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Lingua Inglese II CLEMI – Paper based (90 minutes)

Part 1 – Text analysis (20 marks)

Read the text below, and identify the genre to which it belongs. Then, analyse it accordingly (about 250-300
words). Remember that you have write in full sentences, and that bulleted/ numbered lists are to be avoided.

How Smartphones are Enabling a Smarter Way of Working in Stores

By Brock McKeel
Senior Director of Digital Operations
October 23, 2018

The number of things we’re able to accomplish through our smartphones today is truly amazing.
You can check the weather or stay up-to-date on the news. You can even sync your calendar with family to
make sure everyone is on the same page. Thanks to a new initiative rolling out in our stores, our associates
can now use their smartphones as that same kind of assistant at work – with tasks that are directly related to
their jobs.
We’re rolling out Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) in October to give associates another option to stay
connected – this time from the familiar turf of their own smartphones. Although our sales floor associates
can continue to access Walmart’s digital network by checking out a handheld device at the back of the store
[…], they will now have the convenience of also using a smartphone if they desire. We know technology is
helping our associates be more productive and deliver for our customers in new ways. BYOD is just another
option our people will have to access the custom apps that help associates perform their jobs.
Through the new program, participating associates have the option to download our app suite directly to their
own personal devices. This is another way to access the tools that help our people understand the health of
their business, and spend more time on the sales floor serving customers. And the best part? Associates also
receive a discount on their monthly phone bills.
With BYOD, the moment associates clock in at work, they have tools that enable them to do the best job
possible, right in their pockets. Our suite of custom apps, which become accessible at clock-in, is also
broader than ever before, complete with features like the PlanIT app – a hub for all announcements that
directly matter to our associates, coming right from our home office in Bentonville, Arkansas.
For many associates who want to use their own device for work, privacy can be a concern. That is why we
have been very specific about what Walmart can and can’t see on associates’ phones. Some pieces of
information are helpful in making the program more useful for our associates. Other information is not
necessary, so we don’t access it.
What CAN be seen by Walmart:
 Battery Level
 Make and Model of the device
  Operating System (OS) version
 Corporate Email and Data
 Storage Usage
 Carrier
 Phone Number
 Country
What CAN’T be seen by Walmart:
 Personal Email and Data
 Photos/Videos
 Voicemail - Corporate or personal
 Text – iOS or Android
 Web Activity
 List of Apps
 Location
[...]
We’ve introduced a lot of advanced technology to help our associates work faster and smarter, from virtual
reality-based training to our Bossa Nova shelf scanners that make the inventory process quick and easy.
Associates have caught on really well, but what I love about BYOD is that the tech we’re introducing is
something that’s already second nature to most of our associates. It’s a smarter way to work – for the
business, for our associates, and for customers.

Part 2 – Written production (10 marks)

You work for an insurance company which aims to sell life insurance plans to married couples who have just
had their first child. Read the profile of your potential customers and write a sales promotion letter using the
appropriate persuasive strategies (about 150-200 words).

- Young married couples who have just had their first baby.
- They are aged between 28 and 35 and have fairly good salaries but are very careful about their spending.
- They have never considered insurance before and are put off by the complicated documents.
- They are suspicious of insurance sales people and would not agree to spending hours going over figures
with them.
- They would respond if the insurance plan was inexpensive and looked easy to take out.

Part 3 – Essay writing – Culture at work (30 marks)

In some cultures it is not considered polite to ask direct questions, which may cause conflict or
embarrassment. Instead, questions are phrased in an indirect manner and allude to things rather than

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explicitly state them. What is the normal way of asking questions in your culture and/or in other cultures you
know? Are some types of questions avoided?
Please express your opinion in a short essay (about 300 words) by referring to your own cultural
background, your knowledge of and/or experience with foreign cultures, as well as to the theories of
intercultural and cross-cultural communication discussed in class.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
Remember!
For all the tasks you have to
- write in small letters; you can use capital letters sparsely only in the mailshot
- use legible handwriting
- leave margins.
If you don’t comply with these rules you will have points taken off.
You can use this paper for your draft. Please write your clean copy on the protocollo.