出自:国家开放大学英语机考
It.s no secret that good leaders are also good communicators. Indeed, communication and leadership are inextricably tied. How can you galvanize, inspire or guide others if you don.t communicate in a clear, credible and authentic way? Here are 5 essential communication practices of effective leaders: 1. Mind the say-do gap. Trust is the bedrock of effective leadership – your behavior is your single greatest mode of communication, and it must be congruent with what you say. If your actions don.t align with your words, you are storing up trouble for the future. 2. Make the complex simple. Effective leaders distill complex thoughts and strategies into simple, memorable terms that colleagues and customers can grasp and act upon. The most important thing is to clarify what you want to say, look out for technical jargon and avoid business speak, which add complexity. Say what you mean in as few words as possible. 3. Find your own voice. Use language that.s distinctly your own; let your values come through in your communication. Correct use of language and grammar are important, of course, but don.t become overly fixated on eloquence for eloquence.s sake; concentrate on being distinct and real. People want real, people respect real, people follow real. 4. Be visible.Visibility is about letting your key stakeholders get a feel for who you are and what you care about. Don.t hide behind a computer and only interact with people electronically—see them face to face and voice to voice, and interact with them in a real, substantial way. In today.s environment, where people are often burned out, it.s important for employees to have a personal connection with you and the work you believe in. Show the people that work for you that you.re engaged and that you care about them and their work. 5. Listen with your eyes as well as your ears. Effective communication is a two-way process, and good leaders know how to ask good questions, and then listen with both their eyes and their ears. Because you are in a position of authority, others may be reluctant to express their real opinions to you directly. You won.t always get direct feedback, so you need to also be able to read between the lines and look for the non-verbal cues.
1-1、Communication and leadership don’t always go hand in hand.
A、√
B、×
How to Adapt to Change in the Workplace If there.s one word that captures the essence of what is occurring in the world today, it.s “change.” Downsizing, reorganizing, and cutting costs, are now the norm for survival. No industry is exempt. Even the most conservative institutions are undergoing significant change just to survive. Change management has always been an issue of debate amongst scholars: how can employers create suitable conditions for a successful change process? And what can employees do to get through it? Tips for dealing with change in the workplace. * Make yourself aware that change happens: it happens in personal life, it happens in your professional life. You cannot live in the past, so denying that change could occur only makes things more complicated for you. * Stay alert in the workplace: know what is happening around you. When you come across clues that hint change is on the way, acknowledge them! * Maintain open communication channels: Don.t lay back and expect things to pass you by smoothly. You need to get acquainted with the occurring changes. Seek more details from your management and peers to form an accurate understanding of the matter. Be transparent and honest about your fears: dealing with the unknown is often resented and daunting. Make the picture as clear as you can. * Assess yourself: Change is a time when one.s confidence about one.s skills and capabilities gets shaky. Recognize your strengths and where you could bring them into play. At the same time, stay aware of your developmental areas and work on improving those. * Don.t be stiff: It will make the change process much harder if you are rigid. Be flexible enough to look at the different angles of the change and see where you could apply your “existing” skills and knowledge, and what new skills you need to acquire. * Stay optimistic: Keep a positive attitude and don.t let yourself drown in uncertainty. Involve yourself in the new process; locate yourself properly in the new scenario. Adjust! “You can.t get to the top of Everest by jumping up the mountain. You get to the mountaintop by taking incremental steps. Step by step, you get to the goal”, says Robin Sharma, one of the world.s most-sought-after leadership and personal success experts.
1-1、What’s the purpose when enterprises carry out downsizing, reorganizing, and cutting costs?
A、To cut down on the number of workers.
B、To reshuffle the organization.
C、To survive.
