ENGLISH FOR PUBLIC

ADMINISTRATION

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1. ROLE AND SCOPE OF PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION IN SOCIETY.............................................................4
2. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION...........................................................7
3. MANAGEMENT......................................................................................................................................................9
4. PUBLIC MANAGEMENT....................................................................................................................................11
5. STRATEGIC PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT............................................................................................11
6. . HUMAN RESOURCES IN ADMINISTRATION.............................................................................................13
7. CV’S AND LETTER OF APPLICATIONS........................................................................................................14
8. THE INTERVIEW.................................................................................................................................................16
Reading...............................................................................................................................................................16
APPENDIX – LIST OF IRREGULAR VERBS.........................................................................................................35
APPENDIX: SUGGESTED BIBLIOGRAPHY.........................................................................................................43
FURTHER LANGUAGE STUDY..............................................................................................................................43
9.
FUNCTIONS.................................................................................................................................................................5
2. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION...........................................................7
3. MANAGEMENT......................................................................................................................................................9
4. PUBLIC MANAGEMENT....................................................................................................................................11
6. HUMAN RESOURCES IN ADMINISTRATION...............................................................................................13
7. CV’S AND LETTER OF APPLICATIONS........................................................................................................14
8. THE INTERVIEW.................................................................................................................................................16
Reading...............................................................................................................................................................16
9. ETHICS IN PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION.........................................................................................................17
10. PUBLIC BUDGETING AND FINANCIAL ADMINISTRATION..................................................................18
11. BUREAUCRACY.................................................................................................................................................19
12. NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.....................................................................................................................20
13. NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS................................................................................................21
14. ADMINISTRATIVE LAW...................................................................................................................................22
15. PUBLIC POLICY.................................................................................................................................................23
16. THE EUROPEAN UNION..................................................................................................................................24
THE EUROPEAN UNION (EU) IS A POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC COMMUNITY OF TWENTY-SEVEN
MEMBER STATES, LOCATED PRIMARILY IN EUROPE. IT WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1993 BY THE
MAASTRICHT TREATY, ADDING NEW AREAS OF POLICY TO THE EXISTING EUROPEAN
COMMUNITY. WITH ALMOST 500 MILLION CITIZENS, THE EU COMBINED GENERATES AN
ESTIMATED 30% SHARE OF THE WORLD'S NOMINAL GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT (US$16.8
TRILLION IN 2007)...................................................................................................................................................24
APPENDIX: SUGGESTED BIBLIOGRAPHY.........................................................................................................26
FURTHER LANGUAGE STUDY..............................................................................................................................26
APPENDIX: EXAMPLE OF AN INFORMAL LETTER / WRITING FORMAL LETTERS / REPORTS
EXAMPLE OF AN INFORMAL LETTER.............................................................................................................27
WRITING LETTERS..................................................................................................................................................32
WRITING REPORTS - TEMPLATE STRUCTURE........................................................................................................32
TYPICAL STRUCTURE TEMPLATE FOR WRITING A REPORT:.......................................................................................32
APPENDIX – LIST OF IRREGULAR VERBS.........................................................................................................35

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APPENDIX: SUGGESTED BIBLIOGRAPHY.........................................................................................................43
Further Language Study 43

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 1. Role and Scope of Public Administration in Society

Public administration can be broadly described as the development, implementation and study of
branches of government policy. The pursuit of the public good by enhancing civil society,
ensuring a well-run, fair, and effective public service are some of the goals of the field. Though
public administration has historically referred to as government management, since the 1990s the
term is sometimes expanded to encompass non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that also
operate with a similar, primary dedication to providing services to the public.
Public administration is carried out by public servants who work in public departments and
agencies, at all levels of government, and perform a wide range of tasks. Public administrators
collect and analyze data (statistics), monitor budgets, draft legislation, develop policy, and
execute legally mandated government activities. Public administrators serve in many roles:
ranging from "front-line" positions serving the public (e.g., parole officers and border guards);
administrators (e.g., auditors); analysts (e.g., policy analysts); and managers and executives of
government branches and agencies.
Public administration is also an academic field. In comparison with related fields such as
political science, public administration is a relatively new, multidisciplinary field which only
emerged in the 19th century. It draws on theories and concepts from economics, political science,
sociology, administrative law, management, and a range of related fields. The goals of the field
of public administration are related to the democratic values of improving equality, justice,
security, efficiency, effectiveness of public services; business administration is primarily
concerned with profit.
In the United States, Woodrow Wilson is considered the father of public administration. He first
formally recognized public administration in an 1887 article entitled "The Study of
Administration." The future president wrote that "it is the object of administrative study to
discover, first, what government can properly and successfully do, and, secondly, how it can do
these proper things with the utmost possible efficiency and at the least possible cost either of
money or of energy."[1] Wilson was more influential to the science of public administration than
Von Stein, primarily due to an article Wilson wrote in 1887 in which he advocated four concepts:
- Separation of politics and administration
- Comparative analysis of political and private organizations
- Improving efficiency with business-like practices and attitudes toward daily operations
- Improving the effectiveness of public service through management and by training civil
servants, merit-based assessment.

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The separation of politics and administration has been the subject of lasting debate. The different
perspectives regarding this dichotomy contribute to differentiating characteristics of the
suggested generations of public administration.
In much the same way “pre-generation” scholars provide a foundation for future governors and
administrators, many seemingly unrelated scholars are important to the developing
organizational theory. Though their respective connections with and relevance to organizational
theory vary, Marx, Weber, Freud, Maslow, and Golembiewsky (Denhardt 104-108) form the
foundation for much of what has become public sector organizational theory.
Karl Marx-”The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles.” (The
Communist Manifesto 1848, 10)
Max Weber-Government merely monopolizes the legitimate use of force in a given area. Weber’s
most famous work was The Protestant Work Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1930).
Sigmund Freud-Subconscious needs and desires are manifest in everyday human activities; The
Interpretation of Dreams (1900).
Abraham Maslow theorized that there is a hierarchy of human needs, each level of which must
be fulfilled before one can effectively ascend to the next level. Toward a Psychology of Being
(1968).

Functions

a. Identifying yourself
Hello, I’m… from…
Hello, my name is…I work for…
Hello, let me introduce myself, I’m…I’m in charge of// I’m responsible for…
Hello, first name+ surname…I’ve got an appointment with…

b. Greetings when you meet someone for the first time

First greeting Reply to the greeting
Neutral How do you do? I’m (very) pleased/ How do you do? It’s (very) nice to meet
delighted to meet you. you too.
It’s (very) nice to meet you. I’m pleased to meet you too.
Informal How do you do? Nice/ good to meet Nice/ good to meet you too.
you.
Hello. Nice to have you with us. Pleased to meet you too.
Hi. Pleased to meet you.

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c. Introducing people
Phrase of introduction Relevant information
Neutral Mr. X, I’d like you to meet Y a colleague of mine.
May I introduce Y
I’d like to introduce Y From…
Our Marketing manager.
Informal Can I introduce He’s with…
This is… A friend of mine.
I want you to meet… He’s over here on business.

d. Greetings

Greeting Follow-up enquiry Specific enquiry

Reply Reply
Hello. How are you? How was your
Very well, Very good.
Hi. How are you doing? holiday?
(Good) How are things? Very
How was the trip?
morning. How have things Not too interesting
How did the meeting
(Good) been? bad. Very well/
go?
afternoon. Is everything okay/ Fine, fine.
How did you enjoy
all right? thank you. Very much.
the film?
How’s everything
going?

Greeting people you see less frequently

You have met them several times before

Neutral I’m very pleased to meet/ see you again.

