Business Communication
Book Trial Lesson / Consultation (Requires Registration)
Who This Programme Is For
This programme is designed for executive assistants, senior administrative professionals, and managers who need to achieve C1-level English proficiency for international business environments. Whether you're supporting C-suite executives, managing complex stakeholder communications, coordinating high-level meetings, or relocating to an English-speaking office, this programme will give you the grammatical accuracy, formal vocabulary, and diplomatic communication skills required for senior professional roles in international contexts.
What You'll Learn
Over 20 units, you'll develop the precise language skills needed for professional communication at the highest levels in international business environments. You'll master the grammar, vocabulary, and structures required to:
- Write diplomatic correspondence to senior stakeholders with appropriate formal register
- Report on completed work and ongoing projects using accurate verb tenses
- Coordinate complex meetings and schedules using appropriate future forms
- Handle sensitive situations tactfully with conditional structures and hedging language
- Produce formal reports, minutes, and briefing notes with grammatical accuracy
- Describe people, situations, and relationships with necessary precision
- Manage telephone interactions and meeting facilitation professionally
Each unit uses authentic administrative scenarios as a framework for teaching language, ensuring you learn grammar, vocabulary, and structures in realistic professional contexts.
Programme Structure
The programme progresses through three phases. Foundational Professional Communication covers formality, register, email writing, status updates, scheduling, and diplomatic language (Units 1-8). Documentation and Reporting focuses on report writing, meeting minutes, briefing notes, and executive summaries (Units 9-14). Advanced Communication Structures develops relative clauses, participle clauses, and hedging for precision and concision (Units 15-20).
Key Learning Approach
Recognize that executive-level communication requires specific grammatical structures and formal register. Build systematic command of formal vocabulary and diplomatic expressions. Practice authentic administrative scenarios while receiving immediate correction. Result: C1-level proficiency in professional business communication for executive assistant roles.
PHASE 1: FOUNDATIONAL PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION
Unit 1: Formality and Register in Business Communication
What you'll learn:
Distinguishing formal, neutral, and informal register in business contexts. Modal verbs for creating polite, diplomatic tone in requests and suggestions. Passive constructions for objectivity and diplomatic distance. Nominalization techniques for formal written style. Grammatical structures that signal different levels of professionalism.
Grammar: Passive voice, modal verbs for politeness, formal versus informal sentence structures
Practice: Transform informal emails into appropriately formal business correspondence
Focus: Understanding formal register as grammatical and lexical choices for executive-level communication
Unit 2: Email Writing for Executive Stakeholders
What you'll learn:
Standard email structure for senior stakeholder communication. Functional phrases for opening business emails professionally and stating purpose. Language for making information requests diplomatically to senior colleagues. Follow-up expressions that reference previous communications appropriately. Professional closing phrases that maintain relationships and clarify next steps.
Grammar: Present simple for facts, present continuous for current situations, appropriate tense sequencing
Practice: Draft emails to senior stakeholders (invitations, information requests, follow-ups)
Focus: Using authentic business email conventions and diplomatic functional language
Unit 3: Status Updates - Present Perfect vs Past Simple
What you'll learn:
Distinguishing completed actions from results that remain relevant. Present perfect for reporting results with current relevance. Past simple for actions completed in finished time periods. Time expressions that signal which tense is grammatically appropriate. Recognition of context clues that indicate tense choice.
Grammar: Present perfect simple vs past simple with appropriate time expressions
Practice: Write status updates distinguishing completed work from results using correct tenses
Focus: Accurate tense choice when reporting achievements and completed actions
Unit 4: Progress Reports - Ongoing and Continuing Actions
What you'll learn:
Reporting ongoing work and continuing projects accurately. Present continuous for actions happening currently. Present perfect continuous for actions that started in the past and continue. Distinguishing completed versus ongoing actions within the same report. Time expressions that accompany continuous tenses appropriately.
Grammar: Present continuous and present perfect continuous for ongoing work
Practice: Write progress reports that clearly distinguish completed from continuing actions
Focus: Grammatical accuracy when reporting ongoing work and projects in progress
Unit 5: Scheduling - Future Forms for Proposals
What you'll learn:
Different future forms for various purposes in scheduling contexts. Using will for spontaneous offers and decisions made at the moment. Using going to for expressing planned intentions and pre-decisions. Using present continuous for fixed arrangements and confirmed appointments. Functional language for proposing meeting times diplomatically.
Grammar: Future forms (will, going to, present continuous) with appropriate functional contexts
Practice: Propose meeting times and handle scheduling through email exchanges
Focus: Choosing appropriate future forms based on function and certainty level
Unit 6: Calendar Management - Confirming and Modifying Arrangements
What you'll learn:
Language for confirming arrangements with appropriate certainty. Expressions for modifying and rescheduling meetings diplomatically. Functional phrases for handling schedule conflicts tactfully. Coordinating multiple stakeholder schedules through professional language.
