Company to Company is a new approach to the teaching of business letter
and telex writing. The basic idea behind the book won an English-Speaking
Union English Language Award (presented, Buckingham Palace, 1984).*
1 Who is the course for?
Company to Company is intended for students with a lower-intermediate
knowledge of English who may be studying in language institutes, commercial
schools or the upper classes of secondary schools.
2 How is the course organised?
Each of the eight units has two sections — a study section (A) and an activity
section (B).
In the study section, students learn the conventions and common
expressions of business correspondence and practise these through short
exercises and letter-writing tasks. This part of each unit teaches students how
to do things in English — such as complain, ask for information, request action
and so on.
In the activity section, students are placed in a business situation where different
students (normally working in groups) represent different companies.
Through a series of role cards at the back of their book (three for each
company), students become involved in writing and replying to each other in
order to accomplish a business goal — such as ordering some goods or arranging
a business trip. When the activity has finished, there is a feedback stage
where, with the teacher, students look at what they wrote and the problems
they had.