It’s (very) nice to meet/ see you again.

Informal Good/ nice to see you. Good to meet you again.

Pleased to meet you again.
Great to see you.

2. Information technology and public administration

Consider the following questions:

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 1. Can the full effect of the current information revolution be predicted?
2. Is meeting face-to-face more valuable than corresponding electronically?
3. Is human power able to effectively control the way information technology shapes our
economic and political lives?
Read the text and find an appropriate title for it.
1. There is a big influence of technique on our daily life. Electronic devices, multimedia and
computers are things we have to deal with every day. Especially the Internet is becoming more
and more important for nearly everybody as it is one of the newest and most forward-looking
media and surely “the” medium of the future. The Internet changed our life enormously, there is
no doubt about that. A few years ago, if someone wanted to know about a company’s products,
he would call and say: “Can I have some brochures?” Today, he does it all on the Internet. It’s the
most efficient way to do business.
2. Although no one can predict the full effect of the current information revolution, we can see
changes in our daily lives. The computer is an important component of every modern office.
Companies already present their products, their services on the Internet and so they get more
flexible. Furthermore, they are able to exchange experiences, novelties and often they start new
projects together. They can also add files to their e-mail and that’s why a big data transfer is
possible. They don’t have to send disks with information around the world anymore, having
access to information digitally. Consequently, we may say that especially in the business sector,
knowledge provided by the Internet is power.
3. Another advantage of the Internet is the e-mail that has replaced the traditional letter. You do
not have to buy stamps anymore and it is much faster and also for free. But a question arises
here: is electronic correspondence more valuable than meeting face-to-face? Some neighbours
still stop by when a family crisis strikes but other people offer condolences via e-mail.
Whichever we prefer, the electronic seems to represent the future. The Internet pushes life
beyond the old physical barriers of time and space. Here you can roam around the world without
leaving home. Make new friends. Exchange the results of laboratory with a colleague overseas.
Read stock quotes. Buy clothes.
Research a term paper. Stay out of the office, conducting business via a computer that becomes
your virtual office. Virtual community. Virtual travel. Virtual love. A new reality.
4. One example: for the women staying home and taking care of their own children tele-working
(the work on computer at home) has become a current procedure. Also men take this opportunity.
What are the consequences, the advantages of tele-working? If you have a family, you can spend
more time at home, probably with your children. You can organise every day the way you want.
Meetings at the company are reduced to a minimum. Tele-working is also an advantage for the

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owner of the company. Official studies substantiate that people who work at home are more
motivated than their colleagues at the office.
5. The Internet can also help people who cannot go out to find friends in the real life because
they are disabled. But they can chat with other people via the Internet. Sometimes it is also easier
for shy people to chat with a person they do not know.
6. Additionally, another big advantage of the Internet is the easy access to information. Online
reference books and dictionaries replace the real bookshop or the library. It is again cheaper to
search for information on the Internet than buying a book. The Internet contains a lot of
information which is renewed and up-dated. Moreover, you can read the daily newspapers from
all over the world, sometimes for free. In addition, most newspaper sites have an archive in
which you can search for old articles.
7. The Internet is also a big “advertising company” A lot of enterprises have a homepage with
ads and support opportunities. To stay competitive in international economy corporations must
open themselves to information and new ideas. Issues must be presented quickly with visual
aids.
8. Obviously, technology promises more and more information for less and less effort. As we
hear these promises, we must balance faith in technology with faith in ourselves. Wisdom and
insight often come not from keeping up-to-date or compiling facts, but from quiet reflection.
What we hold most valuable – things like morality and compassion – can be found only within
us. While embracing the future, we can remain loyal to our unchanging humanity.
(Source: text adapted from http://newroom.cisco.com)

(One possible suggestion for the title: The Impact of The Internet on Our Daily Life; can you
find some others?)

Presenting and supporting opinions - asking for opinions

What are your feelings on this?

To one person To a group of people

What are your views on….? Any reaction to that?
What are your feelings about…? Has anybody any strong feeling about /
views on that?
What do you think of ….? What’s the general view on/ feeling about
that?
What’s your opinion about that? Has anybody any comments to make?

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 Giving opinions

Strong Neutral Tentative

I’m sure that I think/ believe that… It seems to me that….
I’m convinced that As I see it…… I’m inclined to think that…
I feel quite sure that From a financial point of My inclination would be
view… to…
It’s perfectly clear to me The way I see it is that…. I tend to favour the view
that… that….

3. Management

1. The Industrial Revolution began in the eighteenth century and transformed the job of manager
from owner-manager to professional, salaried manager. Prior to industrialization, the United
States was predominantly an agricultural society. The production of manufactured goods was
still in the handicraft stage and consisted of household manufacturing, small shops, and local
mills. The inventions, machines, and processes of the Industrial Revolution transformed business
and management. With the industrial innovations in factory-produced goods, transportation, and
distribution, big business came into being. New ideas and techniques were required for managing
these large-scale corporate enterprises.

2. Today, business and management continue to be transformed by high technology. In order to

keep pace with the increased speed and complexity of business, new means of calculating,
sorting and processing information were invented. An interesting description of the modern era is
the Information Age that describes the general use of technology to transmit information.

Managers realized that they could profit from immediate knowledge of relevant information.

3. Organizations are two or more people working together in a structured, formal environment to
achieve common goals. Managers provide guidance, implementation, and coordination so those
organizational goals can be reached. The modern manager coaches employees of the
organization to develop teamwork, which effectively fulfills their needs and achieves
organizational objectives. The traditional autocratic organization with its hierarchical system of
management and an overbearing "boss" that forces performance out of people is no longer
needed. The modern manager provides an atmosphere of empowerment by letting workers make
decisions and inspiring people to boost productivity.

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4. In order to perform the functions of management and to assume multiple roles, managers must
be skilled. Robert Katz identified three managerial skills that are essential to successful
management: technical, human, and conceptual. Technical skill involves process or technique
knowledge and proficiency. Managers use the processes, techniques and tools of a specific area.
Human skill involves the ability to interact effectively with people. Managers interact and
cooperate with employees. Conceptual skill involves the formulation of ideas. Managers
understand abstract relationships, develop ideas, and solve problems creatively. Thus, technical
skill deals with things, human skill concerns people, and conceptual skill has to do with ideas.

4. Public Management
Public management considers that government and non-profit administration resembles private-
sector management in some important ways. As such, there are management tools appropriate in
public and in private domains, tools that maximize efficiency and effectiveness. This contrasts
with the study of public administration, which emphasizes the social and cultural drivers of
government that many contend (e.g. Graham T. Allison and Charles Goodsell) make it different
from the private sector. Study and teaching about public management are widely practiced in
developed nations. Such credentials as the Master of Public Administration degree offer training
decision making relevant to the public good using public infrastructure. The public manager will
deal with critical infrastructure that directly and obviously affects quality of life.
Trust in public managers, and the large sums spent at their behest, make them subject to many
more conflict of interest and ethics guidelines in most nations. Many entities study public
management in particular, in various countries, including:

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In the US, the American Society for Public Administration
In Canada, the Institute of Public Administration of Canada, the Observatoire de l'Administation
publique, and various projects of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and Infrastructure
Canada. In the UK, the UK local democracy project and London Health Observatory
In France, the École nationale d'administration
In Germany, the Hertie School of Governance, Germany's leading professional school for public
policy, as well as Zeppelin University.
Public management compares, through government performance auditing, the efficiency and
effectiveness of two or more governments.

