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English: Business Letters For Big 4 (Extended)

Business writing in English for software engineers in Big 4 consulting. The course is not about the format of a letter but about pragmatics: why a Russian-speaking professional is heard as blunter than they are, and how that is fixed. Its axis is room for refusal: an English business message leaves the reader a way to object, decline or explain, and that room is created by the text rather than assumed. Six classes of softening, a 22-item RU→EN interference register, the softening ceiling (where directness is mandatory), the grammar of blameless causation. Genres: client email, code review, chat and tracker, escalation, refusal and change request, status and RAG, incident communication. Every example comes from an engineer’s working day on a project. Entry level B1–B2, model answers are given at two levels.

Path through the course · 20 units

any order · units can be taken in any order you likeView: map · steps

2 OF 3

0 / 2

final

Exam

closed

The path in words
  • Stage 1 · Why We Sound Rude — can start; ~1 h
  • Stage 2 · Face, Distance, and Indirectness — can start; ~1 h
  • Stage 3 · Six Classes of Softening — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 4 · The Ceiling: When Directness Is Mandatory — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 5 · Grammar Without Blame — can start; ~2 h
  • Stage 6 · Anatomy: The Twelve Moves — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 7 · The Ask: Action, Owner, Date, Timezone — can start; ~1 h
  • Stage 7 · What You Don't Write — can start; optional; ~1 h
  • Stage 8 · Writing for a Reader Who Isn't a Native Speaker — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 9 · Code Review as a Genre — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 10 · Chat and Tracker — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 10 · Disagreement and Pushback — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 10 · Status Reporting and RAG — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 11 · The Follow-up Ladder — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 11 · Refusal and Scope Creep — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 11 · Incident Communication — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 12 · Proposals and Design Documents — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 12 · Complaints and Escalation — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 12 · Acknowledgement, Thanks, Handover — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 13 · Capstone: One Friday, Four Channels — can start; ~2.5 h

Path through the course · 20 units

any order · units can be taken in any order you likeView: map · steps

  1. Stage 1

    ~1 h

  2. Stage 2

    ~1 h

  3. Stage 3

    ~1.5 h

  4. Stage 4

    ~1.5 h

  5. Stage 5

    ~2 h

  6. Stage 6

    ~1.5 h

  7. Stage 7

    ~2 h

    can start

  8. Stage 8

    ~1.5 h

  9. Stage 9

    ~1.5 h

  10. Stage 10

    ~4.5 h

    can start

  11. Stage 11

    ~4.5 h

    can start

  12. Stage 12

    ~4.5 h

    can start

  13. Stage 13

    ~2.5 h

  14. Exam

    closed

    • final

      Exam

The path in words
  • Stage 1 · Why We Sound Rude — can start; ~1 h
  • Stage 2 · Face, Distance, and Indirectness — can start; ~1 h
  • Stage 3 · Six Classes of Softening — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 4 · The Ceiling: When Directness Is Mandatory — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 5 · Grammar Without Blame — can start; ~2 h
  • Stage 6 · Anatomy: The Twelve Moves — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 7 · The Ask: Action, Owner, Date, Timezone — can start; ~1 h
  • Stage 7 · What You Don't Write — can start; optional; ~1 h
  • Stage 8 · Writing for a Reader Who Isn't a Native Speaker — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 9 · Code Review as a Genre — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 10 · Chat and Tracker — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 10 · Disagreement and Pushback — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 10 · Status Reporting and RAG — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 11 · The Follow-up Ladder — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 11 · Refusal and Scope Creep — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 11 · Incident Communication — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 12 · Proposals and Design Documents — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 12 · Complaints and Escalation — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 12 · Acknowledgement, Thanks, Handover — can start; ~1.5 h
  • Stage 13 · Capstone: One Friday, Four Channels — can start; ~2.5 h

Programme · 20 units

1Why We Sound Rude

Объяснить, что эффект грубости в английском деловом письме создаётся не выбором слов, а тем, что формулировка не оставляет читателю выхода

~1 hcan start
2Face, Distance, and Indirectness

Различать угрозу автономии читателя и угрозу его профессиональному статусу и выбирать соответствующую починку

~1 hcan start
3Six Classes of Softening

Различать шесть классов смягчения и опознавать класс по конкретному выражению

~1.5 hcan start
4The Ceiling: When Directness Is Mandatory

Назвать контексты, в которых смягчение вредит: инцидент, находка по безопасности, фиксация факта, сорванный срок, жёсткое ограничение

~1.5 hcan start
5Grammar Without Blame

Строить безагентную каузацию четырьмя приёмами: пассив, номинализация, предложная причинность, неодушевлённое подлежащее

~2 hcan start
6Anatomy: The Twelve Moves

Собирать сообщение из ходов M1–M12, а не из шаблона

~1.5 hcan start
7The Ask: Action, Owner, Date, Timezone

Формулировать запрос с четырьмя обязательными элементами: действие, исполнитель, дата, таймзона

~1 hcan start
8Writing for a Reader Who Isn't a Native Speaker

Оценивать риск того, что смягчённая формулировка будет прочитана буквально

~1.5 hcan start

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