Business Meetings (Part-1)

1). Expressions used in combination with the word ‘meeting’

-Fix; arrange; set up = organize a meeting

- Bring forward= make a meeting earlier than originally decided

-Put back; postpone a meeting= make a meeting later than originally planned

-Cancel= not have a meeting at all

-Run; chair= be in charge of a meeting

-Attend= go to a meeting

-Miss= not go to a meeting

 

 2).Types of meeting:

-Chat (informal discussion) with colleagues in the cafeteria

-Brainstorming among colleagues= where as many ideas as possible are produced quickly, to be evaluated later.

-Project meeting/team meeting of employees = involved in a particular activity

-Department/ departmental meeting

-Meeting with suppliers for example to negotiate prices for an order.

-Meeting with a customer for example to discuss a contract.

-Board meeting: an official, formal meeting of a company’s directors.

-Annual General Meeting (AGM): Public companies have to hold an AGM, and most private ones do too. At this meeting, shareholders can question directors about the content of the Annual Report and the financial statements, vote to accept or reject the dividend  (الارباح) recommended by the directors, and vote on replacements for retiring members of the board. The meeting can also carry out any other business stated in the company’s association.

-Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM): A shareholder’s meeting to discuss an important issue such as a proposed merger. OR when there’s a crisis, the directors or the shareholders can request to hold this extraordinary meeting to discuss the situation. For example, if there are claims of misconduct (سوء السلوك)by the directors, where they have behaved illegally, there could be an EGM.

 

 3).Words used to describe meetings:

Some colleagues are discussing a meeting they have just come out of:

A: I thought it was very productive.

B: well, I thought it was a complete waste of time. I didn’t hear anything I didn’t already know.

C : I agree with (A), I felt we had some useful discussions, and that we reached an agreement that was good for both sides. We certainly covered a lot of ground. It was incredible the number of things we got through.

B: But there were too many digressions. John was rambling and kept wandering off the point. He just uses meetings as a chance to show off. Just like a lot of men: he just wanted to show how powerful he is and a good talker he is.

A: But to be fair the chair really kept things moving: she encouraged people to be brief and to stick to the point and we achieved a lot in a short time. Anyway, I learned a lot and I think they listened to what we had to say.