Describing What Your Company Does

Read/Listen first

Last week, I met a new contact at a trade fair, and we started talking about our jobs. I work in electronics, and my company manufactures circuit boards for small devices. She works in the pharmaceutical industry and has developed medicine for pets. She has also supplied testing kits to a local laboratory, so she knows the regulations. I asked, “What does your company do exactly?” and she explained how they refine each formula before they deliver every batch. She said her team is going to open a small research unit near the airport, and they would hire two technicians if the budget is approved. Before we left, she compared her work to a freight company: speed matters, but quality must come first. After the meeting, I wrote her an email to keep in touch and to plan a follow-up call.

⚡ Learning goals

• I can ask and answer basic questions about my job and my company.
• I can describe what a company makes, develops, supplies, or delivers.
• I can talk about recent meetings and future plans in a simple, clear way.

✨ Key language

• What does your company do exactly? “We manufacture circuit boards.”
• I work in… / I work for… “I work in electronics.”
• We are going to… / We would… if… “We’d hire technicians if approved.”

⚙️ Rules & Grammar — 4 Structures

1️⃣ Past simple for finished events (last week)

Rule: Use the past simple to talk about completed actions at a specific time in the past.
Examples: I met a new contact last week.; We started talking at the trade fair.; I wrote her an email after the meeting.
Common pitfall + fix: Using present tense for a finished past event — Add a past time marker and use the past form (met, started, wrote)..

2️⃣ Present perfect for experience/results (has/have + past participle)

Rule: Use the present perfect to connect past actions to now (experience, results, or recent relevance).
Examples: She has developed medicine for pets.; She has supplied testing kits to a laboratory.; I have kept in touch since the fair.
Common pitfall + fix: Using past simple without a ‘finished time’ when the result matters now — Use has/have + past participle (has developed, has supplied)..

3️⃣ Be going to for plans (am/is/are + going to)

Rule: Use ‘be going to’ to talk about plans or intentions, often with evidence or a decision already made.
Examples: Her team is going to open a small research unit.; We are going to plan a follow-up call.; They are going to expand next year.
Common pitfall + fix: Forgetting the verb ‘be’ (is/are) — Use is/are before ‘going to’ (is going to open)..

4️⃣ Second conditional with would + if (hypothetical)

Rule: Use ‘would’ + base verb to talk about a possible but not certain situation: If + present, would + verb.
Examples: They would hire two technicians if the budget is approved.; I would ask more questions if I had time.; We would meet again if the schedule works.
Common pitfall + fix: Using ‘will’ instead of ‘would’ for an uncertain condition — Use ‘would’ to show it depends on the condition (if approved)..

✍️ Vocabulary

  trade fair

Meaning: a large event where companies show products and meet clients
Synonyms: exhibition, business fair
Chunk/Idiom: at a trade fair
Example: I met a new contact at a trade fair.
Morphology: noun (trade fair); verb (trade); adj. (commercial); adv. (professionally)
Self-practice: Say: ‘I met a supplier at a trade fair.’

  circuit board

Meaning: a flat piece of electronics that connects components in a device
Synonyms: PCB, board
Chunk/Idiom: manufacture circuit boards
Example: Our company manufactures circuit boards for small devices.
Morphology: noun (board); verb (manufacture); adj. (electronic); adv. (electronically)
Self-practice: Describe a product that uses a circuit board.

  refine

Meaning: to improve something by making small changes
Synonyms: improve, perfect
Chunk/Idiom: refine a formula
Example: They refine each formula before delivery.
Morphology: verb (refine); noun (refinement); adj. (refined); adv. (carefully)
Self-practice: Replace ‘make better’ with ‘refine’ in a sentence.

  batch

Meaning: a group of products made or processed together
Synonyms: lot, run
Chunk/Idiom: deliver a batch
Example: They deliver every batch after quality checks.
Morphology: noun (batch); verb (deliver); adj. (safe); adv. (safely)
Self-practice: Say what you check before delivering a batch.

  regulations

Meaning: official rules that companies must follow
Synonyms: rules, requirements
Chunk/Idiom: follow regulations
Example: She knows the regulations for testing kits.
Morphology: noun (regulations); verb (regulate); adj. (regulated); adv. (legally)
Self-practice: Name one regulation your industry must follow.

  technician

Meaning: a trained person who works with equipment or processes
Synonyms: specialist, operator
Chunk/Idiom: hire technicians
Example: They would hire two technicians if the budget is approved.
Morphology: noun (technician); verb (hire); adj. (technical); adv. (technically)
Self-practice: Say what a technician does in your workplace.

☁️ Examples (+ audio)

🔊 Play I work in electronics, and we manufacture circuit boards. 🔊 Play She has developed medicine for pets and supplied testing kits. 🔊 Play They refine each formula before they deliver every batch. 🔊 Play We’re going to follow up, and we’d hire technicians if approved.

✏️ Exercises

Grammar

Vocabulary & Comprehension

✅ Guided practice

Mini-dialogue:

A: So, what do you do?
B: I work in electronics. What about you?
A: What does your company do exactly? B: We develop and refine products before we deliver each batch.

Why this matters:

This question helps you sound professional when you meet new contacts. It also clarifies the company’s activity quickly.

Verb & Adjective Pack:

manufacture — We manufacture circuit boards.
develop — She has developed medicine for pets.
refine — They refine each formula.

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