BEC Exam Part 2 Sample Answers
Cambridge Business English Certificate Speaking Test
Topic A: Quality control
The importance to a company of monitoring the quality of its goods and services
Topic B: Information management
How to ensure that information is managed effectively within a company
Topic C: Financial planning
The factors involved in deciding on appropriate pricing strategies.
Source: Cambridge BEC 4
BEC Exam Questions & Answers
1 Minute Talk Topic A: Quality Control
The quality of goods and service delivered by a company is critical to its success. Consumers are much more aware now than ever before and better informed through social media and the internet about brands, products and services. A company delivering less than satisfactory services or products that disappoint will find that consumers are all too ready to comment on their negative experience across various social platforms. This can do irreparable damage to the brand reputation of a company very quickly.
Competition also plays a large part in the need to ensure that services and products are of excellent quality. Many enterprises now operate in a global marketplace and this means it is even more difficult to distinguish themselves, their offer, and develop a competitive advantage. Large marketing budgets will be investment wasted if the services and products do not come up to scratch and the expectations of the end users.
Investing in quality at almost all levels has been shown to pay dividends in the long run for every company. Most businesses are interested in developing long term relationships with their customers or clients and this requires effort and investment in quality. Those businesses that adopt the ‘one hit’ approach to their customers more often than not fall by the wayside after a relatively short time. Those that build on solid foundations are the companies that will still be with us in the future.
1 Minute Talk Topic B: Information Management
The effective and efficient management of information and data within a company is a key function and normally falls under the responsibility of the IT department. Various aspects need to be considered in the overall management plan for information such as internal and external communication, data protection, availability of information and data, and also maintaining the integrity of any stored data.
Like most management, information or data management requires well documented processes and protocols along with the necessary hardware and software in order to carry them out. The information management infrastructure may be quite simple in a small to medium sized enterprise but extremely complex in a large or multinational organization. This will normally require a team of dedicated IT professionals to make sure that all data is processed, stored and distributed correctly, timely, and only to those authorized to use it.
The latest developments in technology have allowed many smaller enterprises to access much more advanced data management systems through cloud computing solutions and outsourcing options. The amount of data used, held and maintained by most companies is much larger than in the past as more and more data is collected to support analysis of markets, data related to performance and quality, and customer feedback. Corporate information could also include all online content and sites such as the company website, blog and social media presence which all need to be included in any management plan.
Ensuring the effective use of all this data requires those who need it to know what is available and how to access it, and for those that are managing it to make it available, maintain it and protect it at all times.
1 Minute Talk Topic C: Financial Planning
Typically, a company will price its products or services to be competitive if they are active in a market sector with a lot of similar companies. Some manufacturers that operate in markets where competition is less intense or does not exist, which is rare, may choose to price their offerings to reflect a perceived value rather than the actual cost of production plus a markup.
A cost analysis of raw material and components required for each product along with the cost of producing it should give an accurate value which can then have a profit margin added to it. How much margin is added will depend on the type of business, the intensity of the market and largely on the volume of sales expected. A higher sales volume allows for a smaller margin as opposed to a low volume sales product which would typically carry a bigger margin per unit.
Many businesses price their products or services based on their business and marketing plans, and indeed, some are prepared to sustain a defined level of loss on some product lines if it serves a longer term purpose such as acquiring a larger market share for the benefit of other product lines or building brand loyalty.
Pricing policy will depend on many factors which are market driven, but also others which are unique to each enterprise and based on their view of the market they operate in and their business goals in the short, medium and long term.
