Warm-up
Recruitment & Onboarding
Recruitment & Onboarding
After this lesson you'll be able to...
- Use key recruitment and onboarding vocabulary
- Interview a candidate and make a job offer
- Use the present perfect continuous and simple correctly with for and since
- Welcome and guide a new colleague through the first week
Get to know each other (3 minutes)
- How long have you been working in your current job or field?
- Have you ever interviewed a candidate or helped to hire someone?
- What was your first week at your last job like?
- What makes a good mentor?
Say it out loud
Practise describing how long you have done something. → I've been working in marketing for six years, and I've managed three teams.
Fact worth knowing
Vocabulary
Recruitment vocabulary
Useful recruitment phrases
| We'd like to offer you the position. | Ми хотіли б запропонувати вам цю посаду. |
| How long have you been working in this field? | Як довго ви працюєте в цій сфері? |
| We've been looking for someone like you. | Ми давно шукали такого фахівця, як ви. |
| Your first week will be an induction. | Ваш перший тиждень буде вступним. |
| You'll be shadowing Anna for the first two days. | Перші два дні ви спостерігатимете за роботою Анни. |
| The probation period is three months. | Випробувальний термін — три місяці. |
| Could you give me the names of two referees? | Чи можете назвати двох осіб для рекомендацій? |
| Welcome to the team! | Ласкаво просимо до команди! |
Try out the new words
Say what you would put in a job description for your own job. → The job description for my job would say that …
Say what a mentor could do for you. → A mentor could help me to …
Which word is it?
Fill in the missing word
Choose the correct word
Translate the phrase
Write each phrase in English. Several answers are possible.
Grammar
Present perfect continuous and simple
| Form: continuous | have / has + been + -ing: I've been working here for two years. She's been interviewing all morning. |
| When we use it | for an action that started in the past and continues now (or has just stopped, with a visible result): We've been looking for a designer since March. You look tired — have you been working late? |
| How long? | How long have you been working here? Use for + a period (for two years) and since + a point in time (since 2022, since March). |
| Simple = result / number | the present perfect simple focuses on the result or how many: I've written three reports. She's hired two people. |
| Continuous = activity / duration | the continuous focuses on the activity or how long: I've been writing reports all week. |
| State verbs | verbs such as know, like, have, be are usually simple only: I've known her for years. (NOT "I've been knowing"). |
| Careful! | NOT "I work here since 2022" → I've been working here since 2022. NOT "I've been working here three years ago". |
Simple or continuous?
for or since?
Open the brackets
Make a sentence
Make a correct sentence from the words (add words if needed).
Correcting mistakes
Each sentence has one mistake. Write the correct sentence.
Put the words in order
Put the words in the right order and write the full sentence.
Say it about your own work
Say how long you have been in your job and one result you have achieved. → I've been working as … for … and I've …
Reading
Read: a welcome email and a mentor chat
Email from HR: "Dear Andriy, welcome to the team! We've been looking for someone with your experience since March, and we're delighted that you accepted our offer. Your first week will be an induction. On Monday you'll meet your mentor, Halyna, who has been working here for six years. She'll show you around, and on Tuesday and Wednesday you'll be shadowing her. Please read the staff handbook before you start. Your probation period is three months. Best wishes, Irina, HR."
Mentor chat on Monday. Halyna: "How long have you been working in logistics?" — Andriy: "For about nine years. I've been working as a team leader since 2020, and I've managed two big projects." — Halyna: "Great. We've been using this system for a year, so you'll learn it quickly. I've been training new colleagues for a long time, and I've helped five of them to pass the probation period." — Andriy: "That's encouraging. I've been reading the handbook all weekend, and I have two questions about the notice period." — Halyna: "Of course. Let's go through them over coffee."
True or false?
The company has been looking for someone since March.
Andriy's probation period is six months.
Halyna has been working at the company for six years.
Andriy has been a team leader since 2020.
Halyna has helped five colleagues to pass probation.
Andriy has not read the handbook.
Answer the questions
What will Andriy do on Tuesday and Wednesday?
How long has Andriy been working in logistics?
How long has the company been using the system?
What does Andriy want to ask about?
Find the present perfect
Write the present perfect phrase from the text.
Fill in from the text
Why is this onboarding good?
Your own opinion
- Is the induction plan good enough? What would you add?
- What would you ask a mentor in your first week?
- What helps you feel welcome in a new job?
