Business English Warm-Ups - P. City English

Topic 01

Making a Sales Pitch

Pitching a product or service to clients, investors, or procurement teams.

Discussion

From Opening to Next Step

You have five minutes with a busy decision-maker. Do you open with a number, a short story, or a question about their business? Why?
Pick one thing your company sells. Pitch it to me in 30 seconds: what's the problem, who has it, and why should they choose you?
Halfway through your pitch, the prospect says, "We're happy with our current provider." What do you say next?
Turn one feature of your product into a benefit the customer cares about. Not "It has automated reporting," but "Your team gets its Monday mornings back."
How do you end a pitch with a clear next step without sounding pushy? Compare "So, can we sign this week?" with "Would it make sense to set up a demo with your team next week?"

Notes

Topic 02

Presenting at a Conference

Delivering a talk to a professional audience and handling the Q&A.

Discussion

Stage Presence & Q&A

You're the first speaker after lunch, and half the room is checking email. How do you win them back in the first minute?
What's the best talk you've seen at an industry event? What did the speaker do that others didn't?
Someone asks a question you can't answer. What do you say? For example: "Good question. I don't have that number with me, but I'll find out and share it after the session."
An audience member uses the Q&A to give a long speech instead of asking a question. How do you politely take back control?
What do you do in the last hour before you go on stage? Does anything actually help with nerves?

Notes

Topic 03

Giving a Talk

Delivering a TED-style or lightning talk: short, focused, and built around one idea.

Discussion

Short-Form Speaking

You have five minutes at an internal lightning-talk session to share one thing your team learned this year. What would you talk about?
You have 40 slides of great material and seven minutes. How do you decide what to cut?
The best short talks usually have one clear idea. Can you sum up your job, or your current project, in one sentence a stranger would remember?
Should you memorize a short talk word for word, speak from notes, or just know your key points? What works for you, and why?
Tell me a 60-second story from your working life that has a clear point: a mistake, a lucky break, or a lesson learned.

Notes

Topic 04

Running a Webinar

Hosting an online presentation or training session for remote participants.

Discussion

Online Engagement

What's the biggest difference between presenting to a room and presenting to 80 people with their cameras off?
How do you get people to actually use the chat, polls, or Q&A instead of just listening, or not listening at all?
Think of the last online session you sat through. What kept your attention, or what made you open another tab?
Ten minutes in, your co-host messages you: "Nobody can hear you." What do you do, and what do you say when you're back?
After a webinar, what follow-up is actually useful: the recording, the slides, a one-page summary, a link to book a call? What do you usually send?

Notes

Topic 05

Reporting & Forecasting Sales

Presenting sales results and forecasts to management in meetings.

Discussion

Numbers & Narratives

You have three minutes in the monthly leadership meeting to present your team's numbers. What do you say first?
Your team missed its quarterly target by 12%. How do you explain it without making excuses or blaming anyone? Start with: "We came in below target this quarter, mainly because…"
What's the difference between a forecast and a target? Have you ever seen a team mix them up?
How do you show how confident you are in a forecast? Compare "We're on track to hit…" with "We're likely to land around…" and "It's too early to call."
A senior manager challenges your numbers in front of everyone: "That doesn't match what Finance told me." How do you respond?

Notes

Topic 06

Reporting Marketing Activities

Summarizing campaign performance, lead generation, and brand activity for the wider business.

Discussion

Campaigns & KPIs

Which marketing numbers really matter to leadership: impressions, clicks, leads, pipeline, or revenue? Which ones are just "vanity metrics"?
How do you show that a campaign actually helped sales, not just website traffic?
A campaign you ran got lots of attention but very few qualified leads. How would you report that honestly?
Explain one recent marketing result from your company as if I were the CFO. No jargon allowed.
How often should marketing report to the rest of the business, and in what format: a dashboard, an email, or a meeting?

Notes

Topic 07

Reporting a Product Launch

Presenting the results and lessons learned from bringing a new product to market.

Discussion

Launch Results

Apart from sales, how would you judge whether a launch went well? Think about adoption, reviews, support tickets, and press coverage.
How long should a company wait before deciding a new product isn't working: a month, a quarter, a year? Does it depend on the industry?
Tell me about a launch you've been part of, at work or as a customer. What surprised people?
Early user feedback is mostly negative. How do you present it to stakeholders without causing panic, or hiding the problem?
If you ran a post-launch review tomorrow, what would go under "what went well," "what didn't," and "what we'll do differently"?

