By Shen Xiaoqian

On 15th July, Ms. Christie Ellzey, a member of the visiting American delegation, gave a lecture on American business to students from the School of Foreign Languages and the School of Engineering Technology. The host was

Ms. Christie Ellzey elaborated on American business in the aspects of individualism, favorable economic environment, personal values, norms and ethics. Regarding personal values, she mentioned those valuable qualities, such as assertiveness, dedication and confidence. When she talked about norms, she pointed out the differences in communication style between Americans and peoples from other countries. For example, “yes” means “I am listening” in some other countries while in America it means “I agree”. After she informed students of the characteristics of a U.S. resume, she gave some tips on resume writing and obtaining a job with an U.S. business or company. Specifically, she advised students to use action words and phrases when describing experience rather than passive verbs. Then she told students the etiquette for business lunches and dinners.

Though Ms. Ellzey was the main speaker of the lecture, other members of the delegation cooperated and contributed to the flow of the lecture. When Ms. Ellzey was explaining the dressing code, the three gentlemen of the delegation stood up to demonstrate. In the Q & A section, Mr. Barrett Bowden helped answer questions and encouraged students to get involved. From this lecture, students had a better understanding of American business and got to know some skills for obtaining an international job. Moreover, they witnessed the team spirit demonstrated by the delegation.