MEASURING PERFORMANCE BUSINESS VOCABULARY IN USE (ADVANCED)

 

BUSINESS VOCABULARY IN USE (ADVANCED) 33. MEASURING PERFORMANCE

 

A Financial reporting Maria Malone is the chief finance officer of a large international media company, based in the UK, with activities in television and publishing. She’s talking to new trainees in the finance department: ‘As with all companies, investors and analysts want to know how the company is being run and how their money is being used. Each year we produce an annual report with three key sets of figures: B The financial year ‘Our financial year ends on March 31st, although other companies choose other dates. Soon after this, we publish preliminary results, or prelims. The full report and accounts are published a few months later. As a UK company, we also publish interim results or interims after the first six months of our financial year.’ Note: US companies publish their results every quarter. C Shareholders, bondholders and lenders ‘We use shareholders’ money to operate and invest in the business. Some of the profit we make is paid out to them, usually in the form of dividends in relation to the number of shares that they each hold. Our shares are traded on the London stock market. We also borrow money in the form of bonds. We pay percentage interest on those bonds and later repay the principal, the amount of money originally lent to us. Our bonds are traded on bond markets. EXERCISES 33.1 Complete the crossword with appropriate forms of expressions from A, B and C opposite. Across: 3 Reports that are not for the full year. (8) 7 and 6 down What investors are basically interested in. (9,7) 8 One of the three key financial statements. (8,9) 11 Money lent by a bank. (4)   Down: 1. Another of the three key financial statements. (7,5) 2 and 14 across Another of the three key financial statements. (6,3,4,7) 4 Together, these people and institutions are the owners of the company. (12) 5 Period of three months. (7) 6 See 7 across 9 The publication of results: financial ………(9) 10 Banks and others that loan money. (7) 33.2 Complete the table with words from B and C opposite and related forms. Put a stress mark in front of the stressed syllable in each word or more than one syllable. (The first one has been done for you.) 33.3 Complete the sentences with appropriate forms of ‘finance’. (There are two possibilities for one of the gaps.) 1. A millionaire _________ donated a large sum to the charity. 2. The _________ for the project is coming from two different sources: book loans and a new share issue. 3. The company must keep a careful control on its _________ this year in order to avoid making a loss.

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