Notes

Topic 08

Discovery Meetings & Scoping Sessions

Running first meetings with a client to understand their needs, requirements, and constraints.

Discussion

Understanding the Client

A client says, "We need a new website." What questions do you ask to find out what they really need?
What's your best question for getting a client to talk openly about their problem? Why does it work?
The client keeps adding ideas: "Oh, and it would be great if it could also…" How do you keep the session focused without shutting them down?
What goes wrong when a team skips discovery and jumps straight into building or quoting?
The client's budget is clearly too small for what they want. When and how do you raise that? Try: "Based on what you've described, I want to be upfront about the budget."

Notes

Topic 09

Persuading Stakeholders

Getting buy-in for ideas, projects, or changes from your manager, other teams, or leadership.

Discussion

Getting Buy-In

Think of an idea you'd like to get approved at work right now. Who needs to say yes, and what does each of them care about?
How is persuading a peer in another team different from persuading your boss's boss?
Do you talk to key people one-on-one before the big meeting, or make your case in front of everyone? What happens when you skip those earlier conversations?
A key stakeholder says, "We tried this two years ago and it didn't work." How do you respond?
Tell me about a time you changed someone's mind at work. What actually convinced them: data, a story, or something else?

Notes

Topic 10

Daily Stand-Ups

The short daily check-in (the Daily Scrum) where a team shares progress, plans, and blockers.

Discussion

Stand-Up Culture

Walk me through your team's last stand-up or check-in. Who spoke, what did they say, and how long did it take?
Give me your own stand-up update for today in under 60 seconds: what you did yesterday, what you're doing today, and anything that's blocking you.
One colleague turns every stand-up into a 10-minute technical discussion. What do you say? Try: "Let's take that offline. Can you two pick it up right after this?"
Some remote teams have replaced live stand-ups with written updates in Slack or Teams. Would that work for your team? What would you lose?
How do you mention a blocker caused by someone else on the call without it sounding like an accusation?

Notes

Topic 11

Sprint Reviews & Retrospectives

End-of-sprint events: showing stakeholders what was built (the review) and improving how the team works (the retro).

Discussion

Inspect & Adapt

In a sprint review, how do you show unfinished or imperfect work to stakeholders and still get useful feedback?
A stakeholder watches the demo and says, "That's not what I asked for." What do you say next?
How do you make a retrospective genuinely useful rather than a meeting people just sit through?
The same problem has come up in the last four retros, and nothing has changed. What do you do about it?
Would people on your team say honestly what went wrong if their manager were in the room? What makes that easier or harder?

Notes

Topic 12

Sprint Planning

Agreeing on scope, estimates, and priorities for the next sprint.

Discussion

Planning the Sprint

Does your team plan its work in fixed cycles: one week, two weeks, a month? How often does the plan survive until the end?
How good are you at estimating how long a task will take? Why do even experienced people get it wrong?
Your team keeps committing to more than it can deliver. If you were the team lead, what would you change?
A manager arrives mid-sprint with an "urgent" request. Compare two answers: "Sure, we'll squeeze it in" and "We can do that. Which item should we drop to make room?" Which would you use?
Every team has technical debt or maintenance work that never feels urgent. How do you make sure it still gets time?

Notes

Topic 13

Brainstorming Sessions

Running creative group sessions to generate and develop new ideas.

Discussion

Generating Ideas

What ground rules would you set at the start of a brainstorming session, and why?
What's the difference between answering an idea with "Yes, but…" and "Yes, and…"? Which one do you hear more at work?
How do you get quieter colleagues, or people joining remotely, to contribute as much as the loudest people in the room?
Do you ever use AI tools to generate ideas before or during a brainstorm? Do they help, or do they make everyone's ideas sound the same?
You finish the session with 40 sticky notes. How do you decide which ideas are worth pursuing?

Notes

Topic 14

Facilitating Scrum Meetings

Running Scrum events as a Scrum Master or team lead: keeping time, staying neutral, and helping the team decide.

