Within the production system at the car manufacturer Toyota, there is nothing that is recognizable as performance appraisal. Every operation in the system has an associated measure. The measure has been worked out between the operators and their manager. In every case, the measure is related to the purpose of the work. That measure is the basis of feedback to the
manager and worker alike. Toyota?s basic idea is expressed in the axiom “bad news first” . Both managers and workers are psychologically safe in the knowledge that it is the system- not the worker –that is the primary influence on performance. It is management?s responsibility to ensure that the workers operate in a system that facilitates their performance. D
In many companies , performance appraisal springs from misguided as assumptions. To judge achievement, managers use date about each worker?s activity, not an evaluation of the process or system?s achievement of purpose. The result is that performance appraisal involves managers? judgement overruling their staff?s, ignoring the true influences on performance. Thus the appraisal experience becomes a question of pleasing the boss, particularly in meetings, which is psychologically unsafe and socially driven, determining who is “in” and who is “ out”. E
When judgement is replaced by feedback in the true sense, organizations will have a lot more time to devote to their customers and their business. No time will be wasted in appraisal . This requires a fundamental shift in the way we think about the organization of
performance appraisals, which almost certainly will not be forthcoming from the human resources profession.
关于员工评估和反馈的文章。一个组织内部的上下级沟通真的太重要了。 第一题，说真正的反馈可以释放用在别处的资源。意思上真正的反馈可以让人腾出精力。答案是E段的第一句
When judgement is replaced by feedback in the true sense, organizations will have a lot more time to devote to their customers and their business。这题的意思还算比较明显
，
feedback in the true sense
，
就
是
genuine feedback
，
devote to their customers and the business,就是把资源释放在别的地方。
第二题，说经理们是被期望着使员工工作得更有效率。答案是C段的最后一句：It is management?s responsibility to ensure that the workers operate in a system that facilitates their performance.经理们的责任，也就是managers are expected to，有利于他们的表现，就是enable their staff to work effectively。
第三题,说专家不大可能有利于真正反馈的进程。答案是E段的最后一句：which almost certainly will not be forthcoming from the human resources profession。人力资源专家，就是experts。需要理解下这里的forthcoming的含义：willing to divulge information. （人）愿意透露消息的。专家们不愿意透露消息，也就是不能指望专家来facilitate。
第四题，说商讨评估表现的方法是有利的。答案是在C段，有点分散。前面说The measure has been worked out between the operators and their manager。这个措施是在操作者和经理们之间拟定的。between the operators and managers，也就是评估表现的方法是被商讨了的。后面介绍的情况都是这个measure有多么的好：
is the basis of feed back。综合起来，就是选项说的，商讨是有好处的。 第五题，说评估倾向聚焦于员工和他们直属经理们之间面对面关系的性质。这个选项可能会弄的人一头雾水，首先得弄明白这里的面对面关系指的是什么。员工和直属经理的关系，就是上下级的关系，过分看重这个关系，那么在评估过程中就会有顾虑，谁还敢揭自己上司的短？所以这个句子的意思是说评估过程中有顾忌，无人敢说真话。答案是D段的这么一句：
Thus the appraisal experience becomes a question of pleasing the boss。评估过程成了讨好自己的老板，说的就是这个意思。
P.S：这是我个人对这道题的理解，大家有异议，可以提。
第六题，说员工对他们所作负责的想法听起来很合理。答案是B段的第一句： The notion behind performance appraisal- that workers should be held accountable for their performance-is plausible。这里的accountable就是负有责任。Plausible是貌似真实的，也就是seems reasonable。
第七题，说虽然有专家们的主张，管理层的结构阻止了真正的反馈。答案是A段的这么一句：
the simple fact of the matter is that the nature of hierarchy distorts the concept of feedback。管理层的机构，就是这句里提到的the nature of hierarchy，等级制的性质。这个单词在BEC阅读里常出现。distort，扭曲，就是选项里的prevent。 第八题，说在评估过程中投入了更多的努力。答案是A段的这么一句，有点隐晦：Now the practice is even more frequent. This of course makes it all the more important how appraisal is conducted.这个句子是紧跟上文的，the practice指的就是appraisal。评估的更频繁，评估是怎么进行的显得更加重要。认为更加重要了
（makes it all the more important），就会投入更多努力了。综合起来，这些的意思就是评估过程投入了更多的努力。不太容易看出来。
BEC商务英语高级考试历年真题（5）
In the last few years, managers throughout industry have seen more changes than many of them could have expected to see in their entire working lives having to communicate information which often leads to feelings of insecurity has become a key activity. From being regarded as relatively unimportant in many companies , management employee communication has become a central corporate need.
Concordia International provides a good example of a company that has adjusted well to the changing needs for communication . since 1995 , Concordia has been turned inside-out and upside-down, to ensure that it is a marketing –led, customer-responsive business, one that looks outwards at customers and competitors, rather than inwards at its own processes and the way things were done in the past. In the last eight years, Concordia has reduced its workforce by more than 80.000 people - or 35% -on a voluntary basis, with further downsizing anticipated.
From being an engineering company, Concordia is now remaking itself as a service company. The role of employee communication in such a context is to build people?s self-confidence, to persuade them that, although it is inevitable that the changes will go ahead, they also bring with them new opportunities for employees. However, this is not an easy task. People tend to be skeptical of these claims and to feel that they are losing touch wi
th the company they have worked for over many years. This is understandable, since many of the old certainties are being swept away , including the core activities of the company they work for. Above all , they have had to face up to the fact that they no longer have a job for life.
Research indicates that people respond to this predicament in a variety of ways. The bulk of employees fall into two main categories in terms of their response to the new situation: on the one hand there are the “ pragmatists” and on the other “ the highly anxious” the former see their job as a means to an end and have a relatively short-term perspective, with strong loyalty to their local term , rather than the company as a whole . The second category, usually the majority, may respond to threatened changes with a feeling of having been let down, and even feel anger at the company for what they see as changing the terms of their employment.
The employee communication process needs to be capable of accurately directing its messages at a variety of employee groups and departments within the workforce . this is why middle managers and line managers are so key to communication. They are the people who know about the full rage of concerns among the workforce. The problem in the past was that this crucial area was often the responsibility of a separate, relatively isolated unit. Concordia puts responsibility for communication firmly on line managers. All their research points to the same conclusion: people prefer to get their information face-to-face from their line managers. That is the key relationship and where arguments and hearts and minds –are lost.
The general rule in company communication is to tell employees as much as you can