Articles

27 Jan'16

Transport for NSW, blueVisions and the Institute of Management cooperation.

Like most organisations, Transport for NSW is under pressure to achieve more, in less time, using fewer resources.

To see how they could improve their project management performance they came to blueVisions for an assessment of their current project management system and its effectiveness. Their story shows how blueVisions and its training division, the Institute of Management, provided a varied and holistic response to meet their needs. If you see parallels to your organisation’s situation we would welcome an exploratory meeting to see how we may assist you.

The … Read more

24 Jul'14

Learning English for Hospitality and Health Services

Are you second English language speakers who work in hospitality or health services? Are you planning to work in an international setting, or perhaps moving to an English-speaking country?

To help you gain confidence, we offer quality English courses tailored just for you.

English for health professionals

Learning conversational English is different from learning English for health practices. While we might get by with just knowing limited vocabularies, as health professionals there are a whole lot more specific phrases and industry terminologies we need to know in order to be … Read more

22 Jul'14

Your Go-To Guide for Writing Business Reports

Writing a business report shouldn’t be a burden, and it shouldn’t be hard. Here are some of our favourite tips to hand in a masterpiece business report every time.

1. Don’t start from scratch

Odds are some of your colleagues or senior have made similar reports in the past. Ask them for a copy and start from there. It saves a lot of time and honestly, it’s always easier to not start on a blank page.

2. Always follow company guidelines

Before googling for business report templates, make sure that … Read more

17 Jul'14

A Short and Simple Guide to Writing a Business Email

We send a lot of emails everyday. Sometimes it can be only a few, but on a busy day we can send up to 70 emails a day.

Or even more.

Email has now become such an important communication tool in business. As an average worker can get 30 emails per day, how do you make sure that yours is read? Especially if you are sending it to a very busy person…

Here is the guideline to help you write better emails.

1. Be brief

Imagine the things that are … Read more

15 Jul'14

Becoming a Better English Writer

In the past few posts, we have covered a lot about English skills and how important it is to be able to speak, write and listen well. However, we would once again emphasise on the importance of becoming a better English writer.

Writing, perhaps, is the hardest skill to develop in learning a new language. In meeting face-to-face with other people, even when our English is below the expected standard of Professional Business Communication, we can at times still get by with some level of confidence, jokes and body language. … Read more

10 Jul'14

Presenting in English for Second Language Speakers

Now, you are able to talk to your colleagues using English. Your English has gotten better and you now feel more confident in talking in social settings. However, you have an upcoming presentation with the senior management of a potential client company and you feel like you are back to square one. How should you prepare for an English presentation in an environment outside your comfort zone?

Presenting in English is not easy. Presenting by itself is already a nerve-racking experience, especially when you have an important project to win. … Read more

08 Jul'14

Why is Learning English Hard?

If you are reading this article, odds are you want to improve your English language skills. But sometimes you hit a brick wall and utter this question: Why is learning English hard?

Perhaps you are okay with reading. Perhaps you pick up listening quite well. But what about your writing skills? What about your speaking skills?

It’s impossible to master a new language in a day, but perhaps we can speed up the journey quite a bit.

It’s all a matter of will

Some people pick it up easier than … Read more

03 Jul'14

Ultra Simple yet Important Business Writing Tips

We usually use English in writing emails and reports at work. We use English to talk to our multinational colleagues.

While being able to speak and write in English is essential, less emphasis has been put on English grammar, spelling and punctuation; although it is equally important as it shows our level of professionalism.

Here are some top writing tips and how you can implement them in emails and reports:

1. Use correct punctuation

It is important to put punctuation correctly as it will determine whether or not a piece … Read more

01 Jul'14

7 Top Tips to Speak in English Like a Pro (for second/foreign language speakers)

Do you lack the confidence in talking to native speakers? Fear not, we’ve been there, and done that too. Here are some of our proven tips to boost your confidence level when trying to improve your English.

1. Stay calm

When you’re nervous, your words may sound jumbled up and unclear. Perhaps your English is already good, but that shaky voice wrecks your confidence and makes the person you are speaking to unable to understand what you are saying. Stay calm. Take a deep breath, and just talk. Remember, it’s … Read more

24 Jun'14

How to be an Effective Supervisor: 5 Important Skills

Have you just been promoted into a supervisory role? Are you a manager who needs to supervise many team members? Here are the five important skills you need to master:

1. Delegation skills

Supervisors can’t do everything by themselves, and most importantly, effective supervisors know that they can’t do everything. Instead, they need to delegate.

Delegation itself is not an easy thing. A supervisor needs to transfer his or her decision-making authority to another employer who has the capabilities to do such task. However, he or she still has the … Read more