Discussion

The Facilitator's Role

What's the difference between facilitating a meeting and leading it? Can one person do both at the same time?
A discussion is going in circles, and you have 10 minutes left. How do you move the group toward a decision? Try: "We've heard both sides. Can we agree on a next step, even if we don't agree on everything?"
A senior developer dominates every meeting, and others have stopped speaking up. How do you handle it, during the meeting and afterward?
As the facilitator, when should you share your own opinion, and when should you stay neutral?
If you could redesign one recurring meeting in your company, which would it be? What would you change first?

Notes

Topic 15

Running Project Meetings

Leading status updates, decision meetings, and risk reviews outside a Scrum setup.

Discussion

Effective Meetings

You're running a project kickoff next week. What do you prepare beforehand, and what goes on the agenda?
The meeting is about to run over. How do you wrap it up? Try: "We're almost out of time, so let's agree on next steps and pick up the rest offline."
How do you make sure action items actually get done after the meeting, not just written down?
What's your test for whether something needs a meeting, or could just be an email or a message?
Two departments disagree about a priority, and the meeting is getting tense. As the person running it, what do you do?

Notes

Topic 16

Running Job Interviews

Interviewing candidates: planning questions, assessing answers, and making a fair decision.

Discussion

Interviewing Well

What's the difference between a structured and an unstructured interview? Which do you trust more, and why?
If you could ask a candidate only one question, what would it be, and what would the answer tell you?
People often hire candidates who remind them of themselves. What can an interview panel do to avoid that?
A candidate's résumé and cover letter are polished, and you suspect AI helped write them. Does that matter to you? How would you find out what they can really do?
Would you rather hire someone highly skilled but difficult, or less experienced but great to work with? Why?

Notes

Topic 17

Participating in Job Interviews

Presenting yourself well as a candidate, in person or on video.

Discussion

Being the Candidate

Answer "Tell me about yourself" in under 90 seconds: where you are now, how you got there, and why this role interests you.
Tell me about a time something went wrong at work and what you did about it. Use the STAR structure: situation, task, action, result.
"What's your biggest weakness?" How do you answer honestly without hurting your chances?
What questions do you ask at the end of an interview? Which ones tell you the most about a company?
How is a video interview different from a face-to-face one? What do you do differently to come across well on camera?

Notes

Topic 18

Performance Reviews

Discussing performance, goals, and development, from either side of the table.

Discussion

Performance & Development

What makes a performance review genuinely useful rather than a check-the-box exercise?
Think of the best feedback you've ever received at work. What made it so useful?
Should people be evaluated on their results or on how they work with others? What if someone hits every target but is hard to work with?
Your manager rates your year as "meets expectations," but you believe you exceeded them. What do you say? Try: "I see it a little differently. Can I walk you through a few examples?"
Is a once-a-year review still useful if your team already has regular one-on-ones? What would you keep, and what would you drop?

Notes

Topic 19

Chemistry Meetings

First meetings with potential clients, partners, or agencies to see whether you would work well together.

Discussion

Fit & First Impressions

Before you agree to work with a new client or supplier, how much does it matter whether you actually like them?
What can you learn about a company in the first 15 minutes of meeting them? How often is that first impression right?
How would you describe your team's way of working to a potential client without sounding like a brochure?
What would you ask in a chemistry meeting to find out whether a partner is reliable, beyond what's on their website?
Would you turn down good money to avoid working with someone you didn't trust? Have you ever had to make that call?

Notes

Topic 20

Negotiating Project Scope & Timing

Agreeing on deliverables, MVP boundaries, and deadlines with clients or internal stakeholders.

Discussion

Scope & Deadlines

How would you convince a client to launch a simpler first version (an MVP) instead of waiting for the "perfect" one?
The client asks for three new features but wants to keep the same budget and deadline. What do you say? Try: "We can definitely add those. Let me show you what that means for the timeline."
The client and your technical team disagree about which features matter most. How do you help them reach a decision?
Your manager has promised a client a deadline you know is unrealistic. How do you push back without sounding negative?
What's the difference between a "must-have" and a "nice-to-have"? Pick a current project and sort three of its features.

Notes

Topic 21

Negotiating Terms & Conditions

Discussing contract terms, SLAs, payment terms, and pricing structures.

