GETTING TO KNOW THE COMPANY
POUR MIEUX CONNAÎTRE LA SOCIÉTÉ
Exercice 1
Commencer par écouter la leçon en entier
Exercice 4
Traduire la structure du texte en anglais
Eh bien, voilà une manière de visualiser une multinationale comme la nôtre:
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Exercice 2
Lire le texte à voix haute
GETTING TO KNOW THE COMPANY
Peter Sanders: I know that Alexander Spencer-Jones spoke to
you yesterday afternoon about the organisation of United
Chocolate, and I don’t want to go back over what has
already been said. I assume he gave you a copy of the
organisation chart of the UC group...
Harry: He said we could find it on the company’s intranet.
P: Good! So don’t forget to consult it, make absolutely sure
you understand it.
(He displays a slide from his presentation)
Now that’s one way of looking at a multinational like ours:
United Chocolate Inc., the American parent company,
United Chocolate UK and its subsidiaries, here and
elsewhere in Europe; our operations in Africa, Asia, Latin
America... Now, what would be another way of looking at
our group?
H: By its products, of course.
P: Yes and no...Try again!
Kate: I’d say brands.
P: Well done, Kate! In our activity, chocolate, confectionary,
call it what you will, the name of the game is brands.
When a consumer buys one of our products, he or, very
often, she is not buying a chocolate bar made by United
Chocolate. What interests the consumer is the brand!
Arvind: Just how many brands does UC own?
P: Quite a lot, believe me. In Europe alone, we have nearly
fifty; more than a hundred throughout the world! And that
doesn’t include all the distributor brands we manufacture.
A: Are there really as many as that? I mean, we can all name
about ten or maybe more, but a hundred!
P: But don’t forget that brand names often change from one
market to another. What sounds fine in English, on our
two major markets, the US and the UK, may not work at all
in French or Spanish, for example. Yes, Kate?
K: I believe that UC has taken over several smaller chocolate
firms in England over the last decade or so. Does that
mean that those subsidiaries were bought because they
had brands which interested UC?
P: Absolutely, and more generally, our group is always on the
lookout for opportunities throughout the world. Our
competitors too, of course!
H: Does it happen sometimes that you buy a small company...
P: We, Harry, we... Don’t forget you work for UC now!
H: Does it happen that we buy a small company just because
of a brand, keep it for a year or two and then close it
down?
P: I’m afraid I can’t answer that one. You’re going to have to
ask Lord Werrett, our Chairman! Anyway, let’s move on...
Exercice 3
Traduire le vocabulaire en anglais
Diapositive
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Exercice 5
Traduire le texte complet en anglais
POUR MIEUX CONNAÎTRE LA SOCIÉTÉ
Peter Sanders : Je sais qu’Alexander Spencer-Jones vous a
parlé hier après-midi de l’organisation de United
Chocolate, et je ne veux pas revenir sur ce qui a déjà été
dit. Je suppose qu’il vous a donné un exemplaire de
l’organigramme du groupe UC…
Harry : Il a dit que nous pouvions le trouver sur l’intranet de la
société.
P : Bien ! Donc n’oubliez pas de le consulter, d’être
absolument sûrs de le comprendre.
(Il affiche la diapositive correspondante de sa présentation)
Eh bien, voilà une manière de visualiser une multinationale
comme la nôtre : United Chocolate Inc., notre société mère
aux États-Unis, United Chocolate UK et ses filiales, au
Royaume-Uni et ailleurs en Europe. Nos opérations en
Afrique, Asie, Amérique latine… Et de quelle autre manière
pourrait-on visualiser notre groupe ?
H : Par ses produits, bien sûr.
P : Oui et non… Je vous laisse une deuxième chance.
K : Moi, je dirais par ses marques.
P : Bravo…, Kate ! Dans notre activité, le chocolat, la
confiserie, appelez-la comme vous voulez, les marques
sont le nerf de la guerre. Lorsqu’un consommateur achète
un de nos produits, il, ou, très souvent, elle n’achète pas
une barre chocolatée fabriquée par United Chocolate. Ce
qui compte pour le consommateur, c’est la marque !