5. Strategic Planning and Management

One interpretation of the major activities in strategic planning activities is that it includes:
1. Strategic Analysis
This activity can include conducting some sort of scan, or review, of the organization's
environment (for example, of the political, social, economic and technical environment).
Planners carefully consider various driving forces in the environment, for example, increasing
competition, changing demographics, etc. Planners also look at the various strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities and threats (an acronym for this activity is SWOT) regarding the
organization.
(Some people take this wide look around after they've identified or updated their mission
statement, vision statement, values statement, etc. These statements are briefly described below.
Other people conduct the analysis before reviewing the statements.)
(Note that in the past, organizations usually referred to the phrase "long-range planning". More
recently, planners use the phrase "strategic planning". This new phrase is meant to capture the
strategic (comprehensive, thoughtful, well-placed) nature of this type of planning.)
2. Setting Strategic Direction
Planners carefully come to conclusions about what the organization must do as a result of
the major issues and opportunities facing the organization. These conclusions include what
overall accomplishments (or strategic goals) the organization should achieve, and the overall
methods (or strategies) to achieve the accomplishments. Goals should be designed and worded as
much as possible to be specific, measurable, acceptable to those working to achieve the goals,
realistic, timely, extending the capabilities of those working to achieve the goals, and rewarding
to them, as well. (An acronym for these criteria is "SMARTER".)

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 At some point in the strategic planning process (sometimes in the activity of setting the
strategic direction), planners usually identify or update what might be called the strategic
"philosophy". This includes identifying or updating the organization's mission, vision and/or
values statements. Mission statements are brief written descriptions of the purpose of the
organization. Mission statements vary in nature from very brief to quite comprehensive, and
including having a specific purpose statement that is part of the overall mission statement. Many
people consider the values statement and vision statement to be part of the mission statement.
New businesses (for-profit or nonprofit) often work with a state agency to formally register their
new business, for example, as a corporation, association, etc. This registration usually includes
declaring a mission statement in their charter (or constitution, articles of incorporation, etc.). It
seems that vision and values statements are increasingly used. Vision statements are usually a
compelling description of how the organization will or should operate at some point in the future
and of how customers or clients are benefitting from the organization's products and services.
Values statements list the overall priorities in how the organization will operate. Some people
focus the values statement on moral values. Moral values are values that suggest overall
priorities in how people ought to act in the world, for example, integrity, honesty, respect, etc.
Other people include operational values which suggest overall priorities for the organization, for
example, to expand market share, increase efficiency, etc. (Some people would claim that these
operational values are really strategic goals. Don't get hung up on wording for now.)
3. Action Planning
Action planning is carefully laying out how the strategic goals will be accomplished.
Action planning often includes specifying objectives, or specific results, with each strategic goal.
Therefore, reaching a strategic goal typically involves accomplishing a set of objectives along
the way in that sense, an objective is still a goal, but on a smaller scale.
Often, each objective is associated with a tactic, which is one of the methods needed to
reach an objective. Therefore, implementing a strategy typically involves implementing a set of
tactics along the way -- in that sense, a tactic is still a strategy, but on a smaller scale.
Action planning also includes specifying responsibilities and timelines with each
objective, or who needs to do what and by when. It should also include methods to monitor and
evaluate the plan, which includes knowing how the organization will know who has done what
and by when. It’s common to develop an annual plan (sometimes called the operational plan or
management plan), which includes the strategic goals, strategies, objectives, responsibilities and
timelines that should be done in the coming year. Often, organizations will develop plans for
each major function, division department, etc., and call these work plans.

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 Usually, budgets are included in the strategic and annual plan, and with work plans.
Budgets specify the money needed for the resources that are necessary to implement the annual
plan. Budgets also depict how the money will be spent, for example, for human resources,
equipment, materials, etc.
(Note there are several different kinds of budgets. Operating budgets are usually budgets
associated with major activities over the coming year. Project budgets are associated with major
projects, for example, constructing a building, developing a new program or product line, etc.
Cash budgets depict where cash will be spent over some near term, for example, over the next
three months (this is very useful in order to know if you can afford bills that must be paid soon.
Capital budgets are associated with operating some major asset, for example, a building,
automobiles, furniture, computers, etc.

6. Human Resources in Administration

Consider the following questions:
1. Where can you find information about job vacancies?
2. What information do companies generally give when they advertise for vacancies?
3. What are the steps that one has to take in order to apply for a job?
4. What are your expectations when looking for a job?
5. Should people accept any employment conditions simply because they are
unemployed? Why?

Writing. Describe your favourite job in approximately 300 words. Give reasons in support of
your choice.
7. CV’s and letter of applications
1. What information do you think you have to give in a curriculum vitae?
2. What is the role of the letter of application?
3. To what extent do the CV and the letter of application represent one’s suitability for a
certain position?
4. What aspects referring to your private life are of real interest to your potential employer?
5. What personal quality do you consider to recommend you as a potential reliable
employee?
The most common contents of a CV include:
Personal Details
Skills and Career Summary
Key Achievements
Qualifications

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Career History
Don't forget: The ultimate test of YOUR CV is whether it meets the needs of the person making the buying decision,
and whether YOU feel comfortable with its content and style.
CURRICULUM VITAE
PERSONAL DETAILS
Name:
Date of birth:
Nationality:
Marital status:
Address:
Telephone:
EDUCATION/QUALIFICATIONS
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE/WORK HISTORY/WORK EXPERIENCE
(you can mention your employment periods either in ascending or in descending order; you may
want to mention outstanding achievements during each period)
ADDITIONAL SKILLS
(mention any training courses or periods of part-time employment that you consider relevant)
INTERESTS
(mention your favourite pastime activities, organisations or associations that you may belong to
especially if they are in a field relevant to the position you are applying for)
REFERENCES
(give two or three names of persons who have known you for some time and can recommend
you for the job)
b) Consider the following advice on writing a letter of application (also called covering letter).
The letter of application introduces you and your CV to a recruitment consultant or potential
employer. Such a letter should contain three distinct parts:
Introduction and statement of source
Statement of relevance to role advertised
Conclusion
Introduction and Statement of Source
The first section should clearly state the source of the advertisement, ie the newspaper
name, Internet or other source, the date that it was advertised, the job number and reference
number, if provided.
Examples of the first paragraph in a letter of application are:

"I am writing to express my interest in applying for the role of Sales Manager, advertised in The Times on 13 May,
2000, Reference number MX/67845."
Or

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"Following our recent conversation, I am writing to express my interest in the position of Architect that was
advertised on your Internet site on 13 February, 2000."

The purpose of this first paragraph is to clearly put you in the running for the job you
have applied for. Busy recruiters recruit a number of positions with similar titles at the same
time, and advertise these on similar dates. The first paragraph should give you a fighting chance
for the job by at least getting your application into the right pile.
Statement of Relevance to Advertised Role
The second section of your letter of application should clarify why you are an appropriate
candidate for this particular job. In preparing to write the second section, you should read the
advertisement clearly and identify the selection criteria articulated in the advertisement. You
should also be guided by conversations that you have had with recruitment consultants or
company recruiters, so that you clearly understand what they think is important in the role. They
often give you extra clues that are not in the advertised media. How you express this section is
up to you. For example, you might be more comfortable with the succinct:
"I believe I am ideally suited to this role because I have over 15 years experience in
sales, tertiary qualifications, managed accounts in excess of Ł10,000 etc, etc"
or you may prefer bullet-point form, for example:
"I believe I am ideally suited to this role because:
I have 15 years experience in sales
I have tertiary qualifications in sales and marketing
I have managed accounts well in excess of Ł10,000"
Concluding Section
In concluding your letter, express your interest in the job and provide any particular
contact details that may be unique, for example:
"I look forward to discussing this application with you in the near future. I can be
contacted on XXX or alternatively, XXX during work hours."
Another example might be:
"I look forward to discussing this application with you in greater detail in the near future
and will be available for interview at a mutually convenient time."
(www.contentmonster.co.uk/Job_hunting)

8. The interview

Consider the following questions:

1. What is the role of the job interview?
2. How much attention should one pay to appearance when attending a job interview?
3. Why is the presence of a psychologist useful in an interviewing team?
4. How can you fight stress during a job interview?
5. What questions do you expect to be asked in a job interview?