Grammar: Future forms for arrangements, modal verbs for polite requests and modifications
Practice: Coordinate complex multi-stakeholder meetings through email exchanges
Focus: Managing scheduling communications professionally using appropriate future structures
Unit 7: Professional Etiquette - Second Conditionals for Polite Requests
What you'll learn:
Using conditional structures for diplomatic communication. Second conditional structure for creating polite, hypothetical requests. Softening direct requests through conditional grammar. Maintaining professional relationships while making requests or addressing issues. Understanding how conditional forms create psychological distance and politeness.
Grammar: Second conditional (if + past simple, would + infinitive) for politeness
Practice: Handle requests and suggestions using second conditional structures
Focus: Using conditional grammar to create diplomatic tone in professional requests
Unit 8: Diplomatic Communication - Handling Sensitive Situations
What you'll learn:
Tactful language for addressing sensitive matters professionally. Face-saving expressions that avoid direct confrontation. Indirect language strategies for addressing issues while protecting relationships. Functional phrases for acknowledging concerns before presenting alternatives. Expressions for offering alternative solutions diplomatically.
Grammar: Modal verbs for tentativeness, question forms, hedging language
Practice: Handle difficult professional conversations using diplomatic language
Focus: Maintaining relationships while addressing sensitive matters through careful grammar choices
PHASE 2: DOCUMENTATION AND REPORTING
Unit 9: Report Writing - Passive Voice for Objectivity
What you'll learn:
When to use passive versus active voice in formal reports. Passive constructions for creating objectivity and impersonal tone. Active voice for clarity when the agent is important or known. Impersonal grammatical constructions for formal recommendations. Appropriate register for formal report writing.
Grammar: Passive voice formation across all tenses, by-agent inclusion/omission decisions
Practice: Write sections of formal reports using appropriate voice choices
Focus: Using passive voice strategically for objectivity in formal documentation
Unit 10: Report Structure and Executive Summaries
What you'll learn:
Standard business report structure and organization conventions. Executive summary format presenting key findings concisely. Section organization following professional business standards. Discourse markers for showing relationships between ideas. Signposting language for guiding readers through formal documents.
Grammar: Cohesive devices, formal linking expressions, report conventions
Practice: Structure formal reports following standard business format with executive summaries
Focus: Creating logically organized formal documentation with appropriate business structure
Unit 11: Meeting Minutes - Reported Speech Basics
What you'll learn:
Converting direct speech to reported speech for minutes. Tense backshifting rules for converting direct to reported speech. Pronoun transformation patterns in formal minute-taking. Appropriate reporting verbs for different types of statements. Time expression adjustments when converting to reported speech.
Grammar: Reported speech rules including tense backshifting and pronoun changes
Practice: Convert direct quotations to appropriate reported speech for minutes
Focus: Grammatical accuracy in transforming speech to formal minute format
Unit 12: Meeting Minutes - Capturing Discussions and Action Items
What you'll learn:
Taking minutes during live meetings in real-time. Distinguishing verbatim versus summary minute-taking approaches. Standard minute structure following professional conventions. Action item documentation with clear responsibilities and deadlines. Neutral reporting techniques avoiding bias or interpretation.
Grammar: Reported speech, passive constructions, formal meeting terminology
Practice: Take minutes during recorded meetings, producing structured documentation
Focus: Capturing discussions accurately with clear action items and professional structure
Unit 13: Briefing Notes - Nominalization for Dense Information
What you'll learn:
Converting verbal expressions to noun phrases for formal brevity. Nominalization processes for converting verbal expressions to noun phrases. Creating complex multi-word noun phrases for formal briefings. When nominalization achieves appropriate density versus when it creates confusion. How nominalization contributes to formal executive-level register.
Grammar: Nominalization processes, formal noun phrase construction
Practice: Transform lengthy explanations into concise briefing points using nominalization
Focus: Creating dense, formal noun phrases appropriate for executive-level documentation
Unit 14: Executive Summaries - Synthesis and Concision
What you'll learn:
Synthesizing information from multiple sources efficiently. Key point extraction: identifying essential information for busy executives. Parallel structure: maintaining consistency in bullet points and lists. One-page discipline: maximizing information while maintaining readability. Executive focus: what senior leadership needs versus what can be omitted.
Grammar: Concise structures, parallel construction, appropriate formality
Practice: Create one-page executive summaries from longer documents
Focus: Synthesizing complex information into concise, executive-appropriate formats
PHASE 3: ADVANCED COMMUNICATION STRUCTURES
Unit 15: Defining Relative Clauses - Essential Information
What you'll learn:
Using defining relative clauses to identify people and things precisely. Who/that for people: "The executive who requested the report", "The assistant that handled the matter". Which/that for things: "The document which contains the data", "The meeting that was cancelled". Whose for possession: "The department whose budget was exceeded". When relative pronouns can be omitted: understanding grammatical flexibility.
