BTS ASSISTANT DE DIRECTION
| Brevet de Technicien Supérieur -
Session 2003
Durée: 3 heures - Coefficient : 2 Dictionnaire bilingue autorisé - L'usage de la calculatrice est interdit ainsi que des convertisseurs Euro DON'T LET COMMON COURTESY BECOME A RARITY The way employees relate to each other is deteriorating throughout western society, according to Giovinella Gonthier, who is fighting a campaign against uncivil behaviour at work. In her book "Rude Awakenings: Overcoming The Civility Crisis in the Workplace", she blames parents who do too little to teach their children good manners, increasing pressures at work, urban overcrowding and alienating technology for a deterioration in politeness and goodwill between colleagues. The most extreme example of incivility is of course the serious bullying culture found in some workplaces. However Ms Gonthier also insists on the general abandonment of common courtesy. Among the unforgiveable faux-pas she has recorded are an employee who cleaned his teeth at the water cooler and a man who took a call on his mobile phone during the funeral service of a colleague. There are bosses who cannot be bothered to say "please" or "thank you" in brusquely worded e mails. Your cheery hello to colleagues as you pass them in the corridor is greeted with a silent stare as if you did not exist. "Don't worry" says a friend. "He's like that with everyone". What does this mean? Are we saying that rudeness in the workplace is OK, so long as it is consistent? The way we relate to each other seems indeed to have changed for the worse, creating a "civility crisis". This may be more apparent in the US workplace where anti-discrimination laws and concerns about political correctness have made employees nervous, afraid of being accused of harrassment. The workplace can appear hostile when colleagues are afraid to engage in a friendly embrace. Even with people whom you know socially, where a hug and even a kiss is your normal greeting, in the workplace it is a handshake and a nod. European offices are not yet characterized by such social rigidity but it is probably only a matter of time as managers come under increasing pressure for results."The workplace behaviour is strongly influenced by that of top management." says Jessica Learmond-Criqui at Altheimer & Gray, a London law firm. "Where you have aggressive management and work-focused individuals who are not interested in personal niceties, the message is filtered through to the rest of the staff'. Ms Gonthier recognises that part of the problem comes from a society that equates success with money. This has given people with money the right to be nasty. The result is more swearing, less restraint, less deference and less respect for tradition. One of Ms Gonthier's remedies is to return to smart dressing in the belief that casual dress led to a casual mentality. Indeed a number of American companies now believe that since the 1980s, the fashion for casual dress in the workplace has encouraged sloppy work and bad manners. There is now a trend to return to the more formal suit and tie. The most important point is to recognise that standards of politeness and civility have fallen and to address these issues as individuals. It costs nothing to be genial, respectful and polite to colleagues. Good manners should still count for something.
I. COMPREHENSION (8 points) Rédigez en français un compte rendu (200 mots ±10%) du document et indiquez le nombre de mots utilisés. II. ESSAY in English. (6 points) Do YOU think the atmosphere in the workplace has an effect on workers' productivity. (170 mots +/ 10 %). III. LETTRE COMMERCIALE (6 points) Rédigez un courrier en anglais selon les consignes suivantes: Vous êtes Madame Martha Edmonds, Directrice de Marketing chez CHARM AND VITALITY plc, 21, Churchill Square, Marsdale, Surrey MS4 3DW. Vous écrivez une lettre à l'une de vos clientes, Diana Cummings Gérante du magasin The Beauty Shop (40 Lipton Street, Exeter EX2 8BA, Devon).
Formules de politesse et présentation d'usage.
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