University Language Centre
Insessional Writing: Project
Management
Week 2 : cohesion
Extract 2: correct order (ie from the student’s
original text)
c Raw materials became scarce in World War II.
b Scarcity of raw materials affected productivity in many
organisations.
d General Electric was forced to use alternative materials to
develop its products.
e Lawrence D Miles was an electrical engineer.
g Lawrence D Miles worked for General Electric.
a Miles realised that substituting different materials for
its products led to cost reductions and even improved
product performance.
Extract 2: correct order (ie from the student’s original
text)
f. Miles, in his efforts to find ways to gain from the fact that
materials were scarce, developed a process called Value Analysis
(VA) (Norton and McElligott, 1995).
h. The aim of Value Analysis was to compare various materials in
order to choose the most suitable ones based on their functionality
and without making the end products vulnerable (Norton and
McElligott, 1995).
i. Value Analysis entailed a series of steps and techniques.
2. Look back at extract 1 and answer these questions.
a. What does ‘these reasons’ refer back to in line 14?
The reasons given in lines 4 - 13
b. What does ‘this’ refer to in line 19?
The Industrial Revolution
c. What approach is ‘this approach’ in lines 20 & 21?
the traditional procurement method
2. Look back at extract 1 and answer these questions.
d What does ‘this’ refer to in line 21?
the traditional procurement method which is
characterised by the separation of the design
process and construction, which goes back to the
fragmentation of specialist skills which in turn
brought about the establishment of general
contracting firms and independent consultants
e. What separation is ‘this separation’ in line 28?
the separation of the design and construction processes
3. Answers
In which of the sentences has the writer repeated a
noun ?
nouns repeated in exs a and e
In which has he used a different noun and why do
you think he has done so?
ex c The writer wanted to be concise and avoid
repeating the rather long phrase ‘ traditional
procurement method’
3. Answers
In which sentences is there no noun following ‘this’ and why?
exs b & d
ex b The whole clause is ‘This was the time’ and ‘time’
makes it clear that the writer is referring back to the
Industrial Revolution which is accepted as a period in
history
ex d ‘this’ on its own can be used, as it is here, to
refer back to everything in the previous sentence
or paragraph which is why it has to be followed by
a noun if the writer wants to point the reader back
to something specific.
4. Below is extract 2 in the order that the student
originally wrote them in and suggestions for linking
the sentences.
During World War II, raw materials became scarce. This
(or and this ) scarcity affected productivity in many
organisations. For instance/for example, General Electric
was forced to use alternative materials to develop its
products. (Norton and McElligott, 1995). Lawrence D Miles
was an electrical engineer who worked for/with/working
for General Electric. Miles realised that substituting
different materials for its products led to cost reductions and
even improved product performance (Norton and McElligott,
1995).
Below is extract 2 in the order that the student
originally wrote them in and suggestions for linking
the sentences.
In his efforts to find ways to gain from this situation, he
developed a process called Value Analysis which entailed
a series of steps and techniques. The aim of this
process/, the aim of which was to compare various
materials in order to choose the most suitable ones based
on their functionality and without making the end products
vulnerable (Norton and McElligott, 1995).
5 Where in each sentence or clause has the writer put the
most important information?
at the end
1
In recent decades, a number of driving forces such as changes in
production and information technology, advances in the development of
human capital and changes in work force preferences have caused a
shift from ‘Tayloristic’ organization (characterized by specialization of
5 task) to ‘holistic’ organization (characterized by integration of tasks,
learning, and job rotation) (Lindbeck and Snower, 2000). Caused by
major changes in the market and our outlook on mankind (Naisbitt,
1984; Beckérus, Edström, Edlund, Ekvall, Forslin and Rendahl,
1988), this shift is evident in both Western and Japanese organizations
10 (Lindbeck and Snower, 2001). Research carried out by NUTEK3
indicates that three out of four Nordic organizations had moved to the
flexible organization (delegation of responsibilities, teamwork, training
etc) of work during the 1990s and that a majority of the Swedish
organizations report that they have decentralized the planning of work
down to the level of the individual (NUTEK, 1999).
5 Where in each sentence or clause has the writer put the
most important information?
at the end
In recent decades, a number of driving forces such as changes in
production and information technology, advances in the development of
human capital and changes in work force preferences have caused a
shift from ‘Tayloristic’ organization (characterized by specialization of
task) to ‘holistic’ organization (characterized by integration of tasks,
learning, and job rotation) (Lindbeck and Snower, 2000). Caused by
major changes in the market and our outlook on mankind (Naisbitt,
1984; Beckérus, Edström, Edlund, Ekvall, Forslin and Rendahl,1988),
this shift is evident in both Western and Japanese organizations
(Lindbeck and Snower, 2001). Research carried out by NUTEK3
indicates that three out of four Nordic organizations had moved to the
flexible organization (delegation of responsibilities, teamwork, training
etc) of work during the 1990s and that a majority of the Swedish
organizations report that they have decentralized the planning of work
down to the level of the individual (NUTEK, 1999).
6. Compare these sentences. What form of the verb has
the writer of the second sentence used in order to keep the
focus of the first clause to the end of the clause?
a. However, as subcontractors carried out most of the work
during the constructions stage, their involvement during the
tendering stage should not be discounted.
b. However, as most of the works are carried out by
subcontractors during the construction stage, their
involvement during the tendering stage should not be
discounted.
• the passive – another use of the passive, particularly in
academic writing
7. Change the following sentences so that they have end
weight.
1. Although more recent studies (Arditi et al., 2002; Pocock et
al., 2006) reveal a substantial improvement in the field of
constructability practices, there is still a gap between the
theory and the effective implementation of the concept by
practitioners
2. In many organisations, a significant part of the daily work is
conducted by means of/through/using projects.
3. The above quotes from Edwards (1996) and Bennis (1968)
also illustrate that project management is of seen as a special
type of managing; something different from and superior to
“normal” management. Not only is project management often
seen as superior, but it is also often seen as contextindependent.
Change the following sentences so that they have end
weight.
4.
Uniqueness is often seen as bringing with it abstractness
and complexity. Complexity is also often seen as resulting
from project size.
4.
Uniqueness is often seen as bringing with it abstractness
and complexity. Complexity is also often seen as being
caused by project size.
5. Dynamic capabilities and organizational capabilities in
general are rooted in the RBV of the firm. The suitability of
the RBV for investigating product development
performance has been recognized already by previous
research (Verona, 1999).
Change the following sentences so that they have end
weight.
6. The RBV can be divided into two complementary
branches: a traditional static approach that examines the
conditions for resources to yield rents in equilibrium, and a
dynamic approach that considers dynamic factors (Foss,
1997). The traditional approach centres on the building of
sustainable competitive advantage (Barney, 1991; Peteraf,
1993; Rumelt, 1984).
This week’s materials can be found in
http://www.ulc.manchester.ac.uk/english/
academicsupport/insessionnet/