Grammar: Defining relative clauses with who, which, that, whose
Practice: Write descriptions of stakeholders and situations using defining relative clauses
Focus: Adding essential identifying information through grammatically correct relative clauses
Unit 16: Non-Defining Relative Clauses - Additional Information
What you'll learn:
Using non-defining relative clauses to add extra information. Punctuation rules for non-defining relative clauses. Using who for adding non-essential information about people. Using which for adding extra details about things and situations. Distinguishing when information is essential versus additional.
Grammar: Non-defining relative clauses with proper punctuation
Practice: Describe business relationships and contexts with precise additional information
Focus: Using relative clauses to provide concise specification in professional documents
Unit 17: Participle Clauses - Reducing Wordiness
What you'll learn:
Converting full clauses to participle constructions for concision. Present participle clause formation for expressing simultaneous or prior actions. Past participle clauses for expressing passive or completed actions. Replacing relative clauses with participle structures for concision. Replacing time clauses with participle constructions appropriately.
Grammar: Present and past participle clause formation and appropriate usage
Practice: Reduce wordiness in formal writing using participle clauses appropriately
Focus: Creating concise formal structures through grammatical transformation
Unit 18: Advanced Participle Constructions
What you'll learn:
Complex participle structures for executive-level writing. Perfect participle structures for expressing clearly sequenced actions. Passive participle constructions for formal written contexts. Combining multiple clauses efficiently through participle reduction. Standard participle expressions used in executive-level writing.
Grammar: Complex participle structures, formal written conventions
Practice: Write executive summaries maximizing information density through participle clauses
Focus: Achieving concision expected at C1 level through advanced grammatical structures
Unit 19: Hedging - Expressing Appropriate Certainty
What you'll learn:
Using hedging language to express appropriate levels of certainty. Modal verbs expressing different levels of certainty appropriately. Hedging expressions for presenting information with appropriate caution. Verbs and structures for softening factual claims diplomatically. Qualifying adverbs for adding appropriate vagueness to statements.
Grammar: Modal verbs for epistemic modality, hedging expressions, qualifying adverbs
Practice: Express varying levels of certainty appropriately using hedging language
Focus: Managing uncertainty diplomatically through careful grammatical choices
Unit 20: Managing Confidential Information Requests
What you'll learn:
Tactfully responding when information cannot be shared. Diplomatic language for declining information requests tactfully. Functional phrases for offering alternative information when possible. Expressions for explaining authorization limitations professionally. Strategies for declining while maintaining positive professional relationships.
Grammar: Modal verbs (cannot, may not), conditional structures, diplomatic phrases
Practice: Handle information requests while protecting confidential details
Focus: Using grammar to decline requests tactfully while maintaining professional relationships
Programme Benefits
Strategic Language Development
Not generic business English → Systematic development of executive-level structures and formal register for international business
Not random practice → Structured progression from foundations to C1-level communication
Not business skills → English language teaching with authentic professional contexts
Language Skills Developed
Grammar: Formal register control, all major tenses, conditional structures, passive voice, relative clauses, participle clauses, reported speech
Vocabulary: 200+ formal and diplomatic expressions for executive-level communication
Functional Language: Phrase banks for email writing, scheduling, reporting, documenting, and facilitating
Accuracy: Systematic error correction leading to C1-level grammatical accuracy
Professional Confidence
Communicate with senior executives and external stakeholders confidently. Produce error-free professional correspondence and documentation. Handle sensitive situations with appropriate diplomatic language. Manage all aspects of executive assistant communication professionally.
What You'll Have at the End
✅ C1-level grammatical accuracy in professional business contexts
✅ Command of 200+ formal and diplomatic expressions
✅ Ability to write all major administrative documents (emails, reports, minutes, briefings)
✅ Confidence handling all professional communications in international business settings
✅ Systematic understanding of formal register and when to use it
✅ Diplomatic language for sensitive situations and confidential information
✅ Comprehensive portfolio demonstrating all skills
✅ Readiness for senior professional roles in English-speaking business environments
How Your Learning Works
In Each Unit
Clear learning objectives: You know exactly what you're working toward. Specific grammar focus: Each unit targets particular structures systematically. Realistic practice: Activities mirror your actual job responsibilities. Assessment: Demonstrate your learning and track your progress. Support materials: Templates, reference guides, and examples.
Your Support
Your instructor will:
- Assess your starting point and track your progress throughout
- Identify patterns in any errors and address them systematically
- Adjust pace to match your learning needs
- Provide regular, specific feedback on your development
- Celebrate your achievements along the way
Ready to Begin?
This programme will develop your English language proficiency for senior professional roles in international business environments through systematic grammar teaching, formal vocabulary building, and intensive practice in authentic contexts.
Each unit builds on the previous one, creating a clear path from B2 to C1-level proficiency. With consistent effort and practice, you'll see steady improvement in your accuracy, confidence, and professional communication effectiveness.
Let's start with Unit 1!
Programme designed for B2 → C1 level English learners
Suitable for executive assistants, senior administrators, and managers in international business contexts
Individual units can be adjusted based on your specific needs and progress