Reading

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Job interview Advice
Before your interview, find out everything you can about the company (read their annual
report which can be obtained by telephoning them). Re-read your application, thinking through
your own career and the questions they might ask you. You should try to anticipate the general
questions which they will ask and also prepare some questions to ask them.
To do well at the interview you will need to convince the interviewer you are technically
qualified to do the job. You will also need to show that you are sufficiently motivated to get the
job done well and that you will fit in with the company’s organizational structure and the team in
which you will work.
You should dress smartly for the interview and should leave home earlier than you need
to on the day of the interview – you may be delayed by traffic or for other reasons. Be courteous
to all employees of the company. At the interview itself you must be positive about yourself and
your abilities – but do not waffle.
When you are being interviewed it is very important that you give out the right signals.
You should always look attentive – so do not slouch in your chair. Never lie to anyone in an
interview, your body language and tone of voice or the words you use will probably give you
away – classic body language giveaways include scratching your nose and not looking directly at
the other person when you are speaking to them.
If you have a moustache you may want to consider shaving it off – people with
moustaches can be perceived as being aggressive. You can always grow it again once you have
got the job.
(http://www.contentmonster.co.uk/Job_hunting)

9. Ethics in public administration

Ethics is a branch of philosophy which seeks to address questions about morality, such as what
the fundamental semantic, ontological, and epistemic nature of ethics or morality is (meta-
ethics), how moral values should be determined (normative ethics), how a moral outcome can be
achieved in specific situations (applied ethics), how moral capacity or moral agency develops
and what its nature is.
General business ethics overlaps with the philosophy of business, one of the aims of which is to
determine the fundamental purposes of a company. If a company's main purpose is to maximize
the returns to its shareholders, then it should be seen as unethical for a company to consider the

16
interests and rights of anyone else. General business ethics includes corporate social
responsibility or CSR: an umbrella term under which the ethical rights and duties existing
between companies and society is debated. It also covers issues regarding the moral rights and
duties between a company and its shareholders: fiduciary responsibility, stakeholder concept v.
shareholder concept. Ethical issues concerning relations between different companies: e.g.
hostile take-overs, industrial espionage. Leadership issues: corporate governance. Political
contributions made by corporations. Law reforms, such as the ethical debate over introducing a
crime of corporate manslaughter.
In administration is it called bureaucracy? This is a question that is becoming increasingly
pertinent as the days go by. Has the civil service been able to live up to the expectation of the
people who it was appointed to serve? Has it followed the role that the constitution bestowed
upon it or has it usurped a role for itself, which gives it more powers and privileges and a
redefined value system that is conveniently flexible? The answers to these daunting questions are
depressing. The bureaucracy has more or less failed the people as public servants and has also
failed their political counterparts as straightforward advisers on policy formulation.
Perhaps one most important step to be taken is to view critically the existing relationship
between the policy maker and the policy implementer, i.e., the politician and the civil servant.
Unfortunately, the executive arm follows the diktat, said and unsaid, of the political head. Where
the political head is committed to public welfare and takes to heart the oath he swears to uphold
the provisions of the constitution, the executive arm has no option but to follow suit.
(http://www.boloji.com/opinion/0026.htm)

10. Public budgeting and financial administration

Budget (from French bougette, purse) generally refers to a list of all planned expenses and
revenues. It is a plan for saving and spending. [1]A budget is an important concept in
microeconomics, which uses a budget line to illustrate the trade-offs between two or more goods.
In other terms, a budget is an organizational plan stated in monetary terms.

In summary, the purpose of budgeting is to:

Provide a forecast of revenues and expenditures i.e. construct a model of how our business might
perform financially speaking if certain strategies, events and plans are carried out.
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Enable the actual financial operation of the business to be measured against the forecast.

The process of calculating the costs of starting a small business begins with a list of all necessary
purchases including tangible assets (for example, equipment, inventory) and services (for
example, remodeling, insurance), working capital, sources and collateral. The budget should
contain a narrative explaining how you decided on the amount of this reserve and a description
of the expected financial results of business activities. The assets should be valued with each and
every cost.

The budget of a company is compiled annually. A finished budget usually requires considerable
effort and can be seen as a financial plan for the new financial year. While traditionally the
Finance department compiles the company's budget, modern software allows hundreds or even
thousands of people in various departments (operations, human resources, IT etc) to contribute
their expected revenues and expenses to the final budget.

If the actual numbers delivered through the financial year turn come close to the budget, this
suggests that the managers understand their business and have been successfully driving it in the
intended direction. On the other hand, if the actuals diverge wildly from the budget, this sends an
'out of control' signal, and the share price could suffer as a result.
Other types of budgeting: Event management budget, Government budget, Personal or family
budget.

11. Bureaucracy

Bureaucracy is the structure and set of regulations in place to control activity, usually in large
organizations and government. As opposed to adhocracy, it is represented by standardized
procedure (rule-following) that dictates the execution of most or all processes within the body,
formal division of powers, hierarchy, and relationships. In practice the interpretation and
execution of policy can lead to informal influence.
Bureaucracy is a concept in sociology and political science referring to the way that the
administrative execution and enforcement of legal rules are socially organized. Four structural
concepts are central to any definition of bureaucracy:

18
a well-defined division of administrative labor among persons and offices,
a personnel system with consistent patterns of recruitment and stable linear careers,
a hierarchy among offices, such that the authority and status are differentially distributed among
actors, and
formal and informal networks that connect organizational actors to one another through flows of
information and patterns of cooperation.
Examples of everyday bureaucracies include governments, armed forces, corporations, non-
governmental organizations (NGOs), hospitals, courts, ministries and schools.
Max Weber has probably been one of the most influential users of the word in its social science
sense. He is well-known for his study of bureaucratization of society; many aspects of modern
public administration go back to him; a classic, hierarchically organized civil service of the
continental type is — if perhaps mistakenly — called Weberian civil service several different
years between 1818 and 1860, prior to Weber's birth in 1864.
Weber described the ideal type bureaucracy in positive terms, considering it to be a more rational
and efficient form of organization than the alternatives that preceded it, which he characterized
as charismatic domination and traditional domination. According to his terminology, bureaucracy
is part of legal domination. However, he also emphasized that bureaucracy becomes inefficient
when a decision must be adopted to an individual case.
According to Weber, the attributes of modern bureaucracy include its impersonality,
concentration of the means of administration, a leveling effect on social and economic
differences and implementation of a system of authority that is practically indestructible.
Weber's analysis of bureaucracy concerns:
- the historical and administrative reasons for the process of bureaucratization (especially in
the Western civilisation)
- the impact of the rule of law upon the functioning of bureaucratic organisations
- the typical personal orientation and occupational position of a bureaucratic officials as a status
group
- the most important attributes and consequences of bureaucracy in the modern world

A bureaucratic organization is governed by the following seven principles:

official business is conducted on a continuous basis
official business is conducted with strict accordance to the following rules:
the duty of each official to do certain types of work is delimited in terms of impersonal criteria
the official is given the authority necessary to carry out his assigned functions

