Q Choose the correct alternatives to complete the sentences. 1 If we went/go for a fixed-price contract, the consultant will assume / assumed most risk. 2 Unless we would hire /hire an independent consultant, we won't/wouldn't sort out our mess. 3 If a company is/will be very cash-generative, it may/would decide it doesn't need to sell any investments at all. 4 They said further strike ballots are/were likely if talks between the union and the companies will /did not succeed. 5 The system allows/would allow for reductions in penalties for corporate crimes if companies already have/will have programmes to detect and prevent misconduct. 6 If we had found/found their previous report more illuminating, we turned / would have turned to the same management consultancy firm. 7 I won't/wouldn't agree to pay such a high fee if I were /am you. 8 We wouldn't have agreed /didn't agree to such a high fee if the consultant weren't /hadn't been so well known. 9 We have /had serious problems at management level. If only we hire / could hire a consultant! 10 If only I hadn't taken on /didn't take on that contract, I'd be /I'll be much happier today. ^ Rewrite the following as conditional sentences. 1 We were not given sufficient time and resources. That's why we couldn't do the research in-house. If. w£ had be-e-n, ajym. sufficient, time-, cmd r&source-s, could bcy&...... fom. 'the. rpswrch. in-house,................................................... 2 I know they don't have the necessary skills to do the work in-house. That's why they have to rely on an outside expert. If they.............................................................................. 3 I was not well prepared. So now I don't feel good about the negotiation. If I.................................................................................. 4 He isn't a good communicator. We can't ask him to conduct the negotiation. If he................................................................................ 5 They didn't set a realistic timescale. The project wasn't completed on time. If they.............................................................................. 6 It's a pity I wasn't able to negotiate better terms. I wish I............................................................................. 7 We didn't bring in a consultant. The crisis wasn't defused very quickly. If we................................................................................ 8 He is an inefficient manager. His projects are not on budget. If he................................................................................ 9 I didn't realise my client was dissatisfied. I didn't make a substantial concession. If I.................................................................................. 10 We weren't clear about what we wanted. Now we aren't pleased with what we've got. If we................................................................................ Q Complete the second sentence in each pair so that it has approximately the same meaning as the first sentence. Use exactly three words, including the word given. 1 Providing that you deliver this month, we agree to cover freight costs, condition We agree to cover freight costs.................................you deliver this month. 2 If you are interested in our training solutions, please contact our local office, should .................................interested in our training solutions, please contact our local office. 3 If we don't get some results soon, we won't see this project through, unless We won't see this project through.................................some results soon. 4 We'll launch a new project if you're on time and on budget on this occasion, long .................................you're on time and on budget on this occasion, we'll launch a new project. 5 You may need further information, so I'll give you my contact details, case I'll give you my contact details.................................need further information. Q Complete the text with suitable words. US chief executives top performance survey European and Asian chief executives have shorter tenure and are more likely to be fired for poor performance ... tb.dO....1 their North American counterparts, ............2 to an international survey of 2,500 listed companies. The survey, by Booz Allen Hamilton, the management consultants, found that 16.8 per cent of European chief executives left ............3 posts last year - a 425 per cent increase on 1995 -due to either poor performance ............4 through retirement. The chief executive turnover rate in Asia, excluding Japan, was 17.5 per cent - 256 per cent higher than in 1995. The figure in Japan was 15.5 per cent. In ............5 of the publicity given to high-profile departures of corporate leaders,............6 as Douglas Daft at Coca-Cola, only 11.7 per cent of chief executives in North America left their jobs last year. European chief executives were also ............7 likely to be dismissed than their North American counterparts. In Europe, 42 per cent of chief executive departures resulted ............8 poor performance, compared with 31 per cent in North America. The tenure of European chief executives who were forced out was only 2.5 years, compared with an average............9 4.5 years worldwide. European chief executives who left were also younger than ............10 North American counterparts. The average age for departing European chief executives was 54, compared with 58 in North America. Departing Asian chief executives, outside Japan, had............11 average age of 56. Japanese departing chief executives were the oldest, with an average age of 65. Booz Allen said the main reason chief executives ............12 dismissed was the poor performance of their companies' share price. 'Under-performance - not ethics, not illegality, not power struggles - is the primary reason CEOs get fired,' the consultancy said. FINANCIAL TIMES