Practice
Picture the process
Vacancy → Shortlist → Offer → Onboarding. Each step needs clear, polite language.
Match the phrase to its function
Put the words in order
Put the words in the right order and write the full sentence.
Fill in the missing phrase
Ask about experience
Write one question.
Translate into English
Write each sentence in English. Several answers are possible.
A recruitment fact
Speaking — Hire and Welcome
How to use this section
Your tutor plays a candidate, a new colleague or a manager. React in real time — interview a candidate, make an offer, welcome a new person, answer questions about the probation period and, at the end, resign politely. Use the present perfect continuous and simple correctly.
Opening an interview as the interviewer
Task: welcome a candidate, explain the plan and ask about their experience.
Starter: "Thank you for coming. We've been looking for someone with your experience for a while. How long have you been working in this field?"
Asking follow-up questions
Candidate: "I've been working as a project manager for six years."
Starter: "That's great. How many projects have you managed? And what have you been focusing on recently?"
Asking for references
Task: ask a candidate for two referees and explain what you will do with them.
Starter: "Could you give me the names of two referees? We'll contact them next week, with your permission."
Making a job offer
Task: offer the position, give the salary package, the start date and the probation period.
Starter: "We'd like to offer you the position of project manager. The salary package includes … and the probation period is three months. When could you start?"
Discussing the notice period
Candidate: "I have a two-month notice period in my current job."
Starter: "I understand. Would it be possible to shorten it to one month? If not, we can wait until the first of November."
Welcoming a new colleague
Task: welcome a new colleague, explain the first week and introduce the mentor.
Starter: "Welcome to the team! Your first week is an induction. You'll be shadowing Halyna, who's been working here for six years."
Mentoring
New colleague: "I'm not sure how to use the system."
Starter: "Don't worry — I've been using it for a year. Let's go through it together. Have you been reading the handbook?"
Resigning politely
Task: tell your manager that you are resigning, thank them and offer to help during the notice period.
Starter: "I'd like to let you know that I've decided to resign. I've been working here for four years and I've learned a lot. I'm happy to help with the handover."
Full hiring process — no stopping
Run through the whole process with your tutor: interview, references, offer, notice period and a welcome on day one — entirely in English.
Let's talk — reflection
- Which questions with "How long have you been…?" did you use?
- Did you separate "how long" (continuous) from "how many" (simple)?
- What would you do differently if you were hiring for real?
Cool down
Now I can...
- Use key recruitment and onboarding vocabulary
- Interview a candidate and make a job offer
- Use the present perfect continuous and simple correctly with for and since
- Welcome and guide a new colleague through the first week
Quick self-check
When do we use "for" and "since"?
What does the simple form focus on?
Why can we not say "I've been knowing"?
One more thing before you go
Tell your tutor how long you have been learning English. → I've been learning English for … / since …
Homework
- Do the exercises below and press Check in each one. Green = correct. Red shows what was expected.
- Do the writing and speaking tasks and tick them when they are done.
- Write your name and press Copy my result, then send the text to your tutor.
Words to remember
| a vacancy | вакансія |
| a job description | опис посади |
| to shortlist | відібрати до короткого списку |
| a reference | рекомендація (від колишнього керівника) |
| to hire | наймати |
| a job offer | пропозиція роботи |
| a contract | трудовий договір |
| a probation period | випробувальний термін |
| a notice period | термін повідомлення про звільнення |
| a salary package | пакет винагороди |
| onboarding | онбординг, адаптація нового співробітника |
| a mentor | наставник |
| a staff handbook | довідник працівника |
| to shadow someone | вчитися, спостерігаючи за кимось |
| to resign | звільнитися за власним бажанням |
| a candidate | кандидат |
Fill in the missing word
Simple or continuous?
Open the brackets
Correct the mistake
Each sentence has one mistake. Write the correct sentence.
Translate the phrase
Write each phrase in English. Several answers are possible.
Write it yourself
Write a welcome email (6–8 sentences) to a new colleague: when the induction starts, who the mentor is (and how long they have been at the company), and what the probation period is. Use the present perfect twice.
Practise out loud
Say the welcome message aloud as if you were speaking to the new colleague, with a warm tone.
Read aloud
Read the welcome email and the mentor chat from the Reading section aloud twice.
- 8.7 I wrote a welcome email (6–8 sentences)
- 8.8 I said the welcome message aloud
- 8.9 I read the email and chat aloud twice