Business English Conversation Practice PDF: 6 Workplace Role-Plays

Business English conversation practice works best when you have something specific to achieve: confirm a deadline, explain a problem, agree on a next step or help a colleague understand your work. The six workplace conversations below give you models to read, then role cards that require you to make your own decisions.

These activities are designed for intermediate learners who can already describe familiar work situations in English. Start with the simpler introductions and clarification tasks, then move to negotiating a deadline or handling a client problem. All organisations, people and situations are fictional.

The printable workbook brings together the six dialogues, separate role cards, comprehension questions, planning space and an answer key. Use it with a partner, in a class or for recorded solo practice.

Download the free business English conversation practice PDF - 16 pages with six dialogues, role cards, planning space and answers.

How to use this business English conversation practice PDF

Read each model once to understand the situation. Answer the two comprehension questions, then check the answers at the end. Read the dialogue aloud with a partner and switch roles. Finally, put the model away and use the role cards to have a new conversation.

Each role card contains information the other person needs to discover. Avoid showing both cards to each speaker during a paired task. The goal is to reach an agreement that fits both people's conditions, using your own wording.

If you practise alone, read both cards and record alternating turns. You will know both sets of information, so this version cannot recreate a real information gap. It can still help you practise explaining constraints, asking questions and confirming decisions. Repeat with a changed detail rather than memorising the model.

Use this short sequence for a 15-minute session:

1. Read the situation and answer the questions.
2. Read the dialogue aloud, then switch roles.
3. Choose three useful phrases to keep in view.
4. Put the dialogue away and complete the role-play.
5. Listen back or ask your partner whether the final agreement was clear.

The dialogues are examples of courteous workplace English. Adapt names, levels of formality and communication channels to your own workplace. A polite phrase helps, but it does not remove a practical disagreement.

1. Introduce yourself and explain your work

Situation: Maya has joined a project team. Leo needs to know what she handles and how to contact her.

Maya: Hi, I'm Maya. I've just joined the operations team.

Leo: Nice to meet you. I'm Leo, from customer support. What will you be working on?

Maya: I'll be checking delivery schedules and following up on delayed orders. Who should I contact if a customer changes an address?

Leo: Send the details to our support inbox. One of us will update the order and confirm it with you.

Maya: Thanks. Is email best for an urgent change too?

Leo: For anything that needs action today, call the support desk first, then send the details by email.

Maya: Great. I'll call for urgent changes and use the inbox for routine updates.

Check your understanding

1. What two responsibilities does Maya describe?
2. What should she do when an address change needs action today?

Useful phrases: I'll be working on ...; Who should I contact if ...?; Is email best for ... too?

Your role-play

• A: new colleague. You check supplier invoices and investigate missing information. You need to know who can approve an invoice and how to handle one that must be paid today.
• B: finance colleague. The finance manager approves invoices. Routine requests go to the finance inbox. For a payment due today, A should call the manager first and then email the invoice. Your team cannot approve an invoice without the order number.

Finish by confirming the contact person, the routine channel and the urgent procedure. Change the task on a second attempt: A now handles staff travel bookings.

2. Ask for clarification before starting

Situation: A manager asks for a short report. The colleague checks the scope before beginning.

Nora: Could you send me a summary of last month's customer calls by Thursday?

Adam: Sure. When you say a summary, do you mean the number of calls or the main issues customers raised?

Nora: Both, but keep it to one page. Include the three most common issues.

Adam: Should I include email enquiries as well?

Nora: No, just phone calls for this report.

Adam: And do you need it first thing on Thursday, or later in the day?

Nora: By two in the afternoon, please. I'll use it in a meeting at three.

Adam: Understood: one page, phone calls only, with the totals and three main issues, by Thursday at two.

Check your understanding

1. Which communication channel is excluded from the report?
2. What information must the one-page report contain, and when is it due?

Useful phrases: When you say ..., do you mean ...?; Should I include ...?; Just to confirm ...

