《考研英語(yǔ)閱讀理解100篇 高分版》 Unit 14 - TEXT FOUR

Peter L?scher, the first outsider to become chief executive of Siemens, one of the world's biggest electrical engineering firms, spent his first three months at the firm travelling and listening. Then on October 4th he announced plans to centralise the conglomerate, reduce its nine divisions to three and downsize its 11-man executive board, which would truncate the power of the company's regional bosses. On the same day Siemens accepted a €210m ($285m) fine imposed by a court in Munich for bribery by its communications division, forgoing the right to appeal.
The coincidence could mark a turning point in attempts to change the firm's culture and put past scandals behind it. Last November police raided Siemens's offices, starting a scourge on bribery which so far has cost the company its chairman, its chief executive, another board member and its chief compliance officer, as well as at least €239m in fines and €179m in tax liabilities (the bribes had been deducted). What is more, in the nine months to June 30th alone, the bill for legal expenses and external advice came to €188m.
The affair has cost a great deal of management time, too. Debevoise & Plimpton, an American law firm, and forensic auditors from Deloitte are still scouring the company for evidence of more irregularities. In America the Department of Justice has two investigations running, and the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) is also examining claims of corruption. Legal proceedings in America alone could cost Siemens billions of dollars, say analysts, although Siemens argues in its most recent quarterly filing with the SEC that its “consolidated financial position should not be materially affected” by the welter of litigation.
Analysts are confident that Siemens will not only survive but benefit from all the upheaval. “Comparable American companies have gone through this, so have Alstom in France and ABB in Sweden, and they have emerged stronger and better run,” says James Stettler of Dresdner Kleinwort, an investment bank.
The three divisions Mr. L?scher has unveiled are energy products (such as power turbines and transmission equipment), infrastructure (such as factories and trains) and health care (such as MRI scanners and other clever medical kit). That does not necessarily mean Mr. L?scher will sell the businesses that do not fit, such as Osram, a maker of light bulbs, BSH, a joint venture with Bosch in household appliances, and Nokia Siemens Networks, recently formed to build telecom infrastructure.
The company's supervisory board will vet the changes on November 28th. Mr. L?scher may have most difficulty winning approval for those that will affect workers in Germany, whose representatives make up half the membership of the 20-strong supervisory board. If he gets his way, however, Mr. L?scher's next proposal may be to register Siemens as a Societas Europaea (SE) instead of as a German joint-stock company (AG). That would entail a slimmer supervisory board with reduced representation for German workers, but would give a voice to employees abroad. Other icons of German business, most notably Siemens's Munich neighbour, Allianz, a big insurer, have already made the switch. Mr. L?scher is chummy with Paul Achleitner, a member of Allianz's board and a fellow Austrian, with whom he recently stayed for three months.
1. The word “forgoing” (Line 5, Paragraph 1) most probably means _____.
[A] refusing
[B] reserving
[C] withdrawing
[D] considering
2. What Mr. L?scher will probably do to the three divisions he has unveiled?
[A] He will transfer them to other companies.
[B] He will downsize the executive board of the three divisions.
[C] He will recombine them into large division.
[D] It is not mentioned in the passage.
3. Mr. L?scher wants to register Siemens as an SE instead of an AG because _____.
[A] he aims to cut the number of German representatives in the supervisory board
[B] he seeks to centralize the conglomerate
[C] he wants to include multiple voices of the employees so as to enhance the democracy of the decision-making
[D] he strives to transform the company into a more international one
4. Towards the future of Siemens, the author's attitude can be said to be _____.
[A] optimistic
[B] pessimistic
[C] neutral
[D] unclear
5. By the close relationship between Mr. L?scher and Paul Achleitner, the author wants to imply that _____.
[A] Siemens will gain great support from Allianz
[B] Mr. L?scher made the decision to have a change under the influence of his friend
[C] Mr. L?scher wanted switch Siemens into an insurer in the future
[D] Mr. L?scher greatly valued his friend's sugges-tion