A tutor discusses a business case study with two students, Karin and Jason. They go over the problems the company Box Telecom has had and their causes, what it might do next, the report the students must write, and whether each of them thinks the company will recover.
Questions 21-30 · 10 marks · 3 question blocks
Karin gives the problems (21-22) and Jason the causes (23-24). Karin's view of the company's next step (25) is followed by the tutor's suggestion (26) and the report task (27). The final opinions (28-30) come in the order Karin, Jason, tutor.
Type what you wrote and hit mark. Hide the key first if you haven't done the part yet. Every question number jumps to its explanation.
How to attack this block: The tutor asks Karin for the problems, then Jason for the causes, so the notes split neatly between them. Each gap is a noun or noun phrase said once: listen for the problem words (falling, increased) and the cause words (set back by, credited to).
What had dropped?
despite a new advertising campaign, they were suffering from falling sales
Question says → You hear
Why: 'Falling sales' becomes 'drop in sales'. One word: sales.
The trap: The advertising campaign is mentioned first, but it was new. It didn't drop.
What had been growing?
although they had invested in an expansion plan, they had to face up to increased competition
Question says → You hear
Why: 'Increased' matches 'growing'. The answer is competition.
The trap: The expansion plan also sounds like growth, but it's what the company did, not a problem it faced. The strike is already printed.
Also accepted: rates of interest
What was high, causing the problems?
it would be easy to say they had invested too heavily, or at the wrong time, but in fact the signs were good and … Interest rates
Question says → You hear
Why: Jason says the company was set back by high interest rates. Write interest rates.
The trap: Investing too heavily or at the wrong time is the 'easy' explanation that Jason rejects ('but in fact the signs were good').
What was the company lacking?
their longer-term problems, which were affecting their market share, were eventually credited to poor training
Question says → You hear
Why: 'Poor training' becomes 'lack of good training'. One word: training.
The trap: Market share is what was being affected, not the cause.
How to attack this block: All three options for 25 and 26 are named as possible moves, but only one is what that speaker expects or recommends. Listen for 'I think', 'I suspect' and 'one which I think would have more chance of success' to find the speaker's own view.
What does Karin expect the company to do?
they have the choice of accepting the very favourable terms … Or they could decide on a bolder move and offer some new shares if they wanted. But I think … much more cautious than that and expect they will
Why: After listing the options, Karin says the company is too cautious for those and expects them to start looking for private investors. That's A.
The trap: B and C are both named as possible choices (KMG's offer to buy them out, and new shares), but Karin rejects them with 'But I think they're much more cautious than that'.
How does the tutor think the company can recover?
a more ambitious approach, and one which I think would have more chance of success, would be to alter how they're running things
Why: The tutor's best option is to alter how they run things: the management layers and processes. That's B, changing the way it's organised.
The trap: A ('changing the guy at the top') and C ('shut down some of their shops') are both mentioned first, but as simpler or cautious fixes, not the one she backs.
What should the students' report do?
I want you to take Box Telecom as an example and suggest some ways in which they might overcome their problems
Why: 'Suggest some ways in which they might overcome their problems' matches A, offers solutions.
The trap: B: the UK market is what they've looked at in recent sessions, not the report task. C: she says keep it to the company 'rather than dragging in other examples'.
How to attack this block: Each speaker gives one opinion near the end, in the order Karin, Jason, tutor. Several options echo things that are said but belong to someone else (the marketing manager's view of the managers, the outdated machinery), so match each opinion to who actually holds it.
What is Karin's opinion of Box Telecom?
That advertising campaign they did was very strong and they're very … The company's got to recover, don't you think, Jason?
Why: Karin has great hopes and says the company has got to recover. That's C, it will overcome its problems.
The trap: She praises the advertising campaign, so D (marketing needs improvement) is the opposite of her view.
What is Jason's opinion?
not a foregone conclusion unless they manage to … investment
Why: Jason isn't sure: recovery depends on getting the right level of investment. That's B, too little investment.
The trap: He reports the marketing manager's praise of the management team (F), but adds 'he would say that, wouldn't he?', so it isn't Jason's view. Outdated machinery is a reason more money is needed.
What is the tutor's opinion?
where they could do with some innovation - to get sales kick-started
Why: The tutor says the company could do with some innovation in how it gets sales going. That matches D, its marketing needs improvement.
The trap: She starts by blaming the stock market for expecting too much. That's a criticism of the market, not of the company, and it isn't one of the options.
Karin names a takeover offer and new shares first, both as things the company could do. She then says they are too cautious for that and expects them to look for private investors.
The tutor mentions changing the boss and closing shops before giving the approach she thinks would work best: changing how the company is run. That's B.
The tutor says the stock market is to blame, which sounds like a different opinion. She ends by saying the company needs innovation to get sales moving, which matches D, its marketing needs improvement.
The full Cambridge 5 Test 4 listening paper with the real audio: all four parts, played once, marked the moment you finish. Already done it? Take it again and listen for the traps this page showed you.
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