You're listening to Business English Pod, the Business English podcast for professionals on the move.
Welcome back to Business English Pod.
My name's Jennifer and I'll be your host for this lesson, the first in a two-part series on the work of administrative assistants.
We'll be looking at vocabulary and collocations related to office duties and daily routines.
Before we start let's talk a bit about collocations.
Collocations are groups of words that are commonly used together.
Native speakers are so used to using them, they know what sounds right and what sounds wrong.
For example, in English, the phrase go online is a natural way to refer to using the internet.
But it wouldn't be natural to say something like proceed online or travel online, even though proceed and travel are other ways to express go.
You'll hear lots of collocations related to office life in today's dialogue.
Listen out for them and we'll explain what they mean and how to use them in the debrief.
Now, onto the role of an administrative assistant.
The job title of administrative assistant, or admin assistant for short, can cover quite a broad range of responsibilities.
Admin assistants typically spend a lot of time handling data, whether it's timesheets recording the working hours of other employees or rosters used for scheduling meeting rooms.
Much of what they do involves making sure that other employees are working as efficiently as possible.
In this episode, we'll talk with Christina, who works as an admin assistant in the human resources department of an auto parts manufacturer.
Christina is going to tell us about some of the responsibilities of her position.
As you listen to the interview, try to answer the following questions.
2.
How many employees are on the sales team?
3.
When is the deadline for personal leave day requests?
Christina, you're currently the Head Administrative Assistant in the Human Resources Department of Lafarge Automotive.
What's a typical workday like for you?
For me, a run-of-the-mill day might involve a lot of different projects.
Some are small.
For example, my first task every day is to check my email to see if anyone has called in sick.
Then I let their supervisors know.
That only takes a few minutes.
Hmm.
Still, a very important task, though.
What else do you do each day?
Well, there are some tasks that are more time-consuming.
I spend nearly an hour every afternoon processing expense claims for our sales team, which has over 200 employees.
It's my largest single task, and I normally block out the time between 3 and 4pm to get it done.
Sounds like quite a project.
But I can't imagine that every day is the same old, same old.
What gives you a break in the routine?
There are some recurring tasks that I need to complete on a regular basis, although not every day.
Those projects give my job a kind of rhythm or cycle and make it easier for me to plan my own schedule.
Can you give us an example?
Well, I handle all the requests for personal leave days.
It works like this.
The 25th of each month is our deadline for submitting requests for the following month.
Within a day or two after the 25th.
I need to make sure each employee's request has been cleared with his or her team leader and then get the resulting schedule approved by my own boss, the Director of Human Resources.
Christina's job as an administrative assistant covers a lot of different areas.
While her boss is responsible for setting company policy in the area of human resources, Christina's task is to make sure those policies are carried out.
Listen to what Christina says about a typical day at the office.
For me, a run-of-the-mill day might involve a lot of different projects.
Some are small.
For example, my first task every day is to check my email to see if anyone has called in sick.
Then I let their supervisors know.
That only takes a few minutes.
She begins by describing a run-of-the-mill day, one where nothing special or out of the ordinary happens.
This expression, run of the mill, can be applied to anything routine or typical of its kind.
Listen to how it's used in a few other examples.
The samples from that vendor are just run of the mill.
We can't justify paying a premium price for ordinary product.
So far, I've received mostly run of the mill job offers.
I'm hoping to find something that offers more excitement.
What else does Christina say about her typical day?
Well, there are some tasks that are more time consuming.
Christina explains that some of her duties don't take too long, but others are time consuming.
This just means they take a long time to complete, and in some cases it means they're pretty boring as well.
What are some other ways we can use time-consuming?
I've found that calculating my taxes has become much more time-consuming since I started my own business.
Applying for a driver's licence can be very time-consuming in some countries.
Next, Christina gives some more details.
I spend nearly an hour every afternoon processing expense claims for our sales team, which has over 200 employees.
A claim is a request for payment or repayment.
In this case, Christina is talking about expense claims or requests by employees to be paid back for money they've spent on behalf of Lafarge.
In English we often use the collocation process a claim to describe the work involved in examining and approving a request for payment, so this collocation is fairly common in a business setting.
Let's try it in some other contexts.
The insurance company was very slow to process our claim and we waited for months before we received payment.
The accountant who processed Jimmy's expense claim rejected several items as not being work related.
How does Christina make time for a time-consuming task like this?
