 13 Many senior managers feel that organisations have difficulties inn
34、ovating because of （ A） a poor level of skills among employees. （ B） an emphasis on rapid achievement. （ C） an increased risk associated with change. （ D） an insistence on a standard company philosophy. 14 According to the writer, many organisations today are （ A） finding it easier to introduce a cr
35、eative approach. （ B） having problems understanding innovation as a concept. （ C） actively developing the conditions for a creative approach. （ D） resisting innovative staff suggestions. 15 In the third paragraph, Katrina Murray expresses the view that （ A） top management must dictate the pace of ch
36、ange. （ B） some employees lack a commitment to change. （ C） most organisations are incapable of bringing about effective change. （ D） some senior managers underestimate the role they can play in achieving change. 16 Alex Sadowski and Katrina Murray agree that to be truly innovative, organisations mu
37、st （ A） invest in the right managers. （ B） place less emphasis on financial considerations. （ C） have a double focus to their policies. （ D） adopt an approach with clearly defined stages. 17 According to the survey, which of the following strategies has been introduced to encourage creativity? （ A）
38、a greater acceptance of error （ B） financial rewards for higher levels of creativity （ C） the introduction of specific performance targets （ D） the promotion of creative individuals to senior posts 18 Tom Robertson believes that, in the future, it will be difficult to achieve （ A） an educational sys
39、tem that encourages creativity. （ B） a combination of practices that promote creativity. （ C） the spread of creativity to a range of businesses. （ D） a greater respect for creativity in pharmaceutical companies. 四、 PART FOUR 18 Read the article below about a companys results. Choose the best word to
40、 fill each gap from A, B, C or D on the opposite page. For each question(19-33), mark one letter(A, B, C or D)on your Answer Sheet. There is an example at the beginning(0). Another successful year The UK-based agricultural and garden equipment group PLT has had another successful year and is looking
41、 forward to the future with(0)_B_ The group, which also has distribution and fuel(19)_has enjoyed record profits for the fifth year in a(20)_. Pre-tax profits for the year (21)_March 31 rose by 24 per cent to 4.2 million. Total group sales(22)_ by five per cent to 155 million, with the agricultural
42、business delivering yet another record(23)_despite the somewhat difficult trading(24)_in the industry. Sales in the garden equipment(25)_ were slow in the early months of the year, but increased dramatically in the final quarter. Chairman Suresh Kumar said, It is my(26)_that we have continued to gro
43、w by(27)_our customers well. I am delighted to(28)_the continued development of our customer(29)_and I would like to thank all our customers for their(30)_.As well as an increase in customers, our staff numbers also continue to grow. During the year, we have taken (31)_58 new employees, so that our
44、total workforce now numbers in excess of 700. All of the staff deserve my praise for their dedication and continued efforts in(32)_these excellent results. The group has proposed a final(33)_of 9.4p per share, bringing the total to 13p for the year. （ A） commitments （ B） interests （ C） responsibilit
45、ies （ D） benefits （ A） row （ B） series （ C） line （ D） sequence （ A） completing （ B） closing （ C） finalising （ D） ending （ A） extended （ B） lifted （ C） expanded （ D） climbed （ A） display （ B） production （ C） performance （ D） demonstration （ A） conditions （ B） features （ C） states （ D） aspects （ A） pa
46、rt （ B） division （ C） component （ D） side （ A） certainty （ B） thought （ C） belief （ D） idea （ A） caring （ B） dealing （ C） providing （ D） treating （ A） inform （ B） notify （ C） comment （ D） report （ A） source （ B） base （ C） foundation （ D） origin （ A） support （ B） favour （ C） assistance （ D） service （
47、 A） up （ B） back （ C） on （ D） over （ A） winning （ B） gaining （ C） achieving （ D） earning （ A） dividend （ B） recompense （ C） return （ D） interest 五、 PART FIVE 33 Read the extract below from a company report.In most of the lines(34-45), there is one extra word. It is either grammatically incorrect or
48、does not fit in with the meaning of the text. Some lines, however, are correct.If a line is correct, write CORRECT on your Answer Sheet.If there is an extra word in the line, write the extra word in CAPITAL LETTERS on your Answer Sheet.The exercise begins with two examples(0 and 00).Summary of annua
49、l progress0 I am pleased to report another year of progress by the company. This00 performance has been achieved in the most toughest market conditions we have34 seen for many years yet. It reflects the effort over the past five years that has35 gone into transforming of our company into a highly competitive world-class36 business. Since 2002, we have managed to improve almost double our profits, and this37 increase in profitability has