Discussion

Contracts & Agreements

When your company signs a deal with a client or supplier, what's usually hardest to agree on: price, payment terms, liability, or something else?
The other side says, "This is our standard contract. We don't make changes." How do you respond?
A supplier's SLA promises a fix within 24 hours, and they keep missing it. What should the contract say about that?
How do you signal what you can't accept? Compare "That would be difficult for us" with "That's a deal-breaker for us." When would you use each?
Should you negotiate contract terms yourself, or leave it to the lawyers? Where do you draw the line?

Notes

Topic 22

Negotiating Salary & Compensation

Discussing salary, bonuses, benefits, and raises as a candidate, an employee, or a hiring manager.

Discussion

Asking for What You're Worth

A recruiter asks, "What are your salary expectations?" before telling you their budget. What do you say?
How do you prepare for a conversation about a raise? What evidence would you bring with you?
Beyond base salary, what matters most to you: a bonus, remote work, extra vacation days, a training budget, equity?
You're the hiring manager, and your favorite candidate asks for 15% more than your budget. What are your options?
When is the best time to ask for a raise: at your annual review, right after a big win, or when you have another offer? Why?

Notes

Topic 23

Handling Escalations & Complaints

Responding professionally to angry clients, complaints, and disputes.

Discussion

Defusing Complaints

A client calls, clearly angry: "This is the third time this has happened." What are the first words out of your mouth?
Compare "I'm sorry you feel that way" with "I'm sorry this happened." Why does the first one often make people angrier?
When should you escalate a problem to your manager, and when should you handle it yourself?
How do you apologize to a client without admitting fault in a way your legal team wouldn't like?
Once the problem is fixed, what do you do to make sure it doesn't happen again, and how do you tell the client about it?

Notes

Topic 24

Kitchen Chit-Chat

Informal conversations with colleagues in the office kitchen, before a call, or in the team chat.

Discussion

Casual Workplace Talk

It's Monday morning, and you run into a colleague from another team at the coffee machine. What do you talk about?
Which topics are fine for casual chat at your workplace, and which are off-limits: salary, politics, health, relationships?
If you work remotely some of the time, where does casual conversation happen now: a random channel, the first minutes of a call, or nowhere?
Has a casual conversation at work ever led to something useful, like a new project, a solution, or a job opportunity?
A colleague is telling you a long story, and you need to get back to work. How do you end the conversation politely? Try (casual): "Anyway, I'd better get back to it. Lunch later this week?"

Notes

Topic 25

Business Dinners

Hosting or attending client, partner, or executive dinners: building the relationship while staying professional.

Discussion

Dining & Relationships

You're hosting a client dinner in your city. How do you choose the restaurant, and what do you find out about your guests beforehand?
Which topics work well at a business dinner, and which do you avoid?
A guest doesn't drink alcohol or has dietary restrictions. How do you make them feel comfortable without making a big deal of it?
When, if ever, should you bring up business at a dinner that's meant to be about the relationship? How would you steer the conversation there?
The check arrives. Who pays, and what do you say? ("Please, this one's on us.") How does this work in your country compared with others you've visited?

Notes

Topic 26

Networking at Conferences & Trade Fairs

Making professional connections at conferences, trade fairs, and industry meetups.

Discussion

Making Connections

You walk into a conference reception and don't know anyone. What's your first move?
Give me your opening line for approaching someone standing alone with a coffee. Now give me one for joining a group that's already talking.
How do you politely end a conversation and move on? Try: "It's been great talking to you. I'm going to grab a coffee before the next session, but let's connect on LinkedIn."
What do you do in the week after a conference so the contacts you made don't go cold?
Where's the line between networking that feels genuine and networking that feels like a sales pitch?

Notes

Topic 27

Small Talk Before & After Meetings

Light conversation with clients and partners at the start and end of meetings, in person and on video.

Discussion

Before & After the Agenda

You join a video call with a client two minutes early, and it's just the two of you. What do you say?
How do you move from small talk to business without it feeling abrupt? Compare "Shall we get started?" (neutral) with "Okay, I know we're short on time, so let's dive in." (casual)
Small-talk habits vary a lot between countries. What differences have you noticed with clients or colleagues from other cultures?
Some people see small talk as a waste of time. What do you lose if you skip it completely?
How do you end a meeting on a positive note? Compare "Okay, thanks, bye" with "Thanks, this was really helpful. I'll send over a summary this afternoon."

