IT technician
finance director
office assistant
sales representative
engineer
human resources manager
What to say when you first meet
A first introduction at work is a short exchange: a greeting and your name, a reply, then your job. At work, people usually give their first name and surname: “I’m Maya Cole.” It helps others find you later in an email or on a meeting list.
Below, two colleagues meet for the first time. Listen, then take one role with your own name and job. In everyday talk you will also hear “What do you do?” instead of “What’s your job?”
Maya Hello. I'm Maya Cole.
Owen Hi. I'm Owen Hart. Nice to meet you.
Maya Nice to meet you too.
Owen What's your job?
Maya I'm an operations coordinator. And you?
Owen I'm a sales assistant.
Job titles: “a” or “an”?
A job after “I’m”, “he’s” or “she’s” needs “a” or “an”; many languages leave this word out, so it’s easy to forget. The first sound decides, not the first letter: “a” before a consonant sound, “an” before a vowel sound.
If your title is long, name your department instead: “I work in sales.”, “I work in finance.”
- a sales assistant
- a finance director
- a human resources manager (the “h” is pronounced)
- an engineer
- an office assistant
- an IT technician (“I” is said “eye”, a vowel sound)
Spelling your first name and surname
Anyone adding you to a list, a visitor badge or an email will probably ask “Can you spell that?” Give your first name and surname separately; if they say “Again, please.”, repeat the letters more slowly.
“Surname” or “last name” is your family name; a second given name is a “middle name”. Use the English letter names. The ones people mix up most are A (rhymes with “day”), E (like “see”), I (like “my”), G and J.
- “What’s your first name?” – “Maya.”
- “Can you spell that?” – “M-A-Y-A.”
- “And your surname?” – “Cole. C-O-L-E.”
- “Again, please.” – “C-O-L-E.”
Introducing a colleague and checking a name
To introduce someone, say “This is my colleague, …” and add their job. To check a name or a job, ask “Are you …?”; answer “Yes, I am.” or “No, I’m not.” and, after a no, give the right information.
- “This is my colleague, Lina.”
- “She’s a finance director.” / “He’s an engineer.”
- “Are you Maya Hall?” – “No, I’m not. I’m Maya Cole.”
- “Are you a sales assistant?” – “Yes, I am.”
- When you leave: “Goodbye. See you soon.”
Common mistakes
People will understand you, but these stand out in a first meeting:
- “I’m engineer.” A job needs “a/an”: “I’m an engineer.”
- “Yes, I’m.” The short answer is “Yes, I am.”; use “I’m” only when more words follow.
- Using your own language’s letter names. Cole is “see – oh – el – ee”.
- Repeating “Nice to meet you” word for word. If the other person said it first, answer “Nice to meet you too.” or just “You too.”
A 10-minute daily practice routine
The goal is to say your introduction without thinking. Do it out loud, in the same order each day.
- 3 minutes: write your introduction and say it out loud: “Hello. I’m [first name, surname]. I’m a/an [job]. Nice to meet you.” Check whether your job takes “a” or “an”.
- 2 minutes: spell your first name and surname in English three times; record yourself on your phone and listen back.
- 2 minutes: introduce three colleagues: “This is my colleague, … She’s a … / He’s an …”
- 3 minutes: play the conversation above, pause after each line and repeat it, then take one role with your own name.
What comes next
Once introductions feel easy, move on to the company and contact details: “Where’s your head office?”, “What’s your email address?” For email addresses, say “at” for @ and “dot” for the full stop. Short work emails and meeting requests come next.