Your role-play

• A: manager. You need a one-page summary of this week's late deliveries by Friday at 11:00. Include the number of late deliveries and their main causes. Exclude cancelled orders. You initially ask only for "a delivery summary by Friday".
• B: colleague. You can prepare the summary, but you need to check the period, the length, which orders to include and the exact deadline. Ask before agreeing to the task.

Finish with B summarising the agreed scope and deadline. Change the period or the excluded category on your next attempt.

3. Give a progress update with a next step

Situation: Sam needs to know whether a product page can be ready on time.

Sam: How is the product page coming along?

Aisha: The text is finished, and I've checked the prices. I'm still waiting for two product photos.

Sam: Will that affect Friday's launch?

Aisha: It could. The photographer expects to send them tomorrow morning. If they arrive by noon, I can finish the page by four.

Sam: What if they're late?

Aisha: We could use the existing photos for the launch, then replace them next week. I'd need your approval for that.

Sam: That works. Let me know by noon tomorrow whether we need the backup plan.

Aisha: I will. I'll send you a status update at noon, and I'll finish the page by four if the new photos arrive in time.

Check your understanding

1. What work is complete, and what is still missing?
2. What backup plan does Sam approve?

Useful phrases: I've finished ...; I'm still waiting for ...; If ..., I can ...; I'd need your approval for that.

Your role-play

• A: project colleague. You have finished the presentation slides, but the sales figures have not arrived. You can complete the charts within two hours of receiving them. If they are not available by 14:00 today, you can use last month's figures, clearly labelled, with approval.
• B: manager. You need the presentation by 17:00 today. You can approve last month's figures as a temporary alternative, provided the slides clearly identify the period. Ask when you will receive an update and who will check the labels.

Agree on an update time, a backup plan and responsibility for checking the figures. On a second attempt, B needs the presentation at 15:00; renegotiate the plan.

4. Negotiate a deadline without making a vague promise

Situation: A colleague requests a complete review earlier than it can realistically be done.

Ben: Can you review the whole proposal by tomorrow morning?

Elena: I can review the budget section by then, but I won't be able to check the full document before Thursday afternoon.

Ben: The client wants an update tomorrow. Could you send the main risks first?

Elena: Yes. I can send the budget comments and a short list of risks by ten tomorrow. The detailed review would follow by three on Thursday.

Ben: That would help. Will the first review include the delivery schedule?

Elena: Only the major dates. I won't have checked the supplier commitments at that stage.

Ben: Understood. I'll explain that the first update is preliminary.

Elena: Thanks. I'll send the preliminary comments tomorrow at ten and the full review Thursday at three.

Check your understanding

1. What will Elena provide tomorrow at ten?
2. What will remain unchecked in that preliminary update?

Useful phrases: I can ... by then, but ...; Would it help if ...?; The detailed review would follow ...

Your role-play

• A: requester. You want a full training pack by Wednesday at 12:00 for a planning meeting. You can accept an outline for that meeting if it includes the topics, timing and materials needed. The final pack is needed by Friday at 16:00.
• B: writer. You can provide an outline by Wednesday at 10:00 and a complete pack by Friday at 15:00. You cannot provide the finished exercises for Wednesday. Explain that limitation clearly.

Agree on two deliverables and two deadlines. Confirm what the first version will contain. Do not call it complete if some materials are still missing.

5. Disagree politely and offer an alternative

Situation: Two colleagues are deciding how to train staff on a new booking system.

Olivia: I think we should send everyone a written guide and let them work through it.

Daniel: A guide would be useful. My concern is that some colleagues haven't used a booking system before.

Olivia: We don't have time for a long training session.

Daniel: Could we offer a twenty-minute demonstration and send the guide afterwards? We could record the demonstration for anyone who can't attend.

Olivia: That sounds manageable. What would you cover?

Daniel: Making a booking, changing it and checking the confirmation. The guide could cover less common problems.

Olivia: Let's do that. Can you prepare the demonstration for Monday?

Daniel: Yes. I'll prepare those three steps and send you the outline on Friday.

Check your understanding

1. Why does Daniel think the written guide alone may be insufficient?
2. What three actions will the demonstration cover?

Useful phrases: My concern is ...; Could we ... instead?; That sounds manageable.

