单选题 Patty Baxter realized there was a problem. In 20 years, her working office usually hummed with sales calls. Now, it was quiet, and advertising sales were down. Ms. Baxter identified a reason: Her sales staffs, all under age 35, were emailing clients with their pitches, not calling them on the phone.
Younger workers may have mastered technologies that some of their older colleagues have barely heard of, such as photo and video sharing apps, but some bosses wish they"d learn a more traditional skill: picking up the phone. While Millennials—usually defined as people born between 1981 and the early 2000s—are rarely far from their smart phones, they grew up with a wider array of communication tools, such as texting and online chatting. In the workplace, some managers say avoiding the phone in favor of email can hurt business, hinder creativity and delay projects.
Stephanie Shih, 27, says phone calls are an interruption. A New York-based company that designs online and paper stationery doesn"t have a work phone. The company says that not having individual phone lines in open-plan areas protects people from unwanted calls, which can interrupt conversations. Kevin Castle, a 32-year-old chief technology officer at Technossus, says unplanned calls are such an annoyance that he usually unplugs his desk phone and stashes it in a cabinet. Calling someone without emailing first can make it seem as though you"re prioritizing your needs over theirs, Mr. Castle says. Technossus"s staff relies mainly on email to communicate, which helps bridge the time difference between the company"s offices in the U. S. and India, he says. He uses Microsoft Lync for instant messaging and video conferencing. Phone calls are his last resort.
Businesses aren"t giving up on the phone yet. Many new phones allow workers to receive calls, texts, instant messages, transcribed voice mails and more all in one system and access the phone system through their work computers.
单选题 Which of the following can be one of the reasons for the declining on advertising sales?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[考点] 文章细节
[解析] 可以定位至文章第一段,第一段中Baxter指出了广告销售业务下降的原因:她所有的销售人员年龄都在35岁以下,他们通常通过电子邮件交流来游说客户,而不是使用电话来联系。因此可以选出A。C选项的干扰性较大,但是C的表述是错误的,employees不是use email clients而应该是employees are emailing clients。
单选题 Why does Kevin Castle usually unplug his desk phone and stash it in a cabinet?
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[考点] 原因
[解析] 定位至文章第二段,Kevin Castle对意外电话感到很恼火,以至于他总是拔掉电话线,并把电话扔到柜子里。因此B为正确选项。
单选题 What of the following statements is true according to the passage?
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[考点] 判断
[解析] A选项可以定位至第二段最后一句,一些经理认为不打电话只用电子邮件沟通会影响生意,阻碍创造力并拖延项目”,所以A不正确。B选项可以定位至第二段第一句,“与老员工相比,年轻员工更能熟练掌握图片、视频分享等软件的使用”,因此B的表述正确。C选项可以定位至文章第三段倒数第二句,Technossus的员工主要使用电子邮件交流,这有效调节了公司美国分部和印度分部的时差问题,因此C选项不正确。D选项的表述就更不正确了,打电话反而会更吵。
单选题 According to the passage, we can conclude that
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[考点] 推断
[解析] 根据文章最后一段,“但电话仍未被淘汰。很多新款电话具有让工作人员在一个系统中接听电话、接收文本短信、即时消息、抄录好的语音邮件和处理更多事宜,同时将电话连接到其电脑端等功能。”所以B选项更符合文意。
单选题 Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[考点] 主旨
[解析] 文章第一段和第二段就提出了本文的中心思想:员工通常通过电子邮件交流来游说客户,而不是使用电话保持联系,所以老板希望员工能学习更传统的推销技能:拿起电话。因此D选项Pick up the phone更能表达文章主旨。