致用商务英语阅读（上）programme_one_Business_Reception教材教学课件.ppt

Passage TwoThe Importance of Reception Area, the Link Between You andYour Customer Q 1 Can you describe what a reception desk is like? Q 2Do you think the reception area is important? Why? Just as a face represents a person, the reception area represents an office or a business. And just as we form an opinion by looking at the person (usually the face), most visitors similarly form an opinion about the business and how it is doing by looking at the reception area. And perhaps the most important thing in the reception area is the reception desk. But these desks can be of many types. For example, reception desks often come in wood, glass and even in steel. And they come in many shapes as well such as rectangular, square and even like a semi-circle. So if you have an office to decorate, a smart and a stylish reception desk is what you need. But the importance of reception desks goes beyond just beautifying the area. These desks must have utility too, because this is where the front office department of the business is going to be located. There are many important tasks carried out from this area such as receiving and sending letters, attending phone calls and of course attending visitors. So the design of the reception desk is important. It needs to be ensured that it is designed to ease the carrying out of multiple tasks, because often the front office people need to switch from one task to another. The desk should help them do this and the design should never come in the way of smooth operations. The reception desk should also come with some storage area where the person can keep important documents safely. It should also be designed in such a way that the wires of telephones, fax machines and others can be accommodated, and these wires are not exposed to the visitors. Most businesspeople know the value of making a good first impression in the workplace: dress conservatively at job interviews, don’t say anything negative about past emp