IELTS Speaking Part 2: 'prize' answer

Describe a prize that you would like to win. You should explain

- what the prize is for
- how you know about it
- what you would have to do to win it
- and why you would like to win this prize.

·    I’m going to talk about a prize that I would like to win, which is the ‘employee of the year’ award at the company where I work. At the end of December each year, the company directors give this award to a member of staff who has made an outstanding contribution to the business over the previous twelve months.

·    I first heard about this prize during my training and orientation period just after I got the job three years ago. It was early December and some of my colleagues were discussing who might be awarded ‘employee of the year’ later that month. I was intrigued, and asked them to tell me more about the award.

·    As I said, the prize is given for ‘outstanding contribution to the businesses. We don’t have an exact definition of what this means, but we assume that you have to achieve certain standards, such as 100% attendance, good punctuality, meeting targets and deadlines, good teamwork, and so on. I think the winner also needs to have done something especially creative. For example, last year’s winner created a completely new service for our clients.

·    I’d like to win ‘employee of the year’ because it would mean that my work had been recognized by the company directors, and this would definitely help me to progress in my career. It would also give me a great sense of personal achievement.