劍橋商務英語中級考試歷年真題閱讀精講（6）

　人郵第四輯真題TEST2 READING RART 1

　　When a business decides to outsource its IT services, it needs to consider the question of integration. Four experts give their views.
　　A.Gianluca Tramcere, Silica Systems
　　An outsourced IT service is never a fully independent entity. It is tied to the home company's previous and continuing systems of working. But despite the added responsibility of managing new ways of working, many businesses ignore the integration process. They fail to establish contracts that define the ways in which the two companies will work alongside one another, and focus solely on the technological aspects of service delivery.
　　B.Kevin Rayner, Domola
　　Businesses need to build integration competency centres dedicated to managing the integration effort. It is critical to have an individual in charge to check that the external and internal business operations work together. Although companies often think of outsourcing as a way of getting rid of people and assets, they need to remember that, at the same time, outsourcing involves gaining people. Because there is a new operation being carried out in a different way outside of the home business, this creates a training element.
　　C.Clayton Locke, Digital Solutions
　　Communication is the key to success, and outsourcing to other regions or countries can lead to a range of problems. For any such initiative, it is necessary to create a team where there is good, open communication and a clear understanding of objectives and incentives. Bringing people to the home location from the outsourced centre is necessary, since it can aid understanding of the complexities of the existing system. To integrate efficiently, outsourcing personnel have to talk to the home company's executives and users to understand their experiences.
　　D.Kim Noon, J G Tech
　　One way to avoid the difficulties of integration is to create a joint-venture company with the outsourcer. Thus, a company can swap its assets for a share of the profits. Yet joint ventures bring potential troubles, and companies should be careful not to lose sight of the original rationale for outsourcing: to gain cost efficiencies and quality of service in an area that for some reason could not be carried out entirely in-house. The complexities and costs of a joint-venture initiative should not be underestimated.
　　這篇文章講的是外購（outsourcing）,分別有四位專家就這個問題給出了自己的看法。A段的專家強調建立合同的重要性，B段專家認為要派專人負責，C段專家講外派人員和本公司之間要有一個互動，D段專家講如果與外包商（outsourcer）組成聯合企業的話可能帶來的一系列問題。如果對文章有個大概、基本的了解，很多題目不用細看就可以得出結論。
　　第一題的答案稍微有些隱晦，在B段的最后一句。“Because there is a new operation being carried out in a different way outside of the home business, this creates a training element.”因為新的操作是在本公司以外的地方以一種新的方式被執行，所以產生了培訓成分。這里的training對應第一題的“teach skills to employees”。
　　第二題的答案在D段中間: companies should be careful not to lose sight of the original rationale for outsourcing.這里的rationale是基本原理、根本原因的意思。
　　第三題的答案在A段，非常明顯的“establish contracts”。
　　第四段的答案是C段的最后一句話，outsourcing personnel have to talk to the home company's executives and users to understand their experiences.這里的talk to對應address，向....談話。第四題的意思是“說明在遠址工作的外購人員的事情”，也就是C段最后一句說的外購人員向公司匯報他們的經歷。
　　第五段的答案在B段，相當明顯：It is critical to have an individual in charge to check that the external and internal business operations work together。需要派專人負責integration。
　　第六題說“外派人員要熟悉自身工作的不同細節”，對應C段的“create a team where there is a clear understanding of objectives and incentives.”打造一個對目標和動機都有清晰理解的團隊。
　　第七題稍微繞一點。題目里的“an alternative to outsourcing”指的是D段里的“create a joint-venture company with the outsourcer”，建立一個聯合企業。D段里的專家一直在強調聯合企業的麻煩和復雜性（joint ventures bring potential troubles），所以是正確答案。