(Mr. Michael Henderson is the MD of ABS Hardware International. He organizes a meeting to discuss some issues)

Attendants:)

场景：多人会议室（椭圆桌）

人物：Michael Henderson: MD , the Chairperson of the meeting

Sophia Wang: Human Resources Manager   Tony Bobson: Production Manager

Philip Littlewood: Sales Manager          Howard Franklin: R&D Manager

Marian Blair: Administration Manager      Lynn Hillman:  Accounting Manager

Julius Lamar: Purchasing Manager         JoEllen Peterson: minute taker

Michael: Good morning, everyone. Thank you for attending the meeting. First of all, I’d like to welcome Sophia Wang, our new HR manager. Sophia, would you say a few words?

Sophia: Nice to meet everyone. It is a pleasure for me to join this company.

Michael: Thank you Sophia. Now, Let’s get started. As you can see from the agenda, the first issue is about increasing working efficiency. Recently the sales volume of the company has decreased. We have also received complaints from customers about the quality of our products. This has seriously affected the image of our company. It is found that some workers do not have motivation and initiative to work. To change this, the MD office has drafted two proposals, which have already been sent to your mailbox. Marian, would you mind explaining this proposals a little bit?

Marian: Well, the first proposal is to install monitor in offices so as to give more control. The second one is to assign the work to the individual staff and if they can finish earlier, they may leave.

Michael: Ok, yes, I’d like to discuss these two principles with you guys here and make a decision . JoEllen, would you please take some notes?

JoEllen：Sure.

Tony: Well, I think the second proposal gives staff more respect. Once they feel that they are respected and trusted, they will work in a good mood. As a result, they can be much more diligent and more initiative.

Michael ：Thank you, Tony. Howard, what do you think?

Howard: As long as my department is concerned, I also prefer the second proposal. In our department, everyone is responsible for one part of work. They usually can finish a week’s work in four and half days if properly arranged. That is to say, they can leave the office earlier on Friday. I think they would be happy about this.

Julius: Personally I think it is a good idea to have flex time. In our department, we often go out to visit clients. We cannot finish work at 5. The second proposal would give us more freedom.

Michael: Thank you . How about you , Marian?

Marian: Personally, I like the proposal of installing monitors in offices. As I walked around the office the other day, I found some staff were quite absent-minded at work. Some were talking, and some playing with cell-phones. It is time to enforce some more control and discipline. Discipline would probably bring more efficiency. And I have another worry, that is quality.

Lynn: Can I say a few words, Mr. Henderson?

Michael: Sure, Lynn. Go ahead.

Lynn: To some extent, I do agree with Marian. What I worry about is the quality. If work is assigned to individual person, they want to finish that earlier and sooner, you know. Who would really care about quality? From this point of the view, I think installing monitor devices is necessary.

Tony: Sorry, Lynn, I didn’t quite catch you. Are you worried about the quality? I think it is not a bad idea, but showing respect to staffs is important as well.

Philip: I'd like to make a point. I believe the worry about quality has its reasons, but monitor devices will certainly not produce efficiency. Well, it will hurt the staff to some extent.

Michael: Ok, I’d like to listen to the voice of the HR department, Sophia?  

Sophia: As far as I understand, in many other companies, flex time has been introduced. it has brought more efficiency and enthusiasm to work. No problems about quality have ever occurred. I think if we adopt the second proposal, our staff will feel more motivated.

Michael: I think we need to stipulate the regulations about discipline at work. Playing games on computer and cell phones at work will certainly not be tolerated.  

Howard: Yes, that’s crucial. It is also imperative to give some encouragement to those who can finish work with high efficiency and quality.

Philip: Yeah, I think that might be a good idea. Everyone values encouragement and praise.

Tony: I think if this is implemented, no one would talk or play games during work.

Michael: Is this idea acceptable to everyone?

Marian: I agree. At least we can have a try for a certain period of time and see if it can work out.

Julius: Yeah, we should try to focus on the positive points.

Michael: Ok, good! I think there is no different opinion any more. That’s settled. We are going to adopt the second proposal. It’s going to start from next month. We’re running short of time here, so let’s move on to the second issue…