Notes

Topic 28

Requesting Information by Phone

Making professional calls to ask for, check, or clarify information, often in a second language.

Discussion

Professional Phone Calls

How do you open a call to someone you've never spoken to? Try: "Hi, this is [name] from [company]. Is now a good time? I'm calling about…"
The line is bad, or the other person speaks very fast. How do you ask them to repeat something without sounding rude?
How do you check that you've understood numbers, dates, and names correctly? For example: "Just to confirm, that's invoice 4-0-7-2, due on the 15th?"
Is a phone call in a second language harder than an email or a video call? What makes it harder, and what helps?
These days many people send a message first, like "Got five minutes for a quick call?" When is a call still better than an email or a chat message?

Notes

Topic 29

Making & Confirming Arrangements by Phone

Setting up meetings, visits, and logistics by phone, and confirming the details out loud.

Discussion

Scheduling Calls

You need to set up a site visit with a supplier. What details do you have to agree on before you hang up?
Suggest two times and be ready for a "no." For example: "Would Tuesday afternoon work for you? If not, I'm also free Thursday morning."
You agreed on a time by phone, and now you need to move it. Compare "I have to cancel" with "Something's come up on my end. Could we push it to Friday?"
After you arrange something by phone, do you always confirm it in writing? What has gone wrong when people didn't?
Dates and times cause confusion across countries: 03/04 can mean March 4 or April 3, and not everyone uses the 24-hour clock. How do you avoid mix-ups?

Notes

Topic 30

Phone Follow-Ups on Inquiries

Calling a client or lead to follow up on an inquiry, a quote, or a proposal you already sent.

Discussion

Following Up

You sent a quote a week ago and haven't heard anything. Do you call, email, or wait? How long is too long?
How do you open the follow-up call without sounding pushy? Compare "I'm just calling to check if you've read my proposal" with "I wanted to see if you had any questions about the proposal."
The client says, "Sorry, we haven't had a chance to look at it yet." What's your next line?
The client says your price is too high, and you have no time to prepare. How do you respond on the spot?
How many times would you follow up with someone who never replies before you stop? What do you say in your last message?

Notes

Topic 31

Writing Meeting Summary Emails

Summarizing key discussion points, decisions, and next steps after a meeting.

Discussion

Follow-Up Emails

What should a good meeting summary always include? Think about the last one you sent or received. Was anything missing?
How do you write action items so nobody is confused about who does what, and by when? For example: "Dana to send the revised budget by end of day Thursday."
Many teams now use AI tools that record a meeting and write the summary automatically. Do you trust those summaries? What do they get wrong?
How soon after a meeting should the summary go out, and who should send it?
Have you seen a misunderstanding that a clear summary email would have prevented? What happened?

Notes

Topic 32

Making & Confirming Arrangements by Email

Proposing times, confirming details, and rescheduling meetings by email.

Discussion

Scheduling by Email

What's the fastest way to agree on a meeting time by email, without five rounds of "Does Tuesday work?"
Write, or say out loud, a short email asking a client to reschedule because something urgent has come up on your side.
What should a confirmation email include so nobody shows up at the wrong place, at the wrong time, or with the wrong link?
Do you prefer to schedule by email, by sending a calendar invite directly, or by sharing a booking link? Is sending someone your booking link ever rude?
You need six people in three time zones in one meeting. How do you find a time, and who gets the inconvenient slot?

Notes

Topic 33

Writing Email Responses to Inquiries

Replying to questions and requests from clients, partners, and vendors.

Discussion

Answering Inquiries

A potential client emails five questions in one long paragraph. How do you structure your reply so it's easy to read?
You don't have all the answers yet. What do you send in the meantime? Try: "Thanks for reaching out. I'm checking a couple of details with our team and will get back to you by Thursday."
How formal should your first reply to a stranger be? When would you write "Dear Mr. Smith" (formal), "Hello John" (neutral), or "Hi John" (friendly)?
Which email phrases sound old-fashioned to you, like "Please find attached" or "I hope this email finds you well"? What do you write instead?
How do you politely say no to an inquiry, or pass it to someone else, without sounding like you don't care?