19
the means of coercion at his disposal are strictly limited and conditions of their use strictly
defined. Every official's responsibilities and authority are part of a vertical hierarchy of
authority, with respective rights of supervision and appeal
officials do not own the resources necessary for the performance of their assigned functions but
are accountable for their use of these resources
official and private business and income are strictly separated
offices cannot be appropriated by their incumbents (inherited, sold, etc.)
official business is conducted on the basis of written documents

12. Nonprofit organizations

A nonprofit organization (abbreviated NPO, also not-for-profit) is any organization that does not
aim to make a profit, and which is not a public body. Whereas for-profit corporations exist to
earn and distribute taxable business earnings to shareholders, the nonprofit corporation exists
solely to provide programs and services that are of public benefit. Often these programs and
services are not otherwise provided by local, state, or federal entities. While they are able to earn
a profit, more accurately called a surplus, such earnings must be retained by the organization for
its future provision of programs and services. Earnings may not benefit individuals or stake-
holders[1]. Underlying many effective nonprofit endeavors is a commitment to management.
Twenty years ago, management was a dirty word to those involved in nonprofit organizations. It
meant business, and non-profits prided themselves on being free of the taint of commercialism
and above such sordid considerations as the bottom line. Now most of them have learned that
nonprofits need management even more than business does, precisely because they lack the
discipline of the bottom line. The nonprofits are, of course still dedicated to "doing good." But
they also realize that good intentions are no substitute for organization and leadership, for
accountability, performance, and results. Those require management and that, in turn, begins
with the organization's mission.
In the United States one of the largest Non-Profit Organizations is the Bill and Melinda Gates
Foundation, which has an endowment of $38 billion[14], and the Howard Hughes Medical
Institute, which has an endowment of approximately $14.8 billion. Outside the United States,
another large NPO is the British Wellcome Trust, which is a "charity" in British usage. See: List
of wealthiest foundations. Note that this assessment excludes universities, at least a few of which
have assets in the tens of billions of dollars. For example; List of U.S. colleges and universities
by endowment. Measuring a NPO by its monetary size has obvious limitations, as the power and
significance of NPOs are defined by more qualitative measurements such as effectiveness at
carrying out charitable mission and goals. Some NPOs which are particularly well known, often

20
for the charitable or social nature of their activities conducted over a long period of time, include
Amnesty International, the Better Business Bureau, Oxfam, Carnegie Corporation of New York,
DEMIRA Deutsche Minenräumer (German Mine Clearers), Goodwill Industries, United Way,
Habitat for Humanity, Teach For America, the Red Cross and Red Crescent organizations,
UNESCO, IEEE, World Wide Fund for Nature, Heifer International, and SOS Children's
Villages. However, there are also millions of smaller NPOs that provide social services and relief
efforts on a more focused level (such as Crosswind - Community Outreach Ministry) or the arts
to people throughout the world and in the US. There are more than 1.6 million NPOs in the
United States alone. For more see Wikipedia articles on non-profit organizations

13. Non-governmental organizations

Non-governmental organization (NGO) is a term that has become widely accepted for referring
to a legally constituted, non-business organization created by natural or legal persons with no
participation or representation of any government. In the cases in which NGOs are funded totally
or partially by governments, the NGO maintains its non-governmental status insofar as it
excludes government representatives from membership in the organization. Unlike the term
intergovernmental organization, "non-governmental organization" is a term in generalized use
but not a legal definition, in many jurisdictions these type of organizations are defined as "civil
society organizations" or alternative terms.
NGOs vary in their methods. Some act primarily as lobbyists, while others conduct programs
and activities primarily. For instance, an NGO such as Oxfam, concerned with poverty
alleviation, might provide needy people with the equipment and skills to find food and clean
drinking water, whereas an NGO like the FFDA helps through investigation and documentation
of human rights violations and provides legal assistance to victims of human rights abuses.

14. Administrative law

Administrative law is the body of law that governs the activities of administrative agencies of
government. Government agency action can include rulemaking, adjudication, or the
enforcement of a specific regulatory agenda. Administrative law is considered a branch of public
law. As a body of law, administrative law deals with the decision-making of administrative units
of government (e.g., tribunals, boards or commissions) that are part of a national regulatory
scheme in such areas as police law, international trade, manufacturing, the environment, taxation,

21
broadcasting, immigration and transport. Administrative law expanded greatly during the
twentieth century, as legislative bodies worldwide created more government agencies to regulate
the increasingly complex social, economic and political spheres of human interaction.
Taxation decisions are the decisions based on administrative law that are most often contested in
courts. Civil law countries often have specialized courts, administrative courts, that review these
decisions.
Generally speaking, most countries that follow the principles of common law have developed
procedures for judicial review that limit the reviewability of decisions made by administrative
law bodies. Often these procedures are coupled with legislation or other common law doctrines
that establish standards for proper rulemaking. Administrative law may also apply to review of
decisions of so-called semi-public bodies, such as non-profit corporations, disciplinary boards,
and other decision-making bodies that affect the legal rights of members of a particular group or
entity.
While administrative decision-making bodies are often controlled by larger governmental units,
their decisions could be reviewed by a court of general jurisdiction under some principle of
judicial review based upon due process (United States) or fundamental justice (Canada). Judicial
review of administrative decisions, it must be noted, is different from an appeal. When sitting in
review of a decision, the Court will only look at the method in which the decision was arrived at,
whereas in appeal the correctness of the decision itself will be under question. This difference is
vital in appreciating administrative law in common law countries.
The scope of judicial review may be limited to certain questions of fairness, or whether the
administrative action is ultra vires. In terms of ultra vires actions in the broad sense, a reviewing
court may set aside an administrative decision if it is unreasonable (under Canadian law,
following the rejection of the "Patently Unreasonable" standard by the Supreme Court in
Dunsmuir v. New Brunswick), Wednesbury unreasonable (under British law), or arbitrary and
capricious (under U.S. Administrative Procedure Act and New York State law). Administrative
law, as laid down by the Supreme Court of India, has also recognized two more grounds of
judicial review which were recognized but not applied by English Courts viz. legitimate
expectation and proportionality.
The powers to review administrative decisions are usually established by statute, but were
originally developed from the royal prerogative writs of English law, such as the writ of
mandamus and the writ of certiorari. In certain Common Law jurisdictions, such as India or
Pakistan, the power to pass such writs is a Constitutionally guaranteed power. This power is seen
as fundamental to the power of judicial review and an aspect of the independent judiciary.

22
15. Public policy

Public policy can be generally defined as the course of action or inaction taken by a
governmental entities with regard to a particular issue or set of issues. Other scholars define it as
a system of "courses of action, regulatory measures, laws, and funding priorities concerning a
given topic promulgated by a governmental entity or its representatives.
In the United States, this concept refers not only to the end result of policies, but more broadly to
the decision-making and analysis of governmental decisions. Public policy is also considered an
academic discipline, as it is studied by professors and students at public policy schools of major
universities throughout the country. The professional association of public policy practitioners,
researchers, scholars, and students is the Association for Public Policy Analysis and
Management.
Shaping public policy is a complex and multifaceted process that involves the interplay of
numerous individuals and interest groups competing and collaborating to influence policymakers
to act in a particular way. These individuals and groups use a variety of tactics and tools to
advance their aims, including advocating their positions publicly, attempting to educate
supporters and opponents, and mobilizing allies on a particular issue.
In this context, advocacy can be defined as attempting to influence public policy through
education, lobbying, or political pressure. Advocacy groups "often attempt to educate the general
public as well as public policy makers about the nature of problems, what legislation is needed to
address problems, and the funding required to provide services or conduct research. Although
advocacy is viewed as unseemly by some in the professional and research community, it is clear
that public policy priorities are influenced by advocacy. Sound research data can be used to
educate the public as well as policy makers, thereby improving the public policy process."

