Hella customers WebQuest

Introduction

You have a new American boss called Jim Grove. He previously worked in the electronics industry and does not know anything about the automotive industry. You have received the following email from him:


Hi,

As you know, I'm new to the automotive industry. I need you to give me some background information. In particular, I want you to give me an overview of our customers. Can you provide me with the following information about our main customers:

  • general information about the company e.g. numbers of employees, annual turnover, product range etc.
  • information about what the company is doing at the moment e.g. current news, new products, mergers/takeovers/joint ventures etc.
  • the company's relationship to Hella e.g. how important are they for us, what do we supply them with etc.

    Please send me the information in an e-mail to this address.

    Thank you very much in advance!

    Jim Grove



  • Task

    Together with your colleagues, you are going to research between 3 and 5 of your main customers. Then you are going to summarise what you found out in an email to your boss.


    Process

    1. You are going to work in groups of 2 or 3 people. Decide who is in your group.

    Group A - You are going to research Daimler-Chrysler. Here is the link to the Daimler-Chrysler website.

    Group B - You are going to research Volkswagen. Here is the link to the Volkswagen website.

    Group C - You are going to research Ford. Here is the link to the Ford website.

    Group D - You are going to research Renault. Here is the link to the Renault website.

    Group E - You are going to research Opel. Here is the link to the Opel website.


    2. In your group, find out the information that Jim Grove wants about your company. You can use Google to find other websites with useful information about your company.

    Here's a good English-German dictionary in case you need help with words: http://dict.leo.org


    3. Make a presentation to the other groups, telling them about your company. Each person in your group should make one part of the presentation, so that everybody has the chance to speak. Your presentation should last about 10-15 minutes.

    Important: Makes notes during the other groups' presentations - you will need the information they give you later.

    Here is a website with some useful presentation phrases.


    4. Using the information that you found out, and the information you got from the other groups, write your email to your boss. Write it on the laptop and send it to me as part of your homework.

    Here is a website with advice on how to write an email in English.


    Evaluation

    I will give you feedback on your email via the laptop, as usual.


    Conclusion

    Your boss was very happy with the information you sent him - congratulations! Maybe he will give you a pay rise... :-)


    Any questions? Write to me at david.smith@snafu.de.