Notes

Topic 34

Writing Sales Reports

Writing weekly, monthly, or quarterly updates on pipeline, revenue, and sales performance.

Discussion

Sales Report Writing

Who reads the sales reports in your company, and what do they look at first?
How do you make a data-heavy report readable for someone who only wants the headline? Try opening with one sentence, like "Revenue is up, but growth in new clients has slowed."
Do numbers speak for themselves, or does every chart need a sentence explaining what it means?
How do you describe a bad month in writing without sounding defensive? Compare "Sales were down due to circumstances beyond our control" with "Sales were down 8%, mainly because two large deals slipped into next month."
Is a weekly sales report useful, or just extra paperwork when everything is already in the CRM?

Notes

Topic 35

Writing Project Reports

Writing up project status, risks, milestones, and outcomes.

Discussion

Status Reports & Lessons Learned

If your boss reads only three lines about your project, what should they say? Write them for a project you're working on now.
Many teams mark project status red, yellow, or green. How honest are those colors where you work? Is "green" sometimes really "yellow"?
How do you report a risk so that people take it seriously without panicking?
Your project is two weeks behind schedule. How do you put that in writing and keep stakeholders' trust? Start with: "We're now forecasting a two-week delay because… To get back on track, we're…"
When a project ends, does anyone in your company write down what was learned? Does anyone ever read it?

Notes

Topic 36

Writing Recruitment Reports

Reporting on hiring progress, candidate assessments, and recruitment results.

Discussion

Hiring Updates & Candidate Write-Ups

What does management want to know about hiring: cost, speed, the quality of new hires, or something else?
Write a two-sentence assessment of an imaginary candidate that is honest but fair, something you'd be comfortable with the candidate reading.
A key position has been open for six months. How would you explain why in a report, and what would you recommend?
In a candidate write-up, which is more useful: a score out of five or a short paragraph? Why?
Is a long hiring process with many rounds a sign of high standards or a sign of a problem?

Notes

Topic 37

Writing Proposals & Quotes

Writing commercial proposals, quotes, and capability documents for potential clients.

Discussion

Winning Proposals

You receive two proposals for the same service at a similar price. What makes you choose one over the other?
How do you adapt a standard proposal template so the client feels it was written for them?
What's the most common mistake you see in proposals: too long, too generic, unclear pricing, or something else?
Should the price be one total figure or broken down line by line? Which would you rather receive as a buyer?
What should the first page of a proposal say? Draft the opening sentence for a real or imaginary client.

Notes

Topic 38

Writing Articles & Blog Posts

Writing thought-leadership pieces, industry articles, and company blog posts.

Discussion

Content Writing

What makes a business article worth reading instead of just more noise in your feed?
If your company asked you to write an article about your area of expertise, what would you write about? Give me the headline.
With AI tools, anyone can publish a blog post in minutes. How can a human writer make an article stand out?
How do you balance being useful and promoting your company in the same article? Where's the line?
Is regular blogging worth the time for a B2B company? Who actually reads those posts?

Notes

Topic 39

Copywriting: Newsletters & Social Media

Writing newsletters and social media posts for a professional audience.

Discussion

Short-Form Business Writing

Which work newsletter did you last open instead of deleting? What made you click?
Write a subject line for your company's next newsletter. Now make it shorter.
How do you write a LinkedIn post that sounds like a real person, not a press release?
Can you tell when a company post was written by a marketing team, or by AI? What gives it away?
Does social media actually bring your company business, or is it something companies feel they have to do?

Notes

Topic 40

Delivering Difficult News Professionally

Communicating layoffs, budget cuts, missed targets, or project failures to teams, clients, and stakeholders.

Discussion

Hard Conversations

What's the biggest mistake managers make when they deliver bad news to a team?
Have you seen a company handle layoffs or a restructuring well, or badly? What made the difference?
You have to tell your team that the project they've worked on for six months has been canceled. How do you open the conversation?
What matters most when you share bad news: speed, honesty, or having all the answers first? Can you have all three?
Compare "Unfortunately, due to the current situation…" with "I'll be direct: our budget has been cut, and here's what that means for us." Which phrases make bad news worse?

Notes