English for Human Resources

Introduction

English for Human Resources is an online course, consisting of 56 units of English, and providing approximately 60 hours of study for students.

Course aims

To give students at Intermediate, CEFR B1/Upper Intermediate B2 level practice in general and business-oriented language required for business contexts at this level, specifically tailored towards human resources situations. The course blends grammatical structures necessary for this level, with vocabulary, reading, listening, writing, speaking, and pronunciation.

Грамматика

By the end of the course, students will be able to

  • Use present and past tenses correctly
  • Use the appropriate conditional forms to talk about situations and consequences.
  • Use the present perfect to describe a link between past and present events.
  • Use going to and will to talk about future predictions and intentions.
  • Use the passive form correctly
  • Distinguish and be able to correctly describe countable and uncountable nouns.

Словарный запас

By the end of the course students will have learnt approximately 200 expressions used in the human resources field.

Skills

By the end of the course students will have had exposure to and practice in reading and hearing formal and informal English from a variety of accents and human resources contexts.

Unit summary

Module 1

  • Introduction to Human Resources
  • Грамматика: Present tenses
  • Словарный запас: Key HR terminology, basics of employment, types of employees:
  • Чтение: The evolution and importance of HR in organisations
  • Прослушивание: An interview with an HR manager discussing their role
  • Написание: Drafting a brief description of one’s HR job role
  • Выступление: Discussing the role of HR in an organisation
  • Произношение: Anxious and Chess + connected speech

Module 2

  • Recruitment and Selection
  • Грамматика: Past tenses
  • Vocabulary: Job postings, applications, interviews, selection processes
  • Чтение: The stages of the recruitment process
  • Прослушивание: A mock job interview
  • Написание: Creating a job advertisement for a fictional position
  • Выступление: Job interviews
  • Произношение: Beats and Beach + connected speech

Module 3

  • Training and Development
  • Грамматика: Going to and Will
  • Словарный запас: Onboarding, training modules, career progression
  • Чтение: The importance of continuous employee training
  • Прослушивание: A workshop on employee development
  • Написание: Drafting a training schedule for new employees
  • Выступление: Organising initial and ongoing employee training
  • Произношение: Bet and But + connected speech

Module 4

  • Compensation and Benefits
  • Грамматика: Present perfect
  • Словарный запас: salary, bonuses, benefits, allowances, deductions
  • Чтение: How companies decide compensation packages
  • Прослушивание: Negotiation of a salary package
  • Написание: Designing a basic compensation package for a role
  • Выступление: Salaries and bonuses
  • Произношение: Bud and Bird + connected speech

Module 5

  • Performance Management
  • Грамматика: Countable and uncountable nouns
  • Словарный запас: Appraisal, feedback, goals, performance metrics
  • Чтение: The significance of regular performance reviews
  • Прослушивание: A mock performance review meeting
  • Написание: Drafting a performance feedback for an employee
  • Выступление: Improving performance
  • Произношение: Book and But + connected speech

Module 6

  • Employee Relations
  • Грамматика: First conditional
  • Словарный запас: Employee engagement, grievances, mediation, workplace culture
  • Чтение: The importance of maintaining positive employee relations
  • Прослушивание: A mediation session between an employee and a manager
  • Написание: Drafting a memo addressing a common workplace concern
  • Выступление: Conflict resolution
  • Произношение: Cart and Cut + connected speech

Module 7

  • Legal and Ethical Aspects of HR
  • Грамматика: Passive
  • Словарный запас: Contracts, labour laws, non-discrimination, ethics
  • Reading: An overview of European Union labour laws and their significance
  • Прослушивание: A discussion on ethical dilemmas in HR
  • Написание: Designing a code of conduct for employees
  • Выступление: The implications of a breach in the code of conduct
  • Произношение: Day and Ray + connected speech

Module 8

  • Trends in HR and the Future
  • Грамматика: Second conditional
  • Словарный запас: Remote work, diversity and inclusion, automation in HR
  • Чтение: The changing landscape of HR in the digital age
  • Прослушивание: A seminar on the future of HR practices
  • Написание: Drafting a proposal for incorporating a new HR trend
  • Выступление: The future of work
  • Произношение: Fine and Vine + connected speech

Follow-up

Students completing the English for Human Resources course should feel confident in tackling any upper intermediate course, including our Upper Intermediate Business Power course.