Most participants on this course are experienced HR professionals.

The course is designed to develop participants' language and communication skills in a professional context. The course focuses on active speaking and writing skills and communication strategies. In order to provide a framework for the course, topic areas may include:

• Organisation & leadership
• Recruitment (including interviewing techniques)
• Training, motivation & rewards
• Managing change
• Employment law (including a visit to an industrial tribunal)
• Conflict in the workplace
• Dismissal procedures
• Appraisal techniques

Key language skills and communication strategies covered in the course include:

• effective communication skills for meetings and negotiations
• effective participation in discussions
• giving presentations
• persuading and compromising
• summarising
• written communication including email, reports and formal letters
• effective telephoning skills
• hosting visits, socialising, meeting and greeting
• making proposals, offers, suggestions
• opening/closing meetings

When professional people are speaking with their counterparts, discussion often turns to broader matters. The course reflects this with practice in the context of a range of topical issues such as:

• current affairs
• social, political and environmental issues
• political systems and developments
• education and training
• advertising and the media
• technology and society

Professional hospitality, entertaining visitors and handling social situations are important for many professional people. Areas covered include:

• meeting and greeting
• dealing with enquiries and offering advice
• arranging and cancelling appointments/social engagements
• travel arrangements, bookings and reservations
• giving and understanding directions
• restaurants and pubs
• small talk

You can expect to improve your English in the following ways:

• communicate more confidently
• speak more accurately and fluently
• participate more successfully in meetings
• improve your written English including emails
• expand your professional vocabulary
• improve your understanding of grammar
• socialise and network with greater confidence
• work successfully in a cross-cultural environment

In addition to the benefits outlined above, you can expect to communicate more confidently in a range of life and work situations, do better presentations, and use the telephone for effective communication.