Jack Welch Leading Organizational Change at GE When Jack Welch, the Chairman and CEO at General Electric (GE) retired in 2001, he could look back at a very successful career. He became CEO in 1981 at the age of 45. At that time, GE had a very complex organizational structure with considerably bureaucratic rules. One of his first changes was to initiate a strategy formulation process with the guideline that each of the businesses should be number 1 or 2 in their respective areas. If this was not the case, managers had the options of fixing the problem, selling their particular business, or closing it. In an effort to streamline the organization, Welch removed the sector level and eliminated thousands of salaried and hourly employee positions. The restructuring was followed by changing the organizational culture and the managerial styles of GE.s managers. One such program was the Work-Out（群策群力）. Groups of managers were assembled to share their views openly in three-day sessions. At the beginning of the meetings, the superior presented the challenges for his or her organizational unit. Then the superior had to leave, requesting the groups to find solutions to the problems. Facilitators (会议主持人) helped these discussions. On the last day, the superior was presented with proposed solutions. He or she then had three choices: to accept the proposal, not to accept it, or to collect more information. This process put great pressure on the superior to make decisions. Another program to improve effectiveness and efficiency was Best Practices. The aim was to learn from other companies how they obtained customer satisfaction, how they related to their suppliers, and in what ways they developed new products. This helped the GE people to focus on the processes in their operations that would improve the company.s performance. Jack Welch was personally involved in developing managers at GE.s training center in Crotonville. Leaders, Welch suggested, are not only those who achieve results but also those who share the values of the company.
1-1、Jack Welch retired at the age of 65.
A、√
B、×
When you think of team building, do you immediately picture your group off at a resort playing games or hanging from ropes? Traditionally, many organizations approach team building in this way but, then, they wonder why that wonderful sense of teamwork that had been displayed at the retreat or the seminar fails to impact long term beliefs and actions back at work. I.m not averse to retreats, planning sessions, seminars, and team building activities – in fact I lead them – but they have to form part of a much larger teamwork effort. You will not build teamwork by “retreating” as a group for a couple of days each year, instead you need to think of team building as something you do every single day. ? Form teams to solve real work issues and to improve real work processes. Provide training in systematic methods so the team expends its energy on the project, not on trying to work out how to work together as a team to approach the problem. ? Hold department meetings to review projects and progress, to obtain broad input, and to coordinate shared work processes. If there is friction between team members, examine the work processes they mutually own – the problem is not usually their personalities; instead, it is often the fact that the team members haven.t agreed on how they will deliver a product or service, or the steps required to get something done. ? Build fun and shared occasions into the organization.s agenda – hold pot luck lunches, take the team to a sporting event, sponsor dinners at a local restaurant, go hiking, or go to an amusement park. Hold a monthly company meeting, sponsor sports teams and encourage cheering team fans. ? Use ice breakers and teamwork exercises at meetings – these help team members get to know each other, share details about each other.s lives, and have a laugh together. ? Celebrate team successes publicly. There are many ways you could do this, for instance by buying everyone the same t-shirt or hat, putting team member names in a draw for company merchandise, and gift certificates. The only thing limiting you is your imagination. If you do the types of teamwork building listed above, you.ll be amazed at the progress you will make in creating a teamwork culture, a culture that enables individuals to contribute more than they ever thought possible – together.
1-1、Team building event is traditionally related to playing games at the resort.
A、√
B、×
Organizational Culture and Its Functions Just as individuals have personalities, so, too, do organizations. Individuals have relatively enduring and stable traits that help us predict their attitudes and behaviors. Organizations, like people, can be characterized as, for example, rigid, friendly, warm, innovative, or conservative. These traits, in turn can be used to predict attitudes and behaviors of the people within these organizations. The culture of any organization, although it may be hard to measure precisely, nevertheless exists and is generally recognized by its employees. Organizations have cultures that govern how members behave. Organizational culture refers to a system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes the organization from other organizations. It is a set of key characteristics that the organization values. There are seven primary characteristics that capture the essence of an organization.s culture. They are: innovation and risk taking, attention to details, outcome orientation people orientation, team orientation, aggressiveness, and stability. Culture performs a number of functions within an organization. First, it creates distinctions between one organization and others. Second, it conveys a sense of identity for organization members. Third, culture facilitates the generation of commitment to something larger than one.s individual self-interest. Fourth, it enhances the stability of the social system. Finally, culture serves as a sensemaking and control mechanism that guides and shapes the attitudes and behaviors of employees. The role of culture in influencing employee behaviors appears to be increasingly important in today.s workplace. Who receives a job offer to join the organization, who is appraised as a high performer, and who gets a promotion are strongly influenced by the individual-organization “fit”.
1-1、How many characteristics does an organization’s culture primarily contain?
A、3.
B、5.
C、7.