A business interview

A business interview

Listen to the business interview to practise and improve your listening skills.

Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.

Preparation

Transcript

Presenter: Welcome to today's show. We're very happy to have Anna Oliveira as our guest today. Anna is the creator and founder of HomeworX – spelled with an 'x' we should note – an app which helps teenagers with their homework. Thanks for coming in, Anna.

Anna: Thanks for having me.

Presenter: So, tell us about your app. How does it work?

Anna: Well, teenagers and their parents have numerous challenges when it comes to homework these days. In many families both parents work and don't have much available time to help their kids with their homework. And even if they do have time to help, they may not be able to offer support with the content. What I mean is, they may not know, or at least remember, enough in any given subject to support.

Presenter: You mean they might not be able to remember complex maths or might have never studied certain subjects, such as biology or economics, themselves?

Anna: Exactly. So they might want to support their children with their homework, but have neither the time nor the knowledge to do so.

Presenter: I see. So the app helps solve this problem?

Anna: Yes, and more. The next issue is that tutors can be expensive, and there may be long waiting lists for specialist tutors in the town or region you live in. Our HomeworX app brings students and tutors together online. Students can search a database of pre-approved tutors and sign up for live online support. They don't need to be in the same town or city.

Presenter: That sounds really great.

Anna: It is. And this approach also enables us to offer the tutoring services at lower prices because there's no travelling time involved for the tutor to get to the student's home. And tutors who live in remote areas are happy to get access to more students, and be able to work from home, even at lower rates.

Presenter: This all sounds great. So, how did you come up with the idea?

Anna: Well, as you might guess, I was one of those parents I described earlier. I really wanted to help my son with his homework, but I was either too busy with work or I didn't actually know anything about the subjects he was having difficulty with. Also, we live in an area where there aren't many tutors and the ones that are there are either very expensive or have long waiting lists.

Presenter: Yes. I can understand your predicament. Well, it sounds like a very useful app that is clearly meeting a need. And its popularity obviously speaks for itself.

Anna: Thank you.

Presenter: So, do you have plans for the future?

Anna: We've just secured some funding and hope to expand the range of services we offer using the app.

Presenter: We wish you the best of luck. Thanks again for coming in. That was Anna Oliveira, founder of the tutoring app HomeworX (with an 'x', don't forget!), which is available for both Apple and Android devices. Join us again next week for another business interview. Have a great week, everyone. 

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Average: 4.5 (182 votes)
Profile picture for user simonenmourao

Submitted by simonenmourao on Tue, 22/12/2020 - 20:29

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Good afternoon! At this phrase: "So the app helps solve this problem?", grammatically, there should be "to" between the verbs "help" and "solve" or the second verb to be in the Present Continuous?

Hello simonenmourao,

'Help' can be followed with the infinitive with or without 'to':

help someone do something

help someone to do something

Thus, both options are possible. However, I don't think we would use a participle ('solving') here.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by lavande1983 on Sun, 20/12/2020 - 21:14

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Now, I don't use any apps for learning english, beaucause i dont feel comfortable with small screen of iphone. I prefer learning english with computer so my favorite website is british coucil learning english. Big avantage of learning english on smart phone is that you can learn english every where in your spare time, in public transport. now for learning english i try to watch TV, english movies and use bbc learning english or bristish coucil learning english website, i use only my smartphone for dictionary . I read your comments, Thanks for your suggestions of some useful apps , perhaps , i will use them

Submitted by Muna77 on Fri, 11/12/2020 - 20:57

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Hi, As general l think English class101.com And British Council is most effective apps for learning English
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Submitted by nanolakes on Sun, 06/12/2020 - 20:52

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Hi everyone!!! I hope you are well. There are lots of apps but the one I like it is Word Power IELTS. I recommend this app.

Submitted by Asni on Thu, 19/11/2020 - 21:58

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I've got installed some useful apps for learning English on my phone and tablet. Apps for learning English idioms, phrasal verbs, short stories in English, vocabulary, etc...I find them very practical and useful because I have my phone wherever I go. When I'm in the car, especially, for trips that last more than one hour, they are my way of entertainment. I must confess that I don't have the good habit of reading books, so in such situations, I just open some app and start learning some new words or expressions, which, I think, is a great way to avoid wasting time or getting bored.

Submitted by iamloïs on Tue, 17/11/2020 - 08:48

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My favourite app to learn new things is Quizlet. Indeed, this app permits us to memorise new things thanks to flashcards: on the one side, you put a french word for instance, and on the other one, behind, you put its translation to English. It is very practical because you can revise what you learnt everywhere and when you want, and for me, I do it in the subway !

Submitted by nialataria on Mon, 16/11/2020 - 08:59

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Maybe some apps connected with learning English.
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Submitted by javibuendi on Fri, 06/11/2020 - 10:02

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I think this is not an app but a website, but still I choose LearnEnglish as the tool that is helping me to learn English the most. I find the Listening section very useful. Its listenings have an accuracy vocabulary and speech for each level, and especially the first task helps you to realise if you actually understood the listening. From here I want to thank all your magnificent work. Cheers from Madrid.

Hello Javi,

Thank very much for your feedback. It's always nice to know that our users find our website useful, and it's also very helpful to know what people like so that we can continuously improve.

All the best,

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team