Meetings in English

emerges is an acknowledgement of responsibility followed by a polite request for one's discussion partner to do the same.
    Example: a little diplomacy goes a long way
    A: As Rob said, we're unhappy with the quality of the goods you supplied and will be looking for you to make some kind of price reduction. I'm sure you can appreciate that we haven't been able to charge our customers full price for the goods.
    B: I'm afraid that will be quite difficult for us at this late stage. We're prepared to take on board that some quality issues arose at the production stage. However, having carried out an internal investigation, we do feel that some of the features you point to were not adequately defined in the specifications you supplied to us. Would you be willing to concede that these points were not made clear to us from start?
    A: With the benefit of hindsight, we can see that the specifications were not as clearly formulated as they should have been. But this doesn't change the fact that our tools division incurred substantial losses last year due to the substandard quality of the products you supplied.
    B: Your business is very important to us, but unfortunately we just aren't in a position to offer a price reduction now that you have taken ownership of the goods. Could you perhaps see your way to considering a discount on your next order with us in lieu of a reduction?
    A: That sounds like a workable solution. I'm sure it would go a long way towards soothing our Finance Director's headache.
    B: Good. I'm very pleased to hear that.
Useful phrases
    Acknowledging faults
We readily accept that some of the errors were due to a fault in our system …
I'm very sorry to say that we made a mistake with the order.
As we've established, we need to address some serious issues in our production.
    Asking for an acknowledgement
Could you perhaps see your way to accepting that there's also some room for improvement at your end?
Would you be willing to accept/concede that there were also some issues at your end with regard to …?
Useful vocabulary
    to come to the fore: ins Blickfeld geraten
    cutting it fine: sich wenig zeitlichen Spielraum lassen
    curious: neugierig
    stress: Betonung
    reservation: Vorbehalt
    to incur losses: Verluste erleiden
    with hindsight: im Nachhinein
    in lieu of: anstelle von
    to soothe: beruhigen
    to stand sb's ground: sich behaupten
    What to do in case of language problems
    There is far greater potential for misunderstandings when you are attending a meeting that is taking place in a foreign language. Perhaps you just didn't hear what a person said or their accent is difficult to understand. Or maybe differences in the ways people from other cultures express themselves can lead to confusion. It may also happen that your counterpart uses a word or expression you have never heard in your life.
    Example: asking for repetition
    A: We are talking about one billion consumers in China.
    B: Sorry, how many did you say? One million?
    A: Oh, no. One billion, of course.
    In any case, you should not hesitate to ask your counterpart for repetition and clarification – there's no shame in doing so. Just use the methods and phrases given on pp. 79–83 under „Enquiring and resolving misunderstandings“, namely
asking for repetition,
summarising for clarification,
recapping and confirming.
    Voting
    Sometimes attendees cannot agree on an outcome. It may then be necessary to take a vote, which is usually done at formal meetings. However, voting should be seen as a last resort, as it will leave a number of attendees dissatisfied with the outcome. If a vote is necessary, the chair should keep strictly to the formal procedures.
    A vote can either be done by secret ballot or by a show of hands. Before that, the subject of the voting has to be made clear. A suggestion or an idea that is to be put to a vote is called a „motion“. Before a vote can be taken, a motion needs to be „seconded“, i.e. supported, by another person. When a motion is put to the vote and agreed on, you saythat it is „carried“. When there is no agreement, it is „failed“. Usually, majority votes are taken. In case of a tie vote, the chairperson often has the deciding vote.
    Of course, the outcome of the vote has to be recorded in the minutes, eg: „Motion to allow for flexitime, moved by Peter“ or „Motion to allow for flexitime, seconded by Jane.“
Useful phrases
Can I ask for a show of hands, please?
All in favour?/All opposed?
Those