Your role-play

• A: team lead. You suggest replacing the weekly team meeting with an email update to save time. You can keep a live meeting if it lasts no more than fifteen minutes.
• B: colleague. You support written updates for routine news, but unresolved problems need discussion. Propose a short meeting for questions and decisions, with routine information sent beforehand.

Agree on what goes in the email, what the meeting covers and its maximum duration. For a second attempt, one colleague cannot attend live; decide how they can contribute.

6. Handle a client problem and confirm the next action

Situation: A client reports an incomplete order. The account colleague investigates before promising a solution.

Client: We received six boxes this morning, but the order was for eight.

Ravi: I'm sorry two boxes are missing. Could you give me the order number and confirm which items arrived?

Client: The order is 4821. We have all the chairs, but only half the desk lamps.

Ravi: Thank you. I'll check the dispatch record with the warehouse. Do you need the remaining lamps for a particular date?

Client: Yes, we open the office on Friday.

Ravi: Understood. I'll call you by three today with an update. I need to confirm availability and transport before I can promise a delivery date.

Client: Please use my mobile number. I'm away from my desk this afternoon.

Ravi: Certainly. I'll call your mobile by three, even if I'm still waiting for the final delivery confirmation.

Check your understanding

1. Which items are incomplete, and when does the client need them?
2. What does Ravi promise, and what does he avoid promising?

Useful phrases: Could you confirm ...?; I'll check ...; Before I can promise ..., I need to ...

Your role-play

• A: client. Your order is 7316. You received ten printer cartridges, but you ordered twelve. You need the remaining two by Tuesday. You are available by phone only before 14:00 today; after that, use email.
• B: account colleague. You can contact the warehouse today, but you cannot yet confirm stock or delivery. Ask for the order details and the required date. Offer an update by 16:00, and check the best contact channel.

Finish by confirming the missing quantity, the required date, the update deadline and the channel. Distinguish the client's requested delivery date from a date you have actually confirmed.

Comprehension answers

These answers check the information in the model dialogues. A correct paraphrase is acceptable. The role-plays have several possible solutions; compare your agreement with the conditions on both cards.

Conversation	Question 1	Question 2
1	Maya checks delivery schedules and follows up on delayed orders.	Call the support desk first, then email the details.
2	Email enquiries are excluded.	Call totals and the three most common issues; Thursday at 14:00.
3	The text and price checks are complete; two photos are missing.	Use the existing photos for the launch, then replace them next week.
4	Budget comments and a short list of risks.	Supplier commitments have not been checked; only major delivery dates are included.
5	Some colleagues have never used a booking system.	Making a booking, changing it and checking the confirmation.
6	Half the desk lamps are missing; the client needs them for Friday's opening.	An update by 15:00 today on the client's mobile. Ravi does not promise an unconfirmed delivery date.

Check whether your conversation achieved its purpose

After each role-play, answer four questions:

• Did I explain the relevant facts and limitations?
• Did I ask about information I needed instead of guessing?
• Did our agreement satisfy both role cards?
• Did we confirm who will do what, by when and through which channel?

If the answer to one question is no, repeat that part of the conversation. Choose one language point to improve too: a question form, a clearer time expression or a phrase for a limitation. Correcting every sentence at once can make it hard to focus on the task.

A smooth conversation is not automatically a successful one. In the client task, promising Tuesday delivery without checking stock would sound helpful but leave an unsupported commitment. In the report task, saying "by Friday" would leave the exact deadline unclear. Use your final summary to expose those gaps.

Build a workplace practice routine

Use two conversations a week. In the first session, learn the model and complete the original role-play. In the second, change a deadline, a missing item or a person's availability. Keep the task goal and adapt your response to the new facts.

For language you can use inside these tasks, our business English vocabulary guide provides workplace words and phrases with examples. The business English course guide can help you organise broader practice around the skills you need at work.

Keep a short record of the agreements you reached and the phrases that helped. Return to one difficult conversation the following week with fewer notes. The aim is to handle a new workplace exchange clearly, rather than reproduce a memorised script.