Arvind : Combien de marques possède exactement United
Chocolate ?
P : Pas mal, croyez-moi. Nous en avons presque cinquante rien
qu’en Europe et plus d’une centaine à travers le monde !
Et c’est sans compter toutes les marques de distributeur
que nous fabriquons.
A : Il y en a vraiment tant que ça ? Nous pouvons tous en citer
une dizaine, je veux dire, peut-être plus, mais cent ?
P : Mais n’oubliez pas que les noms de marque changent
souvent d’un marché à un autre. Ce qui sonne bien en
anglais, sur nos deux principaux marchés, les États- Unis et
le Royaume-Uni, ne marchera peut-être pas du tout en
français ou en espagnol, par exemple. Oui, Kate ?
K : Il me semble que UC a pris le contrôle de plusieurs
entreprises de chocolat plus petites en Angleterre au cours
de ces dix dernières années. Est-ce que cela veut dire que
ces filiales ont été achetées parce qu’elles avaient des
marques qui intéressaient UC ?
P : Parfaitement, et plus généralement, notre groupe est
toujours en quête d’opportunités partout dans le monde.
Nos concurrents aussi, bien sûr !
H : Est-ce qu’il arrive parfois que vous achetiez une petite
entreprise…
P : Nous, Harry, nous… N’oubliez pas que vous travaillez pour
UC maintenant !
H : Est-ce qu’il arrive parfois que nous achetions une petite
entreprise uniquement en fonction d’une marque, que
nous la gardions uniquement un an ou deux et qu’après
nous la fermions ?
P : Je suis désolé, mais je ne peux pas répondre à cette
question-là. Il va falloir que vous la posiez à Lord Werrett,
notre Président ! Bon, on va continuer.
GETTING TO KNOW THE COMPANY
Peter Sanders: I know that Alexander Spencer-Jones spoke to
you yesterday afternoon about the organisation of United
Chocolate, and I don’t want to go back over what has
already been said. I assume he gave you a copy of the
organisation chart of the UC group...
Harry: He said we could find it on the company’s intranet.
P: Good! So don’t forget to consult it, make absolutely sure
you understand it.
(He displays a slide from his presentation)
Now that’s one way of looking at a multinational like ours:
United Chocolate Inc., the American parent company,
United Chocolate UK and its subsidiaries, here and
elsewhere in Europe; our operations in Africa, Asia, Latin
America... Now, what would be another way of looking at
our group?
H: By its products, of course.
P: Yes and no...Try again!
Kate: I’d say brands.
P: Well done, Kate! In our activity, chocolate, confectionary,
call it what you will, the name of the game is brands.
When a consumer buys one of our products, he or, very
often, she is not buying a chocolate bar made by United
Chocolate. What interests the consumer is the brand!
Arvind: Just how many brands does UC own?
P: Quite a lot, believe me. In Europe alone, we have nearly
fifty; more than a hundred throughout the world! And that
doesn’t include all the distributor brands we manufacture.
A: Are there really as many as that? I mean, we can all name
about ten or maybe more, but a hundred!
P: But don’t forget that brand names often change from one
market to another. What sounds fine in English, on our
two major markets, the US and the UK, may not work at all
in French or Spanish, for example. Yes, Kate?
K: I believe that UC has taken over several smaller chocolate
firms in England over the last decade or so. Does that
mean that those subsidiaries were bought because they
had brands which interested UC?
P: Absolutely, and more generally, our group is always on the
lookout for opportunities throughout the world. Our
competitors too, of course!
H: Does it happen sometimes that you buy a small company...
P: We, Harry, we... Don’t forget you work for UC now!
H: Does it happen that we buy a small company just because
of a brand, keep it for a year or two and then close it
down?
P: I’m afraid I can’t answer that one. You’re going to have to
ask Lord Werrett, our Chairman! Anyway, let’s move on...