16. The European Union

The European Union (EU) is a political and economic community of twenty-seven member
states, located primarily in Europe. It was established in 1993 by the Maastricht Treaty, adding
new areas of policy to the existing European Community. With almost 500 million citizens, the
EU combined generates an estimated 30% share of the world's nominal gross domestic product
(US$16.8 trillion in 2007).

23
The EU has developed a single market through a standardised system of laws which apply in all
member states, guaranteeing the freedom of movement of people, goods, services and capital.It
maintains a common trade policy, agricultural and fisheries policies, and a regional development
policy. Fifteen member states have adopted a common currency, the euro. It has developed a role
in foreign policy, representing its members in the World Trade Organization, at G8 summits and
at the United Nations. Twenty-one EU countries are members of NATO. It has developed a role
in justice and home affairs, including the abolition of passport control between many member
states under the Schengen Agreement.

EU operation is a hybrid of intergovernmentalism and supranationalism. In certain areas it

depends upon agreement between the member states. However, it also has supranational bodies,
able to make decisions without the agreement of members. Important institutions and bodies of
the EU include the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of the
European Union, the European Council, the European Court of Justice and the European Central
Bank. EU citizens elect the Parliament every five years.

The EU traces its origins to the European Coal and Steel Community formed among six
countries in 1951 and the Treaty of Rome in 1957. Since then the EU has grown in size through
the accession of new member states and has increased its powers by the addition of new policy
areas to its remit. The Treaty of Lisbon, signed in December 2007 and intended to be ratified by
the end of 2008, is planned to amend the existing treaties to update the political and legal
structure of the union.

One of the first successful proposals for European cooperation came in 1951 with the European
Coal and Steel Community. This had the aim of bringing together control of the coal and steel
industries of its member states, principally France and West Germany. This was with the aim that
war between them would not then be possible, as coal and steel were the principal resources for
waging war. The Community's founders declared it "a first step in the federation of Europe",
with the hope that this would enable Europe to pursue the development of Africa. The other
founding members were Italy, and the three Benelux countries: Belgium, the Netherlands, and
Luxembourg.In 1973 the European Communities enlarged to include Denmark, Ireland and the
United Kingdom. Norway had negotiated to join at the same time but a referendum rejected
membership and so it remained outside.The first direct, democratic elections of members of the
European Parliament were held in 1979. They were the first European elections to be held,
allowing citizens to elect 410 MEPs to the European Parliament, and also the first international

24
election in history.Greece, Spain and Portugal joined in the 1980s. The Schengen Agreement in
1985 created largely open borders without passport controls between most member states
Austria, Sweden and Finland joined in 1995.The European Union is composed of 27 independent
sovereign countries which are known as member states: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, the
Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy,
Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia,
Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. There are three official candidate countries,
Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Turkey; the western Balkan countries
of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Serbia are officially recognised as
potential candidates. Kosovo has been granted similar status.
The European Commission acts as the EU's executive arm and is responsible for initiating
legislation and the day-to-day running of the EU.
The European Parliament forms one half of the EU's legislature. The 785 Members of the
European Parliament (MEPs) are directly elected by EU citizens every five years. Although
MEPs are elected on a national basis, they sit according to political groups rather than their
nationality. Each country has a set number of seats.
The Council of the European Union forms the other half of the EU's legislature.
Highest-ranking political leadership in the EU is provided by the European Council, which is
composed of one representative per member state plus the President of the Commission. The
member states choose as their representative either the head of state (e.g., the president) or the
head of government (e.g., the prime minister). The European Council meets on at least four
summits a year, and is lead by the representative of the rotating presidency. The European
Council should not to be mistaken with the Council of Europe, an intergovernmental institution
independent from the EU.

The judicial branch of the EU consists of the European Court of Justice (ECJ)

25
Appendix: Suggested Bibliography

*** Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary (London: Collins ELT, Harper Collins
Publishers, 2003)
Budai, L., Gramatica engleză – teorie şi exerciţii (Bucureşti: Teora, 2001)
A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet, A Practical English Grammar (London: Oxford University Press,
1996)
Vince, M., Advanced Language Practice (London: MacMillan Heinemann ELT, 1994)
Vince, M., Intermediate Language Practice (London: MacMillan Heinemann ELT, 1998)

Further Language Study

THE TENSE SYSTEM
Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice
Tense consolidation – Units 1 – 4 (pp. 1-24)
Progress Test (pp. 25-29)
Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice
Units 2 – 9 (pp. 3-36)
Problems, Errors and Consolidation (p. 37)
A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar
The present tenses (pp. 152-162)
The past and perfect tenses (pp. 161-179)
The future (pp. 180-194)
GERUND/INFINITIVE
Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice
Unit 19 (pp. 107-113)
Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice
Units 38 – 39 (pp. 152-165)
A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar
The infinitive (p. 212-227)
The gerund (pp. 228-233)
Infinitive and gerund constructions (pp. 234-238)
ACTIVE/PASSIVE
Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice
Units 6-7 (pp. 30-40)
Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice

26
 Units 15 – 16 (pp. 58-63)

A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar

The passive voice (pp. 263-268)
MODALS
Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice
Units 11-12 (pp. 59-70)
Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice
Units 17 – 18 (pp. 64-71)
A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar
May and can for permission and possibility (pp. 128-133)
Can and be able for ability (pp. 134-136)
Ought, should, must, have to, need for obligation (pp. 137-146)
Must, have, will and should for deduction and assumption (pp. 147-149)

Appendix: Example of an informal letter / Writing formal letters / Reports

Example of an informal letter

2nd May
Dear John(,)
Thanks for your last letter and the nice photos................
.....................................................................................................................
Sorry, but I have to finish.
Hope to hear from you again.
Take care.
Peter

tips:

- the date: top right hand corner (day/month-BE - or month/day-AE)

- comma after name not necessary, but begin after that with a CAPITAL letter

- ending: Take care, Cheers, Yours, Love, then a comma and your name

Commercial English - Letters

You write to How to begin the letter How to end the letter
Dear Sir/Madam (BE) (AE) Yours faithfully (BE)

27
 Dear Sir or Madam (BE)
Yours truly (AE)
an unknown firm/person (AE)
(BE) (AE) To whom it may concern
Truly yours (AE)
(AE)
Yours faithfully (BE)
a woman whose name
Dear Madam (BE) (AE) Yours truly (AE)
you don't know
Truly yours (AE)
Yours faithfully (BE)
a man whose name you
Dear Sir (BE) (AE) Yours truly (AE)
don't know
Truly yours (AE)
Yours sincerely (BE)
a person whose name you Dear Mr/Mrs/Ms Fisher (BE)
Very truly yours (AE)
know (AE)
Sincerely (yours) (AE)
(With) Best wishes (BE) (AE)
Yours (BE)
a person you know
Dear Ann/John (BE) (AE) Love (BE)
personally
All the best (AE)
Kindest/Best regards (AE)

Example of a formal letter

MICHAEL WARRENS LTD - 78 Court Street - Nottingham - UK

Mrs Sara Fisher
Manager
18 St. James Avenue
Bournemouth HB3 4LN 4th October 2001

Our ref: US / HK 1082

Your ref: SP / T

Dear Mrs Fisher,

Your order

We are pleased to acknowledge your order no. 202 dated 1st October 2001. Your order is
already dealt with. We will inform you when the consignment is ready for delivery.