It's my largest single task and I normally block out the time between 3 and 4pm to get it done.
When Christina has a large project in front of her, it may be a challenge to work on it efficiently, especially since admin assistants constantly face other demands on their time.
By blocking out a period of time, Christina reserves that period for doing nothing except the sales team's expenses, and she does her best to make sure that she isn't interrupted while she's working.
Now see how this expression is used in the following sentences.
The finance department blocks out the first two weeks of November to prepare year-end accounts.
Harold's team has blocked out this afternoon for a training session, so they won't be available for one-on-one meetings.
Next the interviewer asks about some not-so-typical tasks.
Sounds like quite a project, but I can't imagine that every day is the same old, same old.
What gives you a break in the routine?
The interviewer doubts that Christina's workday is always the same old, same old.
This would mean that nothing ever changed and it would be terribly boring for her.
So he asks what gives her a break in her routine.
In other words, what are some tasks that add variety to her job?
We can use this phrase as a noun a break in the routine, or we can use it as a verb to break the routine.
Let's run through some examples of both types of usage.
Handling the phones while the receptionist was out sick gave me a break in my routine.
It was fun talking to people all day.
I need a break in my routine.
Every day is the same thing.
So, what does give Christina a break in her routine?
There are some recurring tasks that I need to complete on a regular basis, although not every day.
Those projects give my job a kind of rhythm or cycle and make it easier for me to plan my own schedule.
A recurring task, issue or event is one that occurs repeatedly, sometimes on a predictable schedule, but sometimes not.
Here are a few other ways to use this term.
The operating budget includes line items for large recurring expenses such as rent and utilities.
Regular clients provide a source of recurring income that allows her business to continue during the slow season.
At most companies, many recurring tasks will happen once a month or once a year.
Christina gives us an example of one task that she addresses towards the end of each month.
Well, I handle all the requests for personal leave days.
It works like this.
The 25th of each month is our deadline for submitting requests for the following month.
A personal leave day, or just a personal day, is a day that an employee is permitted to take off work for no specific reason, unlike a scheduled holiday or a sick day.
Most companies allow staff to take a specific number of personal days off each year.
We encourage our staff to take personal days in the middle of the week, wherever possible, to reduce the disruption to our operations.
Ivan took a couple of personal leave days to spend time with his niece, who's visiting from Germany.
Part of Christina's job is to make sure that employees' personal days are scheduled in a way that lets the company keep running smoothly.
Here's how she describes the first step.
Within a day or two after the 25th.
I need to make sure each employee's request has been cleared with his or her team leader.
To clear something with someone means to get someone's approval or authorisation, usually as part of a formal process within a company or organisation.
We had hoped to reassign some of the domestic marketing team to support our export business, but we weren't able to clear this idea with senior management.
Sales of new drugs in this market need to be cleared with the authorities at both local and national levels.
Now it's your turn to practice.
First, let's review some collocations we've covered today.
In a few moments, you'll hear a series of sentences with a word blanked out or replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence saying the missing word in its correct form.
For example, if you hear... You can say...
We should try to process Melissa's claim for reimbursement as soon as possible.
We'll play an example answer after each practice.
Ready?
Let's give it a go.
You may want to This purchase with the finance chief before you go ahead.
Answer.
You may want to clear this purchase with the finance chief before you go ahead.
Answer.
Handling sales calls is a nice break in my routine.
I plan to... out sometime in April to work on the annual report.
Answer.
I plan to block out sometime in April to work on the annual report.
How many personal...
Answer.
How many personal leave days do you have this year?
Now we'll use the same method to review today's key vocabulary.
You'll hear a series of sentences with a word replaced with a beep.
Repeat the whole sentence saying the missing word.
Cash flow problems can be a issue for businesses with limited credit.
Answer.
Cash flow problems can be a recurring issue for businesses with limited credit.
There's nothing new since you left for vacation.
It's been the same old... Answer.
There's nothing new since you left for vacation.
It's been the same old, same old. to be worthwhile?
Answer.
We've found that training short-term staff is usually too time-consuming to be worthwhile.
To deal with run of the server problems, we probably don't need a trained IT specialist.
Answer.
To deal with run-of-the-mill server problems, we probably don't need a trained IT specialist.
Be sure to listen next time when we'll hear more about Christina, her job and what makes her work so important.
Thanks for listening and see you next time.
