Unit 1 Arriving at a new job 新人报到 

Key terms

1. get in——to arrive 到达

2. commute——a regular journey to and from your place of work 上下班

3. on board——as part of the team or organization 加入

4. nerve-wracking——to make someone feel nervous or anxious 令人不安的

5. small talk——light, informal conversation on non-controversial topics (People make small talk in order to be polite in social situations) 闲聊

6. hit the ground running——to start a new endeavor at full speed, without wasting time 立即展开行动

7. brief——to give essential information to someone 简短说明 

Katharine arrives at her new office and introduces herself to her colleagues.

Receptionist: Hi there, may I help you?

Katharine: Yes, hi. I’m Katharine Brown, the new research assistant. I was told to ask for Jacob Smith when I got in.

Receptionist: Ah, of course. I’m Barbara. It’s nice to meet you. Jacob’s not available just yet, but he asked me to hand you over to Ann while you wait for him. She’s in the conference room around the corner.

Katharine: OK, thank you. 

She walks to the conference room.

Katharine: Hi, I’m Katharine. Are you Ann?

Ann: Yes, nice to meet you. 

Katharine: Pleasure to meet you.

Ann: Did you have any trouble getting here?

Katharine: Oh, no; actually, it’s a very easy commute.

Sample Sentences 

A. Introducing yourself

1. James Brady, nice to meet you.

2. I’m Sara Cooper. It’s a pleasure to meet you.

3. I’m your newest analyst, Brian Sandhurst.

4. My name’s Leslie Cooper; I believe I’m supposed to be meeting with Aaron Cantor to get started. 

B. Making small talk

5. Welcome to the offi  ce! We’re glad to have you on board.

6. Don’t worry, the fi  rst day is always a little nerve-wracking.

7. The weather looked beautiful on my way in. Is it still nice out?

8. Is this your fi  rst time in our offi  ce?

C. Talking about yourself 

9. I’m from Seoul originally, but I’ve been living in the USA for the last four years.

10. I just graduated from business school and I’m really excited to be able to put my skills to work.

11. I’ve been working in sales for a number of years.

D. Introducing someone to his or her work 

12. We’re hoping you can hit the ground running, as we’ve got a lot to do here.

13. Your supervisor will brief you on our current status.

14. For now, we would like you to focus on learning our customer service policies.