Task 1 Reading

TASK 7.1 Reading
Read the text and give the definitions to the underlined words. Make up 8 your own sentences using these words.
Every organization will naturally go through peaks and troughs, periods when business is good and times when the competition heats up or market trends and global events have a negative impact. Surviving the tough times and thriving in good times requires a solid corporate strategy. There are many corporate strategies examples but they can be condensed into three core approaches – growth, stability, and renewal.
These three corporate strategies examples can be applied to specific periods in a business' existence:

• 
  Growth: To expand the business and increase profits
  
• 
  Stability: To maintain current business operations
  
• 
  Renewal: To revive an ailing business
  

1. Growth
Growth strategies include a number of approaches from cost leadership and product differentiation to horizontal or vertical integration. The approach a business takes should be governed by detailed corporate strategic planning.
Cost leadership: Ikea and McDonalds are global brands famed for their competitive pricing. This approach can be difficult to maintain due to changing market conditions and businesses need to constantly re-evaluate costs at every layer of the business. But the pay-off can be significant as is clear from these two massive brands.
2. Stability
With this corporate strategy, organizations are simply maintaining the status quo. They continue to follow the same path with no plans to diversify or grow the business. Rather, they are focused on building the organization at a steady pace. This is a useful strategy to employ following a period of expansion when a company can assess the business and determine a way forward or future strategy.
3. Renewal
When an organization is facing challenging circumstances part of the corporate strategic planning will involve retrenchment or turnaround. These approaches could include selling part of the business or spinning it off, and in cases where the very future of the company is at risk, creating a leaner business through lay-offs and other dramatic cost-cutting exercises.

1. 
   Troughs – We had to wash our knees down after a game in the horse troughs there.
   
2. 
   Competition – Prices are lower when there is competition among the stores.
   
3. 
   Thriving – The dog is thriving in its new home.
   
4. 
   Solid – The ring is solid gold.
   

Core approaches – Core Approaches in Counselling and Psychotherapy is a comprehensive guide to the four main psychological approaches (Humanistic, Psychodynamic, Behavioural and Cognitive) and introduces several of the most common therapies used today.

5. 
   Growth – He had a growth spurt when he was 16 years old.
   
6. 
   Stability – A loving family environment gives children that sense of stability and permanence which they need.
   
7. 
   Renewal - You can get a 10 percent savings on subscription renewals.