9 . Chief executive officer. Marketing director. Lead writer. Job titles like these have generally been standard across work for years. They communicate essential employee details such as job function and seniority. They make sense to employees and recruiters (招聘人员) alike, leaving little room for ambiguity. However, labels like “chief visionary officer”, “business development guru (大师) ”or “chief remote officer” are emerging. In many industries, especially creative ones, employers feel free to create job titles for employees. They can serve as recruitment or retention (留用) tools — and even grab attention from clients.
This was the case for Lennie Hughes, whose official job title is “head of hype (炒作) and culture” at Truant, a London-based advertising agency. Initially, this position was advertised as a more traditional “head of marketing and new business“. But, after being recruited, Hughes worked with Truant to craft a new title for the role he’d lead, centred more on integrating traditional external branding and communications with a fresh take on internal workplace culture. He also acknowledges it’s not without strategic benefit. “If my job is all about getting attention, the title should do that, too.”
Experts and employees alike say there can be an upside to flashy job titles. Pawel Adrjan works for Indeed, a large hiring platform. He cites Indeed data, showing “people” is outdoing the traditional title of “human resources”; similarly, the title of “talent acquisition” is up 75% while “recruitment” is down 19% since 2019. Adrjan says, “By using ‘people’ in the title, employers can say they invest in people. Through this language, companies are trying to show they don’t regard employees as resources to tap.”
But beware, these fancy new titles aren’t all good news. Sometimes they offer little guidance as to what their job actually involves. Ultimately, when a non-descriptive, overblown job title is used as a costless recruiting method to boost worker ego (自尊心), it can lead to a mismatch in expectations between employer and employee. At the extreme end, this could place workers in a tough position where they end up in a role that doesn’t match what they thought was promised.
1. What best explains“ambiguity”underlined in paragraph 1?
| A．Growth. | B．Confusion. | C．Discussion. | D．Improvement. |
2. Which of the following best describes Lennie Hughes?
| A．Hard-working. | B．Honest. | C．Considerate. | D．Innovative. |
3. What does paragraph 3 tell us about the new job titles?
| A．They are mainly used to attract investment. |
| B．They are starting to lose popularity among employers. |
| C．They can make employees feel more respected. |
| D．They can help companies tap a broader candidate pool. |
4. What does the last paragraph mainly focus on?
| A．The growing mismatch between workers and their job titles. |
| B．The negative impact of unconventional job titles. |
| C．The unrealistic expectations of employers. |
| D．The tough position of modern workers. |