28
 Please do not hesitate to contact us if you require further information.

We thank you for your custom and again look forward to being of service to you in the
future.

Yours sincerely,

M Warrens (Mr)

Enc

The envelope

The position of the address is the same like in the letter. Steet, Road and Avenue can be
written in abbreviations (St), (Rd) (Av).

The postcode/zip code you write under the town

Write the name of the country in CAPITAL LETTERS.

Example:Mr Michael Warrens Software

78 Court St Nottingham, WQ1 6P0
WQ1 6P0 – UNITED KINGDOM

Writing techniques for cover letters, adverts, brochures, sales literature,

reports

Writing letters, reports, notes and other communications are important skills for business and
personal life. Good letters help to get results, where poor letters fail. People judge others on the
quality of their writing, so it's helpful to write well. Here are some simple tips for writing letters
and communications of all sorts:

Generally, whatever you are writing, get to the main point, quickly and simply. Avoid lengthy
pre-ambles. Don't spend ages setting the scene or explaining the background etc.

29
If you are selling, promoting, proposing something you must identify the main issue (if selling,
the strongest unique perceived benefit) and make that the sole focus. Introducing other points
will distract and confuse.

Use language that your reader uses. If you want clues as to what this might be imagine the
newspaper they read, and limit your vocabulary to that found in the newspaper.

Use short sentences. More than fifteen words in a sentence reduces the clarity of the meaning.
After drafting your communication, seek out commas and 'and's, and replace with full-stops.

Write as you would speak - but ensure it's grammatically correct. Don't try to be formal. Don't
use old-fashioned figures of speech. Avoid 'the undersigned', 'aforementioned', 'ourselves', 'your
goodselves', and similar nonsense. You should show that you're living in the same century as the
reader.

As to how informal to be, for example writing much like normal every day speech (I'd, you'd,
we've, etc.) bear in mid that some older people, and younger people who have inherited
traditional views, could react less favourably to a writing style which they consider to be the
product of laziness or poor education. Above all it is important to write in a style that the reader
is likely to find agreeable.

Avoid jargon, acronyms, technical terms unless essential.

Don't use capital letters - even for headings. Words formed of capital letters are difficult to read
because there are no word-shapes, just blocks of text. (We read quickly by seeing word shapes,
not the individual letters.)

Sans serif fonts (like Arial, Helvetica and this one, Tahoma) are modern, and will give a modern
image. Serif fonts (like Garamond, Goudy and this one, Times), are older, and will tend to give a
less modern image.

Sans serif fonts take longer to read, so there's a price to pay for being modern. This is because
we've all grown up learning to read serif fonts. Serif fonts also have a horizontal flow, which
helps readability and reading comfort. (Serif fonts developed before the days of print, when the
engraver needed to create a neat exit from each letter.)

Avoid fancy fonts. They may look clever or innovative, but they more difficult to read, and some
are nearly impossible.

30
Use 10-12 point size for body copy (text). 14-20 point is fine for main headings, bold or normal.
Sub-headings 10-12 bold.

Any printed material looks very untidy if you use more than two different fonts and two different
point sizes. Generally the fewer the better.

If your organisation stipulates a 'house' font then use it.

If your organisation doesn't then it should do.

Black text on a white background is the easiest colour combination to read. Definitely avoid
coloured backgrounds, and black.

Avoid background graphics or pictures behind the text.

Italics are less easy to read. So is heavy bold type.

If you must break any of these font rules, do so only for the heading.

Limit main attention-grabbing headings to no more than fifteen words.

In letters, position your main heading between two-thirds and three-quarters up the page. This is
where the eye is naturally drawn first.

Use left-justified text as it's easiest to read.

Avoid fully justified text as it creates uneven word spaces and is more difficult to read.

Remember that effective written communication is enabling the reader to understand your
meaning in as few words as possible.

Writing letters

Generally if you can't fit it all onto one side of a standard business sheet of paper, start again.

Whether writing a letter of complaint, introduction, or proposition - you must keep it brief.

If your letter can't be read and understood in less than 20 seconds it has limited chances of
success. It used to be 30 - this time limit gets shorter every year.

31
Think about the purpose of your letter. It will rarely be to resolve something completely. It will
more often be to establish a step along the way. So concentrate just on that step.

For example - letters of introduction should not try to sell a product. They should sell the
appointment.

Writing reports - template structure

Typical structure template for writing a report:

 Title, author, date.

 Contents.
 Introduction and Terms of Reference (or aims/scope for report).
 Executive Summary (1-2 pages maximum) containing main points of evidence,
recommendations and outcomes.
 Background/history/situation.
 Implications/issues/opportunities/threats, with source-referenced facts and figures
evidence.
 Solution/action/decision options with implications/effects/results, including financials
and parameters inputs and outputs.
 Recommendations and actions with input and outcomes values and costs, and if
necessary return on investment.
 Appendices.
 Optional Bibliography and Acknowledgements.

Map out your structure before you begin researching and writing your report.

Ensure the purpose, aims and scope of the report are clearly explained in your terms of reference.

The executive summary should be be very concise, summarising the main recommendations and
findings. Provide interpretation of situations and options. Show the important hard facts and
figures. Your recommendations should include implications, with values and costs where
applicable. Unless yours is a highly complex study, limit the executive summary to less than two
sides of standard business paper.

The body of the report should be divided into logical sections. The content must be very concise.
Use hard facts and figures, evidence and justification. Use efficient language - big reports with

32
too many words are not impressive. The best reports are simple and quick to read because the
writer has properly interpreted the data and developed viable recommendations.

Do not cram lots of detail, diagrams, figures, evidence, references etc., into the main body of the
report. Index and attach these references as appendices at the end of the report.

Where you state figures or evidence you must always identify the source.

Show figures in columns. Try to support important figures with a graph.

If it's appropriate to acknowledge contributors then do so in the introduction or a separate section

at the end.

The tense system:

Simple tenses – Continuous tenses

Present Simple Present Continuous/Progressive

used for actions in the present, for things that used for actions or events that are happening or
are always true or that happen regularly, and developing now, for future plans, or to show
for opinions and beliefs that an event is repeated

I/we/you/they enjoy (do not enjoy) I am enjoying (am not enjoying)

he/she/it enjoys (does not enjoy) we/you/they are enjoying (are not enjoying)
he/she/it is enjoying (is not enjoying)
Past Simple Past Continuous/Progressive
used for completed actions and events in the used for actions or events in the past that were
past not yet finished or that were interrupted
I was enjoying (was not enjoying)
I/we/you/they enjoyed (did not enjoy) we/you/they were enjoying (were not
he/she/it enjoyed (did not enjoy) enjoying)
he/she/it was enjoying (was not enjoying)

Future Simple Future Continuous/Progressive

used for actions and events in the future used for actions or events in the future that will

33
 continue into the future

I/we/you/they will enjoy (will not enjoy) I/we/you/they will be enjoying

he/she/it will enjoy (will not enjoy) (will not be enjoying)
he/she/it will be enjoying
(will not be enjoying)

Perfect tenses – Continuous tenses

Present Perfect Present Perfect Continuous/ Progressive
used to show that an event happened or an action was used for actions or events that started in the past but are
completed at some time before the present still happening now, or for past actions which only
recently finished and whose effects are seen now
I/we/you/they have enjoyed I/we/you/they have been enjoying
(have not enjoyed) (have not been enjoying)
he/she/it has enjoyed he/she/it has been enjoying
(has not enjoyed) (has not been enjoying)
Past Perfect Past Perfect Continuous/Progressive
usually used to show that an event happened or an action used for actions or events that happened for a period of
was completed before a particular time in the past time but were completed before a particular time in the
I/we/you/they had enjoyed past

