Season 1 / Episode 2 - Message taking

In this second edition, you will learn how to take a message correctly, how to use greetings, and how to apply empathetic voice tones. 

Company Culture

First, we need to acknowledge that company culture influences how we interact with people on the phone. There are three main styles: formal, casual, and semi-formal. Each has its own unique approach. 

This lesson plan will focus on formal company culture, which is common in industries such as accounting, law, and medicine.

This situational lesson plan is aimed at an intermediate level to help students integrate into a work environment. There is a series of tasks where you will change the outcome depending on how you interact. 

Task  

You work for the IT department as a software engineer for a company called “GMT Systems”. You work alongside your colleague, Peter Thompson, who is the department's head. 

It's Monday morning, and Peter has told you he needs to attend a last-minute meeting with all the department heads. 

Your task is to take messages for him while he is away. He has told you he will be available after lunch, around 2pm.

THE CALL

It's 9:45 am, and you are working at your desk. The phone is ringing, pick it up and answer it. Remember, you are working for the IT department. When you answer, you should clearly state a greeting for the time of day, the department you work for, your name, and an offer to help.

Note:

You should use an empathetic tone and stress points to sound sincere. It demonstrates a genuine want and need to help. If you’re not sure how to apply this, ask your language instructor to show you.

Task Two

The client asks to speak to Peter. How will you respond?

Key:

Greeting

Department name

Your name

Offer to help

He wants to leave a message. How will you respond?

You will need some key information:

Purpose of the call

Clients name

Clients company 

Contact details

At the end of the call, confirm that you will pass the message onto Peter and include an end greeting.

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