(had not enjoyed) I/we/you/they had been enjoying

he/she/it had enjoyed (had not been enjoying)

(had not enjoyed) he/she/it had been enjoying

(had not been enjoying)
Future Perfect Future Perfect Continuous/Progressive
used to show that something will be completed before a used for actions or events that will already be happening
particular time in the future at a particular time in the future
I/we/you/they will have enjoyed I/we/you/they will have been enjoying
(will not have enjoyed) (will not have been enjoying)
he/she/it will have enjoyed he/she/it will have been enjoying
(will not have enjoyed) (will not have been enjoying)

34
Appendix – List of Irregular Verbs

Infinitive Past Simple Past Participle

arise arose arisen
awake awoke awoken (US also awaked)
be was/were been
bear bore borne (US also born)
beat beat beaten (US also beat)
become became become
begin began begun
behold beheld beheld
belie belied belied
bend bent bent
bet bet, betted bet, betted
bid bid, bade bid, bidden
bind bound bound
bite bit bitten
bleed bled bled
bless blessed, blest blessed, blest
blow blew blown
break broke broken
breed bred bred
bring brought brought
broadcast broadcast broadcast
(US also broadcasted) (US also broadcasted)
build built built
burn burnt, burned burnt, burned
burst burst burst
buy bought bought
cast cast cast
catch caught caught
choose chose chosen
cling clung clung

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come came come
cost cost, costed cost, costed
cut cut cut
deal dealt dealt
dig dug dug
dive dived, (US also dove) dived
draw drew drawn
dream dreamed, dreamt dreamed, dreamt
drink drank drunk
drive drove driven
dwell dwelt, dwelled dwelt, dwelled
eat ate eaten
fall fell fallen
feed fed fed
feel felt felt

36
fight fought fought
find found found
flee fled fled
fly flew flown
forbid forbade, forbad forbidden
forecast forecasted, forecast forecasted, forecast
foresee foresaw foreseen
forget forgot forgotten
forgive forgave forgiven
forsake forsook forsaken
freeze froze frozen
get got got, (US also gotten
give gave given
go went gone
grind ground ground
grow grew grown
hang hung, hanged hung, hanged
have had had
hear heard heard
hide hid hidden
hit hit hit
hold held held
hurt hurt hurt
keep kept kept
kneel knelt, kneeled knelt, kneeled
knit knitted, knit knitted, (US also knit)
know knew known
lead led led
learn learned, (UK also learnt) learned, (UK also learnt)
leave left left
lend lent lent
let let let
lie lay, lied lain, lied
light lit, lighted lit, lighted
lose lost lost

37
make made made
mean mean meant
meet met met
mislead misled misled
misspell misspelled, misspelled,
(UK also misspelt) (UK also misspelt)
mistake mistook mistaken
misunderstand misunderstood misunderstood
mow mowed mown, mowed
overcome overcame overcome
overdraw overdrew overdrawn
oversee oversaw overseen
overtake overtook overtaken
overthrow overthrew overthrown

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Infinitive Past Simple Past Participle
overwrite overwrote overwritten
partake partook partaken
pay paid paid
plead pleaded, (US also pled) pleaded, (US also pled)
preset preset preset
prove proved proved, proven
put put put
quit quit, quitted quit, quitted
read /ri d/ read /red/ read /red/
rewrite rewrote rewritten
rid rid rid
ride rode ridden
ring rang rung
rise rose risen
run ran run
saw sawed sawn, (US also sawed)
say said said
see saw seen
seek sought sought
sell sold sold
send sent sent
set set set
sew sewed sewn, sewed
shake shook shaken
shed shed shed
shine shone shone
shoe shod, (US also shoed) shod, (US also shoed)
shoot shot shot
show showed shown
shrink shrank shrunk
shut shut shut
sink sank sunk
sit sat sat

39
slay slew, slayed slain
sleep slept slept
slide slid slid
smell smelled, (UK also smelt) smelled, (UK also smelt)
sneak sneaked, (US also snuck) sneaked, (US also snuck)
sow sowed sown, sowed
speak spoke spoken
speed sped, speeded sped, speeded
spell spelled, (UK also spelt) spelled, (UK also spelt)
spend spent spent
spill spilled, (UK also spilt) spilled, (UK also spilt)
spin spun spun
spit spat, (US also spit) spat, (US also spit)
split split split

40
Infinitive Past Simple Past Participle
spoil spoiled, spoilt spoiled, spoilt
spotlight spotlighted, spotlit spotlighted, spotlit
spring sprang sprung
stand stood stood
steal stole stolen
stick stuck stuck
sting stung stung
stink stank, (US also stunk) stunk
strike struck struck, (US also stricken)
string strung strung
strive strove, strived striven, strived
swear swore sworn
sweep swept swept
swell swelled swollen, swelled
swim swam swum
swing swung swung
take took taken
teach taught taught
tear tore torn
tell told told
think thought thought
thrive thrived, (US also throve) thrived, (US also thriven)
throw threw thrown
thrust thrust thrust
tread trod, (US also treaded) trodden, (US also trod)
undergo underwent undergone
underwrite underwrote underwritten
understand understood understood
undertake undertook undertaken
undo undid undone
unwind unwound unwound
uphold upheld upheld
upset upset upset

41
wake woke woken
wear wore worn
weave wove, weaved woven, weaved
wed wedded, wed wedded, wed
weep wept wept
wet wet, wetted wet, wetted
win won won
wind wound wound
withdraw withdrew withdrawn
withhold withheld withheld
withstand withstood withstood
write wrote written

42
Appendix: Suggested Bibliography

*** Collins Cobuild English Language Dictionary (London: Collins ELT, Harper
Collins Publishers, 2003)

Budai, L., Gramatica engleză – teorie şi exerciţii (Bucureşti: Teora, 2001)

A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet, A Practical English Grammar (London: Oxford University
Press, 1996)

Vince, M., Advanced Language Practice (London: MacMillan Heinemann ELT, 1994)

Vince, M., Intermediate Language Practice (London: MacMillan Heinemann ELT, 1998)

Further Language Study

THE TENSE SYSTEM

Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice

Tense consolidation – Units 1 – 4 (pp. 1-24)
Progress Test (pp. 25-29)

Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice

Units 2 – 9 (pp. 3-36)
Problems, Errors and Consolidation (p. 37)

A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar

The present tenses (pp. 152-162)

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 The past and perfect tenses (pp. 161-179)
The future (pp. 180-194)

GERUND/INFINITIVE

Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice

Unit 19 (pp. 107-113)

Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice

Units 38 – 39 (pp. 152-165)

A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar

The infinitive (p. 212-227)
The gerund (pp. 228-233)
Infinitive and gerund constructions (pp. 234-238)

ACTIVE/PASSIVE

Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice

Units 6-7 (pp. 30-40)

Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice

Units 15 – 16 (pp. 58-63)

A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar

The passive voice (pp. 263-268)

MODALS

Michael Vince – Advanced Language Practice

44
 Units 11-12 (pp. 59-70)

Michael Vince – Intermediate Language Practice

Units 17 – 18 (pp. 64-71)

A.J. Thomson, A.V. Martinet – A Practical English Grammar

May and can for permission and possibility (pp. 128-133)
Can and be able for ability (pp. 134-136)
Ought, should, must, have to, need for obligation (pp. 137-146)
Must, have, will and should for deduction and